How much growing room does my puppy need in their new collar?
Updated: Sep 29
Puppies grow at very different rates, so there is no standard amount of “growing room” that should be added to every puppy collar.
A small-breed puppy may already be relatively close to its adult neck size while still looking very young. A giant-breed puppy of the same age may have a huge amount of physical development still ahead.
That is why, when you order a collar for a puppy from Kegdog, we want to know more than just their current neck measurement.
Tell us their age and breed, and send us a photograph of the measurement being taken.
That information helps us make a much more educated decision about where to position the adjustment in their new collar.
Further Reading: Measurement Guide
Small and giant breeds grow very differently
A puppy’s age alone does not tell us how much growth to expect.
Small breeds generally mature earlier than large and giant breeds. A small dog may therefore need relatively modest additional adjustment even when they are still clearly a puppy.
A giant breed can be very different. Their neck, head and overall proportions can continue changing considerably as they develop, so trying to treat them in the same way as a small-breed puppy does not make sense.
This is one of the reasons we do not simply add a fixed number of centimetres to every puppy collar.
The useful question is not:
“How much extra room does a puppy need?”
It is:
“How much growth does your puppy likely have left?”
Why we ask for your puppy's breed and age for collar growing room
Over the years we have built up knowledge of the dogs we make for, including their breed, age and neck measurements.
That gives us a useful reference when we are making for another puppy.
If we know, for example, that your puppy is a certain breed at a particular age and currently has a particular neck measurement, we can compare that information with dogs we have previously made for.
It does not allow us to predict the future size of an individual dog exactly. Genetics, sex, build and development all vary.
But it does allow us to make a more informed estimate than simply guessing how much growing room to add.
Why the measurement photograph matters
The number on the tape is only part of the information we need.
A measurement photograph lets us check:
where the tape is sitting on the neck
how tightly or loosely it has been held
the puppy's current neck proportions
how much coat is involved in the measurement
whether the proposed collar width looks proportionate
For a growing puppy, that context is particularly useful.
Two puppies can both measure 30cm around the neck but have completely different builds and very different amounts of development still ahead.
This is why we ask for measurement photographs rather than relying solely on the number entered with the order.
Why don't we simply make the puppy collar much bigger?
Because a puppy still needs a collar that fits them now to keep them safe and secure.
Building in as much future growth as possible can result in a collar that is oversized, bulky or badly proportioned during the period when the puppy is actually wearing it.
Instead, we try to position the available adjustment intelligently.
With a buckle collar, for example, the puppy does not necessarily need to begin in the middle adjustment hole. If their breed and age suggest significant growth is still likely, we can consider how the adjustment is distributed around their current measurement.
The aim is useful growing room, not maximum growing room.
Different puppy collar designs allow different amounts of growth
The type of collar matters too.
Traditional buckle collars generally provide the greatest flexibility because they have several adjustment positions.
Other designs, including martingales, semi-slips and shaped hound collars, rely more heavily on particular proportions and cannot simply be enlarged without changing how they fit or function.
A very wide collar also needs to remain in proportion with a puppy's current neck. Making it substantially larger in the hope that the dog will eventually grow into it may not produce a good fit in the meantime.
This is why we consider the puppy and the collar design together.
Will my puppy's first collar last into adulthood?
Sometimes it will. Sometimes it won't.
For a smaller breed that is already approaching maturity, there may be enough adjustment available to accommodate the remaining growth.
For a young giant-breed puppy, expecting one collar to cover every stage from puppyhood to full adult size may simply be unrealistic.
We would rather be clear about that than make a collar excessively large now in an attempt to promise that it will last indefinitely.
A collar should suit the dog wearing it at the current stage of their development.
Tell us you're ordering for a puppy
When ordering from Kegdog, please tell us if your dog is still growing.
Give us:
their breed
their age
their current measurement
and send us a measurement photograph.
We can then use their current proportions alongside the information we have collected from other dogs of similar ages and breeds to make an educated estimate about the adjustment they are likely to need.
We cannot know exactly how any individual puppy will develop, but we can use the information available to make a collar with their likely growth in mind.
That is one of the advantages of making every collar individually rather than asking a growing puppy to fit into a standard size chart.
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