PetSafe Gentle Leader No-Pull Head Collar for Dogs, Dog Head Collar – The Ultimate Solution to Pulling, Padded Nose Loop, Quick-Snap Neck Strap, Dog Halter, Large – Black

A Great Tool When Used Properly, and So Much Better for Your Dog than the Harness!
When I had rotator cuff surgery, I was told I couldn’t hold my dog leashes on that side until everything had healed. However, I needed to walk my dogs. I bought Gentle Leaders for my two standard poodles, both of which pulled badly and wanted to chase rabbits and deer, plentiful in our area. I learned very quickly that the halter needed to match their own coloring, as they could see this band across their noses and did not like it. Once I had buff halters on my white dogs, they settled down. They still occasionally tried to paw the straps off their faces, but they got over it. The wonderful thing about Gentle Leaders are that if the halter is sized and fitted properly, it can’t be pawed off. Much to my delight, I found that I could hold BOTH leashes on the surgery side, my arm still in a sling, when my dogs were wearing the Gentle Leaders. Our walks were wonderful! I lost only two days after surgery before we were back to walking several miles a day.Gentle Leaders are much better for dogs than the Easy Walk Harness by the same company. When researching which halter or harness to buy, I came across an article by a vet on the Easy Walk Harness. The vet discussed the anatomy of dogs, how most of their movement and body weight is handled by the front legs, shoulders and chests, and how even a very loose Easy Walk Harness causes them to minimize their shoulder movement in ways that distort their development and the proper use of chest, shoulder and leg muscles. The harness comes down very far over the dog’s shoulders and applies pressure over key muscles for normal canine activity. Over time, I’ve observed that dogs who are on the Easy Walk Harness for every walk, especially long walks and hikes, do have narrower chests and underdeveloped shoulder muscles. People tend to leave these harnesses when letting the dog off leash, which distorts normal physiological development and movement even more.The Gentle Leader can easily be removed from the dog’s nose and left hanging around their necks while they are off leash. It’s a small item, so it also can be stuffed in a pocket or attached to the leash handle as well. If a dog tends to walk more easily on leash after it’s had some exercise, the Gentle Leader can be used as if it’s a regular collar without the nose piece and still gives slightly more control because a proper fit up behind the ears makes the dog more responsive than a collar that slides further down the neck. The other option is to just let it hang off the nose and use the regular collar. The Easy Walk Harness is harder to deal with if the owner doesn’t want to use it for part of a walk, and doesn’t provide a way to leave it on the dog without impeding movement and hindering proper muscle movement and development.I’ve seen questions about using the Gentle Leader with a retractable leash. I’ve learned that if I use the Gentle Leader with a retractable lead, it should have a weaker pull, or the dog gets used to the constant tension on their heads and the head halter quickly becomes less effective, at least on my dogs. Since there is always tension, my dogs end up pulling more because there is no way for them to make the tension cease through behavior, except staying by my side at arm’s length. My dogs have never made that choice on their own. When I use a 6-foot leash or a weaker retractable leash than I would normally use (e.g. one for a 44-70 pound dog with my 65-pound dog), they have all been much more responsive to the Gentle Leader and my control. I use my strong retractible leads only when I’m NOT going to be using the Gentle Leader, or I lock them into a 6 to 7-foot length to stop the tension on their heads except when they pull. If you’ve found that the Gentle Leader doesn’t work to control your dog’s behavior on leash and you are using a strong retractable leash, that may be why. Try it with a size that borders on being too weak for your dog, or with a 6-foot leash.

Worth it.
Does this product work? The short answer is yes, but it’s not a miracle device (surprise surprise).I have a 60+ lb catahoula leopard dog. When he gets outside he has a mind of his own, i.e. he could care less about the leash and his owner(s). He puts his nose to the ground and goes, resulting in a lot of errant tugging on the leash and self-induced whiplash on his part. It’s the weirdest thing because indoors (or tied-up outside) he seeks out our attention constantly, i.e. his behavior is much more manageable / controllable. So, what did we do?First, we tried a “pronged” collar. I do not recommend this option. This solution was temporary. Our dog seemed to have a high pain tolerance and he largely became immune to his own tugging on the collar. Now that I am aware of other solutions I feel a bit badly about turning to this option, but such is life. Perhaps this review will spare future dogs from a pronged collar.What did I learn from the “pronged” collar experience? I had an ineffective device for communicating with my dog while outside on the leash. I knew with my particular situation that I was going to need a device that worked a different angle. Enter the Gentle Leader. I had the fortunate opportunity to try this device first-hand with my brothers 100+ lb giant schnauzer. His dog was completely responsive (most importantly, when his attention wasn’t focused on me) while on leash and I felt like I was in complete control while walking him. I couldn’t believe it, no tugging. He encouraged me to try it with my dog, so I finally broke down and ordered one.The device comes with an instructional DVD which I recommend (seriously) you watch as there are several nuances (such as the fit, and expected dog behavior) to the device. Within the first walk my dog was behaving a million times better than he ever had before, but that is not to say it went perfectly. There were times where he wanted to claw the collar off his nose and made some erratic fits (squirming around), but after a short while that behavior subsided, with only the occasional flare up. I was surprised with how responsive he was to the collar, the slightest tug (I’m talking feint pull), and he stopped tugging and looked directly back at me. It was exactly the kind of communication I was looking for. I used the Gentle Lead for a straight week (2 walks per day) and saw drastic improvement in my dogs outdoor behavior. I continually use the device to this day, but not on every walk / run (see below).However, in that week (and since) I did notice a couple things I didn’t care for in the device. It’s not as simple as clipping your leash onto your dogs collar and out the door you go. The device has to be fit properly, and constantly adjusted (even mid walk), so that its used properly and has the desired effect with your dog. The whole collar can slide around depending on the tug strength of your dog, and once its out of position, it becomes less effective. The collar also stretched with use (although that is described in the DVD). Either way, I feel like I’m constantly wondering if the device is too tight, or not tight enough. With practice this has gotten better, but its still a bit of a nuisance.To conclude, the device works quite admirably. Its proved to be an extremely effective tool (albeit with some subtle nuances) for communicating with my dog outside. His overall awareness of his owners while on leash has improved drastically, even to the point where we do not need to use the Gentle Leader on every walk, although it might be better if we did. He’s quite comfortable with the device and has no trouble breathing or interacting with his environment.It’s no miracle device, but it’s pretty darn close.

I got this for my GSD. I have to say she’s not really a pully, although she does pull from time to time. She also lunges when she sees birds, cats and cars, and that was the main issue for me. The Gentle Leader allowed me to have a bit more control over my dog when she lunges. She still does it, but I won’t be pulled hard anymore.Why 2 stars less?1. It looks cheap. just two nylon straps, plastic clasps and a small metal ring. No padding at all. This makes the product seem overpriced (got it here for almost 20 euros)2. It will leave a mark on your dog’s muzzle. Although it doesn’t seem to hurt, it does look bad and makes me think it’s not comfortable at all.If you want something comfortable, that doesn’t go towards the eyes (like the Halti) or leave a mark on the muzzle (like the Gentle Leader), then get a Dogmatic PCW. It is actually more expensive (especially the shipping if you’re not in the UK) but totally worth it.

細くて柔くてだーめだーめ