# I read something ,and wasn't sure if it was true....



## MelanieJ (Mar 20, 2007)

As I was looking for a new harness for Bailey, I found an article,and the person was saying that you should always use a collar on a dog no matter the size. It said that a harness teaches them to pull, is this true? When Bailey,and I first start to walk he is almost trying to drag me, is this because of the harness or just becuase he is so excited?


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## Ladysmom (Oct 19, 2004)

No, with toy breed dogs it is just the opposite. You should never use a collar becasue it can injure their delicate tracheas and cause the condition known as collapsed trachea.

Harnesses are the safest, but do read Lil Boo Boo's post about her puppy's tragic accident and make sure your new harness is escape proof.

http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/index.php?...mp;#entry422309


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## camfan (Oct 30, 2006)

> No, with toy breed dogs it is just the opposite. You should never use a collar becasue it can injure their delicate tracheas and cause the condition known as collapsed trachea.
> 
> Harnesses are the safest, but do read Lil Boo Boo's post about her puppy's tragic accident and make sure your new harness is escape proof.
> 
> http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/index.php?...mp;#entry422309[/B]


Yup, Marj is right.

I have tried ALL KINDS of harness to get Ollie not to pull like a sled dog--you name it, I've tried it (really). The very restrictive ones like the gentle leader head collar he walked like an angel BUT was NOT enjoying himself at ALL (and I stuck with it for several weeks). Also tried the regular Gentle leader and even though I had it adjusted correctly, he'd wiggle out of it. (You can do a searh on Gentle leader). I tried one "no-pull" that would squeeze him when he walked and he'd occasionally yelp, etc. etc. So I've given up, basically. If he wants to pull like a sled dog, I don't care as long as he's having fun and I'm getting in a walk too. And as long as I've trained him NOT to be running all over the place, barking at everything that passes by, eating everything off the ground, etc, etc, then I'm ok with a little pulling


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## k/c mom (Oct 9, 2004)

I didn't know that collars were bad with my first Malt and we used one for many years :brownbag: and she always pulled. A harness is safest by far for a Malt and they can definitely be taught to walk without pulling. 

The class I took Kallie to that my vet offered taught me how to walk her without pulling. They said to keep the leash loose and comfortable. But when she starts to pull, tighten up on the leash, then when she walks correctly, loosen it. It's been a while since I used a leash on Kallie but at that time, it did work.


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## MelanieJ (Mar 20, 2007)

Okay, thanks I just wanted to make sure. The harness that I am using now,and the kind that I am still looking to get is the Roman style harness,I would really surprised if Bailey could slip out of it. I did read Little Boo Boo's story,and I will take that into consideration while searching for a new harness for Bailey.


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## lilguyparker (Aug 16, 2007)

Oh my, I read Boo Boo's story and that is just scarey! I just got my little guy yesterday, all 2.8 pounds of him, and I would be just devasted if that happened to him. I did buy a collar thinking he will only wear it during training, but after reading this thread, I'm returning it. I thought a harness isn't good for training. What about choke collars? That's probably just as bad as collars.


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## Malsam (Sep 28, 2007)

this is indeed new. I even got a mini prong from leeburg trying to use on my fiercest maltese! I've been using harness on them but the harshness can get caught up on the coat and make them matted. My youngest are using a resco cordo-hype show leash. She seems to be doing it fine though. 

I came across someone who posted a satin made leash...I'm impressed with that kind of attention given to silky coated dogs. But that is also a collar with a padding in front only. Does anyone of u use that? Wanted to stick to harness but most of them are not gentle to the coat at all.


