My MinPin does very well with an e-collar, but we had been using the very unreliable Innotec toy dog collar and I wanted to upgrade to something better.

Trouble is that she is only 9 lbs. and her neck is so skinny and slick with her short, smooth coat that the collars only stay in place if they are very tight, which makes her gag, the contact points are too wide and she doesn't have a flat enough plane to her neck, and the reciever boxes are too big for her to be comfortable when she is relaxing or curled up on her bed.

When the Einsteins became available, I contacted Ed and Jeff Frawley and asked them about the idea of mounting the reciever on a vest or harness, and they were not sure how it could be done, but thought it was worth a try. So, I ordered the Mini Einstein 300 from Leerburg.

Here is what I came up with:



I used a web vest, this one:



and poked the contacts through the mesh. I replaced the collar that came with the Einstein and used a nylon snap buckle strap instead that goes around her ribcage. Then for added security I sewed a piece of elastic to the vest which holds the receiver box snug.

The box does shift at times, for instance when she lays down the whole vest slides farther back, but the contact points are still firmly against her skin.

I have not used an e-collar on her for a while, since I had given up on the Innotek, but she has picked up quickly in our off leash work (with bunnies in the neighborhood!) using just the tone and tap mode on the Einstein.
I'm very pleased with this configuration. My dog seems more comfortable with the reciever off her neck, and I am so happy to have the levels, distance and reliability of a "real" e-collar!

Very interesting!

I might have to steal your idea, I have been wanting to get an e collar for Foxy but find the same problems you did. How is it working for you?

It is working very well. The Einstein Mini 300 was recommended to me by Ed. The 400 has a larger range (and costs more), but Jeff F. mentioned that the transmitter is larger and bulkier to handle (the recievers are the same size).

The lowest level that my dog can feel is 4 (out of 100!). You can lock the unit onto that number, but 99% of the time I use the "tone and tap" button which is just a beep and a vibration. The vibration is quite strong, at least for a small dog.

I made the modifications to the vest as I mentioned above and also had to make a pleat here and there to get it to form fit nicely on my dog, it should be nice and snug. I originally intended to mount the receiver on her shoulder, but it was hard to get it to not sag.
On her back, right where it sits close to her neck, she has a nice roll of loose skin, and I think this helps to sort of pad the receiver box and make the contact points comfortable.

We've mostly been working on "crittering" with the e-collar, and have made great progress from the first time I put it on her, again, using mostly the tone and tap.