I wasn’t sure today what my blog post was going to be until I was on my way home. I get inspiration from questions people ask, an idea comes to my mind or maybe something I see, which was the case tonight. On my way home I saw a lady walking her younger Pit-bull & I saw she had it on what is sometimes called a no slip leash like this: https://amzn.to/43qpJcp I don’t recommend them for walking a dog, I’ll explain in a moment the only times I recommend or used one. They can be dangerous because these leash gets tighter & there is nothing stopping it from choking or putting undue pressure on a dog’s neck/throat. When I was in rescue we transported dogs & we received a lot of dogs from transport. These dogs were new to us & many had been thru a lot, so for safety reasons we would use no slip leashes when getting a dog out of a crate at transport, until we could get them safely into our vehicles. A strange dog could be frightened & bolt & run & that could be dangerous. Sadly I heard of times where it happened & the dog was gone or hit by a vehicle. Vets also use them to prevent an escape, but not used to walk a dog any farther than is necessary to know they are safe from the risk of running off.
I believe the reason some people use no slip leashes or choke collars is because their dog’s neck is bigger than their heads. Sadly they don’t know the dangers of using these devices, or that there is a safer option. Both my dogs have smaller heads then necks & if wearing a regular flat collar, they can slip out of them very easily. So both my dogs wear martingale collar, also have been called no slip collars. The difference from a Martingale & a choke chain is that a martingale collar only goes so tight & stops. So you adjust it so it sits loose on the dogs neck, but if pulled forward towards their head it will tighten just enough to keep from coming off. There are a few options of martingales collars, wide ones are usually used for Greyhounds dogs due to their longer necks. There are ones with snap closures (metal or plastic), ones that slip over the head & have no closure. I use one like that when I go camping as Echo has pulled when someone ran by with a dog & Echo darted after them. His collar snapped, so glad he listened when I yelled stop, & glad I had an extra collar with me. That was his 1st camping trip with me & he had only lived with me a couple months. Some options for Martingale/no slip collars are: https://amzn.to/4i9ieud I have used this one for my dogs(Hunter currently has one like it) . This next one has a chain on part, but only goes so tight, so won’t hurt the dogs neck: https://amzn.to/3FV5eKV This next one is one that doesn’t have a buckle, it slips over the head (the type I now use when Echo is tied out on a lead when camping or on vacation): https://amzn.to/41Pq07B This next one is the type I use for Echo daily because it has a metal buckle & due to his strength he has broken a couple ones with plastic buckles. https://amzn.to/442K87w I also like the last one because you can have your phone # printed on the collar. I don’t put my dog’s name on their collars, if my dog ever went missing & was found, the finder only needs to know what # to call to give the dog back.
When purchasing a Martingale collar, please be sure it only tightens so it won’t slip off their head if they pull away (in reverse), but the collar won’t continue to tighten, these collars are meant to prevent choking.
Dr Nicholas Dodman, Author of The Dog Who Loved to Much, & a Professor & Director of Tufts University of Veterinary Medicine was part of a University level research project that showed the misuse of choke collars “can” cause thyroid damage. More research has shown that thyroid damage can contribute to aggressive behaviors. A German study found that 48 out of 50 dogs had neck & spinal damage after NORMAL use of choke collars.
When my first dog Sam, first saw an Integrative Vet, he diagnosed him with neck & spinal damage that he firmly believed was caused by misuse of a choke chain (not from me, but previous owners). Sam had chiropractic treatments to help his neck & spine. When he was about 7 years old or so he started acting aggressive towards other dogs, which was so out of character for Sam (he was my 5th foster & I also adopted my 50th foster). I found out he had a thyroid condition, it took some research & a blood work sent to a special clinic to get his diagnosis. Sam was thin & dogs usually gain weight with thyroid issues, so my Vet was not sure it was his thyroid till test came back & confirmed it was. He was treated with natural medicine to help thyroid & in time he returned to his normal friendly self. In the interim I started to foster caged pets. I really think he experienced some seizures due to his neck & spinal issues & aggression due to the damage from previous choke chain use. There was no doubt Sam had some rough times first 9 months of life before coming into my life. This photo below is of Sam with a foster dog named BiBi.
Thank you for reading & I hope you took away something new from this post. Please share my blog with friends, family & on social media to help me get the word out. Likes, comments & subscribing (won’t get spam, just notices when I post) also helps get the word out. Please come back soon & also read my other posts, my table of content page can be found on my main page (click on 3 lines on upper right). My goal is to inform, educate & help owners so their pets can thrive. If you have questions feel free to comment or email me directly at echoinggreatpetcare@gmail.com Thanks, Debbie
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