i have just ordered a halti collar, i wasnt keen on using one of these as i think they might hurt my 7 month old black lab. he is great on a loose lead until he sees another dog then he pulls like mad, i was thinking of a harness but he is 31 kg already and very strong. is it ok to use a halti and is it easy for him to adapt to it
Re: halti collar Hi and welcome to the forum! I assume you mean the halti head collar? I've used a couple of different types of head collar on my dog and find them really useful. You must make sure you introduce it slowly though. I started off by putting it on and feeding a couple of treats, then taking it straight back off again. Do this several times a day for a couple of days. If he takes to this ok you can move up to putting it on and then giving him his meals. Go from there to putting it on for a short playtime. Never take it off if he is fussing at it or rubbing his face as he will learn that this behaviour gets the head collar taken off and will do this all the time. Once he is happily wearing it for short periods at home you can introduce it to walks. Start off with having him wearing it when you go for a walk but with no lead attached. When you let him off lead take it off, and then put it back on to go home, again with no lead attached. When he is happy with this you can then attach a lead (but still have a lead on his collar/harness too). This is where a double ended lead comes in useful as first of all you just need to get him used to the feel of the head collar with the weight of a lead attached before you add any pressure from the lead. If he accepts this quite happily you can then start to gradually increase the tension on the lead on the halti until he gets used to just walking with that. My dog took to it very quickly - about a couple of weeks from start to finish, but some dogs can take a lot longer so it's important to go at a pace that suits your dog. If he doesn't seem to be progressing go back a step for a few days and take it a bit slower.
Re: halti collar I have used Halti, Gentle Leader and Gencon. Molly seems to accept the Gentle Leader better than the Halti. However I used the Halti very successfully with my previous dog for 12 years. I always use a Halti link when using a head collar. If the head collar comes adrift while they are rolling around on the grass you still have control of them. very important if you are walking along a busy street.
Re: halti collar Hi and welcome I use a K9 bridle head collar which is very similar. I didn't do any desensitisation as Harley is easy going and didn't mind it being put on. I think it depends on how reactive your dog is and how they react to new things. I always use the head collar for exciting places and new places as Harley pulls like mad. I like the head collars personally - didn't think I would, but it has really helped me. Good luck and let us know how you get on
Re: halti collar Lots of people who use head collars think they are great. I think they are likely to be quite aversive for lots of dogs, particularly but not limited to those that tighten round the head. I think the other disadvantage is controlling a dog from the head must increase the likelihood of injury if the dog lunges or jumps. Like anything, if a dog walks to heel, the attachment method is unlikely to have any impact (a dog walking to heel in a prong collar wouldn't experience any negative effects either though), but I don't think that sounds to be the case for your puppy. If you really feel you need a management tool, a carefully chosen front fastening harness is probably the thing to go for first but you still have to train, otherwise it will work for a bit then you'll be back where you were. This article might help: http://www.thelabradorsite.com/my-dog-pulls/
Re: halti collar I have used headcollars on my two labs since they were 8 months old. They can be very reactive towards strangers coming near so I feel I need to have control of their head. My dogs have never had a problem wearing a headcollar and I've now tried five varieties. The most recent is a fixed action head collar as recommended by Lizi Angel in this article http://liziangel.blogspot.co.uk/2011/11/head-collars.html The problem I've found with the fixed action is fitting it. My dogs lay patiently for the best part of an hour while I put it on, took it off, fiddled over and over. Whilst I was looking at photos of Lizi Angels dog wearing one they took the opportunity to climb on either end of the couch, curl up and go to sleep while still wearing the headcollar and stayed like that while I continued to fiddle with it. :. I think I can safely say my dogs don't mind wearing a headcollar. I agree with Julie about the chance of injury to the neck and head collars shouldn't be used with extendable leads but I was looking at Sophia Yins website yesterday and found this article about headcollars which I found interesting not least because she recommends them http://drsophiayin.com/blog/entry/are-head-collars-on-dogs-dangerous-or-safe in it she explains few cases of neck injury in dogs due to headcollars have been proven and she has never seen any. Both articles give very good advice on how to introduce a head collar to your dog and use them.
Re: halti collar thank you to everyone for their replies always good to get feedback, will give the halti head collar a go if he doesnt adjust will try a front fastening harness
Re: halti collar Slip lead and use a figure of 8 , and all out walking to heel training which can take months to perfect or at least get to 98% and it has to be done everyday for life otherwise they will just revert back to pulling . I see 2-3 labs or other working breeds everyday that have head collars and are still been dragged along , Clearly some owners see it as an easy fix to a point and just dont want to put the work in .
Re: halti collar [quote author=Mike link=topic=10361.msg152717#msg152717 date=1427618703] Slip lead and use a figure of 8 [/quote] Not if you want to train without aversives....a figure of 8 slip lead is the same as a headcollar that tightens round the head with the added disadvantage it's a poor design. There is no magic here. If a device stops a dog pulling it does so because it punishes, or because it has a mechanical action that physically prevents pulling (so watch out for those injuries if the dog lunges). At least the advantage of a front fastening harness is that the mechanical action is on the body, not the head (although that also has disadvantages, as the pressure on the shoulder changes the gait).
Re: halti collar [quote author=Mike link=topic=10361.msg152717#msg152717 date=1427618703] Slip lead and use a figure of 8 , and all out walking to heel training which can take months to perfect or at least get to 98% and it has to be done everyday for life otherwise they will just revert back to pulling . I see 2-3 labs or other working breeds everyday that have head collars and are still been dragged along , Clearly some owners see it as an easy fix to a point and just dont want to put the work in . [/quote] I totally disagree with you there! I use a head collar because I can't have her pull me at all due to spinal injuries. There are many reasons people use head collars, just like people who use harnesses, it is a tool. A figure of 8 is similar to a head collar, but can be harsher, especially if it's not a limited slip lead.
Re: halti collar We have only used a figure of 8 whilst Jake was been trained to walk to heel with a loose lead in emergencies if you like, Due to his over excitement when seeing other dogs he is no longer to bothered about other dogs now . My wife has a medical condition which means in the past she would struggle to control Jake if he decided to pull or lunge without her sustaining an injury , We favoured the figure of 8 because it was easily put into position quickly when required whilst out walking and then quickly removed once Jake had settled down .
