I don't really have any advice, but my lad will run away when I get his harness out. I don't chase him I simply sit down and let him burn off his as I thought excitement.

If he doesn't come to me its simple he doesn't go for a walk. I put his harness coat and lead back wait for quite a while then try again, that usually does the trick.

 

I would definitely stop closing her in a room where she has no escape in order to get the harness on her, I would have thought this has not helped in her anxiety.

When you are putting it on her could it be that she gets worried about the you reaching over her? Or a noise of the clasps locking together? Has her fur been caught before? Or has anything occurred that worried her whilst you were putting her harness on which means she now associates the harness with something scary?

Is there any way you can leave the harness out all the time so she can see it & (hopefully) become less anxious when it appears? Could you do this for a while & then gradually progress with getting her near to it, then maybe over her head (or however it goes on ) then building up to having it on but not attached then eventually attached for a short period.

Both my dogs wear harness when in the car but maybe you could do walks for while that don't involve her needing to go in the car

 

Is it a step through harness?
I was just thinking if it is, maybe a more simple to put on harness like JuliusK9 one would be better as they are a lot quicker and easier to put on.

Do you lean over her to put the harness on? Some dogs don't like having people lean over them. If so, maybe try kneeling down beside her.

They were the first things that sprang to mind. It would be worth having her sit with you and the harness using treats/toys/praise to get her used to the harness and the process of getting it on and off when it isn't time for walks as well, just taking your time to get her used to it without being in a rush to get out the door.

I believe Dogless once spent a long time introducing Kilo to his running harness? So maybe she has a few tips

Good Luck.

 

When you are putting it on her could it be that she gets worried about the you reaching over her? Or a noise of the clasps locking together? Has her fur been caught before? Or has anything occurred that worried her whilst you were putting her harness on which means she now associates the harness with something scary?

I have been wondering about this after googling the issue. She doesn't like people touching her face especially (which results in me constantly telling people to not stroke her in that way as they all insist on doing just that), so the fact that it goes over her head and touches her face, and then with me leaning over her...

Her fur could have been caught as she's got so much of it, although I am always very careful for that reason, it's still a possibility. I don't think anything has occurred that worried her while I was putting it on her in the past no. My instinct is that it's the process of it actually being put on.

Is it a step through harness?
I was just thinking if it is, maybe a more simple to put on harness like JuliusK9 one would be better as they are a lot quicker and easier to put on.

Do you lean over her to put the harness on? Some dogs don't like having people lean over them. If so, maybe try kneeling down beside her

No! I gave up with a step in one when she was very little. The current one slips over her head, and then I have to lean over her to pull the sides up around her back and clip it together. So the leaning may well be a factor yeah.

They were the first things that sprang to mind. It would be worth having her sit with you and the harness using treats/toys/praise to get her used to the harness and the process of getting it on and off when it isn't time for walks as well, just taking your time to get her used to it without being in a rush to get out the door.

I believe Dogless once spent a long time introducing Kilo to his running harness? So maybe she has a few tips

Good Luck.

Thank you both for the suggestions I think I just need to take a deep breath and start from scratch. It's just frustrating as it's one of those things that she needs to wear every time we go out, so what do I do in the spare time? Even if I didn't mind walking her on collar, she can slip out of one, so I wouldn't feel confident about taking her anywhere with just her collar.

 

I just ignore mine!
Both Heidi and Alfie run away when the harnesses come out. I have to go and retreive Heidi from under the sofa and Alfie usually rolls onto his back in a submissive pose when I go get him.
Neither have any issues with walks and both are quite happy once the harness is on. I think alot of dogs have weird issues with harnesses!

 

I just ignore mine!
Both Heidi and Alfie run away when the harnesses come out. I have to go and retreive Heidi from under the sofa and Alfie usually rolls onto his back in a submissive pose when I go get him.
Neither have any issues with walks and both are quite happy once the harness is on. I think alot of dogs have weird issues with harnesses!

It's quite hard to ignore a 47.5kg puppy leaping about and barking at you. There's no 'just going and getting her' even if I wanted to :mad2:

 

Bo runs away and hides from hers, too. Collars and leads she is fine with and just stands there but harnesses - she's off. I really don't know why, either - it goes over her head but doesn't make contact with her head and clips around the sides with no lifting of the legs. It's fleecey and sits perfectly on her without rubbing and when it's actually on, she's right back to her normal self.

She's 4.5 an has been wearing a harness since she was 8 weeks. I've tried all the desensitization I can muster, but it hasn't made a jot of difference.

