Puppy Training Harness
Training a young puppy how to use a leash is one of the most difficult tasks for new dog owners. Some puppies are easily excited and have a very tough time keeping up with the pace of their owners. Overly excited puppies can seem manageable compared to some puppies that are so difficult that they spend their first few times on the leash tirelessly trying to pull against their owners. Issues such as these bring about a very prevalent debate in the dog owner community, which is whether to use a collar or harness when training your puppy how to walk on a leash.
The use of a puppy training harness can have many benefits. When first teaching a puppy how to walk on a leash, a collar can be the wrong choice. Collars are place directly around a puppy's neck. This can result in choking, coughing and gagging when a puppy begins to strain itself against the leash. Though it is obviously unintentional, hurting your puppy should be avoided at all costs, which in itself is a good reason to use a puppy training harness.
For some smaller types of puppies, even if they aren't running away from their owner while on the leash, a collar can still be harmful, because smaller dogs can often have sensitive trachea. Dog harnesses go around your puppy's body, wrapping under the torso, which eliminates any danger to the puppy's throat. A puppy training harness also has the benefit of being almost impossible for your puppy to wiggle their way out of, which is something that tortures owners of collar wearing puppies.
It is not difficult to choose the right puppy training harness for your puppy. Generally, harnesses are made out of nylon, but specialty harnesses are also available. Harnesses designed especially for puppy training have the ability to prevent pulling issues. Choosing the correct size for your puppy is not difficult. It is important to find balance, not choosing a harness that is too tight, or one that is too loose. There is no standard test for goodness of fit, but an owner should be able to judge whether or not the harness they have chosen is comfortable for their puppy. Once the proper harness has been chosen, it's not hard to begin the normal training process. Combine your puppy training harness with a short leash and feel free to use firm tugs to inform your puppy which actions are allowed and which are not. Unlike the use of a collar, these tugs on the leash cannot harm your puppy's neck and are relatively harmless.
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