collars for training

Paula N.

Paula N.

Member
Owned by
1 cocker
I need some advice on training colllars. Angus is now 15 weeks old and we take him for walks 3 times a day but he has a tendency to pull. He is much better with my husband than he is with me (who is the alpha in our home?). At first, we had him on a regular collar but he was pulling so much that he was making croaking noises. We then got him a "training collar" which is a flat collar with a bit of a chain at the end. He is better on this collar but then again maybe he is just getting better anyway. The trainer at his puppy class suggests a halti but I'm really not sure about these. They look like it would drive him crazy and his snout really isn't very long yet anyway. It seems like everytime we go to puppy class, she is telling us to buy something else. Collars obviously are not very expensive but to buy a new one every weekend seems like a bit much.

Like I said, Angus is getting much better with his walking. He looks up to me for direction but still wants to follow his nose and chase blowing leaves down the road!

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 
Manuel's right, I have used a Gentle Leader . . . in fact, I use it every time I walk Jack Jack. He is trained to heel quite nicely, but that all goes out the window when I walk him with Grace - both are easy to walk on their own, but sled dogs when I walk them together. The Gentle Leader stops him from pulling, which keeps Grace from pulling. It makes my life a LOT easier.

That being said, a Gentle Leader will not teach the dog not to pull. It is a management tool, not a training tool. The puppy needs obedience training to learn not to pull. I train my dogs on regular flat collars. I take every dog that comes through my house to obedience classes, and use that method to teach them not to pull.
 
Bailey's trainer also recommended the Gentle Leader very much although I haven't used it. I use a regular collar, if he starts to pull while we are walking I just stop and stand still. I tighten up on the leash but don't pull, and he comes back to me and sits down. Sometimes it takes 3, 4, 5 repetitions of this stop/stand/wait/go before he calms down, but then he's usually good to go.
 
I tried the basic training someone mentioned here when I worked rescue last and took Merlin out. He was pulling so I turned him in a circle. Only took twice for the little guy to stop and walk right. We don't go for walks much here since there's no sidewalks, I don't care for dog parks, have a big fence in back yard, and they are all different sizes and needs from 2 to 14 years old. Hard for one person to walk 5 dogs anyway and if I leave one at home I get attitude!
 
Since I don't like collapsed trachea's, I tend to use a harness on the pullers.

Now, it's also about how you react. He's a puppy and wants to frolic and sniff stuff, and cockers ARE scent hounds.

BUT, as he is tugging, you STOP. When he stops, you praise. Start walking again and continue.

Even bring some cut up hot dogs or string cheese so he learns he's doing something good. Give it when he stops and you say GOOD BOY.

You can practice this in the house too.
 
Paula N. said:
It seems like everytime we go to puppy class, she is telling us to buy something else.
Click to expand...

I had that same problem when I took R.J. to obedience class. New choke collar, new leash, harness for over his head when we were walking. Now that class is done, I don't use any of them.
 
Cocker Dad said:
I had that same problem when I took R.J. to obedience class. New choke collar, new leash, harness for over his head when we were walking. Now that class is done, I don't use any of them.
Click to expand...

At least you know how to use them if needed. ^_^
 
Paula
Good luck with his continued training. I know my friends also used a gentle leader at first, then they didn't need to. My first cocker was always on a harness because he had a bad neck injury when we got him.. he was on a choke chain that grew into his neck and he had a terrible wound in his neck. He did great in the harness.
 
Thanks for your thoughts everyone. We broke down and bought a halti yesterday as Angus is now pulling my husband. We stop whenever he pulls but when we go again, he is pulling straight away. If I change directions, he pulls. We bring along lots of treats and commend him when he is walking properly but then he falters. When I praise him for walking nicely, he gets excited and starts to pull. I think we just have a puller on our hands.

We put the halti on him yesterday and he didn't like it but seemed resigned to having it on. We made the mistake of trying to walk him right away, which we gave up pretty quickly. Once I got home and read things on the internet, including what Manuel sent me, then I realized that we have to get him used to it slowly with lots of treats - man, this puppy will be the size of me once we are done!

I meant to get some outdoor pics of him yesterday but never got around to it. We'll try again once more flowers are blooming in the upcoming week.
 
Cocker Dad said:
I had that same problem when I took R.J. to obedience class. New choke collar, new leash, harness for over his head when we were walking. Now that class is done, I don't use any of them.
Click to expand...

Boy I was glad to read that. I was beginning to wonder if nobody ever gave their dogs corrections anymore.

IMHO there is no substitution for a lesson well learned. 1 good correction using a choke collar will equal to 1,000 naggings on a regular collar and leash or a harness.

An appropriate sized choke, a leather lead, enrollment in an obediance class and the knowledge you learn on HOW to train your dog is well worth the money you spend.

Like Cocker Dad says, once they learn it, they always walk well and there is rarely a need for correction, because they RESPECT the collar and their handler.

Sniffing and peeing on things during a walk is an undisciplined stroll. I happen to think its bad manners for dogs to do that. My dogs are not allowed to sniff and eliminate on walks. A walk is a walk.

