Prong Collar?! Tell Me About Them.

[misterscott76]

I am getting a puppy soon. Wait! Let me stop right there! I will never put a prong collar on her don't worry! When I was looking at some dog products a few months ago I noticed that prong collars appeared to a bit.

Why do people use them?- Is it for the safety of the dog? Temporary training to make sure that the dog does not get itself killed? Is it for dogs with hostility or high prey drives?

When do people use them?- Are they just for training? Work time? Walks? All The Time?

Are they humane? I looked at them and they look pretty uncomfortable but I have seen some kind chicken owners here on BYC post pictures of their dogs wearing prong collars.

Also, why do some people use this instead of many other alternatives?


I am just really curious about all of this and would like to hear both sides.
I will never put a prong collar on my dog though.

I don't know why everyone is upset about Prong Collars. It's a passive tool. It's also affectionately known as "power-steering for dogs". They aren't weapons. They are tools. When the dog pulls, the prongs pinch the dog. This hurts the dog and automatically teaches the dog not to pull when on a leash. When I was a child, I stuck my finger in an electric socket. My dad, a fireman standing by, said not to do it but I knew better (or so I thought). I quickly learned that electric sockets were not friendly. He looked at me, saw me crying, and said, "Did I tell you not to do it?" I nodded. He asked, "Are you going to listen to me now?" I nodded. We had a great relationship ever since. Same with my dog. I can say stop, but sometimes she pulls, pinches herself, and stops pulling. Problem solved. Am I looking for ways to hurt her? Absolutely not. This is the dog that has protected me from loose pitbulls attacking. I'll never hurt my girl and will shoot the guy (and happily go to jail) who tries to. But training sometimes needs to be painful for dogs to learn. Better that than being hit by a car. Yes, I have a shock collar too for her....she used to bolt out of the car and almost into traffic. Now she waits for me in the car for me to say, "okay, come out"...and waits next to the car until I tell her, "go play". She is an off-leash dog now because I have reasonable knowledge of her and of controlling her since I TRAINED HER. Not all the time, which encourages further training, but 90% of the time. That's better than most kids. Shock collars with progressive levels of stimuli are what you need since every dog has their own tolerances for stimuli....you have to find the level appropriate for them so you get their attention without hurting them. Yes, she has made a run for a squirrel, which decided to cross the street and I gave her a shock that was a bit high for her. She did a backflip and IMMEDIATELY yelped and ran for me. OOPS!!! I raised the level since her sprint scared me but I overdid her stimuli. I shock myself now first to make sure the stimuli isn't bad and then put the collar on her. It's a tool...not a torture device. Same with Pinch collars. Anyone yanking on their dogs leash with a prong collar deserves to be backhanded into next week, shot, ....or had it put on them....not necessarily in that order. This is my girl I'm training....the dog sleeping on my feet right now. She sleeps at the foot of my bed and I trust her not to eat me when my back is turned (she could). Do I scold her? Yes. But the day someone harms her is the day I'm acquitted for acting in self-defense. We are a team and every judge in the country....except LA (way too many stupid liberals there)....knows it.

But as to your question: Prong Collars are good for your dog. Harnesses are for those who either want to be pulled by their sled dogs or have trained them not to pull. They don't substitute training....that's your job and the key to a happy dog. I know lots of dog owners who swear they will never put prong collars on their dogs....and their dogs walk all over them, pulling them all over the place, attacking other dogs and making a nuisance of themselves because they think somehow a "Pet Obediance Certificate" 5 years ago says their dog is safe and doesn't need training and a harness is all they need. They're idiots. My dog is trained every day, comes every time to my whistle/command, is (mostly) trustworthy off-leash, and has been used as a hospital service dog since she loves people and seems to know when people are sick and need to be treated carefully.

Or maybe my dog is the exception to the rule. You decide. But don't disregard a tool just because it looks evil. That's stupid. If that's the case, throw out all your knives, guns, herbicides, pesticides, etc and only use spoons....since you can't be trusted to use common sense.

 

[misterscott76]

My mother in law uses a prong collar on her Rottie, had her trainer fit it and train the dog to using it after the Rottie pulled her over one day, breaking her wrist. Works by pinching and her dog has responded well to it, so hopefully there won't be another broken bone incident.

I've used everything from head collars to harnesses to martingale collars so we have an assortment of stuff in the house. I do have a choke chain too but it's just for bathtime as it's easier to rinse around it vs a standard collar.

Be careful with the prong collar since they are not infallible. If the dogs twists his head it's possible to unlink the prongs and have the dog escape the collar. Online you can find leashes that have two hooks...one for the prong collar and a second backup for the dogs regular collar in case the prong collar falls apart. Obviously her dog is like mine with high prey drives and so she needs the extra help, though after a few years they dogs stop pulling (mine has...unless she sees a squirrel).

Also, my $0.02....tell your mother in law to ditch the trainer and do all the training herself, or else have the trainer train her as she trains the dog. The dogs will respect her more for it. A friend of mine, almost 90 now, has a rottie too who she hand feeds, rubs down at least once a day and that dog never pulls her around. She talks quietly to it, never yells and it responds with it's complete loyalty. By hand feeding you are showing you are alpha. By rubbing them down you are exerting your alpha by handling all of their body and giving them a good scratch at the same time. Spend a half-hour a day focused on them and they will spend the rest of the day focused on you. Gentleness and proper training is key. Rotties are wonderful animals with proper training. Same with Pitties, shepherds and doby's. Good luck.

