No-Pull Harness

[animallover]

I recently (like, months ago) saw the episode where Victoria used a "No-Pull" Harness. I have an American Staffordshire Terrier (approx. 65lbs.) who wears a harness for walks (with a standard leash). As much as I love the command heel, we haven't taught it to her. She is not much of a puller, but I want it more for when my Mother takes her on a walk, as my brother and I are used to her strength. I was wondering, is it "all it's cracked up to be"? And I was also going to wait to use one on her until we get a longer leash (which is hard to find), so if you could tell me where I could find one, that would be great also (and give a "mini review" on it if you use it). Thanks! I hope this is understandable, I'm horrible at explaining things.

[Maxy24]

No pull harnesses work for a lot of dogs but some learn how to resist it, you'd have to give it a try. Remember they do not teach the dog not to pull, they simply prevent the dog from being able to pull you (no leverage, if they pull forward their bodies are turned). So you would use the harness to give you more control so that you can safely take the time to train the dog not to pull without having the leash pulled out of your hands or hurting yourself. I've never met someone who uses the harness that Victoria uses, I like the ones that clip in the front like this one: http://www.petexpertise.com/dog-collars ... _rewrite=1

I know many people who has used them with success. I've seen them in all the chain pet stores. The only reason I'd try to avoid ones that clip in the back is because SOME of them (though I'm sure not the one Victoria uses) work by constricting on the dog to make him uncomfortable so he'll slow down. The front clips simply turn the dog so he is physically unable to pull no matter how hard he tries.

I would certainly give them a try, there is no harm in it and I would also start teaching the dog not to pull. You don't have to make the dog heel the whole time, heeling keeps the dog right at your side. It's fine if they dog is ahead of you or lagging behind so long as he does not try and pull.

[Noobs]

You are probably looking for the Sporn, which is here:

Mesh Sporn:
http://www.sporn.com/product_info.php?products_id=63

Original Sporn:
http://www.sporn.com/product_info.php?products_id=28

Ordering this from pet supply stores online (like jbpet.com) is cheaper.

Why are you looking for a longer leash? I use a standard 6-foot leash and even then I'm holding most of it to my side and there's only a few inches between the end of my dog's harness and where my hand is on the leash.

The Sporn works like a dream, it takes very little effort to get the dog to stop pulling (you can read customer reviews on the above linked pages as well). However, please keep in mind that the harness should be used as a management tool and that it shouldn't take the place of teaching the dog to walk with a loose leash. I am about 80% reliable on having my dog on a loose leash, and the harness is used for those times that he gets distracted by something on our walk and tries to dart ahead of me. Even then he doesn't get far enough to be at the end of the leash because I'm holding the leash close to him and not the very end of it.

Good luck to you!

[Noobs]

it takes very little effort to get the dog to stop pulling

Sorry I should clarify - it takes very little effort to control the dog when he tries to pull. It doesn't actually stop the dog from pulling.

[animallover]

You are probably looking for the Sporn, which is here:

Mesh Sporn:
http://www.sporn.com/product_info.php?products_id=63

Original Sporn:
http://www.sporn.com/product_info.php?products_id=28

Ordering this from pet supply stores online (like jbpet.com) is cheaper.

Why are you looking for a longer leash? I use a standard 6-foot leash and even then I'm holding most of it to my side and there's only a few inches between the end of my dog's harness and where my hand is on the leash.

The Sporn works like a dream, it takes very little effort to get the dog to stop pulling (you can read customer reviews on the above linked pages as well). However, please keep in mind that the harness should be used as a management tool and that it shouldn't take the place of teaching the dog to walk with a loose leash. I am about 80% reliable on having my dog on a loose leash, and the harness is used for those times that he gets distracted by something on our walk and tries to dart ahead of me. Even then he doesn't get far enough to be at the end of the leash because I'm holding the leash close to him and not the very end of it.

Good luck to you!

Well, the one I found looks like this.

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... Id=3046157

And I want a longer leash b/c ours is a little over 5'. And we have a lot of space that she can walk on. Also, I want it for my Mom so she has more to grab just in case Jasmine really pulls. Also, for when we take her places with us where she can roam but with a leash on.

