Leashes, Collars, Harnesses and Halters Available to Train Your Dog

Leashes, Collars, Harnesses and Halters

Available to Train Your Dog

A wide variety of leashes, collars, harnesses and halters are available to help you train your dog. Go into any pet store, and the choices can make you dizzy and broke. Here, these items have been broken down into two categories: specifically used for training and generally not used for training. Some items may crisscross categories. For example, many people use a chain collar as the dog’s primary collar, although this practice is not recommended for safety reasons. However, the chain collar was primarily developed as a training collar. And many people use a flat buckle collar as a training tool for a very sensitive and soft dog, but generally it is used as a primary collar to hold tags and sometimes be decorative. 

Collars:

Collars Used for training

Chain or Choke Collars:

A chain collar is a single piece of chain in various lengths and link sizes depending on the size and strength of the dog. This collar used to be a very popular tool for training, though, in recent times, with the awareness of more positive methods, the use of a chain collar in dog training has decreased dramatically. 

This collar is dangerous if used as an everyday collar to carry tags or to use while a dog is tied up, which I don’t recommend. If your dog becomes caught on an object or decides to jump a fence your dog can literally choke themselves and die a terrible death. 

Never, ever, leave a dog unattended wearing a chain collar.

Personally, I would wish that a chain collar would become illegal to use. They are only a danger to any dog that wears one. I was an animal control officer for three years, and I remember two cases I personally responded to where a dog jumped a fence wear a chain collar. Neither dog survived their ordeal and both died horrible deaths. 

Pinch, Prong or Force Collars:

A pinch collar is a type of training collar that uses many individual “prongs” with flat tips linked together applying pressure consistently to the neck when pulled, compared to the chain collar that pinches on a single spot on the neck. A pinch collar should never be left on a dog that is unattended. If the collar gets caught on something the dog could choke to death. 

Most commonly, the pinch collar is used on a dog that pulls and lunges. The applied pressure is intended to stop the dog from pulling and lunging. This type of collar has a “Martingale” type of design.

Head Halters:

This looks like a halter used on a horse. The idea is to gently guide the direction of the head, which, in turn, would guide the direction of the body. Halters are commonly used for dogs that are very strong and pull. I have also seen them used on dogs that are dog aggressive to control lunging and to convey to the dog a sense of control by the handler. I believe that when a halter is used on a dog that is aggressive that behavior modification training must also be used to change the behavior. The halter won’t fix the problem alone. It acts as a tool toward an end.

Never leave the head halter on an unattended dog. They can easily get it off. These are only to be used for walks. I use halters on my dogs because they are strong and pull, and the halters make it easier for me to walk many dogs at once. I leave them attached to the leash when they are off the dogs, so I know where they are all the time. 

Warning:

If you come from a background where you learned yanking and pulling at your dog’s neck with the use of a chain collar or pinch collar, you can not use this method with a head halter. You may do damage to your dog’s neck if the dog is pulled wearing a halter. The halter is only used to gently guide and direct, not to pull the dog around. If unsure how to use the halter properly, make sure you work with a trainer who is familiar with its use. Properly used, it is a wonderful tool to control strong dogs with very little effort. 

Collars Not Used for Training Purposes:

Buckle Collar:

This comes in many forms and colors and styles. They may be nylon or leather. Whatever the design, all the collars have buckles as their attachments. Generally these are the dog’s primary collar used to attach a leash to or hold tags. 

Quick Release Collar:

The only difference between a quick release collar and a buckle collar is the attachment. Based on the name, a Quick Release attachment is plastic and can quickly release the collar by pinching two sides of the plastic piece together. They can be used as a dog’s primary collar to attach a leash or hold tags.

When I worked in a doggie daycare company, only quick release collars were allowed in the playgroups because if two dogs got tangled together by their collars, the handler could quickly remove the offending collar. If a buckle collar is worn, more time is needed to release the collar. 

The only drawback I have with the Quick Release collars I have found is that for a strong dog that pulls, sometimes the plastic attachment is not strong enough and can separate unexpectedly. If you have a dog that pulls and you need a collar to hold tags, I would recommend a buckle collar. 

Martingale Collar:

A Martingale collar is an interesting collar. It is a form of a mild choke collar patterned after the pinch collar in design, except there are no prongs. The Martingale is all flat material, commonly decorative nylon, although it can also be made of chain. When the collar is pulled on with the leash, the collar tightens around the dog’s neck, but the pressure is designed to be very light. These collars are good for a dog that needs a very light control. 

These are also good for a dog that possibly might back out of their collar from fear or stress. The collar will tighten up around the neck when pulled without applying any pain or discomfort which could freak out a dog that is already freaked out by something that is causing them to try to back out of their collar. 

These collars should not be left on a dog while unattended due to the constriction around the dog’s neck that occurs, nor should they be used as everyday collars to hold tags. They do, however, have use as walking collars for a dog that needs very light control. 

Leads

Nylon leads and Leather leads:

These leads are most commonly used as everyday walking leads. They are usually either four or six feet. Nylon is less expensive and comes in a lot of nice colors and designs. Leather is more expensive and is usually black or brown. The primary difference between them when walking a dog is that leather is softer on your hands and nylon has the potential to burn if pulled through your hands unexpectedly. Both are very strong, however, the thickness of the leash should be matched to the size of your dog. Less than ½ inch is best for dogs less than 40 pounds, and wider than ½ inch should be for dogs over 40 pounds. Other than that, I would recommend either nylon or leather, depending on your budget and desire for color. 

Retractable leads:

Everybody has different opinions on these leashes. Some people love them and others absolutely despise them. 

These leashes are extendable and usually corded and can move in and out of the handle on a wheel. There is a break and a lock on the handle to control the dog’s distance. Some go up to 15 feet in distance while others can extend 25 feet. They are basically a long line that doesn’t sag. They are good to give your dog a bit of freedom from a six or four foot leash in areas where that is appropriate like a field or large park. This option is much better than letting your dog off leash if you don’t have voice control. The down fall is when that distance is too much to walk a dog, such in a crowded location or an urban environment where there are a lot of people and other dogs close by. Many cities don’t allow the retractable leash for this reason. There is a loss of control as a dog gets further and further away. 

Harnesses

Regular Walking Harnesses:

These harnesses are the most common type of harness used to walk a dog. The basic design goes across the chest or as a V shaped through the front legs so as to make it comfortable for a dog to pull. Many people switch to these if the dog they are walking pulls and lunges on a flat collar. I have also seen these used on dogs with throat or neck injuries or many small dogs that have delicate tracheas or a lot of loose skin on their necks like Pugs and Bulldogs. 

These are also used to restrain a dog in the back of a truck to prevent them from jumping out or being thrown out. I would highly recommend this rather than allowing a dog to be loose in the back, which is very dangerous to the dog and passing traffic if the dog becomes a road hazard when falling out.

No Pull Harnesses:

A No Pull Harness is exactly as the name implies. This type of harness is similar to the idea of a head halter, which pulls the dog backwards when the dog moves forward, thus preventing the dog from pulling. The front of the harness is similar in design to a Martingale collar, a piece of material that constricts against the chest. The leash attaches to a snap in the front of the chest and when the dog pulls forward the leash pulls backwards and to either side depending on where the handler is. 

Although these harnesses are certainly better than regular ones, and much better than using a flat collar for a dog that pulls, the backwards pull it creates on the dog is minimal for a big strong dog that still wants to go forward. For a lightweight dog with a minimal pulling problem, these would probably work. For a larger, stronger, more determined dog, they don’t work. In that case, I would recommend a head halter for a large, strong or determined dog.