Having 3 labradors it always seems that at least once a year one of them needs to wear a Buster collar. I hate them with a passion but I realize how important they are and I do use them when instructed and I have had the bruises on the backs of my legs to prove it. I tried the blow up one but that didn't last very long when one of the other labs decided it was a frisbee attached to the other ones neck.. The air went out of it very quickly <g>. Recently I found a great alternative to the Buster Collar, a soft- e-collar. http://www.bonafido.com/page6.html Just thought I would share my find.

Elizabeth - from Nova Scotia August 13th, 2008 08:44:00 PM

I second the soft-E collar from Bonafido. My Golden manages to get hot spots one or twice a year, usually on rump area. The soft-E works and is less anoying (tho still somewhat annoying) and it prevents her from getting at the spot pretty well. If the hot spot was on top of her head or upper neck (a previous Golden gave himself a monster hot spot there once) it probably wouldn't work.

kate7047 August 13th, 2008 09:51:00 PM

Having many Corgis come through our rescue, I pretty much use the lampshade for everyone. However, we had one chubby boy who would lick his front legs into raw hamburger. Treated for allergies, OCD, everything. What finally worked was an inflatable hemorrhoid cushion from the drug store, tied onto his collar with a shoestring. He wore it everywhere, and he could eat, drink, play, go up and down stairs - just no lick his paws. He's since been placed, and is on his third one, so it's working out great.

Debbie August 13th, 2008 10:33:00 PM

I'm not sure if this is a bird thing only, but I've seen photos of birds with spherical-shaped hard plastic collars.

zandperl August 13th, 2008 10:44:00 PM

Both of my dogs have been in e-collars lately. I tried the bite not collar for Archie, my border collie but he hated that even more than the e-collar. We suffered terribly the first few days with the e-collar but he finally got used to it and even made a game out of scooping his toys up with it, tossing them in the air and catching them. It was a pain for me when he wanted to get on the bed though!

My other dog, Lydia started out with an e-collar that was too short. She was able to get to her incision. It was also frosted plastic, so she couldn't see through it and bumped into things repeatedly. She would stop in her tracks and stare at me. It was so pathetic. When I got a new one that was a little bigger, it also happened to be clear. It made a huge difference for her to be able to see through the darn thing. She never learned how to play games with it like Archie but she did OK once she was able to see through it.

Therese August 13th, 2008 11:18:00 PM

Here's a sixth - at least when preventing damage to the eyes is what you are after: http://www.abc.net.au/tv/newinventors/txt/s2251463...

This is from an Australian TV program featuring new inventions.

Alison August 13th, 2008 11:29:00 PM

I'm one of those owners who refuse to take a dog home in an e-collar... my regular vet doesn't even try any more but the emergency clinic will. In my defense I'll say that due to the size of my dogs 1) usually the e-collar they put on is way too short to do any good, or 2) if the collar IS long enough, the open end is 28" or 30" across or more. Try getting THAT into your car, much less through any doorway in your house without traumatizing the dog! :-) Most of the time, if the dog's pain is really well controlled I find that they leave their sutures alone. But sometimes as a wound is healing it itches, then I use T-shirts, bandages, Bitter Apple, T-Touch and sedatives as needed. Oh, and a sleepless night or two watching the dog if necessary. Fortunately, the Danes I've had to work with (both my dogs and foster dogs) have not been obsessive about their sutures and haven't been that difficult to manage. I've never (oh boy now I've jinxed it) had one chew out sutures or aggravate a wound.
But thanks for this post, since I am interested in alternatives! Because sooner or later I know I'll probably need one.

