What are the best dog safety lights?

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Walking your dog can be challenging in the autumn and winter months, as the temperatures start to drop, the weather can be more unpleasant and it starts to get darker earlier. As the nights grow longer it can be hard to know when to walk your dog safely, and if walking in darkness cannot be avoided, how best to do it in a way that is safe (and fun) for you and your dog.

Why is it harder to walk your dog at night?

The primary issue of walking at night is the lack of visibility in darkness. It can be tricky to walk your dog in the dark for several reasons, not only does it make it harder for you to see your dog, but it is also harder for your dog to see you. That is without taking into account other potential hazards (who may also not be able to see you) such as drivers, joggers, cyclists and other dog walkers. With the different night time wildlife and goings on your dog might be more distracted or likely to follow his nose than stick by your side.

Can dogs see in the dark?

Dogs do see much better than humans in the dark due to the design of their eyes, however, this does not make them invincible in the darkness and additional measures should always be taken to keep them safe. Dogs have bigger pupils than humans which lets in more light. They also have more rods in their retinas and a tapetum behind the retina which reflects light, increasing the brightness and making them better equipped to deal with low light situations.

It is important to remember that just because your dog can see better in the dark than you can, that you must never take this for granted. Their improved vision (coupled with their sense of smell) could make them more likely to chase after something, be spooked or to run off into the darkness which could result in them getting lost or. even worse and accident.

Is it possible to walk my dog safely at night?

You should be able to walk your dog safely at night, taking the additional precautions below should help. It is important to point out that some dogs are afraid of the dark and sometimes the dark can make other fears, such as loud noises, worse. You should never force your dog to walk and if your dog is scared of the dark you should undertake additional training to help them to conquer this fear, always be patient with them and never punish them. Make sure that you train them at their own pace and only progress to walk at night once they are entirely comfortable with it.

One of the primary ways of making it safer to walk at night is to make sure that your dog is visible to you at all times. You can do this by attaching a light to your dog's collar or by using an LED collar or lead. Here is The Good Kennel Guide's pick of the best safety lights for dogs.

LED lights

These types of lights clip on to your dog's collar, it is important to think about your dog's normal behaviour and the types of walk that you take them on before you buy. For example does the light need to be waterproof or splashproof, is something best that hangs from the collar (dangling down) or attaches on the collar in two places (so it is not dangling down and can be placed at the top of the collar, side or under side of the collar). The other things to bear in mind before choosing LED lights for your dogs collar is to consider whether something that is battery charging, rechargeable battery operated or USB charging would be best for you based on how often you might need to remember to replace and recharge them. Some lights come in multipacks meaning that you can always have a back up at hand should one of the lights run out or need charging.

Derlights LED Dog Collar Light, USB Rechargeable, Waterproof (2 pack) £10.99

Morpilot Dog Collar Light (6 pack) Different Colours

Aluminium Pet LED Safety Light for Collar £6.60

Orbiloc Safety Light for Dogs £18.40

The orbiloc attaches to your dog's collar or harness in two places, making it extra sturdy. You can purchase it in a range of different colours including white, blue (pictured), green, pink, red, yellow, turquoise, amber and dark. It is highly visible up to a range of 5km (3 miles) and is impact resistant to 100kg, and waterproof to 100m. You can have the light in steady-on mode or flashing modes and it takes batteries which are very long life (CR2032 batteries which last for 100-250 hours).

Ruffwear, The Beacon, LED Safety Light for Dogs £26.95

Though The Beacon is the most expensive of the bunch, we have to admit that this is our overall winner. It is USB chargeable and very versatile as it can clip onto the collar, or onto a reflective vest, you can purchase the matching reflective vest here for £43.95. The light can shine in red, green or blue and has three flashing modes: slow, fast and constant. It is lightweight, durable, waterproof and the battery lasts for up to 20 hours once it is fully charged. There is also a low battery warning when it needs to recharge. This is ideal for early morning walks or night walks and is great product all round.

Nite Ize Spotlit LED Spot Light-White £6.95

This light is the cheaper or the bunch and is multi use, it is isn't designed purely for dog collars you could also use it on your keys or on yourself too. The light offers glow and flash modes and takes 2 x 3 volt batteries which last for approximately 20 hours (or 25 hours on flash mode). It also has a strong stainless steel metal clasp that easily clips on anywhere that you need a little bit of light. It is worth noting that this light is good value and very lightweight but not particularly waterproof- it is only splashproof so we would recommend this only for dogs that are less keen on swimming or getting wet. You can buy the light in white. blue, green, "disc-o" (which flashes between pink, orange and green) or red. We found the white a bit too bright, but the other colours worked just fine and were still visible from a decent distance.

LED collars

We highly recommend Illumiseen LED dog collars and leads as they come in different lengths and colours, they are also lightweight and sturdy and easy to use. They are USB chargeable and charge very quickly (in 30 minutes to 1 hour) and come ready charged so you are good to go straight away. The batteries last for up to 5 hours once fully charged. You can change the speed that the lights change so either having them slow or rapid flashing or as a steady glow, simply by clicking the button each time to change the frequency. They also come with a lifetime guarantee.