Prong Collars
Years ago, our vet at the time strongly recommended we get a prong collar for Nikki... our sheepie-mix. We also used one on Meesha. Both dogs walked beautifully on leash. One "con" I experienced back then was that these collars can unexpectedly come undone. I was walking Meesha and the thing simply came apart... I was holding the leash/collar but there was no dog on the other end. Luckily she wasn't planning on going anywhere  After that I didn't feel they were secure enough.
But... Twice in the past year, my husband has been pulled flat on his face by both Emma and Darby when other dogs have come by. Because it's become a serious safety issue (my husband's 71) I've gone back to prong collars for everyone. When I ordered the stainless steel collars, I also ordered a backup collar for each dog. The ones I got are called "dominant dog collars" but they are NOT used for anything except a safety should the prong collar unexpectedly come undone. I would think any other similar design of collar would also do fine as long as it's durable. Just a little FYI- There is a proper way to use and fit these collars... they can be used improperly and cause harm so the user needs to be instructed on how to properly use one. How to properly fit a prong collar- http://leerburg.com/fit-prong.htm Dominant Dog Collars (JUST for a backup when using a prong collar)- http://leerburg.com/746.htm We've tried Gentle Leaders and Haltis too (I think I'm going to have to add a tack room just for dog equipment/tools!). They worked okay except for Panda and Kaytee who are very strong willed and strong PERIOD. The prong collars seem to make for the most pleasurable and safe walk. I appreciate your input! |
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Luckily, we just never had a need for one. Bear pulled a bit when he was young but just the threat of a Gentle Leader was the best deterrent to pulling. We used it twice and the third time, I tried to use it, and before I could even get it on him, he went into a perfect heel and gave me this look like, "See, I don't need it." We went without, and he's been great ever since. I'm lucky if Clyde will move let alone pull. Lucy has always pulled a little, even in her old age, she always wants to be at the end of the leash. She's old now though, so we let her get away with it.  |
| We still use a prong collar all the time for mulligan.
I just had the prong collar open up about a week or two ago. I was across the street when Joan drove up in the car and pulled into the driveway. Mulligan got interested then headed towards her, not pulling hard at all, but the collar had become discombobulated and just opened right up and across the street he ran. No other cars around, fortunately.
You can attach the lead to a simple nylon slip (choke?) collar (like the ones used at the vets or a little nicer) as a backup. If it is large enough (i.e. the right size) it will always be loose while the prong collar is in use, it will only tighten if the prong collar opens and the dog is pulling. We used to use it all the time, but we started getting lazy about the second click after a year or two of no malfunctions. It's like an insurance policy I guess. Never need it when you have it, never have it when you need it. Or wait, is it more like watering the lawn and then it rains...? |
| I'm in the "never" category. And it's not that I don't believe they have a place if used properly. I just have all my dogs fairly well trained and they simply don't need them. I actually don't even use training or choke collars either, just a plain buckle or martingale collar. Good leash manners are really stressed at our house!
They are a great training tool, especially for small people and kids with big dogs, or the elderly. I do use them in my training classes for dogs that won't pay any attention to their owners. They are always meant as a temporary thing though. The thing I like the best about them is that they are self-correcting. If the dog pulls and lunges, they feel pressure. If they don't pull, they feel nothing. Training the human not to pull on it is the hard part! |
Well, the dog pulled Joan off her feet once, and she's not a little girl. If I have to make a decision between a prong collar and rescue for Mulligan, I go for the prong collar.  It is for everyone's safety.
In addition, it does make for a much more pleasant walk. He's not pulling against a collar, he's not being constantly corrected, we're enjoying the walk and not having our arms pulled from their sockets. I'm thinking that a dog is more likely to be walked if it's a pleasant experience for all.
Hopefully in the next year or so as he continues to mature the need will go away. But even then could an unexpected bunny or squirrel cause Joan to be dragged again? |
The prong collar was the only choice for Ellie during her recent rehab. A choke collar didn't phase her. She's a Houdini with a gentle leader, out of it in 90 seconds or less (yes it was adjusted correctly).  |
I'm a 95 pd weakling and I used a prong on my male OES (over 100 pds) and on my GSD who was not animal or people friendly. That was the only way I could take them for a walk . Fitted and used properly they are fine. to me they were/are like the difference between driving a car with or without power steering 
Did not vote because right now I have no need but would not hesitate to use again if needed |
| You asked for opinions, and pros and cons. I will state what I think, but not get pulled into an arguement about thier use.
I don't use them and never will. But I don't use anything that will hurt my dog...no chokes, training collars, slip collars, nothing adversive. And as I live in the country, my dogs do not get walked on a leash often and have terrible leash manners...
