I would say that Bob is pretty sort of OK on the lead around about town - a bit of pulling here and there (dogs/smells etc) but generally he knows what's what when we stop walking and he'll stop. I guess this is because we've proofed it so many times and it's the same old smells etc. BUT today we went out to our little boy's Easter Egg hunt. It was in a field in the country, with horses, dogs and children running about. Bob (understandably) went nuts... we couldn't control him AT ALL on the lead. He pulled so hard my arms and shoulders are aching now. It was so depressing, but I totally understand why he did it. The thing is, we don't have the time to spend proofing all these scenarios... I just want a dog that we can enjoy as a family and walk nicely. We both work, we have our son, we are doing up our house, my parent's house, my flat, selling another house - we are busy and stressed out all the time. So Bob is dropping down the list of priorities in terms of training... he gets fed, walked, cuddled, played with...he's a lucky little boy. We all adore him. But I just don't have as much time as I should have for training. I am doing total recall training at home, he's doing really well and will come from different room now when I call him - and I will continue with that. What I need is another way to deal with the pulling rather than having to spend ages training, I simply do not have the time. I know they are controversial but what are our options with head collars/harnesses etc.. I really feel for my sanity, we need to explore this option. Thank you for your advice. Lou x
Re: pulling & stressed Why not use a harness? Bella is only little still but she's strong and we are using a harness, I haven't started collar and lead training yet, but she is happy in her harness and walks well. ;D
Re: pulling & stressed Hi Lou, Maisie isn't great on her lead, probably my fault as we do a lot of off lead, but we are working on loose lead training. However, like you say there are lots of situations/places where the distractions are way too much and she pulls like a train! After much research and reading about the harness on here, I've just bought a Perfect Fit harness. I'm very impressed with it and pulling has significantly reduced. I feel like I have more control over her and she is less likely to hurt her throat. I wish I had bought one ages ago!
Re: pulling & stressed Pongo also pulls like a train and is very, very strong. And most of his life is off-lead, so we have not done well in training self-control on the lead. I've just bought a Perfect Fit harness for him (having borrowed Casper's from Beanwood, thank you Kate!) and am very hopeful that it is going to help on the - still fairly rare - occasions he has to be on-lead. It looked like a superb bit of kit when we tried Casper's on him, and very comfortable. On the one hand I could tell myself I'm a failure for not training him better. On the other hand, he very rarely needs to be on-lead, and I really do just need a way of being in control when it is me versus his enthusiasm! I am hoping that the harness and the control it gives me will let me gradually encourage him to more self-control and calmer behaviour in circumstances where he just wants to go loopy.
Re: pulling & stressed Thank you I might explore the Perfect Fit Harness then ... and thank you for not judging! Lou x
Re: pulling & stressed I think for most people using a management tool like a harness or gentle leader permanently as the solution for loose-leash walking is fine. As long as the tool is safe for the dog and not harmful, it's up to you to decide whether you want to or have time to do "proper" loose leash training. Maisie has been in a harness for her walks ever since she started going on them - I literally have no idea how she walks on a leash attached to her collar, because we simply don't do that. She does walk with a loose lead currently on the harness and rarely pulls (although adolescence may change that!) so we barely even use the harness's management properties… just once in a blue moon when she's pulling to get somewhere really good.
Re: pulling & stressed I only ever walk Obi in a harness. A harness won't really stop pulling but it is 'different' so it gives you a chance to break the pulling cycle by starting with something that isn't associated with pulling. A head halter might well work better. It does tend to subdue some dogs a bit (probably because they do not love the head halter) but some dogs don't seem to mind at all. My dog Obi is walked in one by his dog walker (just their policy). We bought one just to see what the effect was on him and it definitely made him go a bit subdued, though he still walked along just fine and sniffed and did his normal things. Maybe you could try a head halter for those times when you know it will be a big challenge for Bob, and a harness or normal collar for those situations where you've been able to work on your training and have got him walking pretty well
Re: pulling & stressed Pongo's Perfect Fit harness hasn't arrived yet, so I can't say I've tried it..... but I've ordered one with an optional front attachment so you can have a double-ended lead attached at the back AND at the front; that means when / if he pulls you can stop him by pulling the front lead taut to pull him aside. Kate (Beanwood) says it works well with Casper, so I have high hopes! I'll let you know how we get on...
Re: pulling & stressed I don't want you to feel judged, Lou, but you say you have Bob walking well around town - that's no mean feat with a 7 month old Lab. Sure, he pulled like mad around kids, horses and an Easter Egg race. My 2 year old dog probably would have too, actually for sure he would have. A well fitted, front fastening harness might be just the thing for those times when you are taking Bob to places that you haven't (yet) trained for. I have a fleece lined back fastening harness one, and it's great (it doesn't stop Charlie pulling, but I have been known to tie him to a fence in it watching other dogs retrieve ). You could try one with a front ring too. But don't give up the lead walking training. If you are short of time, it might take a bit longer, that's all. It's not a race. There are many advantages to training your dog to walk alongside you whatever he is wearing (and indeed to walk alongside you off lead too). You sound to be doing ok, and it's a shame to view it as a choice to train or to get a management tool, you should try to do both if you can.
