A friend recommended this for training our 14 week old lab to heal. The wife saw it and said it “cruel”. Does anyone have experience with this? My friend who recommended it says the dogs “hate it”. Edited to remove link
Way to early to train a puppy to “heal”. Rather focus on having the puppy naturally wanting to stay close to or follow you. Formal heal training should be left until they are 12 months old. Puppies in this age a little kids. At 14 weeks it is easy to keep a puppy close to and focused on you.
This is what I was thinking, too. I wanted to ask. I like to get a lot of opinions before I make a decision.
12 months? https://www.thelabradorsite.com/teaching-a-dog-to-heel/ Can’t find an age on here but walking to heel is one of the first things you are taught at puppy training classes and I certainly wouldn’t consider that collar if you are looking a force free/ reward based training.
Well I have my views on puppy schools. Would argue that you are learning leash walking with the dog close to you but not “formal heeling”. At 14 weeks i would not use leash but harness, and when ever possible let the puppy run without it. You need to learn the dog to focus on you and follow you. At this age you can use their natural tendencies to your advantage. Heeling and good leash/harness manners will be a welcomed by product of that. But each to their own and i am by no means an expert trainer)
The leash resembles a gundog slip lead. These are traditionally used for gun dogs because gun dogs don't wear collars and the slip lead is easily removed while the dog is working. However, many gundog owners use these leads as a rope choke chain to check the dog when it leaves the heel position. This method is not effective unless the 'checks' are applied very forcefully, which is both painful and upsetting for the dog, and potentially damaging to the soft tissues of the dog's throat. The leash in the link looks particularly unpleasant as it is made from plastic rather than rope, which also means that it serves no other purpose than to hurt the dog. Modern methods of teaching heel work involve training the dog to value and enjoy the heel position for increasing periods of time and under gradually increasing levels of difficulty. No tools are required other than a harness and leash when working among distractions (to ensure that the dog cannot self reward if it leaves the heel position) It's fine to teach the heel position to a puppy, provided you make it all about value and fun. Any kind of heel work that requires a 'tool' (other than an event marker) to keep the dog in position is unlikely to be suitable for young puppies. If you see such a tool it's always important to ask yourself how it works. How is it stopping the dog from doing what it is doing? The answer is almost always because it hurts!
I appreciate all the input here. I’m walking Sam off the lead most of the time and he’s very good. I’m glad I asked about this lead because even though it was recommended by someone I know and who has very pleasant dogs, but the lead seemed cruel for a young puppy.
I have a 14 week old labrador and I need to find a collar to start training her to heel on walks. I have been using a harness and she pulls excessively and by the time she is 6 months old I won't be able to control her. Is a martingale collar a good choice? I always used a chocker collar on my other pups but this one is extremely head strong! I am planning on taking her to training classes as I feel I need help with this girl!
For what it is worth, I had a look at the site. The advertsing material makes claims about shy and bold dogs and the lead which I cannot think how one would substantiate them. Second, the guy recommends to wear gloves while using it or you will regret it. So, there is going to be a lot of rough handling of the dog using the lead. But a lead is supposed to be a safety device when walking along busy roads. My advice: Walk past this item.
