How Far Does a GPS Dog Tracker Reach?

When choosing a dog tracker, one of the most important things is that your dog can move over long distances without you losing contact or its position. This is especially important during hunting, as the dog often works far away from the hunter and can quickly move across large areas. In these situations, you want to be able to see where your dog is, how it has moved and where it is heading.

Many people therefore look at the range of a dog tracker when comparing different options. But does a GPS dog tracker actually have a fixed range, or can the dog move as far away as it wants?

How Does a GPS Tracker for Dogs Work?

A GPS tracker uses satellites to determine the dog's position and then sends the information via the mobile network to an app on your phone. There, you can follow your dog's position in real time and see how it moves on the map.

This means that GPS and the mobile network actually have two different purposes. GPS technology determines where your dog is, while the mobile network makes it possible to send that position to your phone. This is what allows a modern GPS dog tracker to work over very long distances.

How Far Does a GPS Dog Tracker Reach?

A GPS dog tracker that uses the mobile network does not have a fixed range of, for example, 5 or 10 kilometres. As long as the dog tracker has access to a GPS signal and the mobile network, your dog's position can be sent to you even if the dog is far away.

This also means that the distance between you and your dog is not what determines whether the tracker works. You do not need to be within a few kilometres of your dog. What matters instead is that the dog tracker can determine its position and has access to the mobile network to send that information to the app.

In practice, this means that a mobile based GPS dog tracker has unlimited range as long as there is coverage.

What Affects the Range of a Dog Tracker?

Even though a mobile based GPS dog tracker does not have a fixed range in kilometres, it does depend on coverage.

The dog tracker communicates with the mobile network to send its position to the app. If the dog is in an area where mobile coverage is weak or completely unavailable, the position may temporarily stop updating in real time.

This can happen, for example, in deep valleys, very dense forests or other areas where the mobile signal is weak. GPS reception can also be affected when visibility to the satellites is reduced. However, this does not mean that your dog has moved too far away from you. Instead, the tracker is temporarily having difficulty receiving or sending the information.

When the dog moves into an area with better coverage, the connection can be restored.

What Happens if the Dog Tracker Loses Coverage?

If your dog temporarily enters an area without mobile coverage, it does not necessarily mean that the information about how it has moved is lost.

MiniFinder Rex has a built in memory that stores positions locally if the mobile connection is lost. When the dog tracker reconnects to the network, the saved positions are sent through. This allows you to see afterwards how your dog moved even during the period when the tracker had no mobile connection.

What is not possible without a mobile connection, however, is seeing the new position in real time while the connection is unavailable.

What Is the Difference Between the Range of a Radio Tracker and a GPS Dog Tracker?

The main difference between a traditional radio tracker and a mobile based GPS dog tracker is how the information is transmitted.

A radio tracker communicates directly between the transmitter on the dog and the hunter's receiver. This means that it does not depend on the mobile network, which can be an advantage in areas with poor mobile coverage. However, the radio signal has a limited range and can also be affected by terrain, mountains and valleys.

A mobile based GPS dog tracker works differently. The dog's position is sent via the mobile network to your phone, which means that the dog does not need to be within a certain number of kilometres from you. As long as there is coverage, the position can be transmitted even over very long distances.

The choice is therefore not only about which dog tracker has the longest range. It is also about where you hunt, what the mobile coverage is like and which type of technology is best suited to your hunting.

Can a Dog Tracker Be Used to Follow Multiple Dogs at the Same Time?

Yes. Most modern dog trackers make it possible to follow multiple dogs at the same time in the same app. This is particularly useful for hunting teams or hunters who use several dogs during the same hunt.

With MiniFinder Hunter, several members of the hunting team can also see the dogs' current positions on their own maps. This gives the entire hunting team a better overview and makes it easier to keep track of the dogs during the hunt.

MiniFinder Rex for Hunting with Dogs

MiniFinder Rex is a GPS dog tracker developed for hunting and for situations where the dog may move far away from its handler. Through the MiniFinder Hunter app, you can follow your dog's position in real time and see how it moves directly on the map.

Rex has several features designed for hunting, including a bark indicator, vibration command, voice command and sound command. The dog tracker weighs only 100 grams, has a battery life of up to 100 hours and features a built in LED light that is visible from up to 200 metres away.

In MiniFinder Hunter, you can also see both dogs and other members of the hunting team on the map, use topographic hunting maps and create your own hunting grounds. The app itself is free, which means that other members of the hunting team or family can follow the dog at no additional cost.

Summary

How far a dog tracker reaches depends primarily on the technology it uses. A mobile based GPS dog tracker does not have a fixed range in kilometres and can be used over long distances as long as there is a GPS signal and mobile coverage.

The coverage in the area where you hunt is therefore particularly important. If the dog temporarily moves through an area without mobile coverage, the position may stop updating in real time, but the connection is restored when the dog tracker regains coverage.

For hunters, choosing a dog tracker is therefore not only about range, but also about where and how you hunt and what type of coverage is available in the area.