Why The Debate Between Harness and Collar?

May not sound like a big deal, right, but this is an important one. The collar should be used only for the pet’s id tags, and a harness for attaching leads. Did you know that, by using a collar and leash to walk your pooch, especially small dogs, that you’re putting dangerous pressure on his delicate trachea and could cause it to actually collapse? A collapsed trachea means your pet will struggle forever now just to breathe, and will become old before his time. Medications can help a bit, but come with side effects. The only “fix” for a collapsed trachea is to surgically implant a stint. For most folks, this surgery is hardly affordable. Plus, it isn’t guaranteed and rarely works for the longterm – not to mention, it’s dangerous to put your pet through such a surgery. Please consider the argument for harnesses instead.

Is A Collapsed Trachea That Big A Deal?

A collapsed trachea is very painful for your pet and seriously diminishes his quality of life. It interferes with his breathing, causes him to cough endlessly every waking hour as if his insides are going to come out, and takes away his overall strength and energy. This wretching coughing drives everyone in the house nuts, the pet is miserable, the owners feel helpless to do anything because the surgery’s too expensive and, in the end, out of frustration, the pet gets surrendered to a shelter or sometimes even taken to the vet to be put down. This horribly sad outcome can be totally avoided by just using a harness instead of a collar. Attaching the lead to his harness will distribute the pressure evenly across the pet’s chest and eliminate any pressure to his trachea. Now that you’re aware of the hazard of attaching leads to collars, this is a totally simple change you can make to protect your pet’s health, your sanity, and your pocketbook. Make the switch now, prevent the damage, and protect his future. When shopping for harnesses, you’ll notice that some appear more like vests, covering a larger area of the chest. These are ideal if your dog is a real “puller,” because they best distribute the pressure overall to prevent any pain or injury to your pet.

But I Still Prefer Using A Collar – Can I Do So Safely?

If your preference is still to use a collar and leash, here’s a simple tip to ensure your pet’s protection: bring the collar right up to the back of the dog’s ears, and right up under his chin, as close as possible to the jaw and away from his trachea. And – here’s the most important part ~ NEVER pull backward on the lead. ALWAYS pull straight up, so that the collar and lead are right behind his ears and almost lifting his front feet straight up. That way, you’ll avoid any pressure to the trachea completely.

You also will have more control over your pet, because you’ll be removing his natural urge to pull against the lead. You see, dogs are biologically hard-wired to work and pull, just like an oxen pulling a cart. When they feel the pressure of a leash pulling them back, their basic nature kicks in and they instinctively pull against it. Think about how many times you’ve seen a dog dragging his owner along on a lead. You know it’s got to hurt because he’s pulling and wheezing SO hard and it looks like he’s choking himself. And you wonder why he doesn’t stop. It’s simple – instinct tells him to pull.

So you see – you sabotage any success you’re looking for in leash-training by using the old conventional method and letting your dog pull you on a walk. The harder you pull against him as he pulls against you – you’re actually encouraging a really dangerous habit. A good example is to watch dog shows. Notice how the handler lifts straight up on the lead and how it’s right up under the dog’s chin and touching behind his ears. That’s the correct way to use a lead. For those of you with dogs that pull, trust me when I tell you that getting a bigger, heavier collar and chains, or even those awful chokers with metal teeth on them, is NOT the answer. If you teach yourself the right way and then teach your pooch the right way, you’ll be able to handle the biggest “puller” dog with just your pinky finger. It’s true! Try it! Be patient, tho. If you’ve been walking your dog the old conventional way for very long, it will take awhile for both of you to get the hang of it and program yourselves the new way. But definitely worth it!

Pauly – Too Late To Turn Back Time. The Damage Was Done.

My little Pauly was left at the Humane Society because his owner couldn’t take the coughing. Pauly had a collapsed trachea, the vet said probably from being pulled by his collar. I took him home, and we had an instant love affair. Pauly was my sidekick, and God how I treasured him. But his wretching cough was the worst. There were many many sleepless nights when I thought I would lose my mind because it never stopped. But bless his heart he couldn’t help it, and he was so exhausted. I took him to the vet, then to a specialist, who told me about stint surgery. But the surgery wasn’t guaranteed to work. Stints often slip out of place and cause more problems than they solve. He advised against the surgery because it would be too hard on Pauly, and disappointing if it didn’t work. Instead, he put Pauly on medications to relax his breathing. That didn’t help. Pauly still struggled and coughed and coughed. He was just so worn out, and eventually lost the will to play with his toys … and eventually lost the battle just to breathe. It was beyond heartbreaking to see him get old before his time, especially knowing it could have been prevented so easily. Rest in peace, little guy. You were the best.

Look Down The Road To Help You Make The Best Decision.

So there’s your tip for the day – hook your leads to harnesses instead of collars, especially on delicate, small dogs. You may very well be saving his life.

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God Bless and Happy Pet Parenting!

With love and good wishes,
jeannie.   ?

About jeannie:  I’ve been pro-actively involved in pet rescue all of my life. I founded Milagro Senior Pet Refuge© (Phoenix) in 1998, and BareFootPets (TM) in 2008.  Animal welfare has always been and will always be my heart’s work. If my only legacy is that I save a handful of precious souls that would not survive otherwise, I’m good with that.