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slip leads

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11K views 20 replies 10 participants last post by  GoldenShadow  
#1 ·
just wondering if anyone uses them on here and what you think of them in general?? jake is like a little steam train on the lead and he`s fine on the halti body harness but after a while it loosens up and he can pull again so i was looking into getting something else as i don`t like the head harness (he`ll wear it but isn`t best pleased if he has to). i remembered we used the slip leads walking the rspca dogs but i seem to remember most of them were still extremely powerful on them too.

i`m seriously leaning towards to walkezee harness as i`ve heard nothing but praise about it but it kinda looks similar in design to the halti body so not sure. the mekuti balance is another i`ve been looking at but again seems very similar to the halti in design. if anyone has used the halti and also one of those harnesses and could let me know if/what differences they found i`d really appreciate it. i just don`t wanna buy one only to discover i`ve spent ÂŁ30 or more on a harness practically identical to one i already have and could have used to money for something more useful.

i`ve got a gentle leader here but i can`t stand them tbh so any other harnesses anyone can recommend feel free to do so :thumbup: i`ve looked at the halti lupi but it seems very fine and like it irritate by wearing it
 
#2 ·
I have a slip lead that i use when Tummels collar is wet. I used it to train him to walk on a lead as well although he wasn't much of a puller anyway. I like slip leads but i prefer having a collar to catch hold of :)

I use a 3 peaks slip lead, only cost about ÂŁ5 so if you want to try one it's not going to set you back much but i don't know how effective it would be.
 
#3 ·
Yeah I plan on ordering a slip lead anyway as they're handy to carry but he always has his collar on with the tag :)
 
#4 ·
I use slip leads for my two springers as recommended by their breeder, they still wear a collar and tag, but the slip lead just pops over their head and off again quickly and takes up no space to carry, they are very rarely walked on a lead, we just use them to give control when getting out of the car for a walk.

We have clip on leads which we use for training though as they dont allow slip leads.
 
#6 ·
Personally I dont like Slip leads, they are designed for working gun dogs and allow owner to quickly and smoothly release the dog. Although most have a fastening to ensure they dont go to slack its still possible for a dog to stop or pull back and literally slip out a lead. It's not worth the risk.

I used a Halti with Millie (Head collar) it took nearly two weeks to get use to the head collar, we put it on gave her a treat, used it in the garden, practised in the house before trying it on a walk. I only needed to use it for walks for 4 -5 weeks, within this time Millie became a different dog. We used it as a training aid and then moved on to a regular collar.

I am unable to use collars with her now, as lady like as she is her neck is quite thick / chunky and its really hard to find a collar with a safe fit.

For everyday walking I use an Ezy Dog Harness. It has a supportive breast plate which moulds to your dogs chest. It is also designed to be used in the car. Granted it is not a non pull harness but once you have mastered lead walking i would definately recommend this as a durable and supportive harness for a strong dog.
 
#7 ·
he has normal harnesses that go around the neck and body and also one that goes round the body then crosses over both shoulders and down his chest but they seem to encourage him to pull more.

the halti body harness does seem to work great when use with the double ended lead but i`ve found it loosens as we walk and that slack then starts the pulling again. it`s a bit of a nightmare as he never was bad at pulling on the lead really but recently he`s become way too powerful for me to walk so unless i use a head collar right now i can`t walk him and he hates the head collar.

i was thinking the slip lead would be good but then remembered trying to walk tia the lab at the rspca and she had me flat on the ground within seconds of being handed her lead :eek: ......maybe i need to work out more :lol:
 
#8 ·
The haltis and headcollars that cause pressure around the muzzle can, apparently, be painful, you're much better with the ones that lead from the back of the head. At least, that's what a friend of mine who is a qualitifed dog behaviouralist/trainer reckons. She recommends the mekuti non-pull harness for a dog that's finished growing, although, as you already probably know, there is no substitute for training.

I use slip leads with my dogs, and they work really well, even without a stop on, they can't pull and slip out of them. Indie, however, is such a good girl, that she'll occasionally slip hers when we're out, but that's because she plods along beside me with her head level, if she stops, the lead just pulls over her head. Thankfully we live in a rural area, so it doesn't bother me so much, I'm more careful if we go anywhere with traffic that she doesn't slip her lead.

To be honest, if your dog is a puller, it will pull just the same in a slip lead, to the point of choking itself, they just don't seem to feel it as you'd imagine!
 
