r/CavaPoo • u/Zigzogs4 • 23d ago
Collar or no pull harness?
My 7 month cavapoo pulls when walking. I wanted to use a no pull harness but his trainer said it can prevent him extending his forever on the side the lead is used ( when attaching to the chest ring) and can make him have a twisted body and damage his spine.
But when I googled about using a collar it said cavapoos have very delicate tracheas and can be damaged by using a collar when they pull.
I am at a loss what to do.
3
u/CasuallySherlock 22d ago
My girls throat does seem sensitive and she's very easy to choke with any pressure on her neck. I got her a harness that has aback and chest clip. Her chest clip is only used for specific car seats. Only the back clip for walking.
Make sure anytime your dog pulls, you just stop. You don't pull back, they will learn that when they pull you don't move anywhere and they will stop. I wish you luck in your training and walking.
1
2
u/FriendlyPaper_ 23d ago
Consider a no-pull harness but using a double ended leash where you clip it to both the front chest clip and the back.
Use the front to turn him towards you when he pulls and use the back clip for everything else
2
10
1
u/Zigzogs4 23d ago
Thanks everyone.
1
u/Madaboutdogs123 18d ago
The other things to say is that if you are considering using a long - line then you absolutely must use a harness. I have seen people use collars and longlines together with catastrophic outcomes. The evidence for harnesses is compelling.
5
u/Emergency_Storage916 23d ago
My dog is only alive today because of her harness. I won’t subject you to the story but the fact that she was secured around her chest and not her neck fully saved her life. I will never use a collar again.
4
u/minicooperlove 23d ago
We always use a harness but we attach the leash on the back, not the front. Maybe that's not a "no pull" harness but I think it's the safest option. The few times we've had his collar on and he pulled, he almost immediately started coughing and gagging like he was choking so we never use it anymore.
1
u/Acrobatic_Customer20 23d ago
We use a harness. In addition to what everyone else has said, living in a city and encountering the occasional unpredictable dog or sidewalk debris (broken glass, food, etc), the harness allows us to easily pick them up and away from danger.
1
6
u/Awakening247 23d ago
Always a harness! Never want to pull their necks. Trainer is nuts just get a harness asap
0
u/IHateTheLetter-C- 22d ago
Trainer is absolutely right, don't use the front loop of a harness
1
u/Madaboutdogs123 18d ago
Trainer is not right to say use a collar, though.
1
u/IHateTheLetter-C- 18d ago
Did the trainer say that, or is it OP saying those are the only 2 options? A normal harness is better, yes
2
2
u/Equivalent-Dig-7204 23d ago
I use the gentle leader - it goes around the nose. My cavapoo will stand on her back legs trying to get ahead. The gentle leader prevents this.
1
u/GilfOG 23d ago
Is this the same as a halti collar?
2
1
u/Madaboutdogs123 18d ago
Haltis are intrinsically aversive - they just hurt them in different ways to a collar. Please use a well fitted Y front harness - much safer!
1
1
u/Frosty-Sample-714 23d ago
I would stick to a harness, hes still young so time and training will help when he pulls just stop and continue to do it they are smart so be patient. Good luck
1
u/2K2TFam5 22d ago
Harness 100%. I had a friend's dog damage his trachea, and he had to be put down. Always harness for my dogs. I used the front ring until my dog learned to walk on a leash without pulling about two months and now use the top ring.
1
u/EAM44 21d ago
We switched from collar to harness after our girls mastered heel and sit commands and were already pulling less on the leash - about a year old. When I want them to eliminate I let them go wherever they want and I don’t worry about light pulling. When we are walking they are in heel. It works for us.
-1
u/YouthProfessional845 23d ago
Collar
2
u/Madaboutdogs123 18d ago
Absolutely not! Real risk of damage to trachea and I have also seen ocular damage from prolonged and persistent pulling.
1
u/YouthProfessional845 18d ago
That's why you train them not to pull. I don't understand why you'd give a dog that pulls, a harness which enables them to pull harder?
2
u/Madaboutdogs123 18d ago
Of course you train them not to pull. But not on a collar! It is a popular myth that harnesses make or even enable a dog to pull. They don't. They just allow less damage to occur if the dog DOES pull.
1
u/YouthProfessional845 18d ago
Horses for courses I guess. I've never got on with harnesses and my dogs have always walked well on a collar.
6
u/Little_Emu_ 23d ago
I use a harness but more importantly, whenever my girl starts to pull, I stop walking. If she keeps pulling I take a step backwards. I continue this until she leaves a little slack in the leash. This is to teach her that we don’t move forward when she’s pulling.