Conditioning Collars and Harnesses for an Older Puppy
As your puppy matures and your lessons begin, you may want to switch from a nylon collar or harness to a conditioning or training collar, which discourages lunging, pulling, and overall reactivity, and to a sturdier leash. Use positive reinforcement to encourage your puppy’s focus.
Conditioning collars encourage your puppy to walk near you through a system of guiding, not jerking or pulling. These user-friendly collars require little to no strength to control and allow you to focus on positive reinforcement to encourage your puppy’s focus and cooperation. The two types of conditioning collars are no-pull harnesses and head collars.
Stick to buckle collars and conditioning collars for young puppies (under 4 months old). Other types of collars restrict your puppy’s breathing and teach her that walking near you is uncomfortable.
Easy-walking, no-pull harness
Some no-pull harness designs are very effective in encouraging good following skills in puppies. A harness, which loops around the front of the puppy’s body, is also an ideal system for small or giant-size breeds and can be used safely if a puppy’s neck is simply too fragile to bear the resistance of a neck collar. It prevents pulling by limiting the extent of your puppy’s gait.
Following are the two basic kinds of no-pull harness:
Front-attached easy-walking harness: This harness (shown in the following figure) braces your puppy across her chest. The leash clips in front of your dog’s chest and restrains her forward momentum as you lead her forward. Some puppies get distracted by the leash and grab for the strap incessantly, but most pups learn to accept the restraint in a couple of walks.
Shoulder attachment: These harnesses loop under your puppy’s front legs and secure behind the shoulder. Be sure to look for one that’s labeled no-pull harness, because other brands of similar design encourage pulling.
![A front-attached easy-walking conditioning harness. [Credit: Illustration by Barbara Frake]](http://media.wiley.com/Lux/91/320891.image0.jpg)
Credit: Illustration by Barbara Frake
A front-attached easy-walking conditioning harness.
Head collar
A head collar is like a horse halter for dogs. It can be used with puppies as young as 8 weeks old. It’s a nonconfrontational conditioning tool that encourages cooperation and good following skills. Left on during play, the pressure on the nose discourages rowdiness and mouthing.
You may think this collar looks like a muzzle when you first see it (refer to the following figure), but it’s not. Puppies can eat, chew, and play happily while sporting their head collar; it simply eliminates internal or external pressure around the neck.
By placing a short lead on your puppy when you’re expecting company, you can effectively curb jumping habits. Barking frenzies are drastically reduced, and training is made simple as you guide your puppy from one exercise to the next. Another plus is that leading by the chin demands minimal physical strength, so nearly everyone can use it — kids too.
Credit: Illustration by Barbara Frake
After your puppy is used to a nose strap, you’ll be able to guide her like a horse on a halter.
How often you should leave the head collar on is a question best answered by your puppy. If yours is relatively well behaved, you can use it exclusively during walks and lessons. If she’s the mouthing, jumping, or barking type, leave the collar on whenever you’re around. Remove it at night or when you’re out.
The head collar must fit properly around your puppy’s neck. If it’s too loose, your puppy can pull it off and perhaps chew it. You want the neck strap to fit snuggly, with one finger’s worth of space between the neck and the strap.
Dogs Glossary
A-B-C assessment
Checking a dog’s airway, breathing, and circulation.
Dogs Glossary
animal shelter
1. An animal control agency run by local government to protect people from animals, take in strays, and manage animal issues and problems within the community. 2. A privately run shelter managed by individuals who want to protect, advocate for, and find homes for animals.
Dogs Glossary
BARF diet
A method of feeding dogs as closely as possible what they would eat in the wild: raw flesh and bones, along with vegetable matter from the stomachs of their prey. The acronym stands for either Bones and Raw Food or Biologically Appropriate Raw Food.
Dogs Glossary
blow out
A twice-yearly shedding of a dog’s undercoat.
Dogs Glossary
blue slip
An application to register a purebred puppy.
Dogs Glossary
breeder
A person who raises, sells, and often shows dogs of a specific breed. Reputable breeders screen parent dogs in an effort to produce healthy dogs that conform to breed standards.
Dogs Glossary
castrate
The removal of a male dog’s testicles to render him infertile.
Dogs Glossary
clicker
A small hand-held device that makes a sharp cracking sound when pressed. Paired with a food reward, an effective dog-training tool.
Dogs Glossary
cohesive bandage
A stretchy wrap that clings to itself used to cover and secure gauze bandages without tape.
