A small vent & a big brag...

[raechiemay]

A small vent & a big brag...

So yesterday I decided to take Duchess for a walk with my parents lab mix. Walk started out ok but they were competing & pulling me hard. I had just got them under control when a jogger & another dog came up behind us. Duchess in a fit of rage jumped over bailey, charged the other dog & in the process pulled me down to the ground giving me a nice little road rash on my forearm & jacked up my knee. I had bailey on a harness & Duch on a nylon collar.

I was pissed at her even though it was mostly my fault for not doing a better job training her. So as soon as Petsmart opened this morning I went & got a pinch collar. Surprisingly I had to take out 3 links to get it to fit properly. I swear it was like a switch went off in her head. She knew exactly what she needed to do. I walked her alone this time & she had the most beautiful heel I've ever seen. No pulling whatsoever. We had 2 hiccups, one with an African American man, she turned into a bucking bronco, choked herself & took less than a second to realize she wasn't able to break away from me. The 2nd incident was when a lab broke away from it's owner. Duchess went to lunge towards the dog, I blocked it, put her in a sit & used the leave it command. The other owner came & got their dog, apologizing & I just said it was ok. No harm done that time. The rest of the walk went well. I'd put her in a sit as people approached & used the leave it command when she would start to growl. It worked very well. Now for questions, does it sound like I'm going about this the right way? Also which side should I walk her on? I have been walking her on the side furthest away from other people out on the trails. I had a lot of people comment on how beautiful she was, how well trained she was & I just had to giggle. I've been slacking in getting her stubborn toddler stage under control & I thought with the weather being as gorgeous as it's been, why not today. Other than that we walked & jogged a little for approx 5 miles. It was about 2 hours. Maybe a little more. She seemed to handle the exercise fine so I'm not particularly worried about her having any issues there. Oh & I must say I am very proud of the parents of the 3 small children who didn't allow their kids to just run up to duchess & jam their hands in her face. Not very often I see people with well behaved kids when it comes to large dogs.

 

[rdryan]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

Sounds like what you are doing is working, so I'd say it's the right way.

In traditional obedience you walk the dog on your left but whatever works for you is best. I have a bad left shoulder, so I walk my little mutt on that side and Xerxes on the right. That way if I need any strength (I rarely do), I will have it in the good arm.

And you are so right about kids and dogs. Most kids aren't taught to ask first etc.....

 

[ruthcatrin]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

ON your left is technically correct. However I personally prefer "which ever side will cause less of a problem", basically what you're doing now, and the trainer I occasionally work with agrees. She often works with dog aggressive dogs, and she always tells owners that the correct side is the one that puts the owner between their dog and the problem.

It sounds like you've got the idea. The combination of the prong with your blocking and redirecting should help ALOT.

 

[Hector]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

Good for you Raechie! Show her who's boss . I don't know how much you already know, so forgive me if I'm blabbing on ( I know how that feels because my good co-worker friend does this all the time for my own good LOL). Learn how to correct her using the prong - jerk and release. Always have the leash loose. I would recommend attaching the prong collar to her regular collar because prongs do come off - it's rare, but it happens. As for the heeling, I would keep it to one side. I like the left side so I always treat with the left hand so when I say heel and my dog goes to the right side - no treat and if he shows up on the left - treat and that's only if I'm training and have treats on me. Normally I just say heel and my main rule is for my dog to respond and catch up and walk by my side - I don't really care which side. I am happy it's working out well and keep up the good work. Sometimes they need just a bit of tough love.

 

[raechiemay]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

Thanks guys! She did initially *try* to pull which one swift jerk & release immediately put a stop to it. We walked with a loose leash & even though Duchess is a small EM, she's got a LOT of power in her chest & that is exactly why she pulled me down so quickly. I was undecided about prong collars at first, but man. What wonderful training tools they make!!

 

[rdryan]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

I could not live without my prong collar. Xerxes used to walk me but with the prong, he rarely requires a correction and seems more relaxed when we walk. Likely because I am more relaxed knowing I can control him when needed. Makes it a lot more fun to leash up and get out there.

 

[Smokeycat]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

Kryten wore his prong collar for the first time on Friday. If I had known how easily he would respond to it I would have tried it when his problems resurfaced after his surgery rather than try to fix them with just a martingale which I knew that he will pull through anyway. The only problem I had is sizing it since he has so much skin on his neck right now.

 

[raechiemay]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

Kryten wore his prong collar for the first time on Friday. If I had known how easily he would respond to it I would have tried it when his problems resurfaced after his surgery rather than try to fix them with just a martingale which I knew that he will pull through anyway. The only problem I had is sizing it since he has so much skin on his neck right now.

