Which harness will stop my dog pulling on the lead?

Anti-pull collars/harnesses

There are lots of anti-pull collars and harnesses out there. I’m sure if you’ve got a dog that pulls on the lead you have already tried more than one collar or harness and had fellow dog walkers suggest some to you. All reported to magically stop your dog pulling!

Lets go through a few of the common devices owners use to stop pulling on the lead:

Figure of 8 lead – this fits around your dogs neck and muzzle area. If they pull forward the lead tightens around their muzzle (sensitive area) and neck (affects breathing). Your dog is likely to try to remove the band around their muzzle by pawing at it or rubbing their face on the floor/your leg.
Anti-pull harness – fits comfortably on your dog without limiting movement of their front legs. Padded for comfort and has a front clip (on the chest) to help you steer your dog, as well as a back clip for extra control. If your dog pulls forward you lift the lead slightly and this pulls the harness tighter around their chest (affects breathing, some dogs may cough).
Perfect-fit Harness – These fit comfortably on your dog allowing for full range of movement. There is a clip on the chest and a clip on the back, but no tightening affect. These are not marketed as ‘anti-pull’ but are recommended by vets and behaviourists as they are comfortable for your dog and will not cause injury if your dog does pull. Attaching a double-ended training lead to both clips will give you the ability to steer your dog and greater control than just a back clip harness.
Headcollar/Halti – this fits around your dogs muzzle and works like a horse halter. If your dog pulls forward, the headcollar tightens around your dogs muzzle (sensitive area). Your dog is likely to try to remove the band around their muzzle by pawing at it or rubbing their face on the floor/your leg. For further information about the effects of wearing headcollars read about my research here
Julius K9 harness – this fits over your dog’s head and has a strap across the front of your dog’s chest and shoulders. This limits your dogs range of movement (can cause joint problems) When they pull forward you limit their ability to move their front legs. You may find your dog ends up with front paws off the floor as a result.
Choke collars/Half choke collars – The clue is in the name! They work by tightening around your dog’s neck when they pull, resulting in a choking affect. This will affect your dog’s breathing and can damage their windpipe.
Prong collars – a vicious looking device that has metal prongs on the inside of the collar. These dig into your dogs neck when they pull or even when they turn their head. This device will cause your dog pain and may pierce the skin causing serious injury.
Collar – This is the standard collar that your dog may wear everyday (no fancy gadgets) It has a metal loop to attach the lead to. If your dog pulls forward, the collar presses onto their windpipe affecting breathing and may cause them to cough. A recent study shows the dangers of walking your dog on a collar. You can read a summary here or the full study here.

Which option should you use to stop your dog pulling?

There is not a device that will stop your dog pulling. The only thing that will do that is training!

However, having the right harness is important to ensure your dog is comfortable and to avoid injury. If you have a strong puller, then having the correct harness and lead will help you have more control when they do pull.

I recommend the perfect-fit harness (buy second hand here) and a double ended lead. This is the first step to training your dog to walk nicely on a lead.

How to train your dog not to pull on the lead

Have the right harness and lead
Have lots of your dog’s favourite treats. High value treats work best such as cheese or sausage (cut very small)
Start your training at home in a low distraction area
Lure your dog into the correct position at your side with a treat.
Stand still and say ‘Yes’ before placing a treat at your heel. You may need to point it out to your dog to start with.
Repeat at least 5 times without moving. You are waiting for your dog to be looking up at you in anticipation of the next treat.
Once you have your dog’s focus. Take 1 step forward. Say ‘Yes’ and place a treat at your heel.
Repeat until your dog is happily sticking at your side.
Gradually increase the number of steps between treats and use praise between treats.
Once your dog is walking by your side around the house with minimal treats. Repeat the process in the garden, then on the street outside your house.

How to stop our dog pulling on walks

Dogs pull because they want to get somewhere more quickly. Dogs naturally walk faster than we do, so staying with us is difficult and can be frustrating. It takes focus to walk by our side and our dogs are often busy sniffing, exploring and looking for prey on walks so focus goes out the window!

You might find that the brilliant training you have been doing at home, doesn’t work on a real walk. Your dog might ignore the cheese that they usually love. That’s because the environment is more rewarding than the cheese for some dogs.

The reward of getting to the park for off lead fun and ball play is often the only thing they can think about and you are dragged along with them despite all of your protest!

If your dog pulls and you move faster, your dog believes that pulling works. Try doing the opposite.

If your dog pulls, stop and stand still.
Do not pull back on the lead! (Read here for why lead jerks don’t work!)
Don’t say anything. The quieter you are the better.
It may take a while to start with, but eventually your dog is going to turn around to see why you aren’t moving.
When they look at you, praise them and move forward.
If they walk nicely, give them lots of praise.
If they pull, stop and stand still
Example in stories here

If your dog is unable to look back at you (maybe there is a cat on the drive up ahead or you’re metres from the entrance to the park), turn around and walk in the opposite direction for a few steps.
Praise them if they are walking nicely.
Then retry your original direction.
You may have to repeat several times.

Training your dog not to pull on the lead takes a lot of patience and consistency. If pulling works sometimes, they will try it every time.

Having a harness with a front clip and a back clip means that you can tell your dog when they need to walk nicely and when they can pull, just be altering how you clip their lead on the harness.

If you want to practice nice lead walking, try attaching the lead to both clips. If you are in a rush, just clip the lead on the back.

This will feel very different to your dog and will help them differentiate between when they can pull on the lead and when they can’t.

For more tips and demo videos follow here