Gentle leader? What collar/leash combo works for you?

[Kelly & Zoe]

Zoe is 18 weeks and we're doing our best to leash train as we would love to take her on our longer walks and hikes when she gets older.  We currently have a soft Puppia harness with a leather teaching leash/lead.  She does pretty well about 70% of the tie, but we're trying to overcome the pulling thing, which she does about 30% of the time. After several stop/starts/pulls training (when she gets into that mindset) at some point we just need to get home and let her pull us along.  A couple of people have recommended a gentle leader for training purposes - has anyone used this and could they share their experience?

[Marcia & MoneyPenny]

I have used a gentle lead on my previous golden. It worked well but took a little time to get used to it. She was not a puppy when we got her. With Penny we used the easy walk harness. It was recommended by our trainer & she settled into it very quickly. We have since moved to a larger size. I did attempt to try the gentle lead with her but she would have no part of it. I really like the easy walk. Amazon has the best price.
Good luck.

[Judith and Griffin]

We use the "Walk your dog with love" and it has been *fantastic*  

Ordered from Amazon at recommendation from the trainer.

[Kelly & Zoe]

Thanks!  Curious about the front leading harnesses.  Is training different with those than with the top harness or neck collars? 

[Judith and Griffin]

same training.  A yank backwards (won't hurt!) saying "Wait!" and then lots of treats as he walks along side.  No pressure on neck.  Much better control.  Much easier on my shoulder.  He doesn't mind it at all! I think the control is much easier since it is placed in front and not on top of Mr. Super strong dog!

[Dyan Brisson]

Yes , yes , yes ! To the gentle leader . My dog pulled so hard I was worried he would injure himself . Got him a halter first . He still pulled ( and he ate it . One of many things . ) lol . Then we tried the choke collar . Didn't phase him . Then finally got the gentle leader . He is a different dog . He is a pleasure to walk with now . Good luck .

[Camilla and Darwin]

 I use the Easy Walk Harness on Darwin, it's the harness version of the Gentle leader. It has worked very well for us. Darwin hated the head version.

[Sharae & Winston]

We had the equivalent for the easy walk harness first, it worked great up until about 6 months when he became way stronger than me. Then we upgraded to the gentle leader and I couldn't imagine using anything else. Boy he absolutely hated it at first- tossed and turned and flailed on the ground (it was actually pretty funny) but he eventually got used to it. He's still isn't exactly fond of it, but it's the ONLY thing that can control him when he has a "moment". He's over 60 pounds now and I still feel like I have a pretty good handle on him when that's on. Just make sure you watch the video and fit it correctly or it either won't be effective or could hurt him.

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

We used the Easy Walk harness on Oscar when he was younger, but as he got bigger (and so much STRONGER) the Easy Walk became less and less effective. He could knock me off my feet when he charged after something that got his interest. We've used the Canny Collar http://www.thedogoutdoors.com/canny-collar-no-pull-dog-head-harness... on Lucy for years with great success, and bought Oscar one months ago, but he would stop along the walk and rub his face in the lawns we passed, so I stopped using it. I was considering a prong collar for him, but thought I'd retry using the Canny Collar. It was the difference between night and day! He no longer stopped along the walk to rub his face and I had total control. We can even pass dogs along the way without any reaction from him. Its been a real pleasure taking the dogs for walks with both dogs wearing their Canny Collars. For comparison, we had used the Gentle Leader head halter on Lucy when she was young and she hated it. She looked so uncomfortable and no amount of trying to get her 'use to it' helped. The Canny Collar works on a similar principle, but the leash hooks on to the halter at the back of the head rather than under the muzzle. It is much more comfortable to dogs than the Gentle Leader. The collar itself is made about 10x better than the Gentle Leader too, with a stronger, thicker, better quality nylon. It actually has a buckle collar attached. We've had Lucy's for almost 4 yrs and it looks brand new. If your dog tolerates the Gentle Leader then I'd say, go with it. But If it seems like torture to your dog then try the Canny Collar. You won't be sorry.

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

Our Enzo is 4 months.  We purchased the "Easy Walk Harness" and love it.  We tried the Gentle Lead on her and she immediately hated it.  With the Easy Walk, she acted like she didn't even know it was there!  LOL....I have actually tried the front fitting ( the way it is suppose to be worn) and then reversed it, with the loop on the back.  Quite frankly, with her, it doesn't appear to make a difference....either way, she does not pull.  Mission accomplished!!!!!!!!!!!

  Just as a FYI....I was very pleased to hear our trainer endorse both the Gentle Lead and the Easy Walk.  I thought for sure, she would not encourage either....but  as she put it: "  It's a puppy, do whatever works, so neither one of you get frustrated and quit"!

[Vivian & Mojo]

I love the gentle Leader harness, my puppy pulled and pulled so when he was 12 weeks old I bought my first gentle Leader harness and he took to it quickly. He is now 18 months and 70 pounds and in the third harness size wide. I really enjoy my walks without the pulling. I know I need to train him to walk without a harness and am working on it.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

We use a prong for our Springer, a corrective collar (i.e. politically correct for choke collar) for Clancy because he could slip out of a collar that doesnt tighten if he chose to (like if he was frightened), and a flat collar for Ned.  We used corrective collars for our doodles for training and a gentle leader type collar for our Springer.  The Springer never did learn how to walk on a leash correctly, so we finally went to the corrective collar and then the prong because he gives little jerks as he walks.

[Kelly & Zoe]

Thanks for everyone's feedback!  We decided to try the Easy Walk harness and so far so good - if there's an initial pull it seems to sort of auto-correct Zoe's behavior and she stops - not a lot of data points yet, just a few walks, but I'm pleased thus far.  I was hesitant with trying the Gentle Leader since she fusses when we do anything with her face and thought she probably wouldn't like it.  Thanks for the tips and advice!