mfrcus Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 (edited) Hi all i've got a 9month old springer lab cross ,lovely dog with a great temperment .He's very good off the lead but awfull on it.He pulls like a train ,not so bad for me i can handle the strong little herbert but the wife & kids struggle .I've tried allsorts of leads including harness's & choke leads but nothing seems to work ,any suggetsions would be great .cheers marcus Edited January 9, 2010 by mfrcus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imperfection Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 Just incase you havent-try a 'Halti' head harness.This in my opinion is the best harness because when they pull-the dog will literally go round in a circle.Suggest taking your dog to the pet shop to get fitted properly though because some have a habit of being able to walk backwards while pawing at it then it can be pulled off the head if its too big.Also,make sure you get the conecting strap too as a safeguard. My old dog (a Rottweiler) pulled like a freight train,but the Halti nipped all this in the bud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfrcus Posted January 9, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 Just incase you havent-try a 'Halti' head harness.This in my opinion is the best harness because when they pull-the dog will literally go round in a circle.Suggest taking your dog to the pet shop to get fitted properly though because some have a habit of being able to walk backwards while pawing at it then it can be pulled off the head if its too big.Also,make sure you get the conecting strap too as a safeguard. My old dog (a Rottweiler) pulled like a freight train,but the Halti nipped all this in the bud. Thanks for that i'll look into it ..cheers marcus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starman Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 (edited) My daughter could not lead one of our dogs because of the same problem so we used a gentle leader. Found it to be similar to a halti but the dog couldn't get out of it. We got it from a local shop but the link shows what it is. http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product_group.a...CFVtn4wodyD8pIw Edited January 9, 2010 by Starman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imperfection Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 My daughter could not lead one of our dogs because of the same problem so we used a gentle leader. Found it to be similar to a halti but the dog couldn't get out of it.We got it from a local shop but the link shows what it is. http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product_group.a...CFVtn4wodyD8pIw The Gentle leader is an excellent harness,but do bear in mind that its one and only drawback is they're not very good for dogs with short muzzles like in particular Boxers,Mastiffs,Rotties,Bulldogs etc as the muzzle strap rides up over the eyes.I know this from experience and it can really freak a dog out! I say go to a pet store,get measured for both then try them out round the shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ziplex Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 My GSP pulled badly on a lead until I tryed her with a trailing lead. Get a section of webbing/long lead approx 3 metres, attath it to his collar and let it drag on the ground. If the dog forges ahead stamp on the lead and at the same time call him to heel. It may or may not work but it did for me. After just a few experiences of coming to a halt rather quickly she soon learned If 3 metres doesn't give you enough time to stop him use a longer length to start off with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myzeneye Posted January 10, 2010 Report Share Posted January 10, 2010 (edited) halti's work like magic, instantly. but another method i tried work very well too. find an open space for this, and you might want to do it somwhere out the way cos if any one whitnesses you they'l cart you off to the funny farm.... put the dog on the lead, have him at your side, set off walking, as soon as he advances you turn 90 degreesand cut across his path nudging him out the way with your shins.... this will confuse him... walk in that direction untill he trys to advance you again and turn 90 degrees accross his path and continue walking in that direction.... keep doing this untill he doesnt know which direction he's supposed to be heading in......cutting left and right randomly etc etc...... you will go round in circles for a while untill he eventually looks to you to lead the way..... when he realises that your leading not him and you decide on direction not him he will literally allow you to lead the way rather then presume the route is straight on at full steam ahead !! my dog is a staffordshire bull terrier and believe me, they know how to pull on a lead.... occaisionally he does begin to pull again, usually when he's been off the lead for a good while chasing balls etc and is excited... a quick knee nudging 90 degree turning session soon has him thinking "where the hell are we goinging then buddy? sod it, you lead the way !!" another thing is his frame of mind when you leave the house to walk him... when i grab his lead he starts frolicking round as dogs do cos he knows it walkies time... it is vitally important that you calm the dog down before he leaves the house or he will remain wound up all the way on his walk... i put his lead on and go for the door. if he bolts for ithe door and trys to barge past me, which he usually does, then pull him back in, shut the door and make him sit and tell him to stay. (my dog does this when i click my fingers and point back in the house at the floor behind me) i click my fingers and use 3 simple words .."in"..when he goes in, i then say "sit"...when he sits i then say "stay"... ,wait till he's sat down and is being still again then wait a moment before opening the door again. if he tries to lead the way out agian, pull him back in, close the door and make him "in, sit and stay" again. wait agin a miinute till he's sat still and calm....he'l start getting the message soon....repeat this untill he does. keep this up untill you get to the point where he has calmed down when he tries to exit the door . the KEY POINT is that YOU need to leave the house before the dog does..... i mean, have him sat and