Walking Tools?? Parker is like a carriage horse!

[Katie, John & Parker pup]

I am sure there are discussions on this subject, but I just wanted some advice on how to get Parker to stop pulling so much when we walk (or go anywhere) and what tools to use. I have tried the chain collar, a plastic prong collar (from his trainer) two different harnesses (one he chewed off of himself) and the gentle leader (which he hates). The harness he chewed off of himself seemed fairly effective but it was expensive and I didn't have the money to get another one immediately. Then we tried the plastic prong collar from his trainer and that seemed fairly effective too but I feel like a dog abuser even though it is plastic and he's not bothered by it! He has since grown out of that so I wasn't sure if I should just get another one of those? The chain collar is useless because he just pulls and chokes himself and it doesn't stay in the correct spot anyway! He is really starting to hurt me when i take him for walks now though so I need something! My hands and arms are all red from the leash after walking him and he has almost pulled my arm out of it's socket a few times now! lol

 

I just wanna know the tricks everyone else used? I always see these perfect dogs that walk next to their owners without any medieval collars on them! Where did they get those dogs? lol

[Cindy M, Zachary & the Frenchies]

I assume you are doing all the things to get him to pay attention while you are walking like frequent turns, turning into him and away from him when he pulls ahead? That is what has worked with Zach - just lots of turning - walking in figure 8s and tight circles. He still has a lot of work to do when he is distracted, but turning gets his attention and treating and praise when he is in place. I just use a martingale style nylon colllar that is fitted to his neck at the snuggest so he can't slip it but he doesn't get a  choke beyond what he does to himself from pulling.

[Katie, John & Parker pup]

lol he pulls my arm out when I turn around to continue in the direction he was going in! I am a bad trainer and he is a bad walker!

[Suzann, Rosey & Bandit]

I use the Gentle Leader head collar for Rosey.  The chest one had no effect.

[Camilla and Darwin]

Easy Walk harness. Trust me on this one, it's a miracle worker. I didn't like the head halter for Darwin for 2 reasons. 1st, he hated the feel of it and couldn't focus. 2nd, people kept thinking it was a muzzle and that he was aggressive. With the easy walk harness, he doesn't mind it at all, and nobody things he's mean or aggressive. And no more pulling!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I second the Easy Walk harness. It made a huge difference in the pulling for Jack. It is made by Gentle Leader, but it's not the head collar. The leash attaches to a martingale attachment at the front of the chest. Stops most of the pulling almost immediately.

(I'm puzzled as to how a dog could chew up a harness while he's wearing it? He should only be wearing it when he's being walked, under supervision.)

But no kind of collar or harness is going to give you a "perfect dog that walks next to their owner". The dogs you see who do that have had lots and lots of training. Enroll in a puppy class for starters, we all need some guidance in training our dogs.

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

I third the Easy Walk Harness. My two are probably always going to be wearing one as DH thinks walking a dog is about letting them go wherever they want on the end of a 12 foot rope, getting all tangled up in it and dancing around them. NOT my idea of calm controlled walking, so with me they are harnessed and walk by my side and are corrected when they pull or stray ahead or behind. They know the harness means business and the rope means.....whatever!

I agree they don;t like the Gentle Leader, but I don't lke being pulled around by 130 pds of dogs more! So I win. Used it for Murphy for a few months and it got him to stop pulling. It does take a lot of training too. I was determined to not be pulled around so I put a lot of work into them. I love our walks.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

At this time I would go back to the prong collar.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

Don't feel bad about the prong collar. We had to use these in training at a kennel club and they are the only things that kind of work. They still pul with these!!!! I can't wait to hear the answers of this post. The easy walk harness worked with Myla as a puppy but I had to return 2 that did not fit tight enough on Chloe they drooped down so I still don't know what to do with that! Consistency is your best option once you find your tool. Good luck!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

IMO collars are only tools, and they are only as effective as the training behind them.  If you really want a dog who will walk beside you without pulling or reacting to distractions, that will take training.  It's a whole mindset change for the dog once they are taught what is going to be expected of them on a walk.  As for the Gentle Leader head collar, the choke chain, and the prong collar....they are only going to be effective if they are used correctly, and you would need a knowledgeable trainer to help you with that.  There are several discussions on "loose leash walking" in the Training Group that may be helpful to you.

[Carol Brand]

Do you ride?  Dogs, like horses, will lean and pull against a person who is pulling against them.  You need to implement what in horses is known as a half-halt.

 

Go back to a metal prong collar that is correctly fitted.  Check the Leerberg GSD site for fitting instructions. Establish an idea about where you want the dog to be when you walk.  Be consistent about this.  You can't decide on one walk that you want him right next to you and that the next walk it is OK for him to be 6' in front of you.  On a regular walk, I like to keep a dog within 1/2 a body length of my thigh. Adjust your leash length to reflect your decision.  Oh... and dump the wide nylon (?) leash and get a thin, supple, leather leash and you can fold up easily in your hand.  Check out J and J dog training.

 

When you walk, the instant Parker takes up the slack of the leash, give him a hard correction.  Don't make it a steady pull, this will only encourage him to lean and pull against you.  Make it a sharp, hard, pop or jerk.  Changing direction quickly and walking the opposite direction while you do this can help reinforce the action.  If you do the correction hard enough you will get his attention.  He may yelp and that is OK.  The correction was a consequence for Parker exceeding his leash limit.

 

Now, when he is in the correct zone PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE him for being so good and smart and well behaved.   If you can manage passing him a tiny treat while you are still walking and he is still in the zone, so much the better (don't stop walking). He will initially be confused, but then rather pleased with himself.  This won't last long and he will probably move out to the end of his leash limit soon.  Give him another hard correction and pop him back off his feet and repeat the cycle.

 

I have NEVER seen a dog that did not learn in about 3 corrections with the prong collar not to pull.  I have used it successfully with everything from Toy Poodles to Boxers to Golden Retrievers (I taught a Golden who had graduated to pulling his owner to the ground to walk nicely in 5 minutes.)  The trick is to be really consistent about it.  The dog needs to know that when it is in the zone, it will be praised and rewarded, but when it it is not, there is going to be a serious consequence that will make the dog take notice.

[sharon Levesque]

We had the same problem with our girls so we tried the harness made by Gentle leader--it has the clip in front and I could not believe the difference it made.

[Sara & Trix]

I trained Trix to walk with a flat collar from 4 to 6 months. Some days we would barely walk a block! I would use the "be a tree" technique as well as quickly turning and staying unpredictable so she had to watch me all the time. Training was inching along, so I bought an Easy Walk Harness since I felt she was not getting the walking exercise I knew she needed. Now, I walk her with a flat collar for the first half of the walk and train - then switch to her harness for a very brisk energy burning walk. I like the harness and she barely pulls! Training classes also help since YOU can be shown how do train. I see my puppy classes being more for me than Trix :) Honestly, she is my first dog and training her to walk with me without pulling has been the most challenging and time consuming task, but it's well on it's way to being more than worth it, and she's only a little over 6 months. Lots of patience is the most important tool.