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  • Danes & Gentle Leaders

    Are there other Danes who are trained to walk well on Gentle Leaders? Willow is 4 months old right now and that's all we've ever used with her....thus far she's doing great! Our trainer thinks that as long as we are consistent with its use and her training then she will be just fine on one even at full size, but the last vet we saw (seeing another one next time) expressed the opinion that we are kidding ourselves to think she'll be controllable on a Gentle Leader once she's grown and said Willow should be put on a choke collar or better yet a pinch collar ASAP. If it makes a difference, our typical walk is 2.5-3 miles around the neighborhood every evening (adding in a similar length morning walk on the weekends).
    Sara


    w/ Penny Bella & Willow Jayne
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  • #2
    I always walked Zeus on a Gentle Leader. From puppy to adult. I loved it and have started with Jax on it also.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2
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    Paula
    Mom to Zeus 10/6/2005
    Jackson 12/8/2012

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    • #3
      Our neighbors Dane is about 34" and 175lbs and he walks wonderful on a gentle leader. She has a young child and they all go on walks together. It's all about training what's acceptable. My Dane is 37" and about 140lbs and he walks on a martingale collar and has a harness for training exercises. I really don't need a leash between us.
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      LeAnna & Hades

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      • #4
        Actually my last dane would walk perfectly on just a flat buckle collar, I did a LOT of training with her. I did occasionally use a gentle leader and found that while it gave me ultimate control, it bothered her too much. Since she walked very well on just a collar I stopped using it.
        I always think of horses when people say "good luck walking that thing" about my dog. I have walked many horses who are a thousand pounds and guess what, they walk perfectly on a halter because they have been trained. You would not put a pinch collar or choke chain on a horse to get more control so why do it on a large dog.

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        • #5
          Ugh I would never use a pinch collar on my dane. She's done absolutely fantastic with the gentle leader. I have a couple friends who have a fawn dane...he is reactive towards men he doesn't know and large dogs and throughout every situation the gentle leader is fine for them to control him on.
          - Jordan & Eleanor (xxx's Words of Wisdom from Ms. Rigby)

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          • #6
            Originally posted by jadasmom.1 View Post
            I have walked many horses who are a thousand pounds and guess what, they walk perfectly on a halter because they have been trained. You would not put a pinch collar or choke chain on a horse to get more control so why do it on a large dog.
            AMEN! I grew up training dairy cows to walk nice, SHOW nice, at a snail's pace in the ring, using regular rope halters. My biggest show cow was near 2000 pounds and Milly would parade around the show ring head held high and proud with the lead strap draped over her neck and me just walking by her head. I started training her to lead when she was about 200 pounds as a baby calf.

            NO need for a pinch collar on a dog, even at 200 pounds. All my dogs were taught a lovely loose leash walk on regular flat collars. It's training. You want to move, do ya? then that there leash has to be slack and we're not moving an inch in your direction until you give me a couple inches of slack.
            Tracy
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            Mouse April 2010
            Echo -- run free, Sweetie! Jan 9, 2007 - April 24, 2014 Lost to osteosarcoma at 7 years, 3 months. RIP.

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            • #7
              Our baby Dane (16 weeks) has been on the Gentle Leader for about 2 weeks now. He was starting to pull away on our walks and I bought it to nip it now. He does walk great on it, although he spends a little time trying to rub the back of my legs to get it off his nose and onto the top of his head! I have to keep calling him to heel to stop it. But, he is just a puppy and we are working at it. With the Gentle Leader, I walk him with the leash looped over my belt and he has not pulled it out yet. I can stop him with a two finger tug on the leash, for now... but he's just 57 pounds!

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              • #8
                For me, a head collar would just be a training tool to be used to teach not to pull, not a lifelong thing. I've actually gone back to harnesses for most walks just to avoid putting pressure on the neck. I can walk two 150+ pound danes without using choke or prong collars, it's just training. I'd laugh at any vet that told me otherwise.
                Zephyr CGN, RE, TT- crazy harlequin
                Divine Acres Riddle Me This- regal fawn

                http://thegrownups.ca/ on life and (not) growing up.

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by SaraT View Post
                  Are there other Danes who are trained to walk well on Gentle Leaders? Willow is 4 months old right now and that's all we've ever used with her....thus far she's doing great! Our trainer thinks that as long as we are consistent with its use and her training then she will be just fine on one even at full size, but the last vet we saw (seeing another one next time) expressed the opinion that we are kidding ourselves to think she'll be controllable on a Gentle Leader once she's grown and said Willow should be put on a choke collar or better yet a pinch collar ASAP. If it makes a difference, our typical walk is 2.5-3 miles around the neighborhood every evening (adding in a similar length morning walk on the weekends).
                  I prefer the EZ Walk or similar no-pull harness for training. Emma is a lunger when she goes over threshold & I would not want to risk injury to her neck. That being said we rarely use the harness anymore because we have been phasing it out to a plain flat martingale collar. Logan walks fine off leash & we use a plain flat collar when we have to. I would never ever use a choke or prong and I would fire a vet that told me I needed to.
                  "I don’t care if a dog is 150 pounds or 10 pounds, and whether the issue is leash manners or biting visitors. There are no dogs who need a heavier hand—there are only trainers who need more knowledge and a lighter touch." Suzanne Clothier
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                  Rocky & Emma
                  Follow our adventures at
                  www.instagram.com/spottedangels

