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  1. #1
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    Question My dog is getting choked by his collar.

    Hey guys,

    My puppy (Buddy) is like 5 months old now and I noticed whenever we put the leash on him, he likes to pull on it; and fairly hard. I'm not going to allow him to drag me across town whenever he gets distracted, which BTW is like every minute, so I maintain a firm position on his leash. But he still pulls with all his might, and I can hear him gasping and/or choking because the collar is around his neck.

    Can you guys recommend a leash that won't harm him if he pulls? Or would an alternative collar (one that doesn't choke him from excessive pulling) encourage more pulling from him?

    Lil' help?

  2. #2
    Chief Pooper Scooper JenC's Avatar
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    Prong collar and TRAINING class.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by JenC View Post
    Prong collar and TRAINING class.
    This x100. And get him in soon before this has a chance to become an ingrained habit. The longer he does this, the longer it will take to get him not to.
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  4. #4
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    To be perfectly honest, I can't afford putting him in any obedience training program.

    I Googled the prong collar, and it looks kinda......creepy; border line sadistic (sorry I'm just picturing Jigsaw strapping one onto a dog saying "I want to play a game").

    Is this thing safe for long term use? I don't know much about them; this is my first time hearing about them. I'll do some more research into them and once I'm satisfied I can't hurt my dog with it, I'll pick one up.

    Cheers.

  5. #5
    Senior Dog CraftHer's Avatar
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    Agreed. Especially the training part. This sounds exactly like Mocha when he was a pup. He pulled so hard he left red marks on my hands! We were in puppy kindergarten and our trainer evaluated Mocha, recommended the prong collar and then trained us and Mocha.

    Edited: I just read your reply. I had the same reaction - those things are barbaric! But used properly, they won't hurt the dog. I put it around my arm and pulled. It got my attention, but wasn't painful. And Mocha has more around his neck than I have around my arm We took Mocha to Petsmart for training. You can ask about a one time training for just walking and the prong collar.

  6. #6
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    prong and it's not creepy if fitted properly.

    then attempt training yourself. as he pulls, turn the other way. and keep doing it.

    hard to have a dog and not be able to have a trained one. labs will push it until they realize you aren't kidding. treats work wonders.

  7. #7
    House Broken
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    I recommend easy walk harness. My puppy used to pull a lot and she is much much better now since we switched from regular collar to easy walk harness. With positive reinforcement (reward once he come back or closer to you), I believe this problem will be resolved. By the way, the reason we gave up on collar was exactly because my puppy seemed to choke her as well. We cannot bear the potential damage to her throat so we changed.

  8. #8
    Senior Dog BaconsMom's Avatar
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    We currently use a prong on Bacon and it makes him walk perfectly. If you can look at a prong in the store, fit it to your arm and pull. you can feel that the collar pinches, but does not cut into your skin. Your puppy has lots of loose skin and it will help to teach them that it is not ok to pull. Bacon has been walked with a prong his entire life, and after a few walks with it on, he walked with a slack leash. He has done this ever since, he is now 2 years old.

    The prong may look scary, but it is a good training tool. It is not painful for the dog. I have tried both gentle leaders and the easy walk harness, and neither have worked for me. The gentle leader many dogs can pull through, and the easy walk harness caused hair loss under the arms of my last dog.

    Don't be scared by the prong, it has made walking bacon a dream, and before I couldnt walk him because he was so strong!
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  9. #9
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    Yeah prong collars look like some sort of torture device, however, properly fitted it won't hurt the dog. A choke collar on the other hand, can do significant damage, including crushing the dogs larynx.

    I use them on both of my beasts.

  10. #10
    Senior Dog ZoeysMommy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by YMS_1975 View Post
    To be perfectly honest, I can't afford putting him in any obedience training program.

    I Googled the prong collar, and it looks kinda......creepy; border line sadistic (sorry I'm just picturing Jigsaw strapping one onto a dog saying "I want to play a game").

    Is this thing safe for long term use? I don't know much about them; this is my first time hearing about them. I'll do some more research into them and once I'm satisfied I can't hurt my dog with it, I'll pick one up.

    Cheers.
    if the prong collar isnt something you want to do, try the easy walk harness, head halti or a sporn harness. I personally like the sporn the best and the head halti. You just need to figure out which works best for your dog

    I personally wouldnt use a prong but I have nothing negative to say about them. They work when used properly. Its just my personal choice. You do need to find something before he hurts himself and before this becomes a lifelong habit and you have a 80 pound adult dog pulling you all over and he causes permanent damage to his throat

    Do not use a choke chain or a pinch collar, those require intense training on your part and the risk of injury is very high

 



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