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So… Are Collars Actually Harmful to My Dog?

**Disclaimer: This article will primarily be discussing the side effects of walking a dog with a collar alone, not the side effects of fitting your pup with a collar for identification purposes.

Simply put, attaching a leash to a dog’s collar for a dog walk is almost always harmful. The side effects may not be easily seen at first, which is what I’ll be going over. I hate seeing young puppies toted along in the park with just a collar, and I hope this information can be used to educate those who may not know the risks!

When doing my research for this article, one of the most startling things I discovered was that paw licking is an extremely common warning sign that a pup is starting to experience a negative side effect. When dogs lick their paws, they’re treating a tingly sensation that’s caused from leg nerve damage. If a pup begins this habit, it’s best to look into their current walking fit and check if everything is fitted appropriately if you’re already using a harness.

Another common side effect is neck injuries. While using a collar to walk your dog is dangerous on its own, even more dangerous is leash training with a collar. Young puppies may not understand why they’re suddenly being yanked around, even though it seems obvious how we’d like them to behave on a walk. “Stay close to me, don’t jerk around, and don’t run up to other dogs.” The truth is, when the only feedback a pup receives is leash movement, they don’t understand what to change. Leash training with a collar can lead to severe neck injuries, and whiplash. This is why recurring commands help with training so much more!

Thyroid damage is also a large risk for dogs who use a collar. Human thyroids control so much in the body, and it’s no different for dogs. Most collars rest right where the thyroid is located, so the continuous stress can lead to an array of spooky side effects.

Harnesses allow the force a dog pulls on the leash with to spread apart, allowing for overall less negative side effects. Harnesses also offer customizability, based on a dog’s walking behavior– I highly recommend checking out my Top Three Harnesses post where I go over some of my favorite collar alternatives. (:

Happy walking!

Sources: https://bit.ly/3gMzbea

https://bit.ly/2YPSCwz

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Is My Dog Getting Enough Exercise?

On average, most dogs need between 30 minutes and 2 hours of daily exercise. This is variable depending on the dog’s breed and ancestral history, but most sources claim 30 minutes is around the daily minimum!

Keeping your pup well exercised can lead to toned muscles, encourage their body and metabolism to function at peak performance, stimulate their brain, promote good behavior and increase socialization!

As a dog owner, you know the importance of all these benefits. So, it’s equally as important to recognize when your pup is asking for more exercise.

Mischievousness can be one of the easiest to recognize. Chances are, if you’re coming home from work every day to find a newly destroyed roll of paper towels, or, the most fun, tipped trash cans, your dog is definitely needing some more exercise and attention! You can also try breaking up the time you’re spending on walks. Instead of one long walk after work, throw in a quick walk around the block before leaving for the day.

Since barking is a pup’s way of communication, they’re most likely trying to tell you something if barking suddenly spikes! If you notice your pup starting to be more vocal, this could be a sign of restlessness. Try and add ~15-30 minutes to your normal routine, and see if that helps lower the volume in the evening!

I had someone tell me once that dogs view their crate as their own little room. I’m sure you’ve seen dogs that immediately go to their crate when asked, and then there’s the dog that has to be told repeatedly and/or scooped up and led to their crate instead.

Part of your dog’s enjoyment of his/her crate is what that experience looks like. If you think about it from your own perspective, you wouldn’t mind too much sitting around in your own bed watching netflix all day. Same goes for your pup, they need things that they enjoy in their space. If you’re letting your pup out at the end of day to endless zoomies, try adding in a frozen kong, their favorite toy, a handful of treats before you leave, or one of their favorite blankets! This could help decrease pent up energy. However, if this consists even with atmospheric changes, chances are you may want to extend your walking time in conjunction.

Dogs are people too, and just like people they try and communicate what they feel. As a dog owner, it’s up to you to translate and deliver!

Sources:

https://www.1800petmeds.com/education/a210006.html

https://bit.ly/3kWbxPt

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Does My Dog Need More Exercise?

As a dog owner, you know the importance of all these benefits. So, it’s equally as important to recognize when your pup is asking for more exercise.

Dogs are people too, and just like people they try and communicate what they feel. As a dog owner, it’s up to you to translate and deliver!

Sources:

https://www.1800petmeds.com/education/a210006.html

https://bit.ly/3kWbxPt

Top Three Dog Harnesses

The Easy Walk harness is by far the most common harness I ran into. Mainly because it’s perfect for the mid-sized pup who wants to say “hi” to everyone! The harness works by not allowing the dog to pull forward without, in turn, swiveling themselves around. This is why the leash clips onto the chest! Even though it seems like it could get in the way, it really doesn’t! With tons of colors to choose from, you also get the added bonus of personalization! From my experience, this is a one size fits all harness that is always easy to slip on.

The Ruff Wear harness is great for dogs of the smaller variety, or those with a mellow temperament! These harnesses were recommended most by my former employer. Their soft sides and small amount of constraint work well for smaller pups, and medium sized pups who have already retired their puppy energy. They wouldn’t ever break on you, (trust me, a particular large golden doodle always put it to the test!), but they’re much more difficult to maintain control. The only downside is you could leave the walk with a red raw hand if your pup can easily overpower you. As I said before, there’s no constraint effect when the pup pulls, which is why I highly recommend them for smaller dogs.

The Freedom harness offers everything you could ask for in a harness, in one. It constraints when it needs to, the leash clips in the front and back, and offers a tremendous amount of control, without causing injury to the pup. However, it doesn’t distribute force well when a dog pulls throughout the entire walk . You could, again, leave the walk with a red ring on your hand from gripping the leash! However, if you run into this issue it’s easily resolved by clipping a collar above the harness, and attaching them both onto the loop link! It alleviated so many issues with a young puppy I was walking once the collar was introduced into our routine.