Barb August 14th, 2008 04:02:00 AM

My Schnauzer had a growth removed from his foot this spring and we tried the bonafido soft e-collar. Either my boy is a yoga professor in training or I do not know what - no success for us. We ended up with a 20" e-collar (taller than the height of my boys withers!). If anyone wants to buy a nearly brand-new soft e-collar .... : D

Julie August 14th, 2008 09:14:00 AM

Ditto on the aversion to lampshades here. I have yet to see anyone actually size my GSDs one that was actually big enough, and if it were big enough, it wouldn't fit in the door, or my built-in-1964 narrow hallway. It's just a no-go, can't do situation. I'd love to try the neck-brace thing though! Thus far it's been clothing and bitter apple and hope.

lindabcs August 14th, 2008 10:50:00 AM

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Jonathan August 14th, 2008 11:36:00 AM

Zack had to wear a cone in the winter - when he came in the house we called it his "snow-cone" because it would be full of snow from him trying to sniff where he was going to pee. He shattered one on a very cold morning because he bumped the banister with it after being out in well below freezing temps for a few minutes!

teri August 14th, 2008 01:09:00 PM

So glad we don't have snow down here. I don't need any more reasons to excuse a pet his e-collar. Pools are enough of a hazard when it comes to e-collars (incidentally, most people don't recognize this).

Dr. Patty Khuly August 14th, 2008 03:06:00 PM

btw, Jonathan: Like your site. When did your CEO graduate from Wharton? His name sounds familiar. I'm a '97. Drop me an email, OK?

Dr. Patty Khuly August 14th, 2008 03:11:00 PM

Julie, I might be interested in your collar! Our pup licked a couple of lesions on herself. We've kept an e-collar on her, and they've healed up, but it could occur again. She's resigned to the lampshade (has never tried to pull it off), but it gets snagged in doorways, and she's tipped over her water bowl. I don't know her neck size, but she's a 60 lb. lab shepherd mix. Contact me at lookrkt at yahoo.com if it seems like a fit.

lin August 14th, 2008 04:17:00 PM

I just ordered one of the K-9 Topcoats for my rough collie (primarily to keep the burrs out of her tail at a field we go running in) but the t-shirt thing worked great for us after her spay- I *did* secure it over the top with a layer of vet wrap. The K-9 topcoats, btw, are available as seconds, for a VERY reasonable price.

Cait August 14th, 2008 08:05:00 PM

I once fashioned a pretty good emergency "e-collar" out of an old plastic flowerpot. Plastic buckets work too, but are usually heavier.

The advantage of the flowerpot is that it was narrower, and thus was less effective at bashing everything in the house.

Wouldn't work for everything that a large satellite dish does, but kept this dog from getting at a wound.

A client's chronic flank-chewing Doberman ended up doing best in a wire basket muzzle. He had been wearing a HUGE e-collar more or less 24/7 for over a year when I first saw him. His neck was an orthopedic disaster -- if the e-collar didn't cause it, it sure hadn't helped. He could at least move freely with the muzzle instead. Many more owners should consider basket muzzles when appropriate.

H Houlahan August 14th, 2008 09:48:00 PM

I second Elizabeth's vote for the bonafido collar. They get to keep their perpheral vision, and they can eat.

Stefani August 14th, 2008 11:15:00 PM

We did buy one of the neck brace types in case Chris had to wear an e-collar again. The big advantage it would have had for him was that, being blind, he relied on his body's position in space to navigate and the giant expansion the regular e-collar saddled him with made navigation without sight impossible.

Natalie August 15th, 2008 12:21:00 AM

Hooray for basket muzzles!

anna August 15th, 2008 12:24:00 AM

Oooh...the basket muzzle! I should've listed that one. Here's a link to my ode to the much-maligned cage/basket muzzle:
http://www.dolittler.com/index.cfm/2008/3/19/pet.v...

Dr. Patty Khuly August 15th, 2008 08:48:00 AM

I know about all of the above E-collar alternatives. Some of them should be banned from use, while others work well in certain situations. I have a black lab that has been licking his front paws since we got him 3 years ago. Like everyone else, we have tried a number of products with no avail. Finally, we found a relatively new product called the STROCK. It is a sock and strap system that is placed over the dogs front or back paws. It is water proof, so the wound area stays clean and dry. Check out this link www.twotuttlescom/TheStrock.html

Wayne Tuttle August 27th, 2008 10:02:00 AM

I have had very good luck with Bonafido's "RuffTuff" bandages (similar concept to the Strock) for keeping a dog from bothering front leg wounds. Tried the Bonafido soft e-collar and it works to prevent access to some areas, but it was too easy for the dog the bend the collar out of the way with a front leg it wanted to remove stitches from. Got great service from Bonafido - they happily exchanged the soft e-collar for the RuffTuffs. I've left RuffTuffs on a determined unattended dog (border collie) all day long and never had the dog get one off.

