Small Dog Harnesses

I have a 7 month old cavalier King Charles spaniel/poodle mix. She's 8 pounds and her body is built just like a poodle, with long legs and a trim body. Our problem is that she pulls like a monster. Yes, we're working on it but I despise when people allow their little dogs to pull on their leashes and harnesses. Many companies don't make no-pull harnesses in small enough sizes for the little ones, just regular harnesses that protect their little necks but allow and encourage pulling. Does anyone know of any no-pull harnesses for little dogs. Her neck is 9", girth is 14.5", chest is (roughly) 4.5" (it was very hard to measure, she kept wiggling around).

We have tried on or bought:
Freedom
Ruffwear (we just ordered it last week and I can fit my whole hand in the XXS around the chest)
Sporn (couple different style)
There are a couple of others but I don't remember
K-9 doesn't make one for dogs under 10 pounds which is unfortunate

She has a shortish nose, she's 8 pounds so it can't be too big. She also has been this weight for about 2 months so she isn't going to be bulking up too much.
I'm willing to pay up to $50.

 

I will see if my hubby can find my catalog I can’t think of the name of. They have odd sizes (my problem was an oversized Rottie) and even have a couple they’ll do custom. I’ll be back.

 

I will see if my hubby can find my catalog I can’t think of the name of. They have odd sizes (my problem was an oversized Rottie) and even have a couple they’ll do custom. I’ll be back.

Thank you! It's like when I'm shopping for jeans, it must be nice to be 5'5" and 130 pounds. Not so nice if you're any other size. Oh to be average!

 

I haven't used any harnesses personally but I do have some advice for working on the pulling... These are tips from the guide dog agency I raise puppies for and I've used them on my own 2yr old dog and she walks like an angel now.
1. If you're using a retractable leash- get a different type!! The tension from the leash on the collar puts unnecessary pressure and makes the dog stressed, which makes them pull more. There shouldn't be any pressure on the leash in an ideal situation.
2. Make the dog stay with you. That means only take like 1 step or so, using a very short leash, and wait for your dog to realize "we aren't moving" and come back to you. Remember to keep the leash short and let her start to pull, but don't move your body. The idea is that by doing this she'll figure out that in order to move forward (what she wants) she has to walk without pulling (what you want). Give your dog time to think it through and reward her for good behavior (walking nicely, staying next to you). Dogs are smart so just let her figure it out but also give her clues (gentle tug on the leash) if you've been standing in the same spot for 2 minutes.
3. Go slow. You might only get 5 feet in 15 minutes. That is 100% okay- as long as you are consistent and stick to making her walk how you want her to, she'll figure it out. It just takes time and a lot of patience. If you do a short walk and allow her to get the rest of her energy out elsewhere, it lets you stay consistent with the training until she can walk nicely the whole time.

Lots of my fellow guide dog raisers have had success with gentle leaders (the kind that goes around the nose), I just got lucky and didn't have a horrible pulling problem. With my guy doing step 2 (we never had retractable leashes to begin with) fixed his pulling. Feel free to PM me if you have more questions or just want step by step help!

 

I haven't used any harnesses personally but I do have some advice for working on the pulling... These are tips from the guide dog agency I raise puppies for and I've used them on my own 2yr old dog and she walks like an angel now.
1. If you're using a retractable leash- get a different type!! The tension from the leash on the collar puts unnecessary pressure and makes the dog stressed, which makes them pull more. There shouldn't be any pressure on the leash in an ideal situation.
2. Make the dog stay with you. That means only take like 1 step or so, using a very short leash, and wait for your dog to realize "we aren't moving" and come back to you. Remember to keep the leash short and let her start to pull, but don't move your body. The idea is that by doing this she'll figure out that in order to move forward (what she wants) she has to walk without pulling (what you want). Give your dog time to think it through and reward her for good behavior (walking nicely, staying next to you). Dogs are smart so just let her figure it out but also give her clues (gentle tug on the leash) if you've been standing in the same spot for 2 minutes.
3. Go slow. You might only get 5 feet in 15 minutes. That is 100% okay- as long as you are consistent and stick to making her walk how you want her to, she'll figure it out. It just takes time and a lot of patience. If you do a short walk and allow her to get the rest of her energy out elsewhere, it lets you stay consistent with the training until she can walk nicely the whole time.

Lots of my fellow guide dog raisers have had success with gentle leaders (the kind that goes around the nose), I just got lucky and didn't have a horrible pulling problem. With my guy doing step 2 (we never had retractable leashes to begin with) fixed his pulling. Feel free to PM me if you have more questions or just want step by step help!

This is how I’ve alwat taught my babies! And like you said, they’ll learn. I never trained the dogs, I taught. Love and patience. They want more than anything to please you. Let them learn how. Awesome post!

 

I’m actually going out today to get a gentle leader. We had one for our shepherd, I didn’t realize they made them for small dogs.

The worst part right now is the consistency, my daughter walks her and isn’t always consistent. For medical reasons I’m not going to take this time away from her. It just makes training harder and take longer.

 

I’m actually going out today to get a gentle leader. We had one for our shepherd, I didn’t realize they made them for small dogs.

The worst part right now is the consistency, my daughter walks her and isn’t always consistent. For medical reasons I’m not going to take this time away from her. It just makes training harder and take longer.

Understand completely. Life gets in the way on occasion. Let us know if you find what you’re looking for? Please? Hubby is still going through the catalogs. He’s a never throw anything away kinda guy.