Pinch collars etc. My dog really pulls. So much so that I've been dragged down the street more than once. My vet recently recommended the gentle leader. I'm just curious as to if this really works. My dog is very well behaved except on walks. I'm hoping you all can tell me if its worth the money.
Totally WORTH the money!!!
I have had great success with gentle leaders, I have a 130 lb rescued wolf dog and a 115 lb rescued german shep. and I walk both of them with ease..it really is like walking horses 
lol, they see the gentle leaders come out and go sit by the door, wating with excited happy feet to go for the walk, they will even shove thier noses into the loop. As long as you make the experience a positive experience, your dog sould easily accept it. Good Luck!!
* I have both the gentle leader and the halti, i by far choose the gentle leader because you can make a correct fit for your dog with the gentle leader, while the halti seems too loose.
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Yes, it really does. My dog is annoying unless we slap that on. Over time, the dog recognizes it and chills without having to put it on.
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Defo get a haltie, i had to go for physio on both shoulders due to my dog pulling on the lead, got a haltie and it was the best money i ever spent.
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We used Gentle Leaders on the dogs in our kennel at college, and they worked quite well.
I have a Husky (natural born puller) and a Labrador (knucklehead). I tried the Gentle Leaders on them, and they didn't fit quite well – the Husky pulled it right off, and it rode up too close to the Lab's eyes.
I tried the Halti next – and never looked back. The absolute best $18 I've spent on any piece of nylon. They are more structured, so they don't slip as much – and have a safety lead that attaches to the collar, so that if by chance the dog were to get it off, you still have a hold of him.
They work very well, as they redirect the dog's pulling energy, just as the halter on a horse does. (Try walking a fractious horse with a collar around the base of his neck and see where that gets you =) So, his head will simply turn to the side, rather than giving you rope burn and making walks absolutely miserable as you get dragged along with your brakes on the whole time.
Many people don't like them, because they're said to be a replacement for proper training. I can see this as being true – but after working and working and working with our dogs, I got sick of the pulling and went for the headcollar. To each his own!
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Go with the halti collar. I had a dog that was very well behaved except on walks. The halti collar works wonders. I only had to use it for a short time. It was the only way i could get him to properly heal. That in combination with treat training worked well for him. It wasnt long before he listened and would heal and sit when i asked. They didnt yet have the extra safty lead when i first bought mine so i just used a choke chain and clipped the lead onto the halti and the choke chain in case it slipped off but i never had that happen.
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It won't STOP your dog from pulling, but it will keep them from dragging you down the street. It greatly reduces the amount of pulling power they have by creating a rotating point at the neck. If you want to stop the pulling completely, you need to take the lead and teach your dog to take a submissive role on the walks.
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Gentle leaders can be effective if used correctly. Dog trainer Jean Donaldson has some good videos demonstrating techniques for getting your dog used to wearing the nose strap and how to correctly use it (just do an on-line search). I've also heard of people having success with front-clip harnesses because of the way the harness places the dog's body when it tries to pull, though I don't have any personal experience.
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Yes,YEs ,YES.If you have been to Obedience then you use a check chain and they will train you and your dog have compete control of your dog l can assure you.Your dog should not be still pulling badly after correct Obedience training.Forget the prong collars they are illegal in some countries.The Gentle Leader usually comes with a DVD and it will show you how to put it on etc.You must get the right size.AS a Trainer l recommend these for people who cannot be bothered having their dog trained for several weeks as it is expensive although they end up with a well trained,well adjusted animal.
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Breeder,vet nurse,trainer
I have a 6 month old lab puppy. we tried the gentle leader on her and she freaked out. For several days afterwards, she would pee inside the house and become scared when she saw it. Try using a harness instead…the Easy Walk harness works better.
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I got a Gentle Leader for my male GSD for walks. I actually prefer it to a prong collar. The Halti (for him) did not work at all, primarily because of the poor fit. The Halti is shaped more like a horse's halter and doesn't fit most dogs, from my experience. The Gentle Leader is more like a Figure 8 and stays more securely.
Depending on your dog, they will fight the collar for awhile, just stick with it. My neighbors probably thought I was torturing my dog, as he would continually throw himself in the air, pawing at his face and nose.
Personally, I like the Deluxe Gentle Leaders better than the plain ones. They don't seem to rub as much hair off of the face.
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http://www.buygentleleader.com
It all depends on the dog, for some it works for some it doesn't. I have tried it on both my dogs and will never use it again due to the reaction of my Shepherd mix. My Aussie first of all is a puller, has been all her life. I tried both the halti and the gentle leader with her and she still pulled, so hard that she was basically walking one eyed the whole walk as the skin under her eye on whichever side the leash was one, was being pulled up by the side of halit/gentle leader. If I accidentally pulled on the leash she'd yelp because she was constantly putting pressure on her nose.
