haraness or not to harness that is my question?

ok, so i went out and bought 2 harnesses for my babies, my hubby gave me the idea because his dog was harnessed since he could remember and he said it helps with a few things like walking, taking them places and such.

and so i gave in and got them, and it seems to me that they do not mind them, it was easier to handle them when someone came to the door, instead of trying to do the balancing act and such. All i had to do is grab the section where the leash goes and TADA!!!


so, what does everyone else think? any idea's ? what are your experiances with harnesses? agree or not agree?

I LOVE MINE AND SO DO MY BABIES!

Joey wears a harness on his walk most of the time. I've heard from some people that it makes their dogs pull more, but it has the opposite effect on Joey. I also like it better because it's less likely to slip off, unlike Joey's collar (he has a fat neck ). I also feel like I have more control of him with the harness, I don't really know why.

i only use harness for walks, I don't leave them on all the time.

I wouldn't recommend a harness for a large dog, because I also hear it make them pull more, and they need to be trained not to pull on the leash..but I don't mind if my small dogs pull.

Harnesses make me feel safer, cause I know my dogs can't get them off..Unlike with regular nylon collars, they have gotten off of those before.

I love harnesses!

Herschel wears either a black or an orange Puppia.

Nala wears a green Planet Dog hemp harness, to match her leash. http://www.planetdog.com/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=HEMP HARNESSES

I've taught both of my dogs (regardless of size) to walk with a loose leash. I'm not sure why small dogs should get to have bad leash manners? Nor do I understand why big dogs can't have harnesses?

They don't wear any sort of hardware (collars, harness, etc.) in the house when we aren't around. Too risky.

My dog has a harness on our walks. It does feel like I've got better control of him with the harness and he listens better than with a flat collar on so I like it. He did manage to slip out of the harness a few times though so I tied a little rope between the collar with his ID tag and the harness to be on the safe side. He tried it once more, realized it didn't get him loose and he hasn't tried again since.

Miley wears one. Spanky and Bandit wear your basic leather collars. I would be interested in trying one out on them juts for kicks though.

Both of my boys have harnesses, but only for Flyball/Agility, or the dog park. Just for grabbing/holding purposes, they're pretty convenient.

I don't find them at all practical for walks or for training. It's so much easier and more comfortable for the dog to pull in them, and it's way more difficult to control them.

Lucas had a few harnesses I used for walks and such. We didn't have a problem with pulling withthe harness vs the collar, but only because I actually took the time to train him not to pull! I don't think anyone should use a harness to stop pulling, train your dog that's all there is to it. Though sometimes with large dogs you need something for control, but devices just so you have control is different then "training" devices.

I honestly hate the fact that so many people aren't training small dogs not to pull.

ADa just got her first harness. She likes to try to slip out of her collar, and she also has this nastyhabit of thinking that whenever you say "hier", she thinks you mean "chase me around for hours, while I secretly laugh my dog laugh". She's at the age where obedience isn't fun, she'd much rather be out drinking, gambling, going to the disco, and joyriding... ugh, teenagers.

So, on with the harness we go!

Walker has a harness for when i take him to the trail to skate but other then that its a flat collar and a chain. The only reason I use the chain is stupid people around here who let their dogs loose and I feel more secure with the ability to get him away with the chain then with his flat collar. Ive had a few of em snap on me and him slip them.

wow, seems like everyone loves to use harnesses, ya know i am sooo glad i got them when i did because i had some kids come over and all i had to do is grab the back of the harness and TADA LOL..

as far as walking we are NOT doing that yet because Thunder does NOT have all his shots yet, and we do not want to take any chances of him getting anything, he will be done with his shots in late January so we can take him walking then. Cinni already has all her shots, but, we dont want to take only her.

as for pulling i think that no matter the size of dog they should not pull when walking.

thanks for all the great comments and experiances.

