(photo taken April 2008)
I have been feeling bad about not walking Emma lately. The weather here has been unpredictable as of late. We've had some really nice days and some really crappy days. Just in the last 2 weeks alone, we've had a couple nearly hot days, a few rainy days and even snow. In addition to the weather, my motivation, or lack thereof, has been an issue too. The days I have most energy, I tend to forget about walking her because I'm catching up on housework, etc. Excuses, perhaps, but I really do feel bad.
As some of you may recall, we were in the midst of training Emma when my husband's cancer returned. ( You can see a little video clip of her training here. ) Emma is a much better walker now than she was a year ago. But part of the reason for this is because I have been using the pinch collar that the trainer gave to us. I really dislike the pinch collar, and because of her shape it is not always effective on Emma. If I make it one link smaller, it is too tight on her, and it is barely effective at the size it is now, or more likely, she has come to tolerate it. Between that, and the fact I do not have the right kind of strength to snap it in an effective way, it does not really work. She still walks better than she did before any training so it's not always bad. But again, I noticed that if I do not use the pinch collar, she tends to revert back to some of her old bad walking habits.
So, I have been considering to use the Halti. I have heard some good things about it, and in fact, I even bought one but have yet to use it. I found this website that talks about how to use a Halti. I am going to try this method I think. I am hoping that by the end of Spring, I'll be back into the habit of walking Emma again every day or every other day at the very least.
Have any of you used the Halti? What have your experiences with it been like? I'd love to hear what you have to say.
Now, if you excuse me, I'm going to take my doggie for a walk!
Posts
10 comments:
I hope it works out! good luck.......
We're fans of the halti. We have a shelter dog who has been with us for 6.5 years. She looks like a small golden and she has never been well behaved on a leash--lots of pulling and lunging. The halti does not stop the behavior completely but does, say , help keep the lunging to a level that doesn't pull your arm out of the socket.
Good luck!
Glad you got out for a walk. We use a 'choke-chain' on my dog. We did use a harness on Max back when he was young and had energy enough to pull.
I haven't ever used either one so I'm no help at all. :(
I have never heard of the halti. We use also use a choke chain on our dog. But she still pulls us. For an old dog she is still strong:)
I didn't recognize the term "halti" but after looking at the site you linked, I saw "gentle leader" which I am familiar with. My stepmother uses one on one of her two dogs and it has really helped keep her moving in the right direction during walks. I hope it works well for you and Emma! :)
No help here... but good luck in using the Halti! Emma's a sweetie!
LOVE our Gentle Leader (same as a Halti but was cheaper) - without it I wouldn't have been able to control Smokey as he wants so desperately to be friends with everyone he sees and he's been stronger than me since he was less than a year old! With the gentle leader even the kids can control him for the most part. he still pulls, but he can't get the leverage he could with a choker or regular collar. A choker doesn't work at all for us because Smokey would cut off his oxegyn to the point of passing out before he'd give up on the lunging and pulling if there was someone nearby that he wanted to meet :) stupid labs.
Ter,
I could not walk my dog before the halti. Now I can walk her and not have my arm ripped out. I LOVE the halti and would recommend it to anyone who has trouble walking their dog.
The Halti worked well on my dog Zip. She was powerful and the halti worked well.
the only problem is that lots of dogs don't like having it on their face. My dogs would walk well for a minute or two, then freak out, roll on teh ground and try to paw it off their face. then they'd calm down, walk a bit, and do it again. It was sort of funny...
My friend Jenn's dog (choco lab) wears his like a punishment though. It's really funny. He doesn't walk with it on at all, but if he's too riled up in the house, they'll put it on then he just sits there. He doesn't jump on people, he doesn't bark, he doesn't lick, just sits. And the funny thing is that he could do any of those things while wearing it, but I guess he thinks it's like a muzzle (which he only wore once when he tried to bite a trainer).
So, it works for him!
Post a Comment