[animallover]

Also, I forgot to mention that we are still in the process of training, and I'd like to use a longer leash for "recall".

[animallover]

No pull harnesses work for a lot of dogs but some learn how to resist it, you'd have to give it a try. Remember they do not teach the dog not to pull, they simply prevent the dog from being able to pull you (no leverage, if they pull forward their bodies are turned). So you would use the harness to give you more control so that you can safely take the time to train the dog not to pull without having the leash pulled out of your hands or hurting yourself. I've never met someone who uses the harness that Victoria uses, I like the ones that clip in the front like this one: http://www.petexpertise.com/dog-collars ... _rewrite=1

I know many people who has used them with success. I've seen them in all the chain pet stores. The only reason I'd try to avoid ones that clip in the back is because SOME of them (though I'm sure not the one Victoria uses) work by constricting on the dog to make him uncomfortable so he'll slow down. The front clips simply turn the dog so he is physically unable to pull no matter how hard he tries.

I would certainly give them a try, there is no harm in it and I would also start teaching the dog not to pull. You don't have to make the dog heel the whole time, heeling keeps the dog right at your side. It's fine if they dog is ahead of you or lagging behind so long as he does not try and pull.

Well, she won't be walking with it on all of her walks. Just the ones my Mom takes her on. She's not a horrible puller, but I don't know how my Mom can take her, so I thought about that particular episode.

Also, if she dragged me on our walks, I'd would so teach her heel. But, again, I'd have to see how my Mom can handle her. Especially before I get the harness.

[Fundog]

We had a harness very similar to the ones posted, with the fleece shoulder pads, when Annie was a puppy. It was not all that effective, or comfortable-- my dog did not like it. Later we ordered a different type of anti-pull harness (from PetSmart); it doesn't have any broad shoulder things for leaning into at all-- it is just one piece of thin spahetti strap-like nylon/elastic blend, all looped in the right places for head and legs, and meeting together in an o-ring on the back. There is no clip or buckle, it just slips on like a t-shirt, and is "one size fits all." It works by slipping through the o-ring to hug the dog's ribcage gently as he pulls. He doesn't get anywhere, but the sensation is a lot like wrapping your arms around his middle to keep him where you want him (it doesn't force his body into turning or contorting in any way; it just hugs him around the middle). My dog was very comfortable with it, and "helped" us put it on her at walk time-- when she got a lot better with her leash manners, she got promoted to a non-training harness, like the kind Mattie uses on her Merlin.

As for the leash, we had a six foot leash, and most of the time I had all the slack wrapped around my hand, allowing for just 2-3 feet between my hand and Annie's withers. When that leash wore out and became frayed, I bought a five-foot leash. I still have the slack wrapped around my fist. I don't think it's good to have a leash any longer than that, because in my area, there are too many shrubs and weeds and such to get it snagged on, too many lightpoles to get it wrapped around during a sniff, etc., and it is also against my city's ordinances to have a leash any longer than 6'. However, I understand about the extra leverage for your mum to grab onto when your dog pulls-- having a fistful of leash does feel a bit more secure than a thin loop. I also always wear gloves, because my skin tears easily, and the leash digging into my palm can become quite painful.

[Noobs]

Well, the one I found looks like this.

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... Id=3046157

And I want a longer leash b/c ours is a little over 5'. And we have a lot of space that she can walk on. Also, I want it for my Mom so she has more to grab just in case Jasmine really pulls. Also, for when we take her places with us where she can roam but with a leash on.

Yup, that looks like the Mesh Sporn. It's also the one Victoria used in a recent episode...I think the bulldog one. Okay, I didn't realize that you wanted (and could) give your dog freedom to roam. I live in the city so 6 feet is the legal limit on leashes.

Best of luck!

