Thread: Martingale Collars for Training

When I was at a pet store the other day with Daisy (5 month Golden) and my husband she was pulling on her leash quite a bit. One of the girls that works there asked if I had tried a Martingale collar with her. She brought one over and put it on Daisy and walked a little bit with her. It did seem to help. We went ahead and bought it (on sale for $4.99) and I've been working with Daisy to get her more leash trained with it. It does seem better than her regular collar but she still needs a lot of practice.

I'm just wondering what you all think of these collars. I would never use a choke collar but this really is fairly similar except it is made out of fabric. I don't think it hurts her in any way. She is probably close to 60 pounds now and it seems like it is helping with her leash training. She can be a handful. Of course she does fine in our back yard but when on walks or out somewhere she gets so distracted and forgets everything she learned. Any opinions on these Martingale collars?

I never used one, only a regular choke chain for leash training only, doesn't really hurt the dog if used properly. What is the main purpose of the Martingale collar? Is it just if they pull backwards, they can't slip out of it because it tightens? Is it a hazard to use it 24/7, because one it tightens it may get stuck in that position? I'll be curious to know how this works for Daisy.

I guess the purpose is similar to a choke chain, which I have used too. I used to use them with my German Shepherds with success. You're right that they can't slip out of it and it sits a little higher on their neck than regular collars. Since it is tighter than regular collars I don't think they recommend using the 24/7. You are supposed to slip them over their head and then tighten when they have it on them. I've spent the last few days being lazy with my training of Daisy but I swear I'm going to work with her again today with it

You could try mastering "The Walk". I learned about this watching Cesar Millan the Dog Whisperer, and just out of curiousity, I tried it with Hans because he pulled a bit on the lead and walked ahead. This really wasn't a problem, since it wasn't too bad and he's rarely on the leash, especially for any period of time. Anyhoo, I tried it for only a week, and saw results in a couple of days.

I took him on a 3+ mile walk in our neighborhood, that is mostly on a paved trail through a wildlife area. I used a regular choke chain, put on properly. Shape it into a "P" for puppy, while facing the dog before placing it over his head.

Before I would go out, I would acknowledge in my mind that this was a training practice, and he would be permitted to sniff and relieve himself at the halfway mark, and then go back into the walk. Of course he had access to our yard before the exercise, so it's not like he was desperate to urinate.

No fuss before leaving, no eye contact, no baby talk or conversation with him, he was treated like a dog and I was his leader. He was to follow my lead with no question, I was confident and I was the one in control. I was calm and assertive.

He was kept on my left side, which is always the 'heel' side when leash training. When he started to pull forward and take the lead, I would give a short correction to the right on the leash, also making a sound like 'shh!', to get his attention...no words, no eye contact.

After a few corrections, he got the idea that he wasn't to stop and sniff, or pull ahead of me. Before I knew it, he was walking on a loose 6' lead and he was either at my side or slightly behind me. When he got distracted, let's say by a prairie dog, I'd do the 'shh!', and correct to the right. This puts the dog off-balance, and they don't like it, so they slow down and do what's needed to gain control again. If you pull back, they just resist and pull forward even more.

Another key thing is to pay attention, and anticipate what they are going to do before they do it, then your correction is 'spot on', and very effective. So, if you're walking along, no talking, no eye contact, and you see there's something or someone coming up ahead....you stay relaxed (they sense tension and insecurity from you right down the leash), watch the dog to see when they make their move, and correct.

Before long you have a perfectly trained dog on walks. Especially if you're thinking of a therapy dog, it's a good exercise to perform, at least once a day. If you see you're going to encounter someone you'd like to say hello to, put the dog is a 'stay' next to you, and explain to the person that the dog is in a lesson, and please don't pet it, make eye contact with it, or talk to it. A 'sit' command can also be done with no words, just stopping and a slight upward pull on the leash once they're in the 'heel' position, or next to you.

When we came to an area where I wanted to stop or slow down, and let him do his thing, then I gave him a quick 'good boy', pat on the side...not much conversation. Always a problem remembering that they're not people, lol. It is amazing though, how they seem to have a new respect for you as leader, he even acted a little more behaved and responsive to me in the house...good side effect.

Granted, those different types of collars help you to handle a dog that's out of control, but really, the valuable lessons of how to act on lead and take guidance from you are lost.

Thanks so much for that detailed information on "the walk". I'm really going to try that consistently with her and see if we make more progress. Her puppy classes are on hold for another week. I think I will work with her at home, then outside for walks with plenty of distractions, and then maybe take her out to a pet store again and see how she does there with major distractions.