Wednesday, March 08, 2006

Walk By Me, Darling - Don't Let Your Dog Pull You!

We have all seen those people who are out walking their dogs who do not even have the control over their animal.

The dog is pulling at the leash constantly, trying to run, and the owner is just being dragged along for the ride. In fact, I hate to admit it but Tymmie was this kind of dog and I was that owner.

Tymmie would get so excited when he got outside he would pull me around the block!
Tymmie is a very sociable dog and he has doggie friends in our complex so he would use all of his strength, literally drag me down the block to see if his friends were out to play. (then of course look at me and whine if no one was out as if it was my fault!)

We tried the chain choker, nylon choker, spike choker, harness, and eventually the Haltee.
It looks like a muzzle but doesn’t stop the dog from opening its mouth. It can if you pull hard enough but the main purpose is for the owner to have complete control over their pulling dog. All the strength of a dog is in their chest and neck, the Haltee sits on the snout where no power of the dog is.

The first time using the new leash was amazing! Tymmie did not pull, he tried but instead of me being dragged down the road, I could walk him with one finger! That is how amazing the difference was.

Tymmie felt weird since when he saw his friends his head would go down and he would just stare at the ground. To make him feel better, I would switch to his regular leash so he could jump around and play, since Tymmie is the socialite of our complex.

At first many dogs do not like this harness type leash on their face but eventually they get use to it and works as a great training tool.
Tymmie learned quickly not to pull and once in a while we will still use the Haltee to remind him if he pulls, he gets the funny looking leash on his face.

You are the master, so don't let your doggie pull you.

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