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Fit guide

Getting the size right

A collar that fits properly should sit at the base of the neck with room for two fingers underneath – snug enough that it can’t pull over the head, loose enough that it never presses. This page shows you how to measure, works out your size, and gives a breed guide for when you can’t get a tape near your dog.

How to measure

  1. 1. Find the base of the neck

    Not just behind the ears – the neck narrows there, and a collar measured that high rides up under the jaw. Go lower, to the widest part just above the shoulders, where a collar naturally settles.

  2. 2. Two fingers under the tape

    Slide two fingers flat between the tape and the coat, and take the measurement with them in place. Two fingers lying flat – not pushed in edgeways, not a whole hand. This is the clearance that makes a collar comfortable without making it an escape risk.

  3. 3. Read it off

    Whatever number you get is your collar size – no need to add anything. No tape measure? Use string or a phone cable, mark where it meets, then hold it against a ruler. Most people find that easier than wrestling a tape around a wriggling dog.

A note on coats

Double-coated breeds measure bigger in winter than after a spring moult. If your dog carries a lot of coat, take a second measurement with your fingers pressed gently down to the skin and tell us both numbers.

Diagram showing where to measure a dog's neck, with two fingers under the tape

Find your size

Enter the measurement from around the base of your dog’s neck.

Units

Your size will appear here as you type.

The size chart

Every collar adjusts within its band. If you fall between two sizes, size up – a collar can always come in, but it can never go out.

Collar sizes and their neck ranges
SizeNeck (cm)Neck (inches)
XS2028cm7.911.0"
S2835cm11.013.8"
M3543cm13.816.9"
L4352cm16.920.5"
XL5263cm20.524.8"

Breed guide

A starting point, not an answer. Dogs vary enormously within a breed – two labradors from the same litter can be two sizes apart – so please treat this as a sanity check on a measurement rather than a substitute for one.

62 breeds

Typical adult neck measurements and collar sizes by breed
BreedGroupTypical neckUsual size
AffenpinscherToy2530cmXS–S
Airedale TerrierTerrier4048cmM–L
AkitaWorking5060cmL–XL
Alaskan MalamuteWorking5060cmL–XL
Basset HoundHound4050cmM–L
BeagleHound3341cmS–M
Bearded ColliePastoral4048cmM–L
Bernese Mountain DogWorking5060cmL–XL
Bichon FriseToy2532cmXS–S
Border ColliePastoral3646cmM–L
Border TerrierTerrier3038cmS–M
Boston TerrierUtility3341cmS–M
BoxerWorking4555cmL–XL
Bull TerrierTerrier4351cmL
BulldogUtility4353cmL–XL
Cavalier King Charles SpanielToy2835cmS
ChihuahuaToy2026cmXS
Chow ChowUtility4555cmL–XL
CockapooCrossbreed3040cmS–M
Cocker SpanielGundog3341cmS–M
Dachshund (Miniature)Hound2532cmXS–S
Dachshund (Standard)Hound3340cmS–M
DalmatianUtility4352cmL
DobermanWorking4858cmL–XL
English SetterGundog4352cmL
English Springer SpanielGundog3846cmM–L
French BulldogUtility3543cmM
German ShepherdPastoral4858cmL–XL
Golden RetrieverGundog4353cmL–XL
Great DaneWorking5563cmXL
GreyhoundHound3846cmM–L
Hungarian VizslaGundog4048cmM–L
Irish SetterGundog4351cmL
Jack Russell TerrierTerrier2836cmS–M
LabradoodleCrossbreed3850cmM–L
Labrador RetrieverGundog4353cmL–XL
Lhasa ApsoUtility2835cmS
LurcherHound3848cmM–L
MalteseToy2228cmXS
Miniature SchnauzerUtility3340cmS–M
NewfoundlandWorking5563cmXL
Old English SheepdogPastoral4858cmL–XL
PapillonToy2027cmXS
PomeranianToy2229cmXS–S
Poodle (Miniature)Utility2836cmS–M
Poodle (Standard)Utility4050cmM–L
Poodle (Toy)Toy2229cmXS–S
PugToy3340cmS–M
Rhodesian RidgebackHound4858cmL–XL
RottweilerWorking5363cmXL
Saint BernardWorking5563cmXL
SamoyedPastoral4555cmL–XL
Shar PeiUtility4555cmL–XL
Shetland SheepdogPastoral3340cmS–M
Shih TzuUtility2835cmS
Siberian HuskyWorking4353cmL–XL
Staffordshire Bull TerrierTerrier4050cmM–L
WeimaranerGundog4555cmL–XL
Welsh CorgiPastoral3543cmM
West Highland White TerrierTerrier3038cmS–M
WhippetHound3340cmS–M
Yorkshire TerrierToy2027cmXS

Lead lengths

My standard lead is 1.2m, which suits most pavement and park walking: long enough that your dog isn’t held tight to your leg, short enough to stay out of the mud and off other people. If you want something shorter for town, or longer for open ground, say so when you order and we’ll make it to length at no extra cost.

Got your number?

Everything is made to order around your measurement, so once you know the size you can choose your strap colour and hardware finish.

Have a look at what we make