miss whippy Posted February 6, 2006 Share Posted February 6, 2006 has anyone had great success training a dog to walk nicely using a head collar?.. by this i mean that the dog no longer needs the head collar if so or otherwise, what's opinions on which brand/design is good? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curlygirl Posted February 6, 2006 Share Posted February 6, 2006 Hi Miss Whippy, I adopted a dominance aggressive rotti x a number of years ago. I took him to obediance school and after The first lesson on a choker collar I had a huge tension headache and blisters on my hand where he kept lunging at the other dogs.. I felt like giving up but got a gentle leader and it worked a treat. After about 12 to 18 mths I could work him on a choker collar and even of lead in class. I think with time, patience and lots of practice you can make the transition to a collar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sayreovi Posted February 6, 2006 Share Posted February 6, 2006 Nope, i sometimes use one on Nova who tends to get a bit excited at times but i still had to train him not to pull with gentle leader on or off. They are more a management tool then an actual training device. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gemibabe Posted February 6, 2006 Share Posted February 6, 2006 NOPE! I use one for my staffy and she still pulls, but not as hard... I mean she isn't choking herself and I'm not being pulled down the street. Take the halti off her and put on her normal collar and she pulls hard, choking all the way. I change direction everytime she pulls, and not walk when she is pulling hard... its slowly working :D If you allow the dog to pull hard, its being rewarded for this by being allowed to continue on. I'm sure others will explain that better. Im just a mere pet owner Good Luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astroboy Posted February 6, 2006 Share Posted February 6, 2006 It was almost impossible to walk our lab before we got a gentle leader, now he just walks quietly at our side, BUT as soon as we try to walk him without the gentle leader he starts to pull again. I believe with persistance and patience we will get there. The obediance school we go to has a class specifically for dogs with gentle leaders/ haltis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelpiecuddles Posted February 6, 2006 Share Posted February 6, 2006 Beau wore a head collar as he was a horrid puller as a pup. Now I can walk him on a flat collar and as long as there are no massive distractions he won't pull at all. Once he was used to not being allowed to pull on the head collar I used to leave the head collar on but attach the lead to his normal collar so that he got used to feeling the direction coming from there rather than the head collar and then removed the head collar in low distraction situations and now working up to higher distraction situations. He is not fully trained without it yet so if we are going somewhere where there will be LOTS of distractions he still wears it but it's a gradual process so can't expect miracles overnight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve K9Pro Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 K9: This article may help... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
black_dog Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 We had a gentle leader when our 9 month lab/shepherd was smaller, but he really didn't like it. Did stop him pulling. Had longer term success with just stopping every time he put tension on the lead. You have to be rigorous and put up with slo-o-o-ow trips to the shops the first few times, but it's worth it. We also food rewarded a 'with me' heel command. Now on extendable or short flat leads he doesn't pull at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 nope they don't train the dog not to pull, if you put it back on a flat collar it would still pull. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelpiecuddles Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 sas I think that is a generalisation as we have trained Beau to walk well using the head collar and he is now almost fully transitioned back to a flat collar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna H Posted February 7, 2006 Share Posted February 7, 2006 Personally, I've not had any success with them at all.. Chelsea actually learnt to pull in the halter. When she wasn't doing that, she was either distressed by it or sulking. K9 Force got it sorted quick smart! I can now walk her in a flat collar under all but the most extreme distractions (working on those!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpha Posted February 8, 2006 Share Posted February 8, 2006 Is a gentle leader a Halti???? It's like a horse halter but comes in three sizes for dogs. I used a Halti on my ACD ( who was dog aggressive) in conjunction with a correction collar...I would conect both to the lead. It was to help bring him back a bit whilst heeling and keep him focused on me. I found it was ok and we moved away from it after a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve K9Pro Posted February 8, 2006 Share Posted February 8, 2006 K: sas I think that is a generalisation as we have trained Beau to walk well using the head collar and he is now almost fully transitioned back to a flat collar. K9: almost... