Viktor, a Polish Lowland Sheepdog shares his views on humans and living with two canine brothers - Frodo, another Polish Lowland, and Elroy a Berger Picard and the spirit of Paxton, a Bernese Mountain dog.
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
FREEEEEEEEEEDOM
Free-dom!!! Free-dom!!! No, I'm not singing that song by Pharrell Williams, although my human could have been singing it yesterday. Nope - I'm talking about a new way to take Jaws for a walk - the Freedom No-Pull Harness. https://freedomnopullharness.com/ Yes, I am about to do a commercial message for a product that has yet to be extensively tested in our household - but what SEEMS to work on its initial trial.
Teaching us dogs to walk on a leash can be a challenging task. Yes - my human KNOWS you should not let us pull - because once when we learn that behavior, it's hard to break. So when walking on a leash, if we do start pulling, the human should stop and only proceed when we are not pulling. We dogs should be rewarded for loose leash walking. Some suggest going a different direction if a dog starts pulling. So you end up zig zagging down the street or going in circles so that you eventually become dizzy and never get to your destination. Patience is the key. And that's all well and good if you have 6 hours to train us each day. Yes - I KNOW it can be done. But sometimes when you have an overly enthusiastic puppy and you DO want to go for a walk, you need to come up with a solution to stop the pulling. Slip collars usually end up strangling us. Not that we haven't used them, but they definitely do not stop the pulling. Some people use prong collars - which lots of people oppose. Like anything, if used correctly it can make a difference for some people and dogs. Some people like the Gentle Leader type of bridle. Again they seem to work for some - but you also need to be careful with them as well.
My human always thought that a harness would result in MORE pulling. But the Amazing Amy - the woman who took Jaws into her home for a puppy play date, recommended the Freedom Harness. So my human went out and got one. Getting the bucking bronco to stand still while she adjusted it was an amusing sight. At first when it was on, he wouldn't even move. But with treat rewards to entice him and encouragement to keep a loose leash - well it was like a MIRACLE. He walked down the road and walked right at her side. No attempts to drag her into the ditch. No chafed hands. No strangulation. Waggy tail. Happy human. A real miracle.
The jury is out on whether the effectiveness will last - but so far so good. I figured that Frodo and I were well behaved enough that we wouldn't need one. Cough. Cough. But I DID see my human on-line looking at sizes. That better not be a Christmas gift. That's like giving a gift of clothing to a 4 year old. NOT cool. We'll see.
But for now - Elroy has FREEDOM. Actually the freedom belongs to my human...
Have a good one!
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