head halter v. basket muzzle

[lucyandbella]

As I start to bring my fear aggressive dog Bella around more people I have been thinking that I should either get a head halter, to have more control over her head, or a basket muzzle, to prevent bites. I am hoping to never get to the moment she feels the need to bite but where I live and its strict laws, safe is way better than sorry. What would people recommend, and what brands/types of both do people use? Are plastic basket muzzles the best so you can clip a section out for treats? I could also get her on a front clip harness; do you guys think that gives you more control? I have her on a back clip harness now because I had her on the gentle leader front clip harness and it was making her fall on her face and every time she took big strides or tried to jump she would fall (maybe I didn't have it on right but she also has very deep chest like a whippet so it might not have fit well on her because of that). Anyways any info on front clip harnesses, head halters, and basket muzzles is appreciated.

[Erica]

Head halters do not easily prevent a dog from biting. Some say they have "muzzling action" or something, but for it to work you generally have to be in front of the dog, pulling up on the leash...not easy enough to do to prevent a bite. If you're managing well with the body harness, I'd say keep that and if you're worried, use the muzzle - but a muzzle is a back-up plan; you only want it to be needed in an emergency, like if your dog escaped the harness or dragged the leash out of your hands. You'd act as though there's nothing keeping your dog from biting - so you don't let people get close, if people are the issue. (You seem to understand this already, but we have to cover all the bases! )

I think the issue with the front clip may have been that the chest strap was too low. Zeus had this problem, where it would slip down to his legs and trip him. (He would also occasionally figure out how to slip out of the harness by sticking one leg through the chest strap and then stepping through.) What fixed it for us was simply, when we were clipping the lead to his harness, clip it to his collar as well. The harness still works properly, but now it doesn't trip him up...you could try that with your girl. If you find my explanation confusing I could try to get a picture of the setup later.

[lucyandbella]

Yeah people are the problem. I don't want people even coming near her and I stay under her thresh hold when working with her on her fear aggression this would be an emergency situation type event. We work far way from people, and have made so much progress we need to start working closer now. This is my fear because I have had children run up to us and I have had to block them, I have had adults show interest in her and when I say she is fearful and I don't want them petting her they think they are a dog whisperer and try to interact with her anyway This is when I work with her in my parents town which is dog friendly in an annoying way because everyone wants to meet your dog. In the town I live in people don't do this to dogs so we have been coming further in training but I am about to start working with her in more populated areas, like parks, and getting closer to people. She will not be touched by these people but I still want to be safe for those just in case moments.

I had heard that the head halter just makes the body easier to control, like if I see someone approaching too close and she was becoming nervous, I could easily turn her head. I wouldn't get that to prevent bites, just to control her head better (on her back clip harness I can't control her body). That being said she is very obedient and the "lets go" cue turns her quickly and she stays at my side walking. I think that if I get to the point where she needs her head controlled I pushed her to far. So I am leaning more towards her wearing a basket muzzle for emergency only. Plus I am thinking if she is wearing a basket muzzle parents probably won't let their children run up to us which will help us out. I would actually perfer her not wearing anything but her harness but in some places where people are unpredictable I think it might be for the best. Thanks for the info on the front clip harness too, I knew something wasn't right.

[JudyN]

The head halter would give you more control of her head, but depending on her strength and your reactions, may not be enough if, say, someone suddenly pats her and she whips her head round to snap at them. With a basket muzzle you can give her more freedom and you will be less 'on guard' yourself. It's true, you shouldn't use the muzzle to give you the confidence to put her into these situations, but you also don't want your nerves to transfer to her - and you don't want her to feel you tense up whenever someone approaches her.

My lurcher wears a basket muzzle and I can feed treats through it easily - as your dog is a whippet x a similar style should work for her. You can see a video of him demonstrating just how much fun he can have with a muzzle on: http://s1116.photobucket.com/albums/k56 ... 032012.mp4

To be honest, I've found people still approach him and stroke him, despite the muzzle. Most assume either he chases small fluffy dogs or he eats rubbish. They don't seem to consider that he might eat small children too

[Siw-Malin Bye]

A friend of mine, were taking her dog with her on holiday to her home country, there every dog over 20 inch. has to wear a muzzle. She used the leather basket ones, they are soft, and it was no problems feeding the dogs treats.

I have also seen people using head halter with basket muzzles.

With the Halti head collar, it's easier to close their mouth than with other types of head collars.