RubyBlue Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 Just think about what I use a harness for with a racing dog. It enhances the pulling power. I feel much safer walking my dog in a slip or half slip collar, I can feel her move and correct as needed. Absolutely agree, a harness gives the least possible control unless it is one of the ones designed to stop them pulling. when walking out in public all dogs should have a collar they cannot slip out of, even if you have a harness or halti on as well. Many dogs will react like yours if there are two of them together. Two are a pack and resent the other dog intruding. It doesn't make them aggressive or reactive, it makes them dogs. The other dog should not have been allowed to approach but you need to ensure that you have suitable collars and leads to give you enough control. For a collar to be effective it needs to be placed high behind the ears and not be able to slip over the head. I prefer martingales so the dogs don't associate any pain with seeing another dog but they cannot escape either. Yep and combine that with 8 points of contact with the ground (compared with your two) and a center of gravity around your knee level, plus they can pull in different directions all of which can very easily off balance you. My dogs combined are roughly the same weight as me - if one sees something the other has to investigate too and they end up egging each other on to the point where physically I am unable control the situation. I use a head collar on the bigger dog to make sure that the balance is always in my favour. As others have suggested you may benefit from the help of a professional. Stopping and allowing your dogs to eyeball the other dog would have only escalated the situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 (edited) I walk both my of mine, although they aren't GSD's on half slip collars or Black Dog Infin 8 halters. The Infin 8's I swear by. They are different to a normal halti & I find miles more effective without ANY discomfort to your dog. If you have a moment check them out on the Black Dog web site. The other good thing is they only work if the dog pulls, if he is behaving it is just like he is being walked on a collar & leash. Mine very rarely pull now even when walked together daily. Edited October 10, 2012 by BC Crazy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chihuahuamumma Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 Put your dogs in collars - if your were dragged 30m you do not have any control. What would have happened if you'd been dragged across a road?? Tightening the leash just builds frustration, keep the leash loose and pop to correct. I'm not going to say that you were 'wrong' but if you can't recall your dog you shouldn't be allowing it off leash. Sorry, I was dragged 30cm not metres. So collars are more effective than harnesses you think? (honest question), when I used to use them I felt like I had less control when they were on collars than now that they're in harnesses. And also, I didn't allow my dog offleash - he slipped out of his harness. Obviously because it wasn't tight enough. But I understand what you are saying and will try the pop technique next time. Thank you :) Have you tried using head haltis? If they're wearing harnesses they can use their whole body strength to pull you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huski Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 They are different to a normal halti & I find miles more effective without ANY discomfort to your dog. How do they work if it's not at all uncomfortable for the dog? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minimax Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 They are different to a normal halti & I find miles more effective without ANY discomfort to your dog. How do they work if it's not at all uncomfortable for the dog? If it goes across the nose I think it would have to cause some discomfort? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovemesideways Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 I would use a prong collar long before I would touch a halti, just as personal preference, comes from experience though at seeing the damage a halti can do . I would suggest seeing a trainer before you potentially waste a bunch of money/time on tools that may or may not be effective long term. You want to train a new behaviour, you don't want a bandaid! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 You want to train a new behaviour, you don't want a bandaid! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 My personal take on it is you should just walk one dog at a time if that's what you can effectively control if shit hits the fan. Also, you wrapping leads around your hands and making them tight is sending a clear signal to your dogs that you're not confident and that can cause them to becoem on edge and reactive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liindsay Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 I've recently started training my boy with the Canny Collar and he's doing great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebelsquest Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 hard to know. Perhaps you could have called to the man and told/asked him to call his dog back because it was eyeballing yours and they're on lead and feeling vulnerable. Tighten the harness too. How did the bloke react, was he Ok when you asked him to hold Jenna? +1 to this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 (edited) They are different to a normal halti & I find miles more effective without ANY discomfort to your dog. How do they work if it's not at all uncomfortable for the dog? It works in the same way a halter works on a horse. If the dog pulls, slight pressure is applied across the dogs nose,as soon as it doesn't pull the pressure ceases & goes slack. All it is is an extension off a martingale collar, the nose section comes off the martingale collar in a figure 8 over which is slipped over your dogs nose. When they are walking nicely on lead consistently I just cut the nose band off. Now both of mine are just on martingales. I didn't use the Infin 8 as a bandaid, I used it as a training aid & when introduced & fitted correctly I highly recommend them :) Edited October 11, 2012 by BC Crazy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 (edited) They are different to a