Which anti-pull harness??

[Nicola]

I want to get a harness for Alfie as we're not making any progress with his lead walking at all. It's getting to the stage where it's taking us 20 minutes to go 20 yards because we have to keep stopping. He sits perfectly as soon as I stop but as soon as I move one foot he lunges forward again right to the end of the lead and he pulls so hard his front legs aren't even on the ground  He chokes himself and it's horrible to see and to hear. Ironically he's perfect off the lead, doesn't run away and always comes back when called but on the lead he's a nightmare. He's also getting really strong so I want to nip this in the bud while I still can!

I know there have been posts about harnesses before, I've just done a search and found loads of threads but I'm still not sure which one is best...    I've narrowed it down to three - the Halti harness, the Lupi harness and the Gentle Leader Easy Walk harness so does anyone have an idea of the main similarities/differences between these? Which one is the best "anti-pull" one? Thanks!

[Colin]

A harness doesn't teach a dog not to pull , just makes it easier for the owner to manage as the dog can't get as much leverage - but if the dog's pulling is so bad then they can be handy and put an end to them choking themsleves.

I've tried various harnesses and head halters ( I'd never use a halter on a dog again though ) - the best one, in my opinion, is the Sporn Harness. What I like about this is that it can be used as a harness but also adapts to a standard collar/lead - perfect for Jimmy who pulls to the park but after that walks pretty well on a loose leash. Even when Jimmy's pulling is at it's worst I can hold him back with just one finger through the lead handle when he's wearing the Sporn. Misty has a Lupi, although she doesn't pull, it makes it easier for me to have both dogs on the same length leads. The trouble with Lupis is that they are made of quite thin cord and can cause matting, or even cuts under the armpit if your dog does pull badly.

Sporns are quite difficult to get hold of in the UK but you could try Ebay or do a Google search - or buy direct from the USA...

http://www.sporn.com/product_info.php?products_id=28

[Joules]

I use a Gentle Leader which goes over Coco's nose.  It stops her pulling when she has it on and makes walks much easier.  I was hoping she would get into the habit of not pulling so I could dispense with it but alas no, though I really only use it when out and about where there are lots of interesting distractions and she is a complete nightmare.  She is not too keen on it though and tries to rub it off on people's legs in the street!  My dog trainer recommended it rather than the sort that go round the body as it is the pressure on the nose that stops them pulling. 

[Cob-Web]

I use the Halti-harness (made by the Company of Animals, who also make the halti-headcollar) which works on the same principles as the Easy Walker (by the same company that make the Gentle Leader)

The Easy Walker looks easier to fit that the Halti-harness; but once on they fit in the same way, and I would recommend this for helping to reduce the pressure of pulling; the mechanics of the harness mean that if they pull againt you, they end up turning round to face you - which Molo still does occasionally 

[amanda]

My sister uses the dogmatix with her great dane and it has worked wonders as she could barely walk her before as she got dragged everywhere the dog wanted to go, now they walk really well together.

[Wightpaws]

Snoopy has had a soft harness from Puppia whilst small but I've recently changed him for training to use a Easy Walk Harness and at the moment this is great for Snoopy, he works a treat and he is beginning to get the message I bought mine from Jolleys but you casn get them from http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product_group.asp?dept_id=112&pg_id=184

[TT]

Hi Nicola - I use the Lupi Harness on Lucy when we don't have time to train and it's pretty good.  Although as Colin points out it is quite thin - but we don't have problems with matting as we don't use it all that much. 

We did the same thing with Lucy and getting her to walk!  She would sit perfectly every time we stopped but lunge like a steam train whenever we took the next step.  It took forever and I just wasn't "getting through" to her.  Once we spent two hours lunging and stopping everything three steps or so.  Eventually we got a 1-2-1 trainer who showed us how to do unpredictable changes in direction and this Lucy eventually understood!  The trainer was really important though in showing me what to do though - perhaps you might be able to find someone in your neighbourhood?

[janey]

hi nicola
cant really help you about which harness,i bought one for when we take molly in the car,and got into such a tangle trying to put it on her,have discarded it in the 'doggy'cupboard' will try again though,when she is less wriggly

[CraftySam]

I've used a few over the last few months with my lab and goldie!

My lab pulls in new places or when excited.   I've tried the halti harness, halti head collar and canny head collar with her. Halti harness was not effective at all. Halti head collar very effective but she hates it.  Canny collar is very effective and she seems to bea bit more comfortable in it than the halti head collar.  My main grumble about head collars is that people who don't know about them think the dog is wearing it because they are nasty.  For this reason I didn't want to use one with my goldie as it would ruin his socialisation and he's still young.

My goldie hardly ever pulls. He will pull if he sees someone he knows though. The only other time he may pull is when we get to the training centre and he's very excited as we walk in, but then he calms down. As I walk both of my dogs together and I have to have their leads in the same hand as I need my right hand to operate my wheelchair controls, I can't risk the both pulling as I'd lose my arm! So his harness is really just a precaution. 
I found the halti harness worked at first with him but quickly became ineffective.  I am currently using the Easy Walk training harness which is very good.  Having looked at the link Colin gave to the Sporn harness, it seems identicle to the Easy Walk harness and its much cheaper. I got mine from Pet Planet. http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product_group.asp?dept_id=112&pg_id=184

In theory the Halti harness is a good idea, and I liked the fact that the lead is fastened at two points, on the chest and back. However the mechanism on the chest is supposed to tighten when they pull but I've got 2 and neither of them have ever tightened.

