BioThane, BioThane, BioThane – it probably feels like you see the word in every second post or article we share. Well, maybe not quite that bad, but we definitely sing its praises pretty regularly. We’ve discussed the fuss about BioThane® and why we love it so much, and it certainly explains why it's our preferred choice, however, if you're finding it tricky to tell the difference between BioThane® and generic PVC-Coated Webbing (it doesn’t roll off the tongue so smoothly for one), then let's run through the differences together.
BioThane® and PVC-Coated Webbing: Not the Same
BioThane® and PVC coated webbing can appear very similar on the surface, but they are not the same. At the heart of it, both can mean the same thing – BioThane is a kind of PVC-coated webbing, but it’s also the product of nearly fifty years of development. The process has been refined and perfected from start to finish – starting with higher quality raw materials, as well as a patented manufacturing process that produces such a superior final product.
A comparable example is Lego. It has no true competitor because Lego's standards of quality are not only super exacting, but the actual manufacturing process is so specific and precise that no other copies can hope to match it. There are plenty of cheap no-name alternatives to Lego no doubt, but there can be absolutely no question as to who makes the best product in this market.
BioThane® has been a leader in the industry since 1977 – and with good reason! They really perfected the idea of PVC-Coated webbing so that other manufacturers can only strive to imitate it. Once you understand the vast difference in manufacturing standards (and raw material standards), you start to see the vast difference in the quality of BioThane® vs any other PVC coated webbing. And this difference only becomes more marked, the more you experience both products. The quality begins to speak for itself.
Putting It To The Test
We take quality super seriously, and we also don’t want you to just take our word for it, so of course we had to personally put the BioThane claims to the test. First, we procured a no-name PVC coated leash to compare against our own BioThane leash.
Sidenote: in our experience, the majority of rebranded PVC coated leads come directly from AliBaba or its baby retail site AliExpress (which is where we purchased ours for testing). More often than not, resellers don’t even take a different stock photo – this is a dead giveaway for where the product really comes from despite any added logos and price markups.
Once we had our two products, we proceeded to treat them both like crap by dunking them in water, dropping on the concrete and leaving them out to suffer in the summer sun and rain for months (you can see the whole thing on our Instagram pinned stories). You can see that we truly did our best to give a fair test to both the unbranded PVC-coated webbing and the BioThane® – but we absolutely encourage you to try it yourself too because there’s nothing more convincing than experiencing the differences for yourself.
You can see all these results for yourself on our Instagram story, however, if you don’t have the time to conduct long-winded field tests on multiple products, here is a summary of our (not super scientific but nonetheless convincing) results:
This is why quality raw materials and thoroughly refined manufacturing processes matter! It's the difference between choosing products for longevity and sustainability vs the ‘fast fashion’ mentality where things are made to be cheap and disposable.
The Real Issue with PVC-Coated Webbing
Now first let us say that we will never ever judge or disparage someone for buying the things that fit within their budget! Sometimes you just have to go with the cheaper option, and that’s completely fine – everyone makes the best choices they can. So, we definitely understand the necessity of the budget choice, whether we’re talking about dog gear, or tools, or household products – anything really.
However, the real issue with something like dog leads is the transparency and information available surrounding manufacturing.
Remember: a dog leash is an essential safety tool for your dog!
It’s not simply a cosmetic or stylistic choice – it can quite literally save your dog’s life (although hopefully it never comes to that!). Consider it the same way we consider seatbelts. Imagine if the seat belts in your car had no crash or break testing? No regulation or oversight on how they’re made or from what materials. There‘s no way we’d entrust them with our lives.
Dog gear is the same. Leashes (and collars, harnesses, etc) are essential safety tools that keep your dog secure around cars, other dogs, or any other untold situations. The beauty of BioThane® is that they break test their product, and have the information freely available on their website for all to view. You know exactly what you’re getting. If an unbranded PVC coated webbing leash doesn’t give any information on the break strength – you can be pretty sure it’s never been tested. And let’s say that they do test a batch, there is no transparency or consistency of process, so there’s no way to know the product you received is the same as the one tested!
With no transparency on the technical specifications, the manufacturing process or the break strength – you're essentially trusting a mystery item to hold up under a potentially high stress situation. When you keep these concerns in mind, you realise that when you’re paying for BioThane®, what you’re really paying for is peace of mind.
In the image below are three PVC-coated leashes that are all currently available to buy. Two are from AliBaba for around $2.00 each. One of them has been rebranded and is being sold at a major pet supply retailer for $36.99! That’s more expensive than our own 180cm real BioThane leash! See how samey they are? Can you tell which one is being sold with a crazy markup?
(Our point being that if you’re going to spend that much anyway, you may as well go for real BioThane. Or else if you’re on a tight budget, get the AliExpress option, cause at least then you’re not being ripped off!)
How can you tell if a seller is being truthful about their BioThane®?
There are plenty of places out there that sell (or claim to sell) “BioThane®" products. The good news is that BioThane® is strict on who’s allowed to use their registered trademark! If the listing does not contain the registered trademark (the teeny little (R) at the end) anywhere in the description or product name, then it's probably a good bet that they don’t have the real thing. (We put ours in the product description!).
BioThane® USA has a tight list of approved distributors as well, meaning that whoever you purchase your leash from should be buying the BioThane material from one of those approved distributors. There is a case to be made for resellers, but essentially, it's sort of an "all roads lead to Rome" situation. Any seller should be able to point you to the distributor that their product ultimately comes from, which you can easily verify on the BioThane website!
If in doubt, you can always contact BioThane directly and they will verify for you!
Summary At a Glance
