Need Help! Harness causing bleeding/chaffing

[youngwife]

I am dog sitting two boxers (a male and a female) for family members while they are out of town. These dogs are not walked frequently at their homes, so I wanted to try to make sure that we walked them daily.

Well, the collar slipped off of the male on the first day. Concerned about this, I went to Walmart and bought the largest harness I could find. It was a large breed size.

We applied them, and made sure we could put our hand between the harness and them. I *thought* that it was a good fit. The female's harness was a little snugger than the males, unfortunately. Now she has bleeding from chafing, and the male has a little, too. I called the vet, and she said that triple antibiotic could be used to treat it, in addition to keeping the harnesses off, of course.

Now my question is, what type of harness can I get for them. I don't feel confident with just a collar when, particularly the very strong male, catches sight of a cat and takes off.

Any suggestions on helping them heal, and what to look for that won't chafe their delicate skin. Our Yorkie mix has lived in his harness all his life, and never once had a problem.

Thank you in advance...I just feel so bad for causing this harm to them!! (So please be gentle with your words!)

Rebecca

[nd_deadhead]

First of all, I applaud you for wanting to give these energetic dogs the exercise they need! It's not your fault that they aren't properly leash trained.

I have had great success with prong collars on dogs that pull. They look like they could be terrible, but they are actually safer for the dog than a choke collar, or even a nylon or leather collar, because they are designed to apply pressure all the way around the neck, not concentrate it at the throat. We called it the "Don't pull" collar with our 120-lb Lab, and my friend borrowed it for her completely out-of-control Airedale, and walked him peacefully for the first time ever.

The trick to a prong collar is getting it to fit correctly. It should be worn up behind the ears - the regular collar is further down the neck, and doesn't interfere with it at all. And of course it should only be used on walks.

Here's a good article (with pictures!)
http://leerburg.com/fit-prong.htm

[youngwife]

Thank you for the applause and suggestion. I have a choker chain for the male, but I do not feel that it is actually safe. With a dog lunging and jumping, in addition to pulling, it can slide and slip off. Especially if I am not the one walking the dog, like if it is my daughter or son.

I appreciate your reply.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

I bought a martingale for my boxer. It tightens down as soon as any pressure is applied so it is impossible for it to come off.

[youngwife]

Thank you, I'll look into that.

[lonegirl]

Please no prong collars. Get a Gentle leader or Halti. They work amazingly well for pullers. The work like a horse harness and five you control of the whole head not the neck.

[somegirl99]

+1 on the Gentle Leader or on a martingale. Look at greyhound / whippet sites for buying martingale collars if you have trouble finding them.

[Ola_]

Another vote for a martingale collar. Some places call them a "limited slip" collar, because it functions similarly to a choke collar BUT it will only tighten so far. They are commonly used for greyhounds, because they have very muscular necks and comparatively slim heads.

You can either get one that is all fabric (like this) or part chain (like this). Either one is fine, for some dogs the sound of the chain reminds them not to pull and it's the nylon that will touch their skin with both collars.

The trick with adjusting the martingale is that when you put it on, you don't want the two rings on the tightening loop to touch when you pull on the leash - otherwise it is too loose and can be slipped out of just like a regular collar. Does that make sense? It's a little hard to explain without visuals.

Personally I would not use any type of training collar (choke, prong, or gentle leader/halti) on someone else's dog without their express approval. Even though I've used some of those myself and I think they're absolutely fine when used correctly I wouldn't want someone else trying it on my dog without me there. Just get a martingale to keep them safe. BTW the problem with the harness may be the nylon fabric. It is much more likely to chafe than a cotton webbing or other types of fabric. I also suspect that the quality of harnesses at Walmart may not be the best, which is not your fault at all so don't feel bad about it!

[youngwife]

Thank you all so very much for your ideas and suggestions. I really appreciate your thoughts and replies.

[SophieAnn]

Originally Posted by Ola_

Personally I would not use any type of training collar (choke, prong, or gentle leader/halti) on someone else's dog without their express approval. Even though I've used some of those myself and I think they're absolutely fine when used correctly I wouldn't want someone else trying it on my dog without me there.

I agree with everything Ola wrote, but especially this!

You're a very good dog sitter to be getting them the exercise they need.

[FaithfulOne]

When we first brought home our boxer (he was 1.5 at adoption time and was never leash trained, so he leaped and pulled like a gazelle!), we tried everything! Prongs, Chokers, Collars, you name it! We were grossly un-educated!
We now have the front-clip harness called "Sensible". It came recommended by our local animal shelter and buying through them we saved over 30%.
However, I wouldn't bother doing any of that for someone elses dog.

I suggest you collar and leash them, and then loop the leash to coil around their mid-section, right at their bladder. I'll take a picture later to better show you. Hmm, let me describe it better....so the dog's leash and collar are on as normal, let them pee first (otherwise they'll pee all over the leash), trail the lead straight down their back, now loop it around their mid-section right at the bladder (just in front of the males genitals) and then bring it back around and through the lead on top to secure it in place. This is a non-violent way to reduce pulling because now they'll feel pressure on their bladder when they do.

Whatever you decide, keep your lead short as the more you give them the harder it is to restrain them when they start to pull.
They may behave better for you if you can take them somewhere they can run freely, like a caged tennis court or fenced dog park (only is their owner is explicity certain of them getting along with other dogs, and even still I may be wary of doing that)

HTH

[youngwife]

Thank you both!