#9 ·
he has normal harnesses that go around the neck and body and also one that goes round the body then crosses over both shoulders and down his chest but they seem to encourage him to pull more.

the halti body harness does seem to work great when use with the double ended lead but i`ve found it loosens as we walk and that slack then starts the pulling again. it`s a bit of a nightmare as he never was bad at pulling on the lead really but recently he`s become way too powerful for me to walk so unless i use a head collar right now i can`t walk him and he hates the head collar.

i was thinking the slip lead would be good but then remembered trying to walk tia the lab at the rspca and she had me flat on the ground within seconds of being handed her lead :eek: ......maybe i need to work out more :lol:
Just an idea, I would use the Halti on a double ended training lead with the other end attached to Millie's collar before I had the confidence to go out with just a regular collar when she was younger. It meant I had that control of the Halti if i needed it but could also introduce her to the idea of the collar. It was quite a comfortable halfway method for both of us. :) I realise the Halti doesnt fit all dogs (Some can get them over there noses!) but it worked for us.

Hehe maybe you should get some dumbells for soem secret middnight training ready for morning walkies! :)
 
#10 · (Edited)
see that`s the thing - i don`t wanna use any sort of head collar, i don`t like them in the slightest but right now i`m having to use the halti as without it i have absolutely no control over jake and he`s had me in the middle of roads when he just randomly decides to start pulling hard.

like i said before we have an abundance of harnesses but i need one that will give me more control over him while he`s learning otherwise i simply can`t walk him without the head harness

jake`s used to his collar btw in fact he cries if i take the collar off and my oh has always walked him on a normal harness or collar so it`s not like he`s not used to it! dumbells??? totally lost me there

i don`t want to use a head collar....not a halti, gentle leader or any other hence why i`m asking for ideas about a harness. think i may just get the walkezee, seems like everywhere there is conflicting views on every single harness so i guess i`ll never really know until i try it for myself
 
#11 ·
jake`s used to his collar btw in fact he cries if i take the collar off and my oh has always walked him on a normal harness or collar so it`s not like he`s not used to it! dumbells??? totally lost me there
It was a joke - to build up muscles. :)

No worries was just an idea as you were using the Halti and it could enable you to minimise the pressure / use of the Halti.

Sorry Wasnt trying to suggest Jake wasnt able to walk on a normal collar :eek:
 
#13 ·
Sometimes its just not practical to use what you'd like. I would rather have Rupert in a slip lead but down here I can't, its an unrealistic expectation right now so he is in a headcollar.

There is so much traffic and random goings on and angry dogs and owners that he would likely run to the end of the lead and choke himself before I could get a correction in, plus I'm not sure I'd want to correct him from moving out the way of an angry/frustrated dog :(

Will probably go back to his slip when I take him to more out of the way places but round here I feel its better and safer for him in a headcollar. I'm quite sad because when I went to uni he'd walk perfect on a slip lead, came back a month later and he just wouldn't walk as he did before, dunno who had been walking him and letting him do it but sadly everytime he goes in the headcollar, the next time he goes in a slip lead he is never in the right position etc he seems to totally forget how a slip works.

I think for him its a lot easier to use one type of lead/collar/harness 100% the time to avoid any confusion, I wish it was more practical to use a slip round here, I live in hope of going back to one over the summer but it will depend on if things get much better round here with offlead dogs walking the street :rolleyes:

If you are confident in using one I would go for it but 100% commit it and I wouldn't want to use something else in different instances unless it was a normal type of collar or something on the neck because it seems hard for them to be in the right position if something is leading them from the face or body and then the neck etc.

I really do like them but like Sleeping_Lion says, there is no substitute for training they must learn to walk on it. Rupert never really pulled too bad because we spent a lot of time on it when he was younger, but I couldn't often get him in the exact correct position so tried out different things, I think his body just naturally doesn't like to be close to my leg :eek:
 
#15 ·
I used a slip lead on Flynn for a while and he walked fine but if he did pull it would half strangle him, so I stopped using it. He's a very strong dog and the instructions said to use it high up the neck behind the ears, right at the most delicate part.

Anyway a couple of weeks after using it he developed head tremmors :eek: the slip lead combined with a bosster I didn't know which of the two could have caused it. Thinking the slip lead could have partially damaged the nerves in his neck I haven't used it since - or had this years booster!

Spose i'll never know which it was. :(

I've now bought a Dogmatic head collar and love it.
 
