Hi everyone. I'm here for Lab-specific advice, for my rescue Shamas. I adopted him on October 27. 2017. He's my first dog. He's also reactive, afraid of most things that are normal to the city...and we live in the downtown area....nervous about any dog that's not obviously friendly, very sensitive....and generally a challenge of a first time dog. BUT I brought him home and he's my challenge now. And what a gorgeous boy he is! When I called the pound, I explained that I was looking for a dog who could live in a house that had 3 kids, 3 cats, and fish tanks. I have plenty of time to train and walk and we have a long back yard to run. However the dog must be cat-tested. They told me they had a 5y/old Lab-retreiver. calm, laid-back. didn't react to the cats. great on the leash. fed on Kirkland brand food. Vetted, and was just neutered on Tuesday. We picked him up Friday The first thing that struck me was his looks. I was expecting a 5 year old lab to be a barrel chested boy...no he was skinny...55lbs, not an ounce of extra weight on him, and little muscle. I immediately put him on high protein food and he's gained to 66lbs, no fat only muscle. You can see him ripple now as he walks. He pulls on the leash..which is pretty bad now that he's stronger....but he's learning. I use a harness because I don't want him hurting his neck. That's one of the reasons I'm here- I need a harness that won't rub his armpits raw...we're on our third reject now. As to the cats.....well, he's good with ONE of them. The other two not so much. The problem is, he's calm until they move. Then he gets excited and gives chase. we're working on that and hes improving. His fear of traffic is crippling. He literally has lines that he won't cross. Streets he won't go down. We have to drive him out of the area just to take him for walks. Thank goodness for warm weather and the opening of trails! We spent te winter walking at Chapters and Petsmart, and have made a lot of progress on the dog front. He now looks eagerly to the front of the van as we near the parkinglot, and recognises the triple speed bumps that mean we're there.
Welcome to you and Shamas from me and my big boy Pongo in south Wales! You will find lots of helpful people here who can give advice on all your issues (but I'm not one of them, I'm afraid!). You are doing a wonderful thing and it sounds like you're doing great - Shamas is a very lucky boy to have found you. Looking forward to hearing all about your adventures! Rosie
Hello and welcome to the forum. I also have a Lab with chronic phobias so I know the difficulties. Last winter, she wouldn't leave the house for days on end. The best thing I did was to get her some medication to help her with this. It's still a long journey, but it got her to a point where we could start working on her fears rather than them crippling her. I think that, once you have given Shamas a month or so to settle in, it would be worth discussing options with your vet. I was reluctant at first, but I can say it's the best thing I ever did. Willow's personality was able to fizz back through the fears that left her shaking and curled up in a ball. I'm a bit confused as to when you got him? You said you adopted him in October, but you just picked him up Friday? Not all Labs are chunky and barrel-chested. I have three. Two are working strain. My yellow boy, Shadow, is 3 years old, rippling muscle and weighs 24.2kg (53lb). He is long-legged and lean. My choccy girl (16 months) is show bred, shorter than Shadow and, when last weighed a few months ago, was around 30kg (66lb) - I need to weigh her again as she's slimmed down but also build a lot of muscle over the winter. I think she's likely around 28kg now. The big difference is the thickness of her bones - it's remarkable how much thicker they are when you wrap your fingers around the dogs' legs. When I walk my dogs on harness, I use a Perfect Fit. This harness comes in three different parts in able to get the size that fits your dog's body shape. Their customer service is excellent and, if one part isn't quite right, they will replace it free of charge. It has a front ring which allows you to control the dog's strength whilst you're working on training loose leash walking.
Hi and welcome to you both. Well done for taking Shamus on and giving him a home where he can be loved.
I picked him up on Friday October 27th. He'd had his surgery on the Tuesday before that so we did the post-op recovery. Shamas is tall, fine-boned and slim in the chest. It causes some trouble when fitting him to harnesses, as the vest-type harnesses rub his front, and anything like Easywalk rubs in the armpits. I had looked at the Perfect Fit, and nearly bought it..then I forgot the name, and couldn't find it again. My only concern is the length- where does it land in the chest? Is it well behind the arms? Does it shift at all? anything within 2 inches of his armpits causes hair loss. Which is a shame, because he's doing SO well on his current harness but I dont think he'll be able to use it more than another week or so. I'm considering the Alpine outfitters harness, which sits under the rib cage.
That’s the beauty of being able to buy different sized pieces. I suggest emailing the company; their customer service is very good indeed.
