Martingale collars are a very popular choice for dog trainers. They are not a severe as a regular choke collar since they cannot infinetly tighten and choke the dog. This instructable will show you how to make a martingale collar from scratch.

I have recently started a DIY pet blog called Bloggie Stylish where you can find other cool tutorials like this one.

Step 1: Tools & Supplies You Will Need

You will need some sort of webbing. There are many kinds out there like cotton, polypropylene and nylon. Three D-rings, which you can scavenge off of an old collar. Scissors. I have two pairs, one for cutting and a small pair of trimming scissors for cutting the threads. A flexible measuring tape for measuring your dog's neck. A sewing machine (that's a given) and sewing thread.

Step 2: Measuring Your Dog

To ensure that the collar fits properly and that your dog cant back out of it, you need to take two measurements. One directly behind the ears and one lower down on the neck, for where you would like the collar to sit.

When measuring behind the ears, make sure that that the tape is snug. This is the most important measurement. If your collar is too loose, the dog will be able to back out of the collar when the martingale collar is pulled tight. Jerseys measurement is 14 inches.

Next you must measure lower down on the neck where you would like to martingale collar to sit when you are not walking the dog. Jerseys measurement was 17 inches.

Step 3: Cutting the Webbing

Now you have to cut 2 pieces of webbing, one for the neck loop and one for the control loop. Jersey’s “behind the ear” measurement was 14 inches, so I added 2 inches to that and cut a 16 inch piece of webbing. Next is to cut the webbing for the control loop. I subtracted the “behind the ear” measurement (14 inches) from the “neck” measurement (17 inches) and came up with 3 inches. This is the total spread that you will want on the control loop. I doubled this measurement and added 2 inches to come up with 8 inches that I needed to cut for webbing on the control loop

Step 4: Sewing the First D-Ring

Take one of the D-rings, insert the webbing through it and fold over about 3/4 of an inch. Sew a straight seam, up and down over the webbing. Triple stitch this line for strength, using the reverse button on your sewing machine.

Step 5: Sewing the Second D-ring

To get the correct size for the neck loop, you must take the length of the D-rings into account. Lay the webbing out on a flat surface and place the measuring tape next to it. Slide the second D-ring over the webbing and fold the webbing over the neck loop until you have achieved the length that you need. Pin the fold into place and sew two lines like in step three. It is also important to remember to have both folded ends on the same side of the neck loop. Now that you have completed the neck loop, trim all loose threads.

Step 6: Threading the Control Loop

With the folds of the neck loop facing OUTWARDS, thread the control loop through both D-rings. Slide the remaining D-ring on the LEFT side of the control loop webbing.

Step 7: Sewing the Control Loop Part 1

Put the control loop together so that they overlap by about 2 inches. Make sure that the D-ring is still lying to the left. Sew 2 seams like in step 3.

Step 8: Sewing the Control Loop Part 2

Now flip the control loop inside out so that the fold that you have just sewn is on the inside of the loop. Bring the D-ring as close as you can to the seam that you just finished and sew 2 new seams like in step three. Trim all loose threads

Step 9: The Finished Product

There you have it, you very own martingale collar. Remember that martingale collars should NOT be used for tie-out collars. Martingale collars sould not be worn by your dog unsupervised, the collar could snag on something and cause injury to your pet.