Re: pulling & stressed Caspers perfect fit harness is a god send. He actually walks very well on the lead, however there are a few areas that he may react...risk of cyclists, walkers in big yellow jackets, other on lead dogs coming towards him. With all the will in the world I cannot plan for all these encounters, and having a big black lab lunging and barking tends to make people who are unfamiliar (and unsympathetic )with dog behaviour very nervous. The harness works a treat. Mostly I use it with just the one attachment on his back, and use as a loose lead. Perfect loose lead walking in all situations with a young adolescent labrador is not impossible but just takes a long, long time, and patience. We will get there....albeit a bit quicker that I would like sometimes! : :
Re: pulling & stressed Thanks everyone your comments are most helpful. I don't want to give up on training, but something intermediate to take the strain would be a godsend. I had some luck just now actually. I posted on our local dog training FB page and one lady is going to let me try out her Mekuti balance harness and another one will lend me her Dogmatic head collar (it's a non muzzle clamping type). It'll be nice to try them both out and see how they compare. But with all this pulling it's not only frustrating for me, but I do worry about the damage it could be doing to Bob. Thank you Lou x
Re: pulling & stressed Yes, if he's pulling in a collar, you have to get him into (at least) a back fastening harness, pronto....I'm afraid I stopped on a railway level crossing once to put Charlie on his back fastening harness because he was pulling towards the pheasants (and my trainer said "for god's sake woman, get the risks in proportion!" ;D ;D ;D ). Saw this on facebook:
Re: pulling & stressed Hi Julie - yes I've seen this pic a few times on various websites tonight... it's not good. Plus, when Bob pulls me I've started getting stressed and have been pulling him back as well which is just making the situation worse. So this is what has prompted me to explore other options. We are in a negative spiral at the moment. I think a harness is a defo moving forwards - I like the concept of not pulling on his neck regardless of the pulling. But I am interested to see what the Dogmatic head collar does as well in comparison. I will share my feedback here for others as well. Lou x
Re: pulling & stressed One thing I do, if Charlie is pulling and not listening, is "park" him. I just stop, put my foot on his lead (I have a knot in it at the right place which also stops it sliding under my shoes) and I just stand there. It gives me a break, chance to collect my thoughts, and Charlie knows that when I do this, nothing is going to happen. He is not going anywhere. So it calms him down. It's a good technique if you feel yourself getting stressed, no matter how you are attached to your dog. Best of luck with it.
Re: pulling & stressed [quote author=Loopyloo30 link=topic=10381.msg152796#msg152796 date=1427647263] What I need is another way to deal with the pulling rather than having to spend ages training, I simply do not have the time. I know they are controversial but what are our options with head collars/harnesses etc.. I really feel for my sanity, we need to explore this option. [/quote] The bottom line is that whatever method of connecting yourself to your dog via a leash, training is vital. You can train during his daily walk. Don't try to go anywhere, just concentrate on teaching him not to pull, basically with Molly it was a case of, if you pull I stop. There is lots of good advice on the forum about teaching your dog to walk nicely on a loose lead. Most of us struggle when there is another dog around. There is nothing you can buy that will teach your dog not to pull, all the various aids can do is make it easier for us to control the dog until it is trained. Labs are large, strong dogs they need training while they are young and smallish. they are also more receptive when they are young.
Re: pulling & stressed You've been given some great advice. It's definitely not an "all or nothing" and it's encouraging to hear you're not thinking of it like that. I can totally sympathise with wanting a tool to help you out in situations you know are going to be challenging, especially when you have a little boy that you have to keep an eye on, too, so it's simply not possible to have your entire focus on your dog and surroundings to see what he could react to. You can only do so much at once! Obviously, I'd encourage you to keep working on the loose-leas walking even once you have an aid; I could see how easy it would be to not let it slip when it's not causing you a problem anymore, but continuing on the work you've done (which is obviously pretty great if he's generally OK in the town) will mean you end up with a happier dog. And, yes, if he pulls, go over to a harness ASAP to prevent the damaging pressure on his throat. You're doing great, Lou, just give yourself and Bobalicious time. Julie's so right - it's not a race.
Re: pulling & stressed I use a harness for Gabby, my 10 month old female lab. She is incredibly strong, but the harness has helped a lot. I feel like she listens to me better with the harness on, she very rarely pulls unless there is something really interesting on the ground! I do still work on loose lead around my little neighborhood and that has gotten better as well. But for our daily long walks, the harness has been a life saver!
Re: pulling & stressed Thanks everyone, well we spent some time with one of the trainers today and we tried out the Mekuti balance harness.. Bob was really good on it and took to it really well! Amazing difference. It didn't stop him pulling but it gave me a lot more control over it. She taught me how to hold both leads with one hand so that I had one free for giving him treats. So I've just ordered one! Will let you know how we get on! Lou x
Re: pulling & stressed Good. You do have to keep training with those harnesses though - and that's a good thing - but it sounds like you've got good advice and a way forwards.
Re: pulling & stressed I'm a bit late catching up with this and I'm pleased to read you've hopefully come up with a solution. I just wanted to mention a martingale type collar, which is a half slip, is safer to walk a dog that might pull than a flat collar. First of all the dog can't back out of a martingale collar but more importantly a martingale collar spreads the pressure if the dog pulls around the neck so it isn't focused on one spot decreasing the chance of injury.