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miss whippy Posted February 8, 2006 Author Share Posted February 8, 2006 k9 force, i read your article.. sounds fair.. i've tried a head collar on pixie and having a very sensitive muzzle, she hated it, lost concentration, and sulked, it did however control her pulling significanly with very light, fingertip control, whereas on flat collar or correction chain, she frequently pulls to sniff at things etc and pays little attention to a 'correction' I dont use correction techniques and am trainin her with positive reinforcement, but this requires the constant use of food, and it is often not as interesting as other dog's smells or the sight of a rabbit or other dog. she behaves quite well at obedience training, with the knowledge of treats for good bahaviour and attention, and a short attention requirement, but i want to be able to walk in a relaxed manner outside of classes, on a longer leash, without her pulling or requiring the extended attention of a proper 'heel' your article was interesting, but how do i 'utilise the dog's drive' and 'satisfy its drive by compliance of the issued command'?? will i be required to attend one of your training sessions to find out?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReXy Posted February 8, 2006 Share Posted February 8, 2006 i have strong boof lab who lovees to pull and lunge i have had great sucess with the black dog infin8 halti... with that u can take the nose strap off so getting back to a flat collar it is more of a martingale collar with a nose strap which only comes into force if the dog pulls hard. so better IMO for a dog with sensative muzzle or doesnt like the tight strap around the muzzle.. go to http://www.blackdog.net.au/main.html and check out therere products they are great.. hope this makes sence i have a hadache and 4 screaming kids and a baby bird that needs feeding..lol but look at the site you will get better idea of how they work.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReXy Posted February 8, 2006 Share Posted February 8, 2006 i have strong boof lab who lovees to pull and lunge i have had great sucess with the black dog infin8 halti... with that u can take the nose strap off so getting back to a flat collar it is more of a martingale collar with a nose strap which only comes into force if the dog pulls hard. so better IMO for a dog with sensative muzzle or doesnt like the tight strap around the muzzle.. go to http://www.blackdog.net.au/main.html and check out therere products they are great.. hope this makes sence i have a hadache and 4 screaming kids and a baby bird that needs feeding..lol but look at the site you will get better idea of how they work.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miss whippy Posted February 8, 2006 Author Share Posted February 8, 2006 thanks lablover, i've been looking at the infin8, which is really what sparked the question glad to year you've had success with it, im really pleased with the blackdog gear i've been using so far. still not sure... there are so many ways to train a dog! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve K9Pro Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 MW: your article was interesting, but how do i 'utilise the dog's drive' and 'satisfy its drive by compliance of the issued command'??will i be required to attend one of your training sessions to find out?? K9: Training in drive is simple when you know the steps, it depends what results you want to achieve. I demonstrated training in drive with a GSD last nite at the info nite, people got a small insite to what it looks like... Last year I did a 2 day seminar on Training in drive that was comprehensive.. Depends on how much you need to know,... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReXy Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 thanks lablover, i've been looking at the infin8, which is really what sparked the questionglad to year you've had success with it, im really pleased with the blackdog gear i've been using so far. still not sure... there are so many ways to train a dog! there are so many ways and what works for one may not work for another i guess u have to find what works for your dog... black dog gear is fantastic tho i am very happy with it so far... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlmckay Posted February 9, 2006 Share Posted February 9, 2006 still not sure... there are so many ways to train a dog! Sure are - what you have to find is what works for you. Best piece of advice I was ever given when I started to train Raven after owning Tui. Two completely different dogs and two completely different training methods required on both of them. Personally, I prefer the Halti (which is not the same as a Gentle Leader, although similar), particularly for dogs with a tendency to lunge at other dogs. This is because you can pull the lead up and the strap closes down on the dog's muzzle, closing the jaws and at the same time, lifting the dog's head away from the other dog. I have not yet progressed from the Halti to a flat collar alone, but I am finding that I can control Raven off lead, with the Halti on, as she thinks I am still on the other end of the lead when she's wearing it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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