Leash Pulling

[darci]

OK Guys break out the advice for my little man Egan.
I am using a regular flat collar and flexi leash (which I know is part of the problem), but in the last month he has become a terrible puller, to the point of really hurting my arm.
Like I said I think part of our problem is the leash and will get a regular nylon one tomorrow.
I have tried the harness, no difference in pulling.
Has anyone used the martingale collars?

Or is there is something else you can suggest we try, I am all ears.

I have also tried standing with my back to him and not moving until he stops pulling and that hasnt seem to faze him.

I thought about the gentle leader I just dont want him to hurt himself.


He's always been such a good boy, but we have so much wildlife in our area, birds, rabbits, squirrels, etc... he runs out the door ready to try to chase something.

I even tried carrying treats with me to entice him to pay attention to me. Maybe I am just not giving it enough time ????
But I am going to have to have roator cuff repair if we dont change his behaviour.

[LittlePonzo]

Darci, I know what you mean...Even though they are small, they sure can pull. I invested in the "No-Pull" harness (packaged in a small box) it was like 10 dollars and it's the best. Supposedly it's guaranteed to work, but that didn't make a difference if it helped at all I was good. It slips on pretty easily and off too, but it's comfortable for them to wear. Ponzo doesn't need it anymore, because he does really well with loose leash walking, but on the occasion that he does, like when he saw Santa, it sure comes in handy.

[Jane Austen]

As you probably know by now Duchess is the Best Dog in the World. But she does love to chase every squirrel and chipmunk that she sees. Right from the front door she looks at the favorite tree and if something moves she is running. When she comes to the end of the leash it jerks her to a stop. I am concerned about her damaging her windpipe.
I haven't yet investigated the various collars and halters. Would be interested to hear what others say about the benefits of say, a martingale?

[Chip's Mom]

chip pulls some especially when he sees a moving object on leash. So I got a training collar from the obedience class and it works well. It is like lightweight nylon with rings on both ends. You shape it like a p and put it on their neck and when they pull, it applies a little pressure on the top of their neck and they will stop pulling. It works well for Chip in class and I use it sometimes on walks. Other than that, I use a regular buckle type collar. Also, have you tried the popping method. When they lunge or pull really hard, give the leash a quick pop not hard enough to pull them off the floor or anything, just a pop and they will usually stop pulling. I hope I explained it well. Can you tell I am not a professional.

[tandemgal]

Jane,

I use the Martingale collar on Em & Chloe - love them. Emma was the worst about being able to slip out of any collar. One time she was next to the highway when we were going to the Vet! I went to a harness and they work really well but I always worried they may be bothering The Girls around their arm pits. And it mashed down their fur quite a bit if I left the harness on. I went to the Martingale and no slipping out of it but it doesn't seem to bother them at all. Debbie Glencorgi wrote a good bit about why she likes Martingale's on the bite thread that could help you too.

[Michael Romanos]

I only use a reverse chocker chain on my Corgis and have had little problem with any pulling - though it is always on the cards that at times your Corgi wants to go places that you don't want to go. Ninety percent of the time with Taylor, the chain is loose well below his neck line down in his shoulders area and on occasions I have to check to see if he is actually still attached to a leash. So the chocker has been excellent for me and my Corgis. And it is so easy to slip on and off and Corgis look much better without a collar. If the leash slips from my hand or I let it go, Taylor stops immediately - which is great - except when I am crossing a potentially busy road, and there he is standing to attention on the road with traffic in the vicinity. It's happened about twice.

[Chip's Mom]

Michael:

Try putting your hand through the loop up to your wrist and then grasp the leash and you shouldn't lose it. Personally I don't like a choke collar. We bought Maybelle a martindale collar and it has worked great for her. She has a small head like a collie and she slips a regular collar. We don't leave collars on our dogs unless they are on leash.

[Dillydoodle]

I used to have the same problem with DIllon - I was using a flat collar and a flexi leash. I had tried a harness called easy leader or something like that that was supposed to keep him from pulling, but his legs were too short ( this was obviously made for longer legged dogs) and kept popping out of the harness. This was not good for him. What worked was - first, I got him a martingale collar ( www.aroundthehounds.com) and a SHORT (4 ft) training flat nylon leash at petco. This is what helped most. The Martingale self corrects in part, then i started correcting him every time he would pull. I would stop dead in my tracks, and he would initially keep on pulling until he realized we were not moving anywhere. The only time i would walk was when he was in a heel position...then i would walk and if he walked nicely for a bit he got a cookie and lots of encouragement. I spent months using this technique and only recently started using the flexi leash for days when I am chosing to give him more freedom. I found that when he is trained on the short leash, when i put on the flexi he is still sticking with me a bit, i will encourage him to run ahead here and there to let him have fun and freedom, but i test him now and again- I call him to me, ask him to set up, sit, heel, etc and as long as he continues to listen to me I allow him to continue having free and fun time, the first time he balks at a command, back into a heel with the flexi leash in a locked position for a while until he is listening again. This is what has worked for me.

Emilie
Emilie

[Michael Romanos]

Bonnie - very funny.
I hold a loose leash and Taylor usually walks to heel or slightly behind me. I suppose I have walked Taylor for 1400 hours over 3.5 years and accidently let go of the leash 10 times - not a bad record.
This is also funny: Twice I didn't realise that I was walking but Taylor and his leash had stopped somewhere on the pavement, up to 100 yards away, waiting for me.

[CorgiMum]

Dylan at one time was quite the puller, I learned this method, the Leash Wrap, and it worked well. The first time I tried it on him he kept turning around to see what was touching his belly.

When he realized that I had a new control, the gave in very quickly to my request of "Easy". I did it on a second ocassion and have never needed to
do it again. I was very careful of where I let the leash touch him, but he was still concentrating very hard on his doodle.

Here is a picture of Dylan demonstrating the Leash Wrap, and looking none too pleased.

[stumpy]

i suggest a choke chain

[corgimom]

Originally Posted by CorgiMum

Dylan at one time was quite the puller, I learned this method, the Leash Wrap, and it worked well. The first time I tried it on him he kept turning around to see what was touching his belly.

When he realized that I had a new control, the gave in very quickly to my request of "Easy". I did it on a second ocassion and have never needed to
do it again. I was very careful of where I let the leash touch him, but he was still concentrating very hard on his doodle.

Here is a picture of Dylan demonstrating the Leash Wrap, and looking none too pleased.

Cute picture Barbara,

I tried that a couple of months ago on Cody on the advice from his puppy trainer and Cody dropped to the ground and rolled on his back.
But Cody is not a puller, he can be more like a mule, not wanting to move; but this has improved a lot in the last couple of months.

One in awhile he will pull his "mule" routine on me, but not very often now, and I use a martingale collar for walking.

[CorgiMum]

The Martingale is what worked for Montrose when she was as pup as well. Good thing there are so many different methods for the problem, as our dogs have so many different ways of {not} walking.