Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Sorry, that is the silliest thing I have heard. I will keep my dog collars. Properly used the dog is not gagging with a dog collar, pinch or even a choke.
I have seen more potential damage with a Halti and I am not going to put a harness on a big dog.
Do take them off when the dog is unsupervised so they cannot get hung by them in a freak accident and microchip and tatoo them.
Just living and breathing is a gamble. I gamble that my dogs are more likely to get out of our fenced yard and be picked up as a stray (and returned to me because of the tags with address and phone #) than have a freak accident with a collar and choking. Certainly a dog should never be left on a choke/pinch/martingale type collar even in the back yard.
Out where I live, because of livestock concerns, dogs without collars often get shot by farmers and ranchers - whereas they'll often give a dog with a collar a chance.
I take baths and showers, too, even though a slip and fall in the tub is one of the most common causes of accidental death around the house.
Neither one of my dogs wears a collar at the house...simply because with the humidity and them swimming in the pool, it irrates their necks. They are both micro-chipped. Should we step foot outside the door, they are collared. A halti is a royal pain in my opinion and harnesses just never worked for us.
My pugs are properly trained, therefore they do not pull, causing no stress on their necks. Last thing we need is yet another law to tell us what to do or not to do. At home they are without collars, but they are microchipped. So nope.. I'm not changing a thing.
Collars are also great or identifying dogs too, especially in small towns with no way to chip or read a chip.
I do prefer to walk Dakota on his harness though.
Location: The Frenchie Farm, Where We Grow 'em Big!
2,080 posts, read 6,937,269 times
Reputation: 1084
I like the harnesses for our frenchies. We found that it works better for the particular breed. Their harnesses are always off in the house. It's on for walks only.
I have huge issues with prong collars, choke chains and electronic shock collars. Simply won't use them, ever. Heck, I've had some really close calls with friends who think their dogs' stud collars and huge rhinestone collars are "cute"....meanwhile my bug-eyed Bostons are this close to having their eyes poked out. But I still would not want to see their sale restricted. Unless we can outlaw ALL bad dog owners while we're at it. Collars in the hands of inexperienced or cruel folks makes me cringe. But so does leaving pets outdoors in extreme weather, unmonitored tethering, people who don't spay and neuter, etc. Even if sales were restricted, uninformed owners will still find ways to drag and choke a pet. Decency and common sense can rarely be regulated. I wish!
As far as just regular everyday collars, there's plenty of break-away collars and other alternatives on the market. While they cannot prevent tragedy, they certainly can help reduce indoor accidents. And for walks/training, the amount of options out there is impressive and I pray that folks will be reasonable, do their research, and take a kinder and more gentle approach. Attempting to educate folks by offering opinions on which type of collar/harness and training method is the most successful, firm, and loving is probably the most proactive step responsible owners can take. Every dog is different, and not just one technique works. So an owner who has seen choke chains effectively and safely curb some behaviors, will likely not take appreciate me insisting that they're only one tug away from harming their pet. Warning is one thing, limiting sales of such items is another.
I have so many issues to worry about with my gang and I probably take more precautions than the average owner, due to what my DH calls "paranoia", lol, but on my long list of worries, collar accidents are pretty low.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
