Adult dogs who tend to pull on leashes and puppies should not be walked on a collar. Collars can pose potential health issues and, in some cases, also create behavior problems. Instead, use a harness when walking your dog on a leash (a collar is okay for off-leash time).
Health reasons why walking a dog on a collar and leash is a bad idea
Collars put pressure on the dog’s neck and trachea. The neck is a very sensitive part of your dog’s body. It’s especially dangerous for dogs who pull or lounge on the leash, or for puppies since their body is still developing and is more fragile.
Health problems associated with using a collar and leash are neck vertebrae problems, trouble breathing, coughing, respiratory issues, collapsing trachea, worsening spinal problems, or orthopedic diseases.
Certain breeds are especially at risk: toy breeds (chihuahuas and yorkies), dogs with flatter faces (french bulldogs and pugs), and long-bodied breeds (dachshunds). Always use a well-fitted harness with those breeds.
The collar creates neck pressure which results in discomfort and trouble breathing
Dogs who pull or lounge on leash are in constant discomfort due to collar pressure
In my experience with dogs, any pressure on the neck area would create a drive and make a dog who pulls pull even more. Vicious circle! If your dog is young and energetic, curious about everything or not yet trained to walk on leash politely, they will pull on the leash most of the walk. For an hour’s walk, it means they will experience a long discomfort in the neck, limited breathing, and sometimes even choking.
Choosing a harness over a collar is not only better for health reasons but is also more humane. Why let our dogs suffer? Even if your dog is a strong puller, the harness will disperse pressure over a wider area of the chest, shoulders, and upper back. A dog’s chest is much stronger than a dog’s neck! (After you switch to harness it is not a bad idea to book some training sessions with a dog trainer, leash manners can be achieved with few sessions!)
A collar is NOT okay when your dog pulls on a leash
Collar pressure can create unwanted behavior problems
If your dog is experiencing neck pain or trouble breathing because of collar pressure, we can’t expect good behavior from them. Think of the day when you had a migraine, cramps or stomach ache – how nice you were towards people around you or how motivated you were to perform your work? Probably not so much.
And now imagine your dog lounging on a leash and barking at another dog: they bark because they are probably scared or heightened, and we add a restrain and neck pressure to this mix. Discomfort and stress will make the dog pull the leash even harder, hence even more discomfort or even pain, maybe even choking at some point.
And we expect our dog to stop barking and just chill? Not happening! Not only will the dog not stop pulling or barking, but they actually gonna act even worse with time. Since now they are now only barking because they are scared, but also because they have a strong connection of being choked while meeting other dogs.
A negative connection like that is hard to break and will require a lot of training (hire a force-free trainer who doesn’t use a choke collar, since choking your dog doesn’t really solve the issue); and the first step would be to buy a high-quality no-pull harness* and start work on leash manners and leash reactivity.
Dog’s neck is a sensitive area and should be treated as such, use a harness when walking your dog
Learn more about collar vs harness debate from a vet’s perspective
Recommended Dog Walking Harnesses:
Brands of harnesses that have proven their quality and versatility: 2Hounds Design Freedom Harness, Blue-9 Balance Harness, Haqihana Harness, Ruffwear Front Range Harness, Petsafe Easy Walk, Sensation Harness.
Disclosure: Links to products marked with * might help the author of this article to earn commissions from qualifying purchases; the author of this article is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program.
You can learn more about my favorite dog harness in the article below:
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