Collar or Harness?

[Bella & Emma]

I'm working on training my mini labradoodle puppy (1 year old) to walk nicely on a leash without choking herself. I know trainers say that a collar is necessary for leash training. However, I am worried she is hurting her neck when she tugs on the leash and tries to jog/run. What are the opinions out there for collar or harness preference? Thanks so much!

 

Bella

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I feel that a correction collar (old name choke chain) often works well for training purposes. They have small ones for small dogs.  I have a small labradoodle who went through basic obedience with a regular collar and did just fine, but he was very responsive and easy to train. We are doing some other things with him now and I do have a correction collar for him because that is what the trainer wants.

[Melissa]

I do not have any experience with correction collars, but I have always used the Easy Walk Harness.  The leash attaches to the front chest area of the dog instead of the back.  If Buddy starts to pull the harness works great because it almost forces him to turn toward me.  ANd sometimes I can just give it a little tug if he is starting to get ahead of me.  We have used it for probably 8 months or so, he is a year old and most of the time he walks right by me or slightly behind.  We also use it in training class.  I am quite happy! :)

[Adina P]

Bella, can you describe what type of training you are doing?  What techniques or measures are you using to teach her how to walk on leash?  Are you working on her walking next to you or simply not pulling (because she's never walked on leash before) or something else more exact and specific like heel?

 

Depending on what your goal is you could use either a collar or harness. 

I prefer training collars but that's because I follow a very systematic training method that has  specific way to train so the dog never gets a chance to pull on the collar...but it's a whole system for overall obedience (not just for leash walking).  I think more important than the collar or harness is that you're following a successful/useful training method.  Signing up for an obedience class is ideal so you can learn a method and get help in its implementation.

 

[Martha & Cooper]

My trainer insisted on the Gentle Leader for puppy classes.  They don't like it at first, but I have to say, it was like a miracle once Cooper got used to it.  He knew he was working once we put it on and we slowly weaned him off it during the second set of classes and now just use his flat collar to walk in heel.  He does great unless I am walking with a group of neighbors and let him have a little freedom with his buddies.  Sometimes I use a harness when I take him to a park or in a strange place, just because I am afraid that he might get distracted and slip his collar.  He is still considered a puppy afterall is said and done.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I think the collar is just a tool, and which collar you'll want to use will depend on which training method you select.  For example, with my mini Doodle, Guinness, I used a flat collar because I trained him to loose leash walk using an all positive approach...treats, praise, and markers (I used the word "yes", but some people use a clicker).  I am training Murphy to heel (and loose leash walk) using a training collar (choke chain) because I'm using a combination of reward and correction.  Because Murph is very powerful and somewhat reactive, the "all reward" method really didn't work well.  So, bottom line you need to figure out what approach you'll be using, and then you can determine what type of collar is most appropriate.   Are you working with a trainer or do you have your puppy in a class....if so, the trainer will determine the training approach and will usually make a recommendation regarding which collar they would prefer you to use for the training.

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

I used the easy walk harness for the first time yesterday - it was amazing - Cooper walked perfectly nicely right by my side for the entire 3 hour walk, usually she pulls like crazy because shes excited!

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

We use the harness with Murphy because he pulled so badly and I even tripped over him once and got hurt. I was very new to training and didn't have and system in mind other than just getting him to not pull my arm out of the socket. I treated and petted and stopped and held fast if he pulled and did all I thought of until nothing seemed to work and I got the Gentle walker face harness to just break the cycle. He hated it, I loved it and it wasn't long before I started weaning him from it to the chest harness. He heels very well with the harness still at 2 yrs old. DH allows him to walk him (DH) at the end of a rope attached to his flat collar, but he feels dogs need time to just walk and sniff. I like a controlled walk, so I don't trip again!

[Bella & Emma]

Thank you for all of your advice. Adina, I am training Emma to walk on a loose leash without pulling using a flat collar. The method of training is in the attached link (method 1) http://dogtime.com/good-leash-behavior-aspca.html. I walk with her and when she starts pulling I stop, wait for a bit, call her to come and then praise her. She has been listening to this unless there are too many distractions. When I first started training her I wanted her to heel and used treats for training. However, without the treats there was no incentive for her to heel so I've decided that I just want her to walk well on a loose leash and use praise in lieu of treats. I am going to look more into the Easy Walk harness. Thanks all!

 

Bella