I had this same problem!! I bought the large (Petsmart only had small, medium & large) & I doubted myself the entire time that it would be big enough. I just figured there was no way it was going to fit. Duch has so much neck skin it makes me question if she has a distant Fila relative! But much to my surprise I took off 3 links. My problem is at first it stays on her neck where it should be, but as we are walking I notice it sort of slides down a little. I tried taking a 4th link off & I don't know...it seems too tight. It should be snug when the leash is loose, right?

 

[raechiemay]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

I could not live without my prong collar. Xerxes used to walk me but with the prong, he rarely requires a correction and seems more relaxed when we walk. Likely because I am more relaxed knowing I can control him when needed. Makes it a lot more fun to leash up and get out there.

Yes I completely agree! I made a mistake & didn't socialize Duchess enough so now that she's 18 months she thinks she can control everything, me included. This prong collar has been a nice reality check. Best $20 I've ever spent, especially when it saves my arms, shoulders, legs, knee, etc lol

 

[Smokeycat]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

It has to be snug enough that it stays put. I had measured Kryten's neck before I went to get his collar and it was 28". The largest length that they came in was 22" so I bought extra links. When I sized it the first time I added 3 links. By the time I got it sized so that it stayed put I had taken all 3 back out. The new problem is that despite getting one with a buckle (opens but doesn't separate) it no longer fits over his head so I have to separate links anyway.
I've been amazed at how fast he has remembered how to behave. Wednesday he broke his leash when he lunged towards a dog he wanted to go see. Today he was surrounded by over 100 other dogs and only tried to pull me towards two of them (the first and then Jiggers).

 

[ruthcatrin]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

It can be a fine line between to loose, perfect and too tight. YOu'll have to make a judgement call as to how exactly it fits and works best for you. Check the medium though, if the individual links are smaller you may want to swap her large for a medium and buy the extra links, that way you can make smaller adjustments with each link. Thats what I did when I bought Apollo's Sprenger brand one. We'd been using a Petco large, but I bought the Sprenger medium and bought extra links instead.

 

[raechiemay]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

That's a good point Ruth. I may try taking the 4th link back out & lead her around the house a little bit just to see. If not then I'll exchange it for the medium. I didn't even consider it because I assumed she would need the large. I don't foresee her neck growing a bunch now that's she's 18 months, but honestly I didn't think she would get any taller after 12 months & she's gained an inch & a half. I remember the video (think it was a video) that you posted about the proper fit for prong collars, maybe I need to look it up again.

Smokey, I was shocked that she had never worn a prong in her life. She picked it up so quickly & I loved having that confidence boost knowing she is completely under control now with that collar. Maybe one day we can eventually go back to the nylon collar but for now, the prong it is!

 

[Hector]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

The only complaint I have about the prong is how it fits on my dog. He has lots of neck skin and the damn thing keeps sliding out of place. I have to fit it on him tighter than it should be and even then the damn thing finds its way down the neck and so we don't use that anymore . He needs like a neck collar to hold the thing up or something lol like CM's illusion collar.

 

[ruthcatrin]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

We struggle with that a bit with Apollo and his ruff. It means if we're using it for extended periods I do have to occasionally reposition it.

Has anyone ever seen an illusion collar in person? Any chance it could be modified for a prong?

 

[Hector]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

We struggle with that a bit with Apollo and his ruff. It means if we're using it for extended periods I do have to occasionally reposition it.

Has anyone ever seen an illusion collar in person? Any chance it could be modified for a prong?

I have same problem using prong on my Belgian shepherd. His fur is too long and the collar gets all mangled and caught up in his fur.

 

[ruthcatrin]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

Oddly enough it doesn't get caught in the fur much (I expected it to, but it really doesn't), the fluff just makes it hard to fit properly.

 

[raechiemay]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

Illusion collar? Why haven't I heard of this?

 

[ruthcatrin]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

http://www.cesarsway.com/shop/Illusion-Dog-Collar-Leash-System

Its designed to keep the choke collar in the correct position (or closer anyway) on the dog's neck so you don't have to afjust it as much.

 

[raechiemay]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

Thanks! I have never seen one of those even online until now. At quick glance on google it seems to have pretty good reviews. I also wonder if it could be modified to hold a different type of choke. It doesn't appear to have very big holes where the choke runs through. A chain might be able to fit through there but I'm not too sure the prong would. I'll check a couple pet boutiques in my area & see if I can't find one to look at in person. I don't recall seeing this at Petsmart today

 

[Kelly]

Re: A small vent & a big brag...

i absolutely swear by the prong collar...if used properly. Tess was a beast to walk when i first got her, at 4 yrs old. Happy news, i dont even need it anymore. shevnow has a pretty pink ribbon martingale collar, and the second i apply pressure she reigns in. shes the easiest of all the dogs to walk. that includes the pugs.