 

I noticed today that Isla didn't like me trying to put the harness over her head, she preferred that I hold the loop open and she sort of dives into it. No idea why that's come about.

Would it be practical just to leave your harness lying on the floor for a time when she has to be near it/walk over it to get anywhere and for you to ignore it and her, so that it becomes part of the furniture so to speak. As someone else mentioned, does it have click shut mechanism that she doesn't like the sound of? Desensitising her to that might help.
Hope you get it sorted.

 

Thank you both for the suggestions I think I just need to take a deep breath and start from scratch. It's just frustrating as it's one of those things that she needs to wear every time we go out, so what do I do in the spare time? Even if I didn't mind walking her on collar, she can slip out of one, so I wouldn't feel confident about taking her anywhere with just her collar.

Keep the harness with you all day, if it is constantly there and your not putting it on her, she might get used to seeing it and not trying to run off when she does see?
Change the whole routine of how and when you put the harness on.
If you normally get ready before you even put the harness on Maggie, that is already building her up and she will probably be feeling nervous right from when she sees you putting your boots on.
Instead of getting the harness and going to Maggie, maybe sit on the floor with the harness and wait for Maggie to come to you. Once she is relaxed then try to put the harness on whilst still sat down.

Toppa gets very excited when he knows it is walk time... as soon as he sees me pick up my coat/camera/poo bags he starts to whine and whizz around like a squirrel on speed and I can't catch him to get his collar on :lol:
I now just sit on the floor with his collar/lead (already attached to each other) and only attempt to put it on if he is calmly sat beside me (he can whine, but his but has to be on the floor, or close to it). Then I get ready whilst he stands by the front door with his lead dangling, he waits very calmly while I get ready.
As soon as I changed the routine of how we get ready for a walk, although still very excited he appears a lot calmer and it's not a circus trying to get out the door.

Might help?

No idea what you can do in the meantime, apart from use a collar for awhile. Martingale and semi slip collars might be worth a try if she can slip her collar?
Are you making sure the collar is tight enough? (don't be offended) Maybe her fur is making her neck appear bigger than it is and your not putting the collar on the right hole?
I only say this as my friend always puts Ices (husky) collar on before I walk him and many a time I have had to adjust it, because she has made it way to loose making it fit his fur not his actual neck and his nearly pulled out of it

 

I noticed today that Isla didn't like me trying to put the harness over her head, she preferred that I hold the loop open and she sort of dives into it. No idea why that's come about.

Would it be practical just to leave your harness lying on the floor for a time when she has to be near it/walk over it to get anywhere and for you to ignore it and her, so that it becomes part of the furniture so to speak. As someone else mentioned, does it have click shut mechanism that she doesn't like the sound of? Desensitising her to that might help.
Hope you get it sorted.

It does have a click shut, but, at least to my ears, it sounds very similar to her clicker, which she is very use to, so it doesn't feel quite right, instinctively, that it would be the shutting mechanism. It's worth keeping in mind as a possibility though.

Keep the harness with you all day, if it is constantly there and your not putting it on her, she might get used to seeing it and not trying to run off when she does see?
Change the whole routine of how and when you put the harness on.
If you normally get ready before you even put the harness on Maggie, that is already building her up and she will probably be feeling nervous right from when she sees you putting your boots on.
Instead of getting the harness and going to Maggie, maybe sit on the floor with the harness and wait for Maggie to come to you. Once she is relaxed then try to put the harness on whilst still sat down.

Toppa gets very excited when he knows it is walk time... as soon as he sees me pick up my coat/camera/poo bags he starts to whine and whizz around like a squirrel on speed and I can't catch him to get his collar on :lol:
I now just sit on the floor with his collar/lead (already attached to each other) and only attempt to put it on if he is calmly sat beside me (he can whine, but his but has to be on the floor, or close to it). Then I get ready whilst he stands by the front door with his lead dangling, he waits very calmly while I get ready.
As soon as I changed the routine of how we get ready for a walk, although still very excited he appears a lot calmer and it's not a circus trying to get out the door.

Might help?

Good idea. She does get hyped up when I go upstairs/put my coat on etc as she recognises the routine that leads to a walk, so by the time I go to put the harness on she's already worked up.

