A dog’s harness tops over neck collars, prong collars, choke chains, shock collars and even flat collars. This is because it gives you a complete control over your dog while you go on walks.
As a dog owner the common problem that you might face while taking your dog out is pulling. This generally happens because your dog is too excited to go out and enjoy. When your dog pulls you, you exercise a lot of pressure on your arms causing it to ache severely.
Here are a few reasons why a harness gives you the complete power:
- Helps in controlling the dog
- Safer than a collar as the dog cannot escape
- Helps break the pulling habit
- Does not strain the dog’s neck
- Prevents Ocular Proptosis: Ocular Proptosis is a condition of protruding eyeballs. It is caused when stress is applied at the back of the dog’s neck. Using a collar renders a force at the back of the neck when the dog walks forward.
Here are the different types of Harness that you can choose from.
Back Attachment or Back Clip Harness
The back attachment harness as the name suggests has a clip on the back side (which is the upper body) of the dog. If your dog has the habit of pulling, then this is the harness that you should consider buying. Mainly because, the harness is designed in such a way that it does not choke your dog when they pull.
It is designed in such a way that it can evenly distribute the stress that you enforce on the dog causing it to pull comfortably yet giving you the control. That said, it does not make your dog uncomfortable. It also plays a major role in behavior modification where you can slowly control your dog from pulling.
Advantages:
- They protect the neck region
- Easy and comfortable both for the dog and the human
- Since the latch is at the back, the leash does not tangle in between the legs of the dog.
Disadvantages:
- There should be a balance in the body weight of the dog and the human. If the human is weaker than the dog with this harness can pull them easily.
Front Clip or Front Attachment Harness
Front attaching harness is a gift to a lot of pet parents who are not able to control their dog while taking them for a walk. The back clip harness is of good use for parents who have the stamina to control the dog. But, what if the person is actually is not strong enough to control the dog. That’s where the Front clip comes into the place.
A lot of women over 45 choose front clip over back clip because this does not allow the dog to pull. Because, the leash is attached to the front of the body, it causes a tug around their chest when they pull stopping them from doing do.
Advantages:
- It does not put pressure on your dog’s neck
- It gives you the control
- It allows your dog to walk by your side
Disadvantages:
- It does not help you when you are running or jogging. This is because when the dog pulls, the harness causes its body to turn. When you are running this will cause both you and your dog to trip and fall.
- Since the clip is in the front it can tangle between the dog’s legs
Head Collar Harness
Head collar harness comes around the neck and the head. It stops pulling, lunging and other uncultured behaviors. It goes around your dog’s mouth and the top of their head therefore when they pull it pushes your dog’s head downwards. It is a great choice for puppies and small breeds. It is often used for puppers during training.
Most people do not prefer this due to the misconception that it damages trachea. But, as a matter of fact it does not, it applies low pressure on the dog’s head when it pulls causing it to stop.
Advantages:
- Helps train against barking, lunging, jumping and anxiety
- Can be used for pups over 6 weeks which is not the case with the other two
- Does not damage trachea
- Prevents choking and coughing
Disadvantages:
- Difficult to fit for large breeds
Hope you found this piece of information useful. Do checkout this info-graphic to learn about measuring your dog before purchasing the harness.
Let us know the type of harness that you use and how do you find it useful in the comments section below.