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## MySugarBaby (Jun 28, 2006)

> No, with toy breed dogs it is just the opposite. You should never use a collar becasue it can injure their delicate tracheas and cause the condition known as collapsed trachea.
> 
> Harnesses are the safest, but do read Lil Boo Boo's post about her puppy's tragic accident and make sure your new harness is escape proof.
> 
> http://spoiledmaltese.com/forum/index.php?...mp;#entry422309[/B]



Oh my goodness, how in the world did I miss this? I feel so awful that I missed this thread. I can't believe Lil Boo Boo is gone. :smcry: 




Mine all have a traditional step in harness. I get them from Cindy and Didi. I make sure they are on securely and tight enough. If it is too loose they can slip a leg out at a time. I love the fact that the step in harness has a buckle and on top of that two d-rings so that if the buckle where to some how break you would still have them because of the d-ring. And I did have this happen to me once with Scamp. The buckle broke but since I had the leash hooked on the d-rings it held the harness together. Thank Goodness, don't know what I would have done if it weren't for that.

And as Marj said, you should never walk a small dog with a collar. Their tracheas are very fragile and one pull on the collar can lead to some serious damage. And you can teach you dog not to pull on a harness just as easy as you can teach them not to pull with a collar. So no I don't think harnesses teach them to pull, well unless you have a husky, lol.


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

I teach my dogs to walk on a loose lead and get in heal position when told. Then it doesn't much matter what you use (collar or harness) because they are not pulling. 

A harness does not teach them to pull; however, there are no consequences to them doing so. 

For collar/harness slippers, I use a martingale collar for their safety. If you don't want to train your dog to walk nicely on a leash, you can get a coupler to clip the leash onto the harness and collar at once (so if one slipped, the other is still attached to the leash). 

Gentle Leaders rock. The No Pull harness (the one with the clip in the front) is always worth a try.


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## Harley & Dakotas Mum (Jun 11, 2005)

I tried my 2 out in the driveway with the gentle leaders yesterday - and just like the instruction book said - Dakota carried on a treat! She had the biggest tantrum - just like the book said she would - it said the bigger the tantrum, the more they need the GL!! Harley did VERY well, so we are going to continue our short sessions in the driveway until they get the hang of them.


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## binniebee (Sep 27, 2007)

> I tried my 2 out in the driveway with the gentle leaders yesterday - and just like the instruction book said - Dakota carried on a treat! She had the biggest tantrum - just like the book said she would - it said the bigger the tantrum, the more they need the GL!! Harley did VERY well, so we are going to continue our short sessions in the driveway until they get the hang of them.[/B]


When I first got Midis (at 3 months of age) he was so wild and would not cooperate with the leash. I never liked using either a collar or a harness with my Maltese if they are in full coat, which mine would be. So I ordered a slip lead that was only about 4 feet long. Very lightweight. I put it on Midis and left it on him when we were home, but always took it off when he went into his crate. It did not take any time for him to become accustomed to both the lead and to being led with it. He is very well behaved now with the lead and I have minimal problems with tangles in his hair around his neck. Since he does not pull I am not concerned with the lead hurting his trachea. It might not work for everyone and might not be the best solution but it is working well for us.

BinnieBee


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## Desiree (May 29, 2007)

> As I was looking for a new harness for Bailey, I found an article,and the person was saying that you should always use a collar on a dog no matter the size. It said that a harness teaches them to pull, is this true? When Bailey,and I first start to walk he is almost trying to drag me, is this because of the harness or just becuase he is so excited?[/B]


As someone mentioned the harness doesn't teach them to pull, but it doesn't punish them for doing so. So you will have to train your dog to walk nicely with or without a collar if that's how you want him to walk with you. Collars are not good for walking Maltese that pull because of their delicate little tracheas as Marj said. When I first got Eros I had to use a collar to take him out for a week or so since all the harnesses the stores carried in my area were too big for him. During the time I had to use the collar on him he would start coughing when we would go for walks and didn't enjoy going out much. 

I ordered him a buddy belt harness and am very happy with it . It seems very safe and doesn't hurt him. He barely notices it's there and actually gets excited when I say we're going bye bye now or going for walkies...as a matter of fact he barely wants to go back home now lol 

<div align="center">Desiree & Eros


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## Matilda's mommy (Jun 1, 2005)

My vet said No to collars on toy dogs, I love harnesses, I know Matilda and Muffy love them also


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