Okok so I use a harness with my puppy cause obviously he pulls on the leash (slowly training him not to) and he’s a shihtzu with a. Tiny neck and I’d rather not have him injury himself but I posted a video about him walking and a few people commented that harnesses are bad for dogs cause it teaches them to pull and u shouldn’t use them unless u r using them for a pulling purpose like she’d dogs???? And we’re saying I should be using a prong collar??
outbackhatter
New member
@outbackhatter My mother’s Silky Terrier died from a collapsing trachea, caused by pulling on her collar. We learned the hard way. For the past 30 years all of my dogs wear harnesses.
outbackhatter
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@thanksgod Omg! I didn’t know that could happen! That’s awful!
@outbackhatter It’s heartbreaking because the dog coughs and suffers for years before it’s fatal.
skycoaster5541
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@ghy1221 I lost my first Schipperke to it. She had a predisposition to it, and got kennel cough before we got her and that supposedly led to it. We had her two weeks and she spent the 9 years with it, led to congestive heart failure. I held her when she crossed the bridge. It killed me. She was only 13. My second, who was always on a harness, started showing signs of it later and I got so upset. She didn't pass from it.
outbackhatter
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@outbackhatter That’s not really something I’d stress about, just never put him in a collar. When I first found out about this because my dog started honk coughing I switched both to harnesses and it didn’t worsen. And the inflammation she had reduced so she didn’t cough anymore. But you really don’t want to be in a mitigation path.
@outbackhatter Thank you. It was heartbreaking. But we learned from the loss. Minnie wasn’t very old, a few years. Steroids helped for a while, but they had to have her pts.
outbackhatter
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@thanksgod Omg!! I figured once she was old she had to be not when she was young!!
@outbackhatter She was between 5 and 10. Not a puppy, but too young to be gone.
warriorofgod613
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@outbackhatter This is the answer for small dogs like shih tzus!! Do not use collars for walking or being tied on. Collars left on also cause mats on their neck from rubbing.
sonnybaker
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@outbackhatter Jumping in to say the front attaching harnesses are good! They're not perfect, dogs will still pull with them, but I have one and if I clip the lead onto the back attachment there is a noticeable difference in her pulling.
outbackhatter
New member
@sonnybaker Yep definitely. I don’t use the front clip and just work on heeling. The front clip got too annoying for us.
@outbackhatter Exactly that!
Small dogs already have a tendency for collapsed trachea, a collar makes it worse, and a prong collar is completely out of the question
Small dogs already have a tendency for collapsed trachea, a collar makes it worse, and a prong collar is completely out of the question
outbackhatter
New member
@sarzy21 Was looking it up, looks like even for bigger dogs it can happen with a prong collar. I used that for training on my last border collie, but I don’t think I’ll be doing it again with my current BC pup. She’s in a harness and flat collar in the house when I know she won’t be pulling me around.
@outbackhatter I also use to keep mine back when friendly unleashed dogs won’t go away - especially with 3 Bostons
outbackhatter
New member
mine is a baby and doesn’t exactly appreciate dogs running up on her.@outbackhatter Seond this, a harness with a from D ring is the way to go.
@outbackhatter Harnesses can left a small dog away from a charging pit bull