I walk Daisy on a martingale collar, but Benji is walked on a harness because he has a sensitive throat. If I walk him on just a collar he chokes and coughs. He does pull on the harness though.

Wow. What about socialization and exercise?

I guess I'm risky. We got Herschel at 8 weeks and walked him daily, let him play with other dogs all the time, took him to the vet, took him to pet stores, etc. He never got sick. We got Nala at 4 months and we did the same with her.

I think you should be reasonable about it. Should you take your dog to a dog park and let him swim a pool of warm, stagnant water? Probably not a good idea. But not walking your dog until January? The body builds immunity by exposure!

Flicka and Pepe are on harnesses, for everything except obedience and agility. Then it's a flat.

My fosters are walked on whatever suits them best: flat collar, harness, Halti/Gentle Leader, Martingale, etc.

In the house, all the dogs wear flat collars.

And Lillian would like to add that she also has a harness and leash (in pink) for her outdoor adventures.

-Rosefern

i understand where you are coming from, however in our area there are ALOT of stray dogs and yes maybe i am very protective, however parvo is a very serious deadly diease and can be contracted from ANYWHERE. even the vet we took him too said not to take them to places where there have been alot of dogs because of the outbreaks they have had with parvo and others.

as for socialzation OH YEA he gets TONS of that, we take him to my dad's house and he plays there with his mamma next door, i just do not want him to get sick, i have had a pup who got parvo and it was terrible it broke ny heart to see him soo sick, and when you can not pick them up and love them and tell it will be ok, you have to hold your head up and just watch, lucky for us we caught it in timel and he was only 4 months old, he had not yet had all his shots, but, he got it because we mad the mistake of taking him to a park that we thought was safe...

as for excersise we have a HUGE backyard that he plays in and we know is safe because all previous owners had no dogs, and it is completly fenced in. and he plays with cinni all day. we just do not want to take any chances.

sizzledog --

1. i want pics of ada in her harness

2. did you have trouble fitting it? i looked into harnesses for one of my corgis and couldn't get them to fit him, and have heard the same from a couple other corgi owners.

3. isn't that what we love corgis for?

4. with a corgi, that's not a teenage phase, it's a permanent life choice. tell her she can do what she wants when she pays the bills.

:lol-sign:

for the OP -- harnesses can be great for some dogs. enjoy!!

and for those who say that harnesses can make big dogs pull, well, harnesses can make any dog pull, as can a collar. a dog pulls if he has something to pull against. a harness in and of itself won't create pulling.

also there are harnesses that allow you to clip the leash to the front, which help prevent pulling.

I do think it is harder to train a dog not to pull on a harness... Elle was trained with a flat collar and switched to a harness once she was trained and she does not pull.... Bella has only ever had a harness because she has a collapsed trachea and it was recommended that she not be put on a flat collar... she still pulls when she is excited...

So I like them because they are harder to get out of and give more control but I would consider training on a flat collar and then switching to the harness once they are trained.

Elissa

for the OP -- harnesses can be great for some dogs. enjoy!!

and for those who say that harnesses can make big dogs pull, well, harnesses can make any dog pull, as can a collar. a dog pulls if he has something to pull against. a harness in and of itself won't create pulling.

also there are harnesses that allow you to clip the leash to the front, which help prevent pulling.[/QUOTE]

i agree dogs will pull against anything LOL.. that is what they do. it is nature for them no matter what size...

corgipower, your wish is my command!

1Ada in her harness... BTW, it's a Hamilton harness, size Medium I think. It *barely* fits around her middle, but it's perfect for her. I really like th eHamilton brand for sturdy yet VERY inexpensive utilitarian dog gear. The harness cost $8.99.




2. As for fitting it... not really. The Hamilton stuff is made to fit very well, and I just took Ada into the store with me and fit it right in the store.

3. Yeah.... that's why I'm not too worried abut it, misbehaving for entertainment is a corgi thing!

Milo had a harness but he ate it.