Question about prong collar

[Eyerman]

I will start off by saying I read the previous thread about prong collars. I raised "Bailey" on the Gentle Leader and she now is very obedient without the gentle leader. I went through a trainer! The only exception is walking (heeling). She will still pull, but my trainer is against prong collars. I would like to try the prong collar because we have tried everything! All different collars. The problem is my 2 year old loves going for walks and gets too excited.

MY QUESTION IS: Is a prong collar hard to use? and could I teach my dog to walk properly with it and HOW?

I am teaching my 4 month old with the gentle leader and she is doing very well and knows the basic commands already. I do not plan on using the prong collar on her unless I exhaust all options again.

I am very involved in training and now assist my trainer in training other dogs. I think the prong collar would be beneficial but need more advice.

[RottiMomCT]

A properly fitted prong collar is VERY easy to use. BUT the collar must be properly fitted - tough to explain in writing - if I had my digi-cam working I'd take a pic of my Ben with his collar on...

Improperly fitted, a prong can cause alot of damage.

Ben pulled like he was an ox plowing a field when I used a choke collar, on the prong, he's a whole new dog. He and I are now working to get him off the prong and he's making progress...depending on the place we're going, he sometimes does not have the prong on...

Find someone who can show you how to properly fit the collar (and do not let them tell you that you need a huge prong collar - I use a medium sized link collar, with a nylon choker for backup), and make sure they also teach you how to correct the dog.

Good luck...keep us posted!!

[Judi W]

I will confess upfront that I am not a fan of head halters for training purposes. Yes, they control and if that is the goal, fine, but no, they do not assist in training as you have discovered.

I am not at all opposed to students using the pinch when it appears to be appropriate. If it is used as a training tool, it does an excellent job. It should not be used, like the head halter, as a control device. If you have no experience in when and how to give a correction, you will likely not be using it to its advantage. If all your experience in training is with someone who does not believe in correcting a dog, then you might not have the knowledge of how and when to offer corrections properly and how to keep your lead light. Please consider another trainer so that you can move forward. In my experience, dogs that have been exclusively controlled by using a head halter do not advance in their training. They are “controlled” not trained (as you have experienced) and there is a difference. The dogs that arrive in my classes whose owners are dependent upon the head halters never seem to advance until they discard them and go to a collar. The dogs working in head halters are, almost without exception, unhappy campers.

Also, I am a bit puzzled. You are working with a trainer who is dependent on the GL and the dog you have trained using that method is still not leash broke, but you are proceeding to use that same method with your second dog. Why? Please consider that before proceeding. It is much preferred to teach your dog leash manners while it is young than to wait until it is older and heavier methods must be used such as you are facing now. If that has not been done, then yes, the pinch is often an effective tool. What the pinch does is it adds authority and emphasis to corrections. It is not possible to give a correction on a head halter and attempting to do so can be harmful to the dog.

So would a pinch be appropriate? Most likely. But, it should be used with knowlege on how and when to give a correction or you run the risk of simply having a dog that learns to disregard the pressure from the pinch and pulls into it, especially if the handler is accustomed to using constant lead tension to control the dog as with the head halters.

Yes, properly fitted, the pinch works. Yes, it takes instructions on how to use the leash and when to and how to correct. I do not know of any cases where an improperly fitted a pinch has caused damage, it simply becomes ineffective. Improperly fitted is too loose and/or too low on the neck, wherein it only tightens to a limited degree and the dog simply ignores it. That is why I feel it is important that you have a decent instructor. Giving a dog experiences of ignoring handler instructions is what causes damage in my mind. Damage to the relationship and damage to the progression of training. It generates disregard and disrespect of the handler.