I'm not sure how active these forums are anymore, signed up after I had another incident and really could do with some help!

I have a husky/malamute mix and he's now too strong for me to walk. Not only that, he's starting to cause himself huge health risks, no matter what harness, collar, halti you name it I get him, he backs out of it and shoots down the road. As soon as I open the door he bolts out, hurting my arm, and instantly backs out of whatever he's wearing and bolts off, even if I make him wait and calm him before going out of the door. Even if I manage to catch him and put it all back on, he pulls on the lead to the point I'm tripping over.
Because of the pulling I thought to get a halti, put it on him, attached it to the collar, had everything adjusted correctly, it almost seemed to work in the house he was walking about next to me and not tugging. Open the door, bolt > back up > escape and run.

I'm almost on my final straw. He's (Echo) is not my first or only dog, and I was well aware of the breeds habits and problems before I got him. But the issue now is it's unfair on him not to get the right amount of exercise he needs, and when he does go out, on the rare times I manage to by some miracle catch him before he escapes his restraints, it's a very stressful and un-enjoyable walk for us both.

I really need some advice on what to do. If I can get him to stop pulling like I'm a human sledge and bolting out the door like this He would be on long walks and hikes daily. I'm really worried that one day I'm going to try to walk him and he's going to get hit by a car or something and it breaks my heart. He's good as gold in every other aspect, it's only this :c

If anyone has any amount of advice I'm all ears, at this point I'm willing to try anything!

Welcome to the forum, we are pretty active, except on weekends, so you should get some more advice later today or tomorrow. I do know some people use a goat head halter, it works for the extra strong extra large dogs that pull hard. That may be an option. The other option is to work with a trainer that understands martingales or prong collars so you can learn the proper way of using those types of collars, since if used improperly can harm the dog, but tend to also be the only device that can be used to control pulling. I have never heard of any dog slipping a goat halter, martingale, or prong when used properly.

With my two, I've had very good luck with prong collars. I want mine to pull, so it makes walking them easy. Without, it's impossible. They are way too strong.

This site has invaluable information. Here's a start on prong collars:

https://thegooddog.net/training-videos/free-how-to-training-videos/learn-to-train-the-good-dog-way-intro-to-prong-collars-part-1/

https://thegooddog.net/training-videos/free-how-to-training-videos/learn-the-train-the-good-dog-way-intro-to-prong-collars-part-2/


Good luck!

With prong collars, make sure you get a good-quality one so that you reduce the risk of it popping open and your dog escaping.  Even so, it's good to have a backup.  To walk Misty, we use a combination of a prong collar and a martingale collar (prong up high on the neck, martingale lower).  The leash is hooked to the prong while the martingale is hooked onto the leash's hook loop with a strong carabiner clip on a strap.  That way, if the prong collar pops open, the dog is still restrained by the martingale/carabiner clip.  There's a thread on this forum showing how it's done:

https://www.itsahuskything.com/t3638-prong-collar-popping-open?highlight=prong+collar

Misty's prong collar HAS popped open a couple of times since we started using the carabiner clip, but she hasn't gotten loose again -- the backup attachment worked. The last time the prong collar popped open, Misty didn't even notice. She just kept on walking calmly, like nothing had happened.

Our boy walks on a gentle leader and it works wonders. The prong collars didn’t barely phase him at all. But my kids can walk him pretty easily.

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Hey pokepaws,

I was in a similar situation as you with my Siberian Husky. The worst was when he broke through my gate, and I spent 30+ minutes—to the entertainment of my neighbors—trying to get him back in the yard.

I am long past those days, and it was thanks to two points.

1. I taught him what the word NO, means.

2. I purchased the Educator E-Collar https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007RBDUTS/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I know some have issue with electric collars, but after working with Snowie, I am now at a point where he walks free with me. I rarely if ever need a leash anywhere. Even on busy roads, so long as he can hear my commands, I don’t have to worry. This particular collar has a vibrate function, so once you associate the word NO with a light shock (I would only use up to what I could tolerate on my bare skin) you can train any dog really to respond to just the vibrations. This of course depends on the breed/personality.

I now have both my dogs on this collar, and rarely, if ever, have to shock them. Vibration works to get their attention. Both are leash-less, and I have never had any close calls with cars, people, or other dogs.

If the E-Collar doesn’t sound like something you want to pursue, I can also recommend the Sprenger Chrome Plated Training Collar with Quick Release Snap. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009YUFMK/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This was what I used before the E-Collar and never had any issues with it. Strong and easy to use, while also being capable of getting through a thick fur coat without any risk in cutting/digging into Snowie’s skin. Each of the prongs is plated and smooth.

Hope this helps,

Our first Husky learned what stop, back, and no meant when I said the words. This took a while, but by the time she was about two years old, I would easily walk her, off leash! She was great, but it too a lot of work to get to that point, she was a struggle on leash the first two years. These breeds are very powerful.
Our new to us rescue Husky is only 50 pounds and can easily pull me off my feet!. I am still working her daily on our long walks in the woods to learn those three words mean, plus I am adding the word easy. I will be experimenting with a whistle. I have three types, and she does respond to one of them, where as our first Husky never responded to a whistle.
I am using a Kurgo harness and it works great at protecting Lola when she bolts at full speed and I don't move. I haven't tried the other types of harnesses, I want her to learn, not react to pain stimulus.

E collar training is also helpful. I use a 2 dog educator mini system with my guys. Of you do go the prong collar route, tbd been surrender is the way to go...but I don't recommend the quick snap. Reports are the small can bees unreliable. Instead, I use an aftermarket modification with a side release buckle. You can find one at leashes by design.

http://www.leashesbydesign.com/ProngCollars/ProngCollars.html

The good dog training and rehabilitation side also has excellent videos on ecollar training.