told to stay...open the door... you walk through it calmly and tell him to "come".. when he does this..a quiet gentle praise so's not to excite him again, close the door and procced on walk.... it took our dog around half a dozen to ten times of me making him come back in and sit down untill he calmed down and understood that he should continue to "stay" untill i had lead the way and was through the door and told him to "come".... this honestly really makes a huge differenace, it does have to be done all the time, he will soon get the picture after a while.....youl be suprised how differently he behaves on his walk after doing this... as i said though, the halti works very well as a quick immediate method, but i know our dog hated wearing it and proper sulked over it !! hahaha.. both these methods really work well and i really reccomend you at least try them... good luck pal... Edited January 10, 2010 by myzeneye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mec 9000 Posted January 10, 2010 Report Share Posted January 10, 2010 Put the lead on fold a loop in your free hand and as soon as the dog starts to pull drop the loop, turn and walk in the opposite direction. Every time, it will soon get the massage, timing is important. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfrcus Posted January 10, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2010 halti's work like magic, instantly.but another method i tried work very well too. find an open space for this, and you might want to do it somwhere out the way cos if any one whitnesses you they'l cart you off to the funny farm.... put the dog on the lead, have him at your side, set off walking, as soon as he advances you turn 90 degreesand cut across his path nudging him out the way with your shins.... this will confuse him... walk in that direction untill he trys to advance you again and turn 90 degrees accross his path and continue walking in that direction.... keep doing this untill he doesnt know which direction he's supposed to be heading in......cutting left and right randomly etc etc...... you will go round in circles for a while untill he eventually looks to you to lead the way..... when he realises that your leading not him and you decide on direction not him he will literally allow you to lead the way rather then presume the route is straight on at full steam ahead !! my dog is a staffordshire bull terrier and believe me, they know how to pull on a lead.... occaisionally he does begin to pull again, usually when he's been off the lead for a good while chasing balls etc and is excited... a quick knee nudging 90 degree turning session soon has him thinking "where the hell are we goinging then buddy? sod it, you lead the way !!" another thing is his frame of mind when you leave the house to walk him... when i grab his lead he starts frolicking round as dogs do cos he knows it walkies time... it is vitally important that you calm the dog down before he leaves the house or he will remain wound up all the way on his walk... i put his lead on and go for the door. if he bolts for ithe door and trys to barge past me, which he usually does, then pull him back in, shut the door and make him sit and tell him to stay. (my dog does this when i click my fingers and point back in the house at the floor behind me) i click my fingers and use 3 simple words .."in"..when he goes in, i then say "sit"...when he sits i then say "stay"... ,wait till he's sat down and is being still again then wait a moment before opening the door again. if he tries to lead the way out agian, pull him back in, close the door and make him "in, sit and stay" again. wait agin a miinute till he's sat still and calm....he'l start getting the message soon....repeat this untill he does. keep this up untill you get to the point where he has calmed down when he tries to exit the door . the KEY POINT is that YOU need to leave the house before the dog does..... i mean, have him sat and told to stay...open the door... you walk through it calmly and tell him to "come".. when he does this..a quiet gentle praise so's not to excite him again, close the door and procced on walk.... it took our dog around half a dozen to ten times of me making him come back in and sit down untill he calmed down and understood that he should continue to "stay" untill i had lead the way and was through the door and told him to "come".... this honestly really makes a huge differenace, it does have to be done all the time, he will soon get the picture after a while.....youl be suprised how differently he behaves on his walk after doing this... as i said though, the halti works very well as a quick immediate method, but i know our dog hated wearing it and proper sulked over it !! hahaha.. both these methods really work well and i really reccomend you at least try them... good luck pal... Thanks for that i'll give it a try ,i suppose its like most things with dogs persistance is the key becuase if you give them an ibch they will take a mile ..cheers marcus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasper3 Posted January 10, 2010 Report Share Posted January 10, 2010 We use a slip lead on our Working cocker, he pulled like mad, A friend showed us how he got over this problem..he simply moved the lead from the normal neck position to right behind the head..instantly the dog hated it and stopped pulling It only takes a couple of times and the dog soon learns jasp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albertan_J Posted January 10, 2010 Report Share Posted January 10, 2010 I wouldn't give him much lead at all on a slip lead high on his head. keep him nice and close and as soon as he pulls stop put him into heel change direction. Give him three chances if he blows all three take him home walk is over no play time for him. He'll sharp learn that if he want to get to that field or wherever you let him off to play he must be in heel there and back I think this bits important because it gives structure to walking for them. Once he is walking well on lead mix your walks up changing the amound of time you have him in heel or on lead. Don't get frustrated with him he'll sense your anxiety and frustration as you walk him if your calm he should be calm at least thats the way I see it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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