I actually just did-about 3 minutes ago I'm seriously considering taking the 3 harnesses that I have, using the buckles, and making one myself with fleece from a blanket to line it, until I can get one on order. I really don't think that he can continue wearing the one he's got, given the fur loss over a single week of wearing it. It's got great buckles- heavy duty metal and metal Dlinks. But all of that means nothing if it hurts him
Welcome from Hattie 10 years and our rescue boy Charlie 7 years. Charlie is walked on a Haquihana back fastening harness which sits back from his armpits so no rubbing at all. I've tried a few harnesses and this is by far the best and most comfortable one for Charlie. There are a few people on the forum that use this one. Here is the link:- haqihana-harness. xx
Hello and welcome to the forum from Fred, Annie and me. There are lots of people who can help you with all kinds of things on the forum. Have you any photos of Shamas for us?
Could you alternate harnesses so you’re using a different one every walk, ie rubbing different parts each time? I use two different harnesses with my boy depending on the need - a walking harness (back attachment) and a controlling harness (chest attachment). Most times no harness - most walks are off leash. Is this an option for you?
Coco has the Haqihana too - the girth strap does indeed sit well back from the armpits, and appears very comfortable. He wears it daily for his walks. It is very adjustable. It doesn't, however, have a front attachment if you're looking for one that does.
Hello and welcome from me, Wispa (6) and Tuppence (4). My two had identical harnesses, but once on a longish walk Wispa’s rubbed. She now has a Perfect Fit harness because it has both back and front attachments. Initially I just used the back fastening; however, because can suddenly pull if she reacts to something, I now use an extra two-clip lead with her normal lead so that I can use both attachments. Wispa seems very happy with it. Tuppence still has her original harness with no problems, but she’s a leaner dog than Wispa.
Off-leash is not an option for me, but I do rotate harnesses. I have a Top-paw harness, that's padded...but is loose on him. It fit well when I got it, but I don't know...seems to have stretched out over the winter? It didn't rub but he pulls terribly on it. I have the one he has now, which gives me great control, but is causing fur loss. And I have an Easy-walk...but I discontinued use because it blistered his chest and pits. I rotate betweeent eh first two harnesses, and a collar, depending on his level of reactivity that day. Some days, Shamas is so reactive that I can't take him anywhere near roads, he's afraid of everything-usually on wet days when the traffic seems awefully loud. In evenings, I don't even need a harness....he seems to settle right down after dark and is almost normal. Mornings...poor thing is a wreck. I haven't gotten the hang of the front clips on harnesses...they turn Shamas around and I can't keep him walking in a straight line. I find them very frustrating. I prefer a high martingale collar for close control. My family and their trainers swear by prong collars but Shamas would not benefit at ALL from that kind of collar, given his issues. He doesn't need anything that punishes him for spooking, or being afraid! The only thing he needs is something that prevents him from running away. We tried Gentle Leader, but in his fear he tried to run and got in a tug of war with his own nose. After only a week he had bald patches on his nose. I discontinued use of that too. The harness is his best choice, if he's going to bolt. I don't have any photos of shamas on my comuter so I'll link you to the facebook ad that the shelter posted the morning that we adopted him https://scontent.fybz2-2.fna.fbcdn....=895060996163693a92c2a0aedbfbe128&oe=5B3DBF14
There shouldn't be constant pressure on the front of the harness. The reason they turn the dog is to stop them pulling forwards, so you can train them to walk on a loose leash. None of these devices should be used as a permanent solution - you need to be working towards your dog wanting to walk by your side without having to rely on any correctional device. If he is that afraid when out on walks, then walks just aren't appropriate for him at the moment. You will only make him more afraid and reactive. You need to build up his tolerance slowly.
Yes, I know this now. I've learned where his limits are, and that he's basically good for about a blok in one direction from the house, and 2-3 in the other. HE can go to parks, but not dog parks. He has invisible lines that he won't cross. Most of the issues that I had with him were in the early days, as I was just learning and asked my dad's advice Please keep in mind that I come from an "if the dog doesn't behave, put a prong collar on it" "If he's afraid, expose him to it, and he'll learn that it's not going to hurt him" family. One of the first mistakes that was done with Shamas was to take him downtown while wearing a prong collar, and he PANICKED! I hung it up that very day and have not used it since. My dad uses a professional trainer, and this method was SUGGESTED for his fearful dog. He does not understand why I reacted so negatively when I saw Shamas reaction, and refuse to take him back down there. I am a firm believer in positive reinforcement and encouragement while training. Which is why in trying to expand Shamas' range of motion, I only move out by one street at a time. I ask him to walk one more block, but if he turns and drags me home, I go with him. One day he'll be ready. It will take time to develop confidence, and scaring the tar out of him won't help anything. That's why I'm on the forum, instead of asking my dad's help now. I don't believe that the advice his trainers gave him is good for Shamas