normal halti & I find miles more effective without ANY discomfort to your dog. How do they work if it's not at all uncomfortable for the dog? I used the Black Dog one on Justice a few years ago and he hated it and found it very aversive. I do like them better than other brands I've seen but it's definitely uncomfortable to wear. It might just be tolerated better by some dogs than others. When you first put the Infin8 on you have to do it gradually usually. I used it on both Sonny & Stella. Sonny didn't care less but Stella hated it at first, threw herself on the ground & had a tanti for 5 minutes when I put the nose band on, so I left it on for only a few minutes at first & didn't grab hold of the lead & gradually she didn't worry about it either. If they walk on a loose lead it is just as if they have a martingale collar on & the nose band only becomes active if they pull. Another reason I love them is they can't slip them, like they can most other ones. It boils down to whatever works for the dog though :) Edited October 11, 2012 by BC Crazy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavik Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 We had one client come into the dog daycare when I worked there with an infin8 head collar. Quite different to other headcollars I have seen (and rather complicated to put on the first time with no instructions :laugh: ). The lead goes onto a martingale and the pressure on the nose comes indirectly, you don't have control over the dog's head as you do with other headcollars. So my thoughts is that it is less likely to cause the head to pull sideways suddenly, but also less effective at controlling the dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 (edited) Yes Kavik they are quite different to other head collars & I'm so glad I had instructions the first time I was fitting mine otherwise very confusing, yes :laugh: Once you understand how they work, they are really easy to put on. Other head collars tend to pull the dogs head around & apply pressure under the jaw, pulling the dogs nose down & sideways, which I didn't like. The dog seems to be walking with it's head pulled to one side. With the Infin8, the pressure is coming from the martingale & on top of the nose, keeping the dogs head nice & straight. I seemed to have plenty of control over their head as well. Different strokes for different folks I guess :) Edited October 11, 2012 by BC Crazy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huski Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 They are different to a normal halti & I find miles more effective without ANY discomfort to your dog. How do they work if it's not at all uncomfortable for the dog? It works in the same way a halter works on a horse. If the dog pulls, slight pressure is applied across the dogs nose,as soon as it doesn't pull the pressure ceases & goes slack. So the pressure on the dog's face is what causes the dog to stop pulling, I wouldn't say that it works without applying ANY discomfort, if the pressure applied to the dog's face wasn't uncomfortable the dog would keep pulling. It's great you found something that works for you and your dog but it's not accurate to say head collars somehow work without applying any level of discomfort to the dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 (edited) IMHO huski, no more discomfort than a ordinary flat collar if a dog pulls. It is unsafe to walk a dog in something they can slip. Thats was my main concern & it seems the op. is having trouble as hers slipped the harness. Hence my suggestion to try an Infin8 :) Edited October 11, 2012 by BC Crazy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RubyBlue Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 IMHO huski, no more discomfort than a ordinary flat collar if a dog pulls. It is unsafe to walk a dog in something they can slip. Thats was my main concern & it seems the op. is having trouble as hers slipped the harness. Hence my suggestion to try an Infin8. This is what I use for the same reasons. The ones that clip below the dogs jaw pull their heads around, I was concerned about this and the potential for it to hurt my rather bouncy dogs neck. I also found that the nosebands tended to ride up into his right eye when he pulled. That caused him a lot of discomfort. Because the infin8 is clipped at the back of the neck it puts downward pressure on the top of his nose rather than sideways pressure. As it doesn't ride up into his eye my dog is much more tolerant of it. I have also found that I can adjust it to suit his likely level of excitement. On a rather boring walk I loosen the noseband off a bit to give him some time getting used to minimal/no pressure and in a highly exciting environment (like at dog club) I tighten it so that I have more control. It is not as effective at reducing his strength but I have found it to be a good compromise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 Yes exactly Rubyblue. I don't like normal Halti's either as they do pull the dogs head around & down. Also the noseband rides up near their eyes almost. I only use the nose band on my younger girl now on occassion, usually just the martingale. I reckon they work really well & are very safe :) I believe they train police GHD's with them also, thats what made me think they may help the OP :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huski Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 IMHO huski, no more discomfort than a ordinary flat collar if a dog pulls. It is unsafe to walk a dog in something they can slip. Thats was my main concern & it seems the op. is having trouble as hers slipped the harness. Hence my suggestion to try an Infin8 :) Then why would people use tools like the infin8 if it was as effective as a flat collar? Like I said, if you want to use it and it works for you that's great but it's simply untrue to pretend that there is no discomfort caused to the dog. They have to be aversive on some level to stop the dog from pulling. I have a dog that can slip flat collars so he wears a martingale for safety :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Crazy Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 Because dogs can slip a flat collar :) I'm pleased a martingale collar works for your dog as they work for both of mine too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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