[dooleygirl]

Because my dog is definately a "puller" the regular collar and, when she got used to it, the gentle leader were not working, so I got a Sporn non-pulling mesh harness. From the very beginning Lizzie was convinced she was a sleigh dog because there was no way I could prevent her from pulling into it (she is actually a lab mix). At her training school we are taught, if the dog pulls, to stop and turn 360 and continue - this harness is useless for this. Maybe I'm the one that needs the training!!! but I am getting some really good muscles in my left arm.

[Paul&Muttley]

I have always had a pulling problem with my big mixed breed dog Muttley, and I was unable to train him to heel when I took him to obedience classes. Instead, he became so stressed from constant harsh corrections on a prong collar, that he seriously attacked another dog in the class. Last April I purchased an EasyWalk harness, and used it a couple of times with fairly good results, but it was not very effective if I wanted to control him. He even managed to slip out of it partially. I lost it on an outing, and I've been able to manage OK with just a Martingale.

Yesterday I purchased an Anti-Pull harness at Walmart for less than $10, and it is almost identical to the Sporn harness. It is made by YuppiePuppy:

http://www.yuppiepuppy.com/cgi-bin/comm ... y=YPUS1008

I tried it tonight and t worked fairly well. I have a bad back and it's icy, so I need all the control I can get. Muttley seemed fairly comfortable with this harness and it was fairly easy to install and remove.

This is my first post in this forum. Seems like a nice group. Usually I post in the usenet newsgroups.

[melhos123]

We use this to train dogs at our shelter, if you dog is a real puller, I would add a collar, or harness to avoid stress on the head and neck.

http://dogs.about.com/od/productreviews ... leader.htm

[Paul&Muttley]

I purchased a GL once, but was advised not to use it, so I returned it. My obedience instructor preferred me to use her own custom designed prong collar, and watched me struggle trying to get Muttley to heel by constantly yanking on the leash hard enough to lift him off his feet. I now know that this was a major cause for him to react unfortunately from stress, but I was doing what my instructor told me. I realize the ultimate goal is training, and perhaps a GL will work better for that.

Now I am looking into gentler methods. Muttley pulls pretty strongly, but he seems to know when he should slack off, and responds somewhat when I tell him "easy". I only tried this anti-pull harness once, and it probably needs to be adjusted for optimum effect. The real test will be if I take him on a public trail where there are many distractions. But mostly he just pulls to move ahead, and not to lunge at other dogs or people. In fact, he is good about ignoring reactive dogs such as one we encountered who was wearing a muzzle and going nuts.

[Mattie]

The only thing that will stop pulling is training, some harnesses make it easier to walk our dogs. I found it easier to stop my dog from pulling when I learnt how pulling worked. In order to pull us along, a dog has to push into the collar, if they were pulling, they would be walking backwards. Think about a wheelbarrow, we can push it or pull, if we push the wheelbarrow we can also pull something along behind us, if hwe pull it we can't.

A dog can't pull us along if we don't let them get to the end of the lead and put their weight into the collar, which is why stopping and turning works well, the dog doesn't get the chance to pull.

When teachin a dog to walk on a loose lead I don't let them get their head infront of my hip, if they do I turn and walk the other way. This teaches my dog to walk close to me and watch what I am doing because I am unpredictable. If I let his head get in front my dog can't watch me and isn't walking close. On busy roads walking close to me is essential.

Dog training is teaching habits to a dg, they learn to sit on a word, we reinforce this by teaching them to sit in many different places, the dog gets into the habit of sitting on that word. It is the same with walking on a loose lead, the dog gets into the habit of walking like this.

My dogs don't walk close to me all the time, I put a word onto walking close, my word is "Close", so they know when I want them next to me. All other times they are allowed to walk in front and investigate but if they put pressure onto the lead, they are brought back to me and have to walk "Close", for a short time. If I let them put pressure into the collar I would be allowing them to learn how to pull which is not what I want.

Several of my dogs were pullers when they came, I taught them to walk on a loose lead the same way. There is a sticky thread in "Methods" which gives a lot of information on teaching a dog to walk on a loose lead.

[Dibbythedog]

Hi Paul,
Take care when walking Muttley. The snow has melted here and there is black ice so I am being extra careful and not walking out on my own.
Alison