Not an e-collar replacement, but I also really liked the Medipaw (http://www.medivetproducts.com/) for protecting a wounded leg when venturing outside for a walk. Unlike the commonly used plastic bag (or recycled IV bag), the Medipaw is made of a goretex-like fabric that is waterproof and breathable, so you can leave it on as long as you want without worrying about condensation building up inside and getting the bandage wet, which happens in relatively short order with plastic bags. These two products made the long recoveries from deep lacerations and a tarsal fracture (multiple incidents) quite easy for me to manage. Traditional e-collars, in my experience, cannot be thus described.

Alaska September 3rd, 2008 02:14:00 AM

thanks

mms September 16th, 2008 10:37:00 AM

did anyone ever try switching the dogs food for feet biting, hot spots etc? I found that taking my dog off corn and wheat took care of the paw sores and hot spots, it also took care of the ear problems. You have to read the bag of dog food carefully though because alot of foods that say lamb/rice or chicken/rice also have alot of other stuff in it so find a food that is just chicken/rice or lamb/rice and stay away from by-products and chemical preservatives

renee September 25th, 2008 11:06:00 AM

I have a small bichon and after his neutering he refused to wear his collar and could slip it off. I took his loose doggy sweater turned it upside, stuck his tail throught the neck hole and put his rear legs through the leg holes. I then tied strings at the top, (really the bottom) and tied it to his collar.  It worked great, he was comfortable and could eat and drink and walk around normally. I still had to watch him closely, and I had to remove it to go outside, but at least we got sleep and he got more rest and wasn't constantly fighting the collar.

General February 18th, 2009 10:01:45 AM

I love these: Vetone Elizasoft Recovery cones. The are soft and bendable, but still do the job-at least for my cat. In the past, she has figured out how to get around other soft collars--but not this one. Since the material is flexible, we sometimes push it back so it looks like a clown collar and her vision is not blocked at all.Other times, if we see her trying to get at her sore, ew can bend it up so that she is more protected.  

Christine March 9th, 2009 06:50:25 AM

I have mini schnauzer who just had a large tumor removed from the inner thigh/groin area. His excision is almost six inches long and a concern to the vet that the area would be aggravated by walking and could pull out the subcutaneous stiches that have the loose pouch of skin attached to the abdominal wall.  Of course we came home with the sattelite dish on and its a NO GO! He will not even move with it on. He can't see where he is going, can't reach the food or water dish, and he's catching it on the floorwhen he walks beacuse his head is hanging so low. I'm familiar with the pathetic look now. I am trying the tip about the backwards dog sweater. So far so, good and the sweater may actually help keep the sutures from pulling away as well as keeping him from getting to them. Thanks for the tip!

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DO NOT UTILIZE A ONESIE FOR ANY POST-SURGICAL ALTERNATIVES TO THE E-COLLAR!!!!   Believe me folks, save yourself $1100 and a night of fear and heartache.  My Miniature Schnauzer was spayed a few days ago, and someone suggested using a onesie instead of the e-collar.  Well, she chewed her stitches off through the onesie, and her intestines were bulging out of the hole.  It was the most horrible night.  After rushing her to the hospital, she was put under (second time in as many days), stitched up, and stapled, as well as her abdomen flushed, and other poking and prodding. She had to stay the night, which no doubt traumatized her.  Antibiotics are needed now because she was exposed to the environment, and what was going to be a simple, routine procedure turned into a nightmare that could have been avoided had we not tried to cut corners.  Yes, e-collars suck and she absolutely hates it, but it's a SMALL price to pay for her safety.  She WILL learn how to deal with it for the next 10 days.  It just takes some orienting.  Thank God we have pet insurance through the ASPCA, so they will reimburse much of the cost, but had we just sucked it up and did what the vet said, we could have avoided all of this mess.

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For small dogs: try cutting out a e-collar from a thin foam camping mat.

My dog chokes on hard platic e collars and makes alot og noise at night.

I also use a soft or leather muzzle and doggie boots on rear legs.

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