Dog Whisperer - Prong Collars
I have noticed a trend on the Dog Whisperer lately. It seems that every episode has at least one dog wearing a prong collar. I never see Cesar change the collars to something more humane nor is he offering the collar that he sells on his web site. Instead, he is training with the prong collar on a lot of medium to large breed dogs.
Instead of using a prong collar, there are many other choices available. One is a Halti. This is a collar that goes around the neck as well as the muzzle. If you have a dog that tends to snap at other dogs, one way to control this is by using the Halti and keeping an eye on your dog while walking. It does take some time for the dog to get used to walking on this device, but it works quite well because of 2 reasons. For snapping, it controls how far the mouth can open preventing a bite if the owner has a good hold on the leash and an eye on their dog. For pulling, it uses pressure on the muzzle instead of the neck muscles. A dog won't be as willing to pull if their muzzle is going to be controlled instead of their strong neck muscles.
Another good choice, and one that I prefer and use on a daily basis is the choker collar. This type of collar requires a bit of extra effort, but leaves the dogs muzzle available for them to drink and move their head as they choose. It is not a good idea to use this if your dog has a habit of snapping at other dogs or people while you are walking them. The choker collar must be put on correctly. The best way to put this collar on is to make a P with the collar where the end that the leash will be hooked onto is at the bottom of the P. Then, facing your dog, put the collar over the dogs head. Once on, keep the collar up under the dogs chin and don't let it slip down around the base of their neck. If it does get to the base of the neck, the dog will most likely pull as that is where all their muscle is and they won't even feel your corrections.
Proper corrections with a choker collar are quick gentle jerks to the side. Strong enough to unbalance the dog and for them to feel it, but not strong enough to cut off their wind or strangle them.
On my website, I have posted a video of the correct way to put a choker collar on a dog. It stars my loving husband, John, and our 14 yr old male, Ready
Instead of using a prong collar, there are many other choices available. One is a Halti. This is a collar that goes around the neck as well as the muzzle. If you have a dog that tends to snap at other dogs, one way to control this is by using the Halti and keeping an eye on your dog while walking. It does take some time for the dog to get used to walking on this device, but it works quite well because of 2 reasons. For snapping, it controls how far the mouth can open preventing a bite if the owner has a good hold on the leash and an eye on their dog. For pulling, it uses pressure on the muzzle instead of the neck muscles. A dog won't be as willing to pull if their muzzle is going to be controlled instead of their strong neck muscles.
Another good choice, and one that I prefer and use on a daily basis is the choker collar. This type of collar requires a bit of extra effort, but leaves the dogs muzzle available for them to drink and move their head as they choose. It is not a good idea to use this if your dog has a habit of snapping at other dogs or people while you are walking them. The choker collar must be put on correctly. The best way to put this collar on is to make a P with the collar where the end that the leash will be hooked onto is at the bottom of the P. Then, facing your dog, put the collar over the dogs head. Once on, keep the collar up under the dogs chin and don't let it slip down around the base of their neck. If it does get to the base of the neck, the dog will most likely pull as that is where all their muscle is and they won't even feel your corrections.
Proper corrections with a choker collar are quick gentle jerks to the side. Strong enough to unbalance the dog and for them to feel it, but not strong enough to cut off their wind or strangle them.
On my website, I have posted a video of the correct way to put a choker collar on a dog. It stars my loving husband, John, and our 14 yr old male, Ready
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