 

[misterscott76]

You beat me to it!!!! Harnesses aren’t that great for big strong driven dogs unless used for a specific purpose and walking on a leash ain’t one of em.

Check out leerburg.com. I started training when my doberman shepherd (doberman mom, GSD dad) was old enough to walk at 7 weeks. We started off-leash and she learned to follow me around a city block (at 2am when it's quiet). When she was about 6 months old, I put a prong collar on her, which stopped her pulling immediately, and she was the perfect lady walking a leash. Next, I put her on an electric collar (off-leash) at about a year old and she learned to walk next to me on or off e-collar with just a beep (sound) saying she needed to get back next to me and if she ignored it (almost never) I sent her a small shock to get her attention. I only gave her a harness so that people would stop walking up and petting her....she was starting to expect it and I didn't want her that friendly with people since some people aren't friendly or are actually fearful of a dog walking up to them growling (dogs way of talking or saying hello). (My harnesss said "TRAINING - DO NOT PET"). My girl now is fine on harness, leash, off-leash, etc. It goes back to training. Dogs pulling on harness haven't been trained...plain and simple.

 

[aart]

or else have the trainer train her as she trains the dog.

Trainers do train the owners more than the dogs....or at least should.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Be careful with the prong collar since they are not infallible. If the dogs twists his head it's possible to unlink the prongs and have the dog escape the collar.

Also, my $0.02....tell your mother in law to ditch the trainer and do all the training herself, or else have the trainer train her as she trains the dog.

Her dog has a regular collar on all the time when out so I do believe she has it properly secured for walking.

As far as the trainer, I'd probably agree except she had the dog living at the trainer's while she was recovering from wrist surgery after the fall and simultaneously dealing with her husband in hospice care... in her situation, it was for the best to not have the extra hassle of training a dog added in. So it simply worked out that way.

When she was ready to pick her dog back up, at the very least she was able to more or less safely walk her pooch, and the trainer did work with her on how to handle the pinch collar.

 

[LaFleche]

I used prong collars on our dogs with the prongs pointing outwards. Very useful if you have to deal with untrained big neighbourhood dogs on the loose that are just nasty and always bullying other dogs.

 

[KittyWhips]

I think is depends on the dog. I actually saw a prong collar on a chihuahua. ..WTF? But many years ago I rescued a 7 month old boxer/ st. bernard mix who was huge and perfect, EXCEPT he pulled me through the pet store, so when he was at his full size I saw a prong collar and I put it around my own neck first and I tugged and it felt like a slow presure but no choking feeling, so I bought one for him. It didn't hurt me, and I don't have fur on my neck for that added protection. The prongs are flat not pointed and in my opinion is much more humane than choke collars. It did not take long before I could put it on him but actually attached the leash to his regular collar, but by virtue of having the prong collar on he stopped pulling me, and it was a godsend, our walks were so much more enjoyable. Good luck

 

[SnootyHen]

What if I could train her to walk by me and not in front of me? I trained a crazy lab to walk by my side.

A lab and a husky are not even close to similar. I have huskies and have had them for ages and I love them. But they require a lot of effort and training and you need to be very good at training or they will train you instead! Very pack oriented and dominance order plays a huge role in whether or not they will ever listen to you.

The reason for prong collars is that a dog who pulls will stop pulling when they get poked. In a buckle collar, they can do serious damage to their throat because they will continue to pull despite the leather digging into their neck. The prong gives a little jolt so they stop. They work well if you know how to use them. I don't use harnesses on my huskies but I know people who do with some success if you can be consistent and firm in their training.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Hi, @DogAndCat36. I taught a basic dog obedience class for my local college for 15 years, and I will tell you that, although I allowed choke (slip-chain) collars in my class, the only training collars I ever use on my own dogs is prong collars, and I'll tell you why.

First, the action of the prong is natural and instantly understood by the dog. Dogs don't choke or strangle each other, as a choke collar does. They bite. A prong collar "bites" a dog around the neck - but, if fitted and used properly, only when the dog brings this action upon himself. He quickly learns not to challenge it, so he seldom feels it at all. He will not lean into it like dogs often do with choke and flat collars, coughing and damaging their tracheas.

Second, unlike a choke, it will not break down the hair coat, which is why I especially like it on long-haired dogs like my late Golden retriever and current Shelties. If a dog came into my class with a bald area around its neck, I would feel that area and usually it would be hot, not a good sign. That dog was an excellent candidate for a prong and would soon stop pulling, to the delight of the owner.

Third, even on big dogs, I never recommend the use of large links. Medium is adequate. That way you get a better fit and more "pinch to the inch."

You say you plan to get a Husky. You should absolutely not put that dog in a harness unless you plan to have it pulling a sled. Harnesses are designed to help an animal pull heavy loads efficiently. Horses and oxen pull wagons in harness. It puts the entire strength of the animal to work. The dog will fly you like a kite!

You say you absolutely will not use a prong collar but at the same time say you know nothing about them. Until you do know, you should not use one. It must be properly fitted and installed. You must also understand how to use it. When that is done, it will not hurt the dog. Understand that many dogs have been hurt and even killed by the misuse of choke collars. (If you would like detailed info on the fit and use of this equipment, please feel free to pm me.)

Finally I wish to conclude by saying that in my opinion, a prong collar, properly used (prongs bare and INWARD), is the mildest, most humane and natural form of COMMUNICATION currently available between human handler and dog for the purposes of training, and that when that training is complete, it results in a dog that is reliable off leash in all circumstances. I believe that if a dog is not obedient when he is distracted or excited, he is not adequately trained, and may well end up dead or hurting someone. Period.