dog pulls really hard on leash--help

[MommyDOK]

I have a rescued australian cattle dog. She is great, except I can't walk her. She is the strongest thing I have ever seen. She is probably only 55 lbs, but pulls on the leash as though she is 300.

My neighbor loaned me her halti. I can't even put it on her. I wrestled w/ her for 15 minutes yesterday and she won't even let me start w/ it.

I've taken her to petsmart to classes and she is good, when she wants to be. I'm super frustrated. Any ideas?

[gealach]

A prong collar. But, you need to get someone who knows how to use them to help you fit and to show you how to use it correctly. I know they look awful to some people, but you have to get past that. (They are the ones with the spiky looking things). A prong is a great tool if used well. They don't hurt the dog (I put it on myself before I used it on my last dog). And, they are way safer than a choke or even a halti if they are used right. I'll look around later and see if I can find a good web article about them.

[nd_deadhead]

I second the recommendation of a prong collar. Our 120-lb lab was a puller, but the 10-yr-old neighbor girl could walk him with the prong collar.

And he jumped for joy when he saw it, because he knew it meant he was going for a walk! It got his attnetion immediately, and he was able to concentrate on staying at my side.

It even worked for my friend's horrible, spoiled rotten Airedales. They had never been able to walk their dogs before they got prong collars - and THOSE dogs needed exercise!

[MommyDOK]

thank you for your answers.

Is a pronged collar something you only put on for a walk? I just emailed my local pet store to see if they sell them.

[Chloe'sMama]

http://www.thepamperedpetmart.com/Me...e&qtk=6W6wrj6g

I got this for my 70 lb German Shepard and it is so nice. I could easily walk her with it.

Good luck!

[greenmagick]

Also, work with her on not rewarding pulling. When she pulls one way, turn around and walk the other, stop, etc.

I had good luck with prongs, but eventually my dog still pulled with them as I never trained her not to pull. Prongs, haltis, etc are management, you still should train for what you want

[betsyj]

And always have a backup collar regardless of the tool you use. Prongs and haltis/GL's can and do slip or pull apart and you want a backup.

I used a prong on my girl who loathed the halti and GL. I used the prong for running/walking for her (and my) exercise, and trained on a flat collar at other times when I had time and patience. She learned to walk on loose leash and I no longer use anything but a flat buckle collar.

[Eman'smom]

Yup you need a prong collar, they are life savers.

[gingerstar]

Originally Posted by MommyDOK

thank you for your answers.

Is a pronged collar something you only put on for a walk? I just emailed my local pet store to see if they sell them.

Yes, just for walks.
It made all the difference for our northern breed pup. (Think sled dog, on a leash!)

[Aeress]

I also stop walking if she pulls. I say, "Britta walk" and reward her when she does. If she pulls I immediately stop walking. It makes her walk even longer but she has learned that it is no fun to stand around.

Also, I have to be consistent. If she pulls even a little, we stop.

[Ola_]

I like prongs also and second the advice to use a backup collar (a loose nylon slip collar works well for this). The way I use a prong is not to yank/do corrections but rather let the dog self-correct. Just don't give her too much leash slack or she could hurt herself. Once you have the prong on and she's not pulling you off your feet you can use the strategies for training her to walk on a loose leash, such as stop when she pulls, callbacks, turning around, etc.

The head halters work well also, depending on the dog. But with these you can't just put it on the dog and take them for a walk as most will fight it. You need to teach them to accept having it on their face first. To do this I put a treat in my hand and loop the halti over my wrist - hand treat to dog (don't put the halti on yet). After several repetitions I pull the halti onto the dog's nose and then give the treat (repeat several times again). Then put the whole halti on dog's head but don't fasten - let her eat the treat and take it off right away. Once she is enjoying this part you can fasten it, feed her a few treats, and then take it off. Progress to having her walk around on leash with you inside the house for a bit.

I just used regular kibble that I kept from my dog's meal for this, no fancy treats or anything, but she is very food motivated so that helped. Also, I didn't do the steps all at once - I would put the halti on her nose, feed the treat, take it off and walk away. Inevitably she would follow me as if to say "do the thing again, I want my treat!" which is exactly what you want. I'm not saying the halti is the best tool to use but this is how to get her to accept it (I like halti's better than gentle leaders also). Halti's need a backup collar just like the prong also.

[SquishyKitty]

Our rottie is about 100lbs, so I understand where you're coming from.

Our trainer has us walk around an empty lot, with a loose leash. The minute she starts to pull, we change directions. We will literally walk around in circles sometimes, but eventually, she understands that she shouldn't be pulling.

Also, put a treat in your hand and put your hand by your side. Hold just enough of it out so that she can nibble at it. This tends to be rough on the fingers, but if you do this enough times (carrot or potato sticks or cheese sticks are perfect for this) she will eventually learn to walk next to you. Start out in 10 minute increments, with a treat all the time, then move to 20 with a treat half the time, then 30 with a treat maybe once or twice, and then on a regular walk with maybe one treat. We will only randomly take treats now on our walks.

We never liked the halters or gentle leaders or any of those things, it is much better to teach the dog to walk on a regular collar with a regular leash.

If you've got the retractable leash, I recommend getting a regular lylon leash and collar.

[SquishyKitty]

Also, praise praise praise. Use the annoying high pitched voice that gets them excited. Pet them, rub their heads, praise the heck out of them when they continue to walk next to you.

We've never needed a prong collar or a choke chain, although her previous owners had a whole collection it seemed. The gentle leader and prongs and such will only work as long as they're wearing them, because they learn to walk a certain way with them on. Once they're off, the dogs go back to pulling because that's what they know with the regular collar.

[gingerstar]

In our case, our dog does so much better with a prong collar for walks - she also seems to prefer walks using a chain leash rather than a soft leash; she walks much better loose leash that way. I believe it allows for better communication - she has very thick fur, and as a northern breed dog her instinct is to pull, hard!, and the prong collar lets her self-correct.
I agree that most dogs it is training, but you have to make allowances depending on the dog. OP, you just have to see what works best for your dog.