Choosing Leather for Dog Collars and Leads

Two choices matter most here: how the leather was tanned, and how thick it is. Everything else is detail.

What tanning does

Tanning is a process that stabilises the proteins in a raw hide.¹ Raw hide dries into a hard, stiff material. Tanned leather dries to a flexible form instead.¹ Different tanning methods give leather that behaves differently when it gets wet, and dog collars get wet.

Vegetable-tanned leather

Vegetable-tanned leather is tanned with tannins taken from plant matter, such as tree bark.¹ It's the oldest known method.¹ Sailrite, a leather supplier, says even thin, lightweight veg tan is stiff enough to take the friction of a burnishing tool, and that burnishing works best on it.² Burnishing is the edge polishing covered in Finishing Edges and Sealing Dog Collars.

The catch is water. One reference says vegetable-tanned leather is not stable in water and tends to discolour. If it's left to soak and then dry, it shrinks and becomes harder.¹ A dog that swims or rolls in puddles will test this. Don't read it as a reason to avoid vegetable-tanned leather. Read it as a reason to dry the collar properly and to finish it with care.

Chrome-tanned leather

Chrome-tanned leather is tanned with chromium sulfate and other chromium salts.¹ The same reference calls it more supple and pliable than vegetable-tanned leather, and says it doesn't discolour or lose shape as drastically in water.¹ That points to chrome-tanned leather for a dog that is often wet. There's a trade-off at the edges, though. Sailrite says burnishing works best on vegetable-tanned leather, so a chrome-tanned strap may need a different edge finish.²

Oil and water resistance

Leather can be oiled to improve its water resistance.¹ The oils that tanning leaves in the hide can be washed out by repeated exposure to water, which is why oiling matters for gear that gets wet often.¹

Grain and splits

The grain is the outer layer of the hide. Full-grain leather contains the entire grain layer, with none of the surface removed.¹ Split leather is made from the lower layer left when the grain is separated off.¹ For a strap that takes a pull, ask the seller whether a piece is full-grain or split. Don't guess from the look of it.

Thickness and the size of the dog

One supplier says a larger dog may call for thicker, stiffer leather.³ There's no universal thickness chart in the sources used here. Ask the seller how thick a piece is, and match it to the dog.

Chewing and wear

Leather leashes are often preferred over nylon because the material resists wear, and it gets softer with age. However, leather is more prone to chewing than nylon.⁴ If your dog chews its lead, that's worth knowing before you spend hours on a handmade one.

The same reference says the material matters less than the condition: a leash should show no wear or fraying, and it should be checked from time to time.⁴

A short checklist

1. Wet dog, or dry? Think about how the leather will be dried and oiled.
2. Big dog or small? Go thicker and stiffer for the bigger dog.
3. Will you burnish the edges? Then vegetable-tanned leather is the easy route.²
4. Does the dog chew? Think again about leather, or plan to watch it.⁴

With the leather picked, the next job is the metalwork, covered in the hardware guide.