Pros- They MIGHT stop the dog from pulling. This can allow for someone to walk a strong, pulling dog. Cons- They do not train a dog to walk nice. They teach a dog that "Hey, if I see that cat or dog or child, and try to go say hi, then I get hurt. Best I try to make them go away."...It is not a cure for leash agression, but rather causes it or makes it worse. They are supposed to be self-correcting, yet I hear people explain how to jerk or pull or tug on the leash/collar to make them work. They can be the cause of behavioral problems in many dogs, and when that is misunderstood the dog suffers. |
| My opinion is that a prong collar has a valuable use in training.
A properly fitted and used prong collar does not hurt. An improperly fitted one does. When we took obedience class the instructor recommended a prong collar for large dogs while training. But before we could use it she inspected it on the dog to make sure it was properly fitted. I used it for training and my observation was it caused no discomfort. I would never hurt my animals. We no longer use it because Tasker walks well without pulling. |
| I used a prong collar with Sydney and now with Bella. I tried the Halti but Bella went to that same puppy school Sheeps over Aces dog went too. If I wasn't watching she'd have it off in a second. The prong collar was the only way to go. I've never had one come a part I'm not sure how our could, it's hard enough to get together.
We only use it when we walk and never when Bella is not under our control. Syd had it on when we walked but most of the time she would walk at a heel even off leash. I am a fan of them as a training aid. |
| I do know they come apart. It is puzzling, as they can be very difficult to get together.
LeAnne and I just had that happen near us when we were at the Waukesha show. It is a huge show and we were unloading our stuff in the lot and heading into the grooming area with the hundreds of other people on Sunday morning. Suddenly, in front of us a Cavalier King Charles got loose and luckily ran right up to Chewie and Clay. LeAnne did a quick scoop and lifted her up. Her frantic owner came running up and was about in tears. Her pinch collar had come unhooked in the center and she had panicked in the crowd and ran off. It could have been bad, as we were near the road between the lot and the buildings. |
We walk Annie on a Gentle Leader, but Fozzie uses a prong. The prong works perfectly in class, but he still pulls against it outside. Thus, I'm still not able to walk him  I do think that I may take the lead in the next session of training. I was so against prongs and chokes before our class. Now, I do think the are a necessary part of training for many dogs as long as they are used correctly and the handler isn't rough.
We have put prongs on both dogs inside the house as recommended by the trainer. We've only done this when we know guests are coming to the door or when we want to relax in the evening. We attach a shoelace to be able to grab it when necessary. As soon as we put it on Annie, she listens right away. The prong must have been used in her previous life |
Bosley's mom wrote: They teach a dog that "Hey, if I see that cat or dog or child, and try to go say hi, then I get hurt. Best I try to make them go away."...It is not a cure for leash agression, but rather causes it or makes it worse. That certainly hasn't been the case with Mulligan. He jumps more or less in place in excitement witha little forward motion. Without the collar, he pulls.
We tried training but it is so ingrained, I feel like it is trying to train a dog not to sleep. |
| I voted never had to use one category. I agree with the others that feel they are useful for training. I didn't always think so, but my mind has changed. |
| I tried to use one on Stella, but when she pulled, the collar sprung open. I switched to a Gentle Leader after that, and it works well, so I haven't bothered trying to use the prong collar again yet. |
| I always used another collar along with the prong for saftey . My prong collar has a pincher type thing on it for quick release . and I now use a flat collar along with the Gentle Leader just for security for Dutch |
| We always use the prong collar - with a safety - for walking Callie anytime she is out of our yard. I was originally opposed to them, as they do look awful, but after the first time of walking Callie on it as a pup, I changed my mind. She is definitely stronger than me, and no matter how well-behaved I think she will be, there is always a chance that something will scare her or excite her. And I know from experience that I absolutely cannot stop her when that happens and she does not have on a prong collar. I just end up with my face in the concrete.
With the prong collar on, she is a much better walker (not perfect, by any means, but the difference is night and day). And I really believe it doesn't hurt her. She gets crazy excited when she sees me getting it out of the drawer before our walks.. so I can't imagine she would do that if it was hurting her. I did have the prong collar pop off once (I agree, it seems weird that that could happen since they are so difficult to get on... but it does.), so ever since then, we have used the safety that came with it. It is just that little black nylon piece with circles on both ends. We slide the safety under her leather collar and then hook the leash through the ends. This would certainly not be any way to walk her, but would be strong enough to stop her should the prong collar fall off. |
| We use the prong collar and a flat collar together for the same reasons - the hair of a sheepie does seem to somehow get the prong collar to fall off...BUT the prong comes off immediately once we are done walking/training. never left on in the house and never on when playing. Strickly for training.
Anyone who is afraid of the prong collar, try putting it on your leg and having someone pull. You will see how it feels. Its more of a pressure then pinching...of course, it is not meant for severe corrections. Anyone using a prong should be shown how to use it by a professional trainer first. And the prong collar should never be left on when dog is unsupervised or be sued as an "everyday" 24/7 collar. |
| The last time I used a prong collar was with my Boxers....over 10 yrs ago.