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by SaraT View Post
                    Are there other Danes who are trained to walk well on Gentle Leaders? Willow is 4 months old right now and that's all we've ever used with her....thus far she's doing great! Our trainer thinks that as long as we are consistent with its use and her training then she will be just fine on one even at full size, but the last vet we saw (seeing another one next time) expressed the opinion that we are kidding ourselves to think she'll be controllable on a Gentle Leader once she's grown and said Willow should be put on a choke collar or better yet a pinch collar ASAP. If it makes a difference, our typical walk is 2.5-3 miles around the neighborhood every evening (adding in a similar length morning walk on the weekends).
                    You're lucky that your trainer is more open-minded compared to mine. I like my trainer but, it is tiresome when he tells me that prongs are much more effective. I do admit that I find it ironic when Gilligan does pretty well with the Gentle Leader. I am a very observant person and I feel sorry for other dogs (& puppies) when their owners pull the prongs during training. I can only hope that my use of Gentle Leader will influence other owners to throw away their prongs.

                    If my trainer continues to persuade me to use the prongs, I will be searching for a different trainer.

                    Debbie
                    Life-long dog owner, but first time Great Dane owner
                    "Gilligan" (born 5.7.2013)

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by Debbie F View Post
                      You're lucky that your trainer is more open-minded compared to mine. I like my trainer but, it is tiresome when he tells me that prongs are much more effective. I do admit that I find it ironic when Gilligan does pretty well with the Gentle Leader. I am a very observant person and I feel sorry for other dogs (& puppies) when their owners pull the prongs during training. I can only hope that my use of Gentle Leader will influence other owners to throw away their prongs.

                      If my trainer continues to persuade me to use the prongs, I will be searching for a different trainer.

                      Debbie
                      I'd be concerned about what training methods this trainer is using if he is recommending that everyone use prongs. I teach totally positive clicker classes and I don't allow choke collars, prongs or chain martingales to be used at all.
                      Zephyr CGN, RE, TT- crazy harlequin
                      Divine Acres Riddle Me This- regal fawn

                      http://thegrownups.ca/ on life and (not) growing up.

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by kayla baxter View Post
                        I'd be concerned about what training methods this trainer is using if he is recommending that everyone use prongs. I teach totally positive clicker classes and I don't allow choke collars, prongs or chain martingales to be used at all.
                        Let's just say that it isn't a Victoria Stilwell type of class.

                        He was recommended to me and I should have taken the time to check him out first before I paid him. It's non-refundable. I'm a former dog trainer, I simply ignore half of what he recommends/advise and I use more positive training methods on Gilligan.

                        On the topic of the clicker, I could never make it work for many years. I suspect that I'm clicker-impaired!
                        Life-long dog owner, but first time Great Dane owner
                        "Gilligan" (born 5.7.2013)

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                        • #13
                          When I was having a home inspection for a dane adoption, they brought over a 5 year old female who was dog aggressive.

                          When we went out to my back yard, the volunteer put the dane on the gentle leader and gave the leash to her teenage daughter. (she maybe weighed 80 lbs).

                          When we went out into the back yard, a neighborhood cat got spooked and ran across my backyard, causing the dog to try to chase. The leader stopped her dead in her tracks and the girl was in complete control the whole time.

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Spacecadet View Post
                            When I was having a home inspection for a dane adoption, they brought over a 5 year old female who was dog aggressive.

                            When we went out to my back yard, the volunteer put the dane on the gentle leader and gave the leash to her teenage daughter. (she maybe weighed 80 lbs).

                            When we went out into the back yard, a neighborhood cat got spooked and ran across my backyard, causing the dog to try to chase. The leader stopped her dead in her tracks and the girl was in complete control the whole time.
                            Yes I'm sure that's true and proves my previous point. A dogs neck is not built like a horse and cannot withstand the whiplash effect a halter can inflict when it stops them with such force. With wobblers and other spine related issues so rampant in the Dane world, why would you risk that on one that lunges? I can see it for a Dane that just pulls but would never use a halter on a Dane that lunges. Emma has hit the end of the leash in mid-air with such force it flipped her completely around 180 degrees and onto her shoulder. This was with an EZ Walk Harness that clips in the front. A halter in that situation would almost certainly cause a neck injury.
                            "I don’t care if a dog is 150 pounds or 10 pounds, and whether the issue is leash manners or biting visitors. There are no dogs who need a heavier hand—there are only trainers who need more knowledge and a lighter touch." Suzanne Clothier
                            sigpic
                            Rocky & Emma
                            Follow our adventures at
                            www.instagram.com/spottedangels

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                            • #15
                              do you have any evidence to support this, or just speculation?

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