How do I clean fur that's been discolored or blackened from a stainless steel show collar? What causes this? Do I need a better collar?

I have never heard of this happening from a show collar. Especially a stainless one. How long do you leave it on? Is it on a wet dog? My guess is yes, you need a better collar, and only put it on when being used in the ring!

I prefer the lightweight nylon choke collars. They don't stain the hair and usually don't leave any mark. You can get them in colors to match the dog

i have the same problem. does anyone have any helpful hints on how to remove the stain?

A well made stainless collar should not stain coat at all. A choker shouldn't be on the dog all the time, especially when crated or in a run where they can get hung up on something and be harmed or choke to death.

Yes you need a much better made collar and don't use it as often. If you can use a nylon choker, slip lead or especially a nylon martingale away from show ground or show ring, hat would be best.

Chain collars-Buy a European, good brand from Germany or Belgium. Ask for quality, you'll pay for it but have the collar for many years.

If your dog must have a chain collar so often that it stained his coat, maybe the dog needs more work on lead. I'm not being critical.

all of that aside, any helpful hints on how to remove the stain once it's there would be appreciated.

My chain is SS and I verified that with a magnet, maybe I need a better one. I only use it for conformation classes and show because I have more control of my puppy with it. I bought it a while ago so I don't remember if it's a good one or not.

I'm definitely not over using the chain. I went to conformation class (1 hr) the night before a show and then to a dog show the next day. It was snowing the day of the show and she wore it from the car to the building so that may have done it but I have never had any staining from the chain before.

Deb, I tried to remove the stain with a little Boraxo hand soap and water. The stain faded some but unfortunately I could still see it at the following show. A nice breeder suggested I use a gold chain instead.

A chrome-plated regular steel (not stainless) chain will also attract a magnet. Also, sometimes there is a coating on the chain coming from the factory. Wash it and hang it to dry. Maybe literally blow dry the chain in case it is not stainless and to keep down the water spotting. The oils in a Lab's coat tend to gather the stain whether from a galvanized crate pan or a choke chain. Do NOT use grooming oils on this dog with this chain before going in the ring!

I agree that a nylon martingale with a thicker lead can be a better choice getting from the car to the show. Have the show choke and the show lead clipped in your bag so that you don't lose it. Never crate with a choke on. It is amazing how fast a chain can get caught in the crate--we once had it happen when we were moving dogs around and didn't switch collars, as we were right there and it was only going to be in the crate a minute. Thankfully, it was a nylon choke, and we cut the dang thing off, as it freakishly caught the ring in the side joint as he rubbed and rolled against the crate to clean the rain off himself. Goofy dog could have ended in a tragedy!

Stainless Steel will not attract a magnet.