Dutch Shepherd Forum

I have been really wanting to get a collar for Merlin that has a handle on it. I like the look of them and the control would be nice when strays start running at us barking like maniacs. (They tend to stop when they see Merlins mohawk and teeth!) He does really well on walks and only pulls in the situation above. The only second thought I am having to the collar is most of them that Im finding are 2 inch wide collars. I don't mind this, but Im worried about the effects of his pretty fur. He has such pretty tuffs of fur around his neck and Im afraid a 2 inch will mess them up. Any suggestion on collars that are best for a ds, but won't mess up his fur? I have seen the round collars, but don't really like the look. Will a collar even mess up his fur? Ive seen several people that just keep the choke chain on, but what if it slips off. Any suggestions would be helpful

This is for others to answer, but are you referring to an aggitation collar (2" with handle)? I suppose you aren't, though, as it sounds that your intent is to leave the collar on as THEE collar he'd wear.

As for chokes, they really aren't good for any dog.

You're training him to not focus on other dogs, yes?

Yes, Im trainging him to not focus on other dogs, would the pulling on the handle excite him more you think? Yes again to the aggitation collar, I was thinking of only using it when I walk him just to have an extra handle. I did find some fur saver collars on the internet though. I think that is probably what I will go with.

http://leerburg.com/fursaver.htm

Or if you are looking for a "handle" a martingale collar might work for you.

This is the collar I have on my K9 and my other two dogs for "everyday" wear, its a Nylon/Nylon martingale, and you can use the one section as a handle and it will still tighten to keep the dog from slipping out of it. I still use a prong for walking (leash attached) but can grab the nylon collar if i need to hold him close.

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... Id=2751399

I like the petsmart collar. It would be interesting to hear others as well. Thalie never wears a collar except when I go out so I dont have a fur problem with her, but Sadie has the flat collar on and a prong for walks.

I tried to edit my post, but it timed out..

I do have an aggitation collar with handle, but its soo bulky I don't even use it in bite work

my K9 rarely has a collar on in the house, but my parents belgian has her martingale on all the time, it helps my mom grab her when needed, she is very reactive at times (abused rescue dog)

for tags I use a small show choke,
http://www.bowwowshop.com/Merchant2/mer ... H/SAF20GLD,
it doesnt mess up their coat, doesnt look like they are wearing a collar, and if for some reason they break the collar I am walking them with, they still have their tags

Regardless of the dog, mine have always worn flat collars 24/7 without any disturbance to the fur. A collar may get tightened another notch (or by another homemade notch) when going out, but it's not kept that securely othewise.

With some dogs, any pressure to the neck can put more drive in a dog, especially if an aggression is triggered (my present dog), some with it's while on prong....depends upon the dog, past handling....

WorkingK9 wrote:my K9 rarely has a collar on in the house, but my parents belgian has her martingale on all the time, it helps my mom grab her when needed, she is very reactive at times (abused rescue dog)

Boaz is quite the brat, so I put a martingale collar on him when we go outside. When he was really young, he learned he could slip out of the other kind, and took advantage of that. I was at Petsmart last weekend, they don't put the martingales in my store.

Now that we are in agility, I'm going to have to buy a tab so I can grab him quick and get out of the ring. I'm guessing my dog is probably shorter than some of your dogs.

thank you all for the ideas I like the martingale