We have had great success with prong collars. It is the only way we can walk our younger male as he hurts both mine and my husbands shoulders and still in training. We used one with our girl and she did excellent, we only had to use it for about 3 years and now she is perfect on a leash.

I'm a fan of prong collars.....walking with one full grown and one almost full grown was really almost dangerous with all of the pulling. There are lots of great videos on how to use them correctly....I watched the videos from Solid K9 Training and they were a lifesaver. http://solidk9training.com/
We all enjoy our walks now! Good luck!!

My suggestion would be to find a trainer in your area to work with you on this problem, personally i would not go the prong collar route, it sounds like he is bolting out the door hitting the end of the leash and is off to the races because he has learned how to escape harnesses or collars. if hes on a prong, hes gonna bolt hit the end of the prong and depending on him and his personality you don't know what hes gonna do when he does that on a prong, he could hurt himself and/or you.
 
Do you have a fenced in backyard or any where that you can safely practice walking in and out of a door? If so, start in your home, practice getting him to sit and wait for you to walk through a doorway/door then call him through, get him to sit and stay while you close the door then start walking and call him to come with you, then high value reward for being a good boy (remember break this down to single steps and build up to the whole thing i.e. sit at door, stay sitting while you touch door handle or approach door, stay sitting while you open door) . Sometimes you have to convince them that whatever you have will be better than what else they are gonna get. Once yall have this down then practice at the safe door way and walking around your back yard, remember practice makes perfect and never get frustrated. If you get frustrated, end the session and try again later, frustration breaks down communication, and then its just every man for themselves. Also remember when switching from inside to outside, that the outside world is going to be a huge distraction so plan on him regressing at first, but if you practice a lot in the house, then it gives you a bunch of experience about what you want him to do and how he is suppose to behave.

   I love head collars and use one for my own dog, but it directs them by the head so you definitely want the bolting behavior to be worked on before trying a halti, again you don't want him bolting and being yanked around by the head, that makes me worry about an injury. Like I said a good trainer, would be my first step, but I know that trainers are expensive!
 
Good luck and happy training!

Hi Pokepaws!

Echo has never really been terrible at walking on leash, he just gets excited when he sees other dogs and when he's close to the dog park.  While relatively minor things, it was getting un-enjoyable for both of us walking on leash as you mentioned in your first post.  While echo is probably not as bad as your case I still share your feelings.

*********

Here's where I introduce the prong collar.  

I used to scoff at the idea of it.  Developed a bad taste, and thoughts of inhumane treatment of animals with them on.  Then I got Echo.  I have tried collars, harnesses, halti, easy walks, gentle leaders, treats, changing directions, walk&sit, etc...Pronged collars were literally the last thing I thought I'd ever buy.  Then I did two weeks ago after being exhausted of getting monkey arms and busting my knee up after he pulled me super hard one day while running with him after he saw a dog while turning a corner.  I literally was dragged a couple of meters before I just gave up and let go of the leash =P

I couldn't be happier.  The results were instant.  If you get a good quality pronged collar (i.e. Herm Sprenger really is the only one that should ever be considered), The prongs aren't painful at all as much as it applies GENTLE PRESSURE around their neck to snap them out of their excitable state of mind.  I don't know if you've ever noticed your dog starting to wheeze or get super short of breath because he pulls so much, but that's how Echo would be with a collar at times.  With the pronged collar, I actually feel safer using it, because he doesn't pull so hard and I don't yank as much as to actually cause him respiratory distress anymore.

A lot of people ask me about it at the park, and when I describe everything that happens to my dog and that it really only applies GENTLE PRESSURE they rethink their mentality around using one after seeing my results with it on Echo.  While you can't convert everybody it also helps that huskies have such a thick coat so the collar gets lost in all that fur and people don't even realize that you have one on  .  At one point, pronged collars were banned from use in our city until officials realized how much they actually are used humanely by many people out there including respectable trainers and service animals to teach and control their animals.  

As people mention here though, you do have to size it properly on your dog.  high on the neck just behind the ears is where it should sit.  It should be tight enough that it doesn't move while walking with it, nor should it be able to slip over his head.  I've done both ways where it's low around his neck vs up high behind his ears and the results are very different.  He pulls just as much when it's low around his neck vs heeling with it up high around behind his ears where he responds to it with just a small amount of traction.  

If after this huge post you feel comfortable trying it out, you can find some for relatively cheap on Amazon and if you feel extra uncomfortable with it you can also buy some rubber tips to put on the end of the prongs for more comfort.  But I find it really unnecessary and defeats the purpose of it if you use it and size it appropriately on your dog.

Best of luck! Let us know what ends up working for you!

Prong worked well for Lachlan. Haven't needed any corrections or had any yelps since the first 2 walks with it!

Another vote for the prong collar.
Correct use of the collar is not to snap it against the dog's neck.
His own motion against it causes the self correction.
It won't hurt the dog; the ends are blunt.
If you are worried, put it on your own neck and move against it.

My wife could not control Bodhi before the prong collar and he's a small husky of 53 lbs.
When she puts the prong collar on him, he walks politely next to her without pulling.

The more I read about prong collars, the more i convince myself that it would be good for Mars and us--I think I am going to try it.

I was thinking about this thread today on our walk. Lachlan is our only dog and he CRAVES the company of other dogs. Any dog he meets he wants to play with and pounce on. So when we pass another dog on leash he wants to lunge at the other dog and today this caused several self induced "corrections".

So in addition to helping with general leash pulling, I'm hoping he also learns not to lunge at every dog he passes.