#16 ·
I used a slip lead on Flynn for a while and he walked fine but if he did pull it would half strangle him, so I stopped using it. He's a very strong dog and the instructions said to use it high up the neck behind the ears, right at the most delicate part.

Anyway a couple of weeks after using it he developed head tremmors :eek: the slip lead combined with a bosster I didn't know which of the two could have caused it. Thinking the slip lead could have partially damaged the nerves in his neck I haven't used it since - or had this years booster!

Spose i'll never know which it was. :(
Gotta say Rupert is less responsive to a slip now he's been in a headcollar for a while and he is much harder to re train back into it than when he first picked it up. It partly puts me off using it on him in the future just because he needs so damn many corrections and doesn't heed them for an awful long time...Definitely need to know how to use one lots of people put them on incorrectly and don't correct at the right moment yada yada, its not as easy to use as it is conventient I don't think is it lol!
 
#17 ·
It was a joke - to build up muscles. :)

No worries was just an idea as you were using the Halti and it could enable you to minimise the pressure / use of the Halti.

Sorry Wasnt trying to suggest Jake wasnt able to walk on a normal collar :eek:
hahah i`m such a dumbass at times :eek: i just realised that reply sounded snappy, i was on my phone so was rushing to type should really read it before posting!!! i think i do need the muscles though, my oh has weights but they`re too heavy for me :eek: :lol:

y`know i used to look at people strange when they said slips were hard to use properly but when i went for my induction at the rspca one of the biggest things they done was train us how to correctly use a slip! i think i probably made him worse with the pulling as i put the halti on him when i slipped on ice and my back was sore for a couple of weeks and when i tried to get him back to a harness it seemed impossible.

right so i`m thinking walkezee dog harness from walkezee, stops pulling, training, handling, dogs, harnesses, restraint, humane,dog training harnesses training harness for dogs dog training harness best dog harness dog harnesses dogs harness dog harness lead pet dog harness orrrr mekuti Balance Dog Harness - stop your dog pulling on the lead - 30 day money back guarantee.

anyone help me choose which??? i am rubbish at making decisions! also i think the mekuti looks an awful like the halti Halti Harness - Extra 10% OFF your first order but is that just me??
 
#18 ·
I'm not going to be much help I'm afraid ;)
I found the walkeze rubbed under Zippers armpits and was very uncomforatable for him (I think it depends on the dogs body shape)
The Halti needed to be contantly readjusted as it seemed to work it's self loose.

I like this one - it's fleece so it doesn't rub the cross over design means it fits most body shapes and the ring at the front means the dog can't pull forward if he does he spins himself around :)
Fleece balancing dog walking harnesses
 
#19 · (Edited)
I'm not going to be much help I'm afraid ;)
I found the walkeze rubbed under Zippers armpits and was very uncomforatable for him (I think it depends on the dogs body shape)
The Halti needed to be contantly readjusted as it seemed to work it's self loose.

I like this one - it's fleece so it doesn't rub the cross over design means it fits most body shapes and the ring at the front means the dog can't pull forward if he does he spins himself around :)
Fleece balancing dog walking harnesses
no you really aren`t much help.....you`ve just thrown another harness into the mix for me :lol: :lol: :lol:

seriously though you`re actually the first person who has said they`ve had the same problem with the halti body, i thought jake was some super dog as it kept coming loose! i do like the look of them ones though, they`re pretty much the same idea as the walkezee but look much more comfy :thumbup:

eta - is there a size chart for the harness? i know most places will give a rough idea which breeds each size is suitable for but can`t seem to find on
 
#20 ·
I can't tell you which to choose but the Mekuti is nothing like the halti, it works on balance. Its a bit of a nigthmare to suss the first time but you get the hang of it really quickly. If you do go for it, buy it with the double lead even if you already have one as the clips and rings are in a particular place. :)
 
#21 ·
no you really aren`t much help.....you`ve just thrown another harness into the mix for me :lol: :lol: :lol:

seriously though you`re actually the first person who has said they`ve had the same problem with the halti body, i thought jake was some super dog as it kept coming loose! i do like the look of them ones though, they`re pretty much the same idea as the walkezee but look much more comfy :thumbup:

eta - is there a size chart for the harness? i know most places will give a rough idea which breeds each size is suitable for but can`t seem to find on
Rupert had the same issue with the Halti so I got rid :) Probably 18 months ago now though. Soon as he pulled a little a few times the ring was over on the near side and it was loose.