Prong collar here too. As others have said, properly fit and used, its a miracle.
Don't use Prozac. If you are truly concerned about your dog's emotional state, go to a certified veterinary behaviorist for help. I have a +R trainer who would easily suggest a prong for safety and maintenance, if needed, while also working on training the dog to walk with a flat buckle collar at home and then slowly out into the real world, so you can eventually wean off of using one. Make sure it is fitted properly, it's the right size and don't get a cheap one.
I have never used prongs on my dogs, but when I did rescue and would get two year old Labs that lived in backyards 24/7 -- so both untrained and easily overstimulated -- I often used a prong out of necessity and it usually worked out OK. There were some dogs that were terrified of them and some that were in such an emotional state that they literally did not feel them and a head halter worked better for the same reasons it works on a horse (control of the head). You have to properly condition the head halter and for some dogs it takes quite a bit of time -- you would take the halter off before they are upset about it otherwise you're conditioning them to hate it. You can't rush the process.
Prong collar here too. As others have said, properly fit and used, its a miracle.
With my last male Lab, a soft dog who was hurting me while pulling on a martingale, I did a "dead ring" with the lead fastened to both rings and the collar inside out. He needed, in effect, a metal martingale to get the message across. For a while I did use the collar with the prongs in. I either put a collar scrunchie on the prongs or used rubber tips, as he was sensitive, unlike some of the other lugs I have raised or rescued. It worked and I was able to transition to a martingale collar, and then a buckle collar.
My other guys needed a regular pinch much longer. Granted, for the last one I was a better trainer AND had bred him for a willing temperament and a bit more self control.
Good luck.
SO good to find a forum where dog headcollars and harnesses are not pushed as the solution for everything. Prong collars are not common here but check chains are and I think as long as you learn how to use the tool correctly and it works then that is the best way to control what will be a big and strong dog.
OUr older dog we got when he was about 2 years old and he was a nightmare to walk - absolutely nothing worked to control him if there was another person/dog/bike/etc going past. I use to have to physically wrestle him off the path and make him stare the opposite way to whatever was going past. Then when he calmed down enough to sit we would go off the path and sit and watch whtever it was go past. After a year I took him to obedience classes and despite the hand injuries they did give me plenty of advice that did help. He's not perfect but usually pretty good nowadays - he has to be as we've started walking with both him and the puppy.
The puppy I prefer a check chain - you can give a simple check by moving your fingers far lighter touch than a flat collar and lead. I also use food - have been using food since the start of puppy obedience. To start with it was endless stream of treats if she did the right thing but now its sometimes praise and treats and sometimes praise. Eventually like our older one she will know its expected to behave when walking but she's only learning still (older dog never was a treat dog as a reward).
And please dont drug the puppy - they naturally push the boundaries the trick is to work out what will eventually work. Taking the puppy to obedience classes so she shes large groups of other dogs where they can socialise before and after classes actually has made a difference to how she greets other dogs out walking. She's actually a lot better behaved than our older dog when it comes to moving on or ignoring barking dogs.
It's sad enough that there are people out there calling themselves trainers who are incapable of teaching a dog to walk on a lead, but shocking that instead of admitting their own limitations they blame the dog for not learning and suggest that it is drugged! Anyone who says an eight month old puppy should be drugged into walking on a lead is not fit to be anywhere near dogs, let alone call themselves a trainer. I think I should stop reading forums - it is far too depressing!
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When I got my Gabe, he was about 1 year old, NO training of any kind whatsoever (which I think is good as I did not have to untrain incorrect behavior). He has a VERY high prey instinct and would go after anything that moved when I tried to walk him. Flat collar did not work at all, only chocked him.
I got a prong, looked on youtube on how to adjust it and USE it. After 3 days he was back on the flat collar and has never used the prong again. The thing is a miracle (WHEN USED CORRECTLY).
It's a message forum, and since we are not actually seeing the dog, perhaps it would benefit from drugs? Perhaps the trainer is a certified veterinary behaviorist? Maybe there are other things going on that led the trainer to this conclusion that were not mentioned in this post? Who knows!
I think that sometimes we read this stuff and feel like we know the whole story, see the whole picture, but we're only hearing it from one person's perspective; a stranger whose background in this subject we do not know. Not only that, but a lot gets lost in the written word.
I use the e z walk . it works great. gigi is the same way even now. when she wants to go , she is moving. It is a harness with a loop in the front chest area. The harness gives better control.
I do not think age has anything to do with this, rather the lack of exercise might . They have so much energy at this age. gigi is 11 months and she is still a brat even now. But she seem to be maturing rather slowly.
i would not stop walks as i see them regress with socially when this is done.
gigi goes to dog park for an hr and half saturday and sunday. she runs the entire time there , then she goes to day care of wednesday to play again. Even then tuesday evening and friday evening she is extra naughty.
if weather is good, she needs her walks. during the day my wife plays fetch a few times with her.
I remember puppy walks.... We used Zukes minis as training treats to praise a good heel. To this day there are spots Remy HAS to sniff. And I had a trainer explain to me that when a dog is on a walk he is also checking up on the local news. Catching all the scents, smelling all the on goings. After she explained that to me, I was more open to having certain places that we tend to stop and sniff. Eventually, your pup will be more about his people vs well everything around him. Consistency is key too! We had a dog walker that just let Remy do whatever he wanted and tow her around. Once we finished with her we were able to get Remy back to being a good leash walker.
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