Having a problem with Jax - our older GSD

[redhen]

The only reason that i use a prong collar is because you cant choke a dog with it... like you can with a choke collar. It has worked very very good for us...If you use it correctly and firmly they get the hint RIGHT away..
the prongs can not pierce the skin or anything like that... it just kinda gives them the feeling of teeth or pressue on their neck..*if you use it correctly!*. (JUST like mom dog or an alpha dog would do to them,, to make them submit..)
i do the same thing with my mastiff when he gets too rowdy..i grab his neck firmly with my finger tips beside his jaw bone and give him pressue there..he stops what he is doing RIGHT away... its instinct to them to respond to it... thats why it works so well..
well... for ME it does anyways...

 

[greathorse]

I would submit that the collapsed trachea are a result of the 80% of the dogs I see on leash pulling for all they are worth. I can't imagine a more cruel way to walk a dog. I train 2000 lb horses and believe me if pulling were allowed I would never get a horse from here to there.

I think Gritstar will do a great job with this dog.

 

[lorieMN]

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yes,this is how they are supposed to work,,and I have no problem with them when used and fitted correctly like you are doing,I just dont think changing collars is gritstars fix because lack of focus on handler is the problem,why spend money on a collar that isnt needed.

 

[Cara]

I agree, I have no interest in being goaded into a p-ing match

Jax will be just fine, some things just take longer to get ironed out.

Good training techniques do not require fancy apparatus. Prong collars do stop pulling, but often only when the prong collar is on. However they are infinitely preferable to the alternative (which I don't believe was being considered).

 

[babylady4]

My Boxer/Lab does the same thing AND I have been training her since she was 8 weeks old. PULLS all the time! I do use the choke chain properly and that stops her for about 2 seconds but then she is right back at it which makes for a less than fun walk with you constantly jerking the lead. She knows the command heel but it gets annoying to say it constantly....

I have the harness which works well but before that I used the Gentle Leader. IT WAS GREAT!!!!!! STOPPED ALL PULLING! NO JERKING ON LEASH! The second the dog tries to pull they get their nose pulled down and they do NOT LIKE IT!

After using the Gentle Leader for a year we went back to the harness style and she has been pretty good about walks. Not too much pulling since I think she knows I'll get that Gentle Leader lead out........

I know you will have the dog trained in no time!

 

[redhen]

the only time i'll use a prong collar now is when we go in public..(with my mastiff..) i dont need it for my saints anymore...
and i dont even really need it for my mastiff anymore either..as he listens very well to my voice sounds and even my hand gestures....hes VERY in tune to us.... And when i say "no pull!" he slows right down..
but hes still young and big..so i like to have the prong as back up when im away from home with him.... cause ya never know...

 

[Anianna]

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I have always wondered about this, never having had horses. What kind of methods do you use with the horses?

 

[nyice]

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This is the way to teach a "heel". You can even try holding a treat (rotisserie chicken chunks is great, or hot dog, liver etc..) next to you thigh but do not let him have some until he stays next to you for a while. Get a "clicker" and "click" immediately each time he does a behavior you want (timing is everything) then give a treat/praise/toy. It just takes time, patienc,e and repeitition but keep you training to about 30 minutes and then something fun (think about teaching a small child, they lose fucus quickly)

The use of a "prong collar" on a dog that has a high pain tollerance is asking for problems (look at what I have) , they all walk on a loose leash, following me, and sitting when I stop and have NEVER worn a prong, I use a martinggale just so that they cannot back out of the collar (necks are bigger than their heads)
The collar is a tool, if you put any collar high up on the neck just behind the ears (watch a dog show, giant mastiffs are being walked on a dainty chain) you will have control. But to get absolute control you need trust, if you "dominate" or use adversives you can ruin that trust. GSD are such great workers and intelligent, they just need to know what they are being asked to do.

I don't know chickens, but I do know dogs. Look into Patricia B. McConnell's books "the other end of the leash" stay away from Caesar, he will get you hurt.

 

[gritsar]

Again guys, the whole point is Jax does fine on the lead everywhere except outside the fenced yard, but still on the farm.
Practice makes perfect, but we can't practice if I can't take him two steps out of the yard without him pulling so hard he pulls me down.
I can practice with him walking on the lead, paying attention to me the whole time, in the yard till the cows come home and it's not going to do a thing (and hasn't).
I need some way to be in better control so we can get outside the yard and practice and that's why I'm interested in the prong collar and/or the gentle leader. That's why I asked for feedback on those two things.
I personally don't feel that a prong collar is cruel in any way, when used properly. I can think of alot of crueler things, like beating a dog into submission for example.
I would hurt myself before I'd allow either of these dogs to be hurt. When we (DH & I) call Jax and Kane "the sons we never had", we're not just blowing smoke. They're like children to us.
I appreciate all the feedback.

 

[Cara]

I understand that, but the issue isn't the leash it's him being too excited to pay attention to you. A prong collar might stop him pulling you, but what if he is in that frame of mind with no leash?