Best GPS tracker replacement for a GSP

Sounds like your old tracker has been retired and you need a straight swap — frustrating when something was working well. GPS trackers are genuinely useful for dogs like German Short-haired Pointers, who have serious drive and can cover ground fast once off-lead, but they do need a monthly subscription and perform best where mobile signal is decent. Before I point you to the right replacement, a couple of quick questions: where does your dog mainly run — countryside, woodland, open fields? And how far off-lead do they typically get before you recall them?

Good — microchipped is a solid baseline, and a GSP with a strong nose but mostly good recall is exactly the profile where a tracker earns its keep on those rare occasions he decides a pheasant is more interesting than you. Since you were already on Tractive, the obvious move is to upgrade to the current generation rather than switch ecosystems entirely. What signal coverage is like around your part of Shropshire — do you tend to have reasonable 4G on your phone out in the fields, or are there regular dead spots?

That's all I need. Go with the Tractive GPS DOG 4 — it's the current flagship model and a direct upgrade from the older hardware. It works on 2G/3G/4G depending on what's available, so it'll adapt to those patchy areas rather than just dropping out. It has a live tracking mode that updates every few seconds when you need it, a virtual fence feature that alerts you the moment Bram leaves a set boundary, and the app is genuinely well-designed — you'll find it familiar since you've used Tractive before. Battery life is around 2–7 days depending on how hard it's working. The subscription runs around £4–5 a month on an annual plan. It's water and dust resistant, clips onto any standard collar, and at 35g it won't bother a dog Bram's size at all. It's the cleanest like-for-like swap available.

You'll need a new subscription tied to the new device — Tractive links subscriptions to specific hardware, so the old one won't carry over. That said, if you still have active time left on your old plan, it's worth emailing their support before you cancel; they sometimes offer a credit or a discounted first period when you're upgrading from a discontinued model. It's not guaranteed, but takes two minutes to ask. Beyond that, setup is straightforward — scan the QR code on the new unit, add it to your existing Tractive account, and you're live.

Good choice. It'll serve Bram well on those Shropshire runs. One practical tip: set the virtual fence around your usual farmland areas from the start — it means you get an alert the moment he exits rather than having to check the app manually. Enjoy the next chapter of scent-chasing adventures.