I find it miserable to take a dog on a walk when they pull from location to location to sniff or pee...grrrrrr
 
We've tried the regular collar and a martingale collar. We've tried corrections, snapping, stopping, changing direction, praise for heeling, treats for heeling - you name it, we've tried it. We've got him in puppy class which is obedience and socialization and will enrol him in level 1 obedience if he continues to pull. We take him for 4 walks a day and don't have a fenced in backyard so his walks are his time to eliminate. We also take him out specifically for pee breaks. I did not get the halti with the sole intention of using it rather than not training him and taking an easy way out, I would just like to walk him without the constant corrections and so we can actually enjoy our time together.
 
Paula N. said:
We've tried the regular collar and a martingale collar. We've tried corrections, snapping, stopping, changing direction, praise for heeling, treats for heeling - you name it, we've tried it. We've got him in puppy class which is obedience and socialization and will enrol him in level 1 obedience if he continues to pull. We take him for 4 walks a day and don't have a fenced in backyard so his walks are his time to eliminate. We also take him out specifically for pee breaks. I did not get the halti with the sole intention of using it rather than not training him and taking an easy way out, I would just like to walk him without the constant corrections and so we can actually enjoy our time together.
Click to expand...

Have you tried a choke chain collar? That is where you will get a meaningful correction...

I highly recommend taking him to training class as a FIRST resort not as a optional condition on if he pulls or not.
 
Last edited:
No disrespect Gina,

but with the dogs I get in, I can't choke em or snap leads. They are so soft and petrified that we have to be very gentle in any correction or it sends them right back to square one. Most of them don't even know what a collar is, let alone a person walking them.

My Doodle continued to pull until he was 13 years old. He was just too darn excited to be going for a walkie.

I just hope people don't get the wrong idea and consider (hanging) as a way of teaching. Many negative reinforcement trainers do. In the wrong hands it could go very wrong.

I know you didn't suggest that - but you just never know how the general public will view it. Unfortunately we can't help it if others reading this stuff get it or not.
 
Fostermom said:
No disrespect Gina,

but with the dogs I get in, I can't choke em or snap leads. They are so soft and petrified that we have to be very gentle in any correction or it sends them right back to square one. Most of them don't even know what a collar is, let alone a person walking them.

My Doodle continued to pull until he was 13 years old. He was just too darn excited to be going for a walkie.

I just hope people don't get the wrong idea and consider (hanging) as a way of teaching. Many negative reinforcement trainers do. In the wrong hands it could go very wrong.

I know you didn't suggest that - but you just never know how the general public will view it. Unfortunately we can't help it if others reading this stuff get it or not.
Click to expand...

Non taken,

I have never 'hung' a dog. There is a proper way to use a choke collar, sadly most folks don't know how.

I understand that there is an adjustment period when you are rescue a dog. I would never suggest that choke collar be used on a dog still getting orientated to its new life.
But, there is a time and a place for everything. True for training to walk politely by a handlers side. You can use the collar and if the technique is done correctly, only one correction is needed.

I actually think its worse for the dog to pull constantly for YEARS, than to get a proper correction on a choke collar. I am ALL for positive training techniques. They develop a meaningful relationship with the dog.

However, a canine must respect the handler. Most of the time (99%) I get my point across with a verbal correction. The tone of my voice, the quickness that I give the verbal correction AND the look on my face all contribute to a quick learning response.
 
Hahaha.. mine get the look too, and sometimes the finger.

BUT -- most of the dogs here or for people looking in (lurkers) are not dogs that need to be on a lead for show or career. Thankfully, the ones we adopt out that have leash phobia's go to homes with fenced in yards.

Personally, I can't walk all dogs. Between my knees and playing eenie meeny miney moe, I just say, LETS GO OUTSIDE PUPPIES

and we all race to the doggy doors and play in the yard. Granted, there are times when the dogs needs to be on a leash, and we do work on that, but gradually.

HA, I have a dog from a show breeder that HATES her lead. I even had Kelly try her at the ASC Nationals. We had a few others try. She would walk two steps and lay down, opposite of pulling. Thankfully Michelle gifted her to me at 8 months of age. I adore her and don't care if she ever walks on a leash. Um, I do have a doggy stroller (hey, are you rolling your eyes?) and for the ones that need to get out, but are toooo frightened to walk, we use that for going to the pet pantry (or vet) and doing some socialization.

I know, normal dogs should be able to take a walk around the block and go visiting and whatever, but more and more people are adopting rescues and shelters dogs, so it's a different situation than a show home.

I swear, Ling Ling (Bleumoon's Tupalo Honey) is just sitting here laughing at me cause she knows she's a princess bratty face.
 
That behavior you described...walk two steps lay down is consistent with tonsilitus!

Cockers are NOTORIOUS for having tonsil problems.

Almost every one of mine have had them removed. The pain on their throat is excruciating and a lot of show dogs have been ruined because their handlers thought it was stubborness and didn't look for a physical reason. That is the first thing I look for when a pup refuses to walk...I open their mouth and look down the throat and there I would see little 'grapes' as the infected tonsils were out of their crypts.
 
I know.. that was one of the first things Michelle looked for - a few of hers have had tonsil issues. But she does it a harness too. BAHAHA
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top