No idea what you can do in the meantime, apart from use a collar for awhile. Martingale and semi slip collars might be worth a try if she can slip her collar?
Are you making sure the collar is tight enough? (don't be offended) Maybe her fur is making her neck appear bigger than it is and your not putting the collar on the right hole?
I only say this as my friend always puts Ices (husky) collar on before I walk him and many a time I have had to adjust it, because she has made it way to loose making it fit his fur not his actual neck and his nearly pulled out of it

That is absolutely a possibility, as I do not like collars to begin with, I have never been a fan of putting it on tightly. Plus her fur plays a big part in it I think. It gets trapped so easily, making it difficult to pull tight in the first place, and even when I it finally goes on tightly, I suspect she gets free because of the fur creating that extra room. How tight would you say it really should be?

Also, I am mildly traumatised by this one time we went to ringcraft when she was a lot younger, and just hitting the 'teenage phase', and I took her with just her collar on and she slipped out and caused chaos. I couldn't get her back to me and it was a total nightmare.

 

good advice already said!

don't know if you've already seen this video, kiko's
How to train your dog to love his harness- dog training clicker training - YouTube

I should also attempt to do this as my dog also hates his harness being put on and will hide when I bring it out, yet is back to normal when it is on think it's quite a common problem! I can imagine it being quite an issue though with a big dog such as yours! rather than one can just scoop up.

 

good advice already said!

don't know if you've already seen this video, kiko's
How to train your dog to love his harness- dog training clicker training - YouTube

I should also attempt to do this as my dog also hates his harness being put on and will hide when I bring it out, yet is back to normal when it is on think it's quite a common problem! I can imagine it being quite an issue though with a big dog such as yours! rather than one can just scoop up.

Thank you for the link. I have seen it yeah, that's where I got the clicker training advise from previously.

There's no quick fixes in training dogs! (Or at least, there rarely is...) But yes, her being so big does mean slow and steady training is the only option available really.

 

Ideally a collar should be tight enough so that you can put fingers between it and your dogs neck. Easy to say this with a short haired dog, less so with such a hairy dog as a Bernese.

 

Alfie can be a bit like this sometimes with harnesses, coats and his head collar. Meanie that I am I just ignore it... he needs to have them on so he just needs to deal with it.

I agree, the having to confine her to the porch is a bit extreme but I appreciate her size can make "like it or lump it" more difficult... What about distraction with something yummy like a smear of peanut butter on the floor, or someone holding a spoon smeared with it, while you slope in super fast and get it on her before she has chance to complain?

 

I'd try to figure out exactly what it is she doesn't like. Is it the harness itself? Is it the way you have to go about putting it on? Is it the sound when it fastens? Then you can go about getting her happy with whatever it is making her uncomfortable.

 

Bess used to hate her Julius K9 and it was a real struggle to put on her.

A few weeks ago I got a Mekuti harness. I expected it would be the same, but from day one she accepted it, and just comes to put her head in it.

I wonder whether a different style of harness would work?

 

Alfie can be a bit like this sometimes with harnesses, coats and his head collar. Meanie that I am I just ignore it... he needs to have them on so he just needs to deal with it.

I agree, the having to confine her to the porch is a bit extreme but I appreciate her size can make "like it or lump it" more difficult... What about distraction with something yummy like a smear of peanut butter on the floor, or someone holding a spoon smeared with it, while you slope in super fast and get it on her before she has chance to complain?

When she goes in the porch, she's not panting/yawning/shaking and showing lots of stress signs, she just begrudgingly sits down and lets me do it, whereas when she's got space to run away from it, she will. So going into the porch and then putting it on her is a version of like it or lump it, but I don't like it! Beyond that, the like it or lump it approach wouldn't work anyway as no amount of bribery works and she leaps about so it's impossible to get hold of her.

I'd try to figure out exactly what it is she doesn't like. Is it the harness itself? Is it the way you have to go about putting it on? Is it the sound when it fastens? Then you can go about getting her happy with whatever it is making her uncomfortable.

This is what I've been trying to figure out. The more I think about the leaning over her bit, the less I think that that is the main cause, as I do something similar with her collar and she doesn't mind that. My instinct says it's the harness touching her face as it goes over her head... although saying this, when I did clicker training to desensitive her to it, she got to a point of putting it over her head and that was fine, it was only after it was then left on her for a few hours that she then reacted badly to it again. So maybe it's something about wearing it... But then, at the same time, once it's on and we are out, she trots along with her tail in the air, so I'm not sure!

Bess used to hate her Julius K9 and it was a real struggle to put on her.

A few weeks ago I got a Mekuti harness. I expected it would be the same, but from day one she accepted it, and just comes to put her head in it.

I wonder whether a different style of harness would work?

I've tried about half a dozen different harness styles. I had planned her next harness to be a Tellington TTouch one as it has neck clips as well, to see if that helps.