My Shepherd mix is leash aggressive towards other dogs. I tried the gentle leader at the advice of the behaviorist we went to and it made his reaction twice as bad. The first time he saw a dog with the gentle leader on he reared up on his hind legs like a horse and was vocalizing and pawing at his nose trying to get it off. I also had no control over him with that thing on, we had to stop walking until the other dog was past us. The gentle leader made his reaction to other dogs worse, he NEVER acted like that prior to having that thing on. I will never use one again.
Some dogs are okay with it, other's aren't. I'd say try it and see. And you also have to work with the dog on walking nicely. You can't just put on the gentle leader and expect him to behave perfectly. The trainer I used for my Shepherd helped me get my Aussie to walk better. It's up to you in the end though.
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Yes, it does really work, and they aren't really very expensive. Some dogs do have difficulty adjusting to something around the nose, though. If that is the case with your dog, another effective tool is the 'Easy Walk Harness' which I think works well also and is a body harness with the leash attaching in front of the chest, so that the dog's body is turned to you when they pull.
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it works really well- its worth its weight in gold- wait.. did i seriously just say that?
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Totally WORTH the money!!!
I have had great success with gentle leaders, I have a 130 lb rescued wolf dog and a 115 lb rescued german shep. and I walk both of them with ease..it really is like walking horses
lol, they see the gentle leaders come out and go sit by the door, wating with excited happy feet to go for the walk, they will even shove thier noses into the loop. As long as you make the experience a positive experience, your dog sould easily accept it. Good Luck!!
* I have both the gentle leader and the halti, i by far choose the gentle leader because you can make a correct fit for your dog with the gentle leader, while the halti seems too loose.
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Works very well on most dogs, but I went to group obedience classes with my dogs, using the gentle leader, was very helpful to get them to mind without them chocking themselves.
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I've used a Halti, which is the same basic thing as a Gentle Leader, and it was somewhat effective, but the head collar didn't stop the pulling. It was a prong (pinch) collar that finally worked.
If you do get a gentle leader or halti, read the instructions especially on the safety strap. I didn't know what the safety strap was at first and almost threw it out. If I hadn't learned how to use it, my dog would have been loose the time she shook out of the head collar. She would have crossed a busy road and attacked another dog, but the safety strap prevented a disaster.
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So you go buy the gentle leader, you put it on your dog, and you adjust it to fit. As soon as your out the door, your dog starts bucking like a wild bronco! You can't walk anywhere like this! He/She is digging his/her heels in, refusing to go anywhere, while wildly shaking his/her head trying to get it off. So stubborn!
But you're more stubborn. You start walking, and just ride out his/her tantrum of not wanting this contraption on his/her head. Eventually after trying this every two hours for a week, you're walking! Not only are you walking, but you can hold the leash with your pinky!
If works. My dog is a sharpei, which has a lot of torque like a pit bull. She would see something move and take off after it like lightning, often leaving a large burn on your hand from the leash being pulled through it so fast. We put this on, she put up a fuss, and we were more stubborn. (Sharpeis can be really stubborn). Now, my 5 year old sister can walk her, although the dog weighs only a little less than she does.
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Don't bother with that gimmick sh!t. Vets are not dog trainers. Teach your dog how to walk on a leash. "Halti people" always have some gimmick to avoid just giving a few painful corrections to your dog to learn something. Put a prong collar on, wait for him to pull, give a verbal command of your choice (once established, don't change this meaning) stop dead, and yard sternly on the leash – when he demonstrates the desired behavior, give praise. If the dog keeps pulling, you need to pull harder. You may have to pull the dog off his feet a few times. But, the dog will learn. Haltis just conceal the problem. In my opinion, your dog doesn't respect you as a leader.
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Owning and training very hard, aggressive, dominate protection dogs (GSD).
Yes, Yes, Yes they do. I trained my 110 lbs Lab to walk like a perfect gentlemen using the Gentle Leader while I was on crutches. I have always owned large dogs and over the years and many big dogs I have tried everything known to man. The other devices I was not really thrilled with and when I went on crutches I needed something that would work great and safely. I have always had horses and their halters work the same as the Gentle Leader principle and that works so I decided to try it out and was totally impressed.
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The gentle leader really does work if the handler puts it on the dog correctly. This is the biggest problem I see when an owner attempts to use without proper instruction.
Depending on the dog, the leader can be very effective, but there are some dogs who simply refuse to accept wearing one. At that point, I will use the easy walker. I have found the easy walker to be incredibly effective for dogs who cannot wear a gentle leader because of their inability to tolerate the strap around their muzzle or if their muzzle is too short.
The decision to switch from a gentle leader to an easy walker may be considered taking a step back, especially if you have been conditioning your dog to the leader, but if you are not getting results, the easy walker may be "the next best thing".
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