A friend who was a dog trainer recommended it. I don't believe they had anything like the Halti back then. I was very leery about using it, so he put in on my neck to show me how it works. It didn't hurt me, so I agreed to use it. Roxie only needed it a few times. Her bone head son Petey needed it for every walk or I would have been flying behind him. It worked well for them as they had very short hair.
I use the Halti collars for my Sheepdogs for walks. They both hate it, but it works well. They normally wear their breakaway collars which I can attach the halti too, but have never had a need too. |
| I'll never use a prong collar on my dogs regardless of how much they pull. Nelson is such a baby that even the Gentle Leader drives him crazy. We'll stick with the plain buckle collars for our dogs (when they have to wear a collar).
The best way we've taught good loose-leash walking is to stop walking when the dog starts pulling and not move until the leash goes slack. It takes a lot of repetition but once it's learned, it isn't easily forgotten. |
OK so here in OZ too along with shock colllars, prong collars too are banned from coming into the country as well, anyone caught using either a $5000 aud fine. 
I voted no and cruel, they just look medievil with those prongs on them. Never used them or know very much about them, have any of you popped them around your neck and had a tug to see what it is like? Not being funny here, they just look nasty. |
| So I gather that invisible fences are illegal there too?
Yes I have, and they do not hurt me, and a snap on a regular collar would probably kill me. They are uncomfortable if you pull against them. You know they work on a similar principle to a bed of nails. People can lie down on a bed of extremely sharp nails and not be injured because the weight is spread out to many many nails. If there was only a single prong on the collar, I suppose it would be easy to hurt the dog even accidentally. But there are many prongs and they are dull, rounded over. If you guys have made prong collars illegal based on looks... I would be very leery about what they are going to ban next... it might be something you hold near and dear. |
| I use both a prong and a halter and alternate between them. Miley is still young and we work on a couple of training items on walks and I get different control with the different training aid.
The halter is good for correcting pulling and teaching leash manners. We opted for this type of collar as an alternative to a prong as the training classes I attend do not allow prong collars. I do not like the lack of control of her head and find this type of collar does not help me in trainning the "leave it commond". She tends to get into more bunny poop on me with this collar. I am not be using the halter correctly in this circumstance. In addition I am having some problems with matting where the halter snaps together. I also like the prong for correcting the pulling. Our vet recommended and instructed my hubby and I on how to use this collar on our Flat coat that loved to pull me around the block. I don't think the gentle lead or the harness we now use were around then. I personally think that this is easier to put on with an OES in longer coat. Because I like each tool for different reasons - I use both. If I would have to pick I would go with the prong, mainly because Miley generally does not pull anymore. If she does - its in fairly predictable situtations 1) she sees a dog she wants to play with 2) something scared her and she wants to bolt. If she bolts out of fear I have more confidence in the prong helping me keep her under control. Becky |
| When I used a prong on my Beardie, Millie she "melted" to the floor and wouldn't get up. So I had to use a choke and go to classes and work on heeling (alot). It worked for us thank goodness.
When I got Pearl, I tried all different collars (I tried a gentle leader and a halty and she couldn't stand either.) The only one that would get her attention was a prong. I used it for about 2 months, then put her buckle on along with the prong so she wasn't sure which one I was using. Then eventually, omitted the prong. I really think it depends on the dog. My vote was "sometimes." Val |
| My vote is "sometimes." Before adopting Sadie, I would have said "never." Now I think there are valid reasons for using one and if fitted correctly and the handler is schooled on proper use, they do not hurt.
We rescued Sadie, so we did not have a choice in the timing of her adoption. She came to us severly malnourished and abused AND the time was after I had two falls breaking 6 ribs! We started obedience classes after acclimating her to our home for several weeks. She was attentive and quick to learn, but displayed the sheepie "I will when I want to" attituded. It was important for her not to pull me, so the trainer suggested the prong collar. At first, I said, "no" and it took lots of reassurance from the trainer that it would not hurt her. The trainer measured her, ordered it for me, fitted it, and taught me proper use. Sadie LOVES the collar and gets so excited when we pull it out. She jumps happily to know we are going for a walk, stands very still for me to put it on, and walks well at my side. I think the reassurance the collar gave her for doing things right has given her confidence to obey other commands. I have never pulled or snapped the collar; nor was it ever needed. It does seem to be self-correcting in that when/if Sadie pulls some on the leash, the slight pressure allows her to make the correction herself. One thing I have not seen in the posts is anything about the guage of the links. My trainer ordered the small link. It is daintier, not heavy/bulky, nor burdonsome. Because I was still worried about using a prong collar, I made a slip-cover for it, so she looks like she has a fluffy collar on. The smaller links work very well. Sadie and I would highly recommend this collar. |
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