If you would like to try the Halti harness I could send you one of my redundant ones and see if it works for you (I'm not sure about the size though, but at least you'd get to see it in the flesh and could give it ago) . I'm sure that it partly comes down to what each individual dog responds to too.

By the way, in this months Your Dog magazine they are beginning a long-term test (6 months) on anti-pull harnesses. They are trialling 5 of them, so it will be interesting to see the results.

[Colin]

I am currently using the Easy Walk training harness which is very good.  Having looked at the link Colin gave to the Sporn harness, it seems identicle to the Easy Walk harness and its much cheaper. I got mine from Pet Planet. http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product_group.asp?dept_id=112&pg_id=184

Yep, the Easy Walk looks identical to the Sporn and is much cheaper too. The only difference seems to be that the Easy Walk doesn't have the fleece protective sleeves that prevent the cords digging into the skin under the armpits. I'm sure you clever ladies could make some though -  probably a good idea too, if you read a warning posted by Crazyspaniels about problems she once had with the Easy Walk ...

http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=4748.0

Edit - I've just remembered that the pic on the Sporn website doesn't show the fleece sleeves but you can see them on a photo I posted on this old thread...

http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=12392.0

[Cob-Web]

In theory the Halti harness is a good idea, and I liked the fact that the lead is fastened at two points, on the chest and back. However the mechanism on the chest is supposed to tighten when they pull but I've got 2 and neither of them have ever tightened.

If you would like to try the Halti harness I could send you one of my redundant ones and see if it works for you (I'm not sure about the size though, but at least you'd get to see it in the flesh and could give it ago) . I'm sure that it partly comes down to what each individual dog responds to too.

I think the newer version of the Halti harness works in a different way - I have one, and it isn't designed to tighten anywhere - but I have read posts on other forums from people who say the "new" design is easier to use then the old one 
The one I have fits around the body and chest, and links to the collar. The chest ring has to be stitched in place one the harness has been fitted (not whilst on the dog though  ), which means they are uniquely fitted to each dog - a bit of a pain if you have more than one dog, I imagine  When the dog pulls, the tension is converted to a sideways "pull" a bit like a lever; so turning the dogs body around towards the person they are pulling against 

I started by using it with a double-ended lead, but now I can just clip a normal lead to the front ring and it has reduced his pulling significantly If I clip his lead to just the back-ring, it turns the harness into a "trail type" though - and he can still pull like a train 

I almost gave up on it when I first bought it - buy I e-mailed Company of Animals and got a brill e-mail back which took me through it step by step, and included pictures taken of a dog belonging to a staff member wearing it (a working cocker!) - which really helped. Molo's not perfect by any means (yet), but it gave me back control without strangling him and hopefully we will learn how to walk nicely to heel as part of the clicker classes we have just started 



BTW Colin - I thought about fleece sleeves when I first saw Cheryl/Snoopys Easy Walk harness for the first time - but it does have them, just like the Sporn; they're not in the picture either though

[Petra]

I have the Easy Walk harness, and found the fleece sleeves around the cords pretty useless - they ride up and do not protect where they are supposed to.   Also, they are very thin.   So I cut up an old black fleece scarf, made my own sleeves and stitched them onto the cord in the correct place.   
Now I love my Easy Walk harness.   It does not stop Dill pulling, but makes the pulling easier to control - I can hold hte lead with two fingers if I wanted to...

When off lead, I just unclip the cords, so it turns into a regular collar, so he only has the cords under his front legs when doing on-lead road walking.   I love how versatile it is...

[Top Barks]

I use Halti's,easy walks(without the fleecy bits) and am a big fan of the sensation harness.
I have also just treated two of my boys to Ruffwear harnesses which are similar to those used with mountain rescue dogs.
I have not tried them yetc and will report back when I do.
Mark

[kb]

We use the rosewood soft protection harness - it is a lovely soft padded harness, but have to admit it is an absoloute nightmare to get on. It does give us a lot more control over Honey, although she would still try to pull.

[CraftySam]

I am currently using the Easy Walk training harness which is very good.  Having looked at the link Colin gave to the Sporn harness, it seems identicle to the Easy Walk harness and its much cheaper. I got mine from Pet Planet. http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product_group.asp?dept_id=112&pg_id=184

Yep, the Easy Walk looks identical to the Sporn and is much cheaper too. The only difference seems to be that the Easy Walk doesn't have the fleece protective sleeves that prevent the cords digging into the skin under the armpits. I'm sure you clever ladies could make some though -  probably a good idea too, if you read a warning posted by Crazyspaniels about problems she once had with the Easy Walk ...

http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=4748.0

Edit - I've just remembered that the pic on the Sporn website doesn't show the fleece sleeves but you can see them on a photo I posted on this old thread...

http://www.cockersonline.co.uk/discuss/index.php?topic=12392.0

I've just looked at the pic of Jimmy wearing the Sporn and it looks much more substantial than the Easy Walk.  I think I might try and track one down.  As others have said they do have a flimsy cover on the under arm part but I doubt it will be very effective.

Colin, is it still as effective after a few months of using it? I found after a few weeks Max got used to the Halti harness and started to pull again.