Dogs Glossary
come into season
The advent of a female dog’s term of fertility.
Dogs Glossary
dead ring
The stationary ring on a training collar that pulls on the collar, not the dog’s neck.
Dogs Glossary
double coat
Two layers of fur — a top coat of stiff guard hairs and an undercoat that serves as insulation.
Dogs Glossary
dropped ears
The term for hanging or drooping dog ears.
Dogs Glossary
Elizabethan collar
A wide, cone-shaped plastic or cardboard collar that prevents a dog from being able to scratch her head. Used to prevent further injury or hasten healing.
Dogs Glossary
euthanize; put to sleep
To kill an animal to relieve suffering.
Dogs Glossary
fall
Hair that extends over a dog’s eyes.
Dogs Glossary
feathering
Long hair that runs from armpit to paw on the backs of a dog’s legs.
Dogs Glossary
free-feeding
Keeping a constant supply of dog food available so that the dog can decide when and how much to eat. It works best in single-dog households where there’s no competition for food.
Dogs Glossary
heartworms
Parasites that live in dogs’ hearts and cause heart failure. They’re transferred through mosquito bites.
Dogs Glossary
heat
The period when a female dog is fertile.
Dogs Glossary
heel
A command and position in which a dog walks at your left side staying with you as you change direction or pace.
Dogs Glossary
hip dysplasia
A painful malformation of a dog’s hip socket. Some breeds are genetically predisposed to the condition.
Dogs Glossary
hot spot
A localized area of skin infection. It’s usually round, red, and warm to the touch.
Dogs Glossary
live ring
The floating ring of a training collar. Attach a leash to this ring for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
neuter
A general term to describe either spaying or castrating a dog to render it infertile. Neutering and castrating are often used interchangeably.
Dogs Glossary
pantaloons
The tufts of hair on the backs of a long-haired dogs legs that make him look like he’s wearing bloomers.
Dogs Glossary
pedigree
A diagram of a dog’s ancestors for three or more generations that lists the registered names of the dogs and the titles they earned.
Dogs Glossary
pinch collar
A training collar with interlocking prongs that pinch a dog’s neck when tugged on. Some veterinarians recommend them above all other collars for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
praise
A verbal reward for a dog , such as an enthusiastic “good dog!”
Dogs Glossary
prong collar
A training collar with interlocking prongs that pinch a dog’s neck when tugged on. Some veterinarians recommend them above all other collars for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
pulse
Normal dog pulse is between 70 and 120 beats per minute. The pulse of a puppy ranges from 120 to 160 beats per minute.
Dogs Glossary
puppy mill
A place that supplies puppies to pet stores, usually without screening for possible genetic defects or properly socializing the puppies.
Dogs Glossary
registration certificate
The paper certifying a dog’s registration with an accredited organization.
Dogs Glossary
registration slip
An application to register a purebred puppy.
Dogs Glossary
release word
A word that lets a dog know that she is free to move.
Dogs Glossary
rescue group
A network of animal lovers who rescue and find new homes for their favorite breeds or animals.
Dogs Glossary
reward
To give a dog a treat for a correct response while he’s still in the desired position.
Dogs Glossary
ruff
The long, thick fur around a dog’s chest, shoulders, and neck.
Dogs Glossary
separation anxiety
A condition in which your dog becomes anxious and stressed when you leave him.
Dogs Glossary
shed
A twice-yearly process of casting off the undercoat in a double-coated dog.
Dogs Glossary
single coat
A single layer of hairs that comprises a dog’s fur.
Dogs Glossary
spay
To remove of both the uterus and the ovaries of a dog to render her infertile.
Dogs Glossary
stripping
Plucking the dead hairs from a dog’s coat.
Dogs Glossary
titer tests
Tests that check a dog’s immunity levels to determine exactly which vaccinations are needed.
Dogs Glossary
top coat
The top layer of a double-coated dog composed of stiff guard hairs that tend to be naturally water-repellant. The top coat protects the dog’s skin and undercoat.
Dogs Glossary
training collar
A collar that enables you to guide your dog and to check her as necessary — a brief, sharp tug tightens the collar around the dog’s neck.
Dogs Glossary
treat cup
A plastic container filled with small treats or dog food. Shake it and give treats from it as a reward as you train a dog.
Dogs Glossary
undercoat
Fleecy or downy fur shorter than the top layer of a double-coated dog. The undercoat serves as insulation.
