What is a Gentle Leader Collar for Dogs?

What is a Gentle Leader collar for dogs? A gentle leader is a brand of head collar made by the company PetSafe. The collar is designed to reduce pulling in dogs by redirecting the force of the action. It has a loop that fits around your dog’s nose and the back of his head, like a horse’s bridle.

However, a Gentle Leader collar is not a substitute for training. In most cases, your dog will still show behaviors like pulling or running off as soon as you take the collar off. Proper positive reward training is a much better long term solution than aversive head collars like the gentle leader.

What is a Gentle Leader Collar for Dogs?

A Gentle Leader is simply one of many head collar brands for dogs. This particular brand was created by the pet company PetSafe. The collar is designed to fit over your dog’s head rather than around their neck like a standard collar. There is a loop that sits around your dog’s nose, and a second loop around the back of their head.

Rather than attaching at the back, your leash will attach to part of the collar at the front of your dog’s neck, underneath their muzzle. Overall, in appearance, the gentle leader looks very similar to a horse’s bridle. The Gentle Leader is often sold as a training tool that helps owners to control pulling in dogs, and to keep a dog to heel.

How Does a Gentle Leader Dog Collar Work?

PetSafe claims that the Gentle Leader collar will reduce unwanted behaviors like pulling on the leash, barking, lunging, and jumping. This product, like other head collars, aims to do so by redirecting the force of your dog’s pulling, or other movement. But, there’s no guarantee that your dog will stop showing these behaviors when the collar is removed. For instance, when wearing a harness that does not use aversive methods to redirect the force of the behavior.

With most head collars, the pressure from pulling is redirected from your arm to the back of your dog’s neck. This encourages your dog to pull back against the restraint, rather than forwards, to relieve the pressure. The Gentle Leader claims to redirect your dog’s head towards you whenever he tries to pull forwards, essentially turning him away from the direction he’s trying to go. In theory, this will discourage pulling.

Is a Gentle Leader Dog Collar like a Muzzle?

A muzzle is a product that covers your dog’s mouth, most often used to prevent dogs from biting or eating things they shouldn’t. This can be useful for dogs that are anxious or scared and prone to biting. Or those with health issues who could become very sick if they eat something they find whilst out on a walk. Some dog muzzles will cover your dog’s entire mouth, and others will just have a loop restricting his ability to open his mouth.

Gentle Leaders are designed to have a very different purpose to muzzles. The loop that sits around your dog’s nose on this head collar will not restrict their ability to open their mouth, and many dogs can still even pant when wearing a gentle leader. It’s important not to get the two confused. Especially if you have a reactive dog, or one with a health problem that requires a muzzle.

Is the Gentle Leader Dog Collar Comfortable?

Although we can’t ask our dogs whether or not something is comfortable, we can take a look at their reactions to things. The Gentle Leader dog collar is padded to try and give your dog as much comfort as possible.

However, studies have looked into dog reactions to head collars like this, with a loop around the nose. One found that dogs who wore a head collar like this displayed behaviors like pawing at their nose, biting the leash, rubbing their face, shaking their head, and rolling on the ground. This all suggests that dogs found this type of collar uncomfortable. But, the same study also suggests these reactions lessened over time. So, perhaps dogs get used to the collar and the feeling of the pressure on their nose.

Comfort and Aversive Training Methods

Head collars like the Gentle Leader are designed to make pulling an unattractive option for your dog, which is why they are classed as aversive. They pair the act of pulling with an uncomfortable feeling to encourage your dog to stop.

Aversive methods are rarely comfortable for our dogs, because they are designed to cause a strong dislike towards an action. So, even if the collar itself is comfortable whilst your dog is wearing it, or if they get used to it over time, it is likely very uncomfortable for your dog whilst walking. A more comfortable alternative is to train your dog to heel or to walk on a loose leash. But, this will take time and effort on your part.

Does the Gentle Leader Collar Work?

For some people, the Gentle Leader collar and other head collars can have great results. But, these results are usually only seen when the dog is wearing the collar. It doesn’t solve long-term problems such as poor recall or heel walking off leash. And, some people find that the collar won’t even work for on-leash walking. Some dogs, who are very determined pullers, may continue to pull hard, even with an aversive collar like this.

If you are struggling with leash pulling, heel walking, or recall, it’s a good idea to invest in the time to start training your dog. Ultimately, this will be the best method to stop your dog from pulling in ALL situations. Whether they’re wearing a head collar, or a normal leash.

Gentle Leader Collar vs Halti

Halti is another brand that sells dog collars and harnesses. When most people say Halti, they are referring to the head collar, which is similar to the Gentle Leader. Both are head collars designed to redirect the force of your dog’s pulling. They are very similar in shape and design, and both come with the same pros and cons.

If you’re considering choosing a Gentle Leader collar or a Halti head collar, you should consider what the problem is you’re trying to address, and the methods you’re using to deal with it. Head collars like this can help to prevent an issue in the short term. But, they won’t work for all dogs. They won’t fix the pulling issue in the long term, and they are aversive, so they are designed to make pulling unpleasant for your dog. In the long run, positive reinforcement training can help you stop the issue altogether and avoid aversive methods, which are uncomfortable for your dog.

Gentle Leader vs Body Harness

The Gentle Leader is a head harness, so it is naturally quite different to the many dog body harnesses out there. Whilst a Gentle Leader will have a loop around the back of your dog’s head and a loop around their muzzle designed to redirect the force of pulling, a body harness will usually just sit around your dog’s chest and shoulders. A standard dog body harness is not designed to redirect pulling, like the Gentle Leader. So, it will not associate pulling with a negative consequence.

How to Stop a Dog From Pulling

If you have a large, strong dog breed, pulling can be painful for you. And, in any situation, no matter what breed you own, pulling can make walks unpleasant and uncomfortable for you and your dog. So, how are you meant to stop it? For some people, head collars will work. But, they don’t stop pulling in all cases, and all head collars will associate pulling with an unpleasant consequence – which most of us don’t want for our dogs.

The alternative is to teach your dog to stop pulling on the leash, or to walk at heel whether they’re wearing a leash or not. This can be a long process – but the results are worth the effort that you put in. And, it won’t matter what age your dog is. Even an older dog can learn loose leash walking. Because it is such a large topic, we can’t cover it all here. But, here are a few links that will help you learn more about stopping the pulling problem:

• When Your Dog Will NOT Stop Pulling On The Leash!
• What Is The Best Leash For Dog Training?
• Why Does My Puppy Hate Walks
• Dogsnet Training Courses

Until You’ve Mastered Loose Leash Walking

Teaching a dog to walk to heel takes time and consistency in training. It isn’t something that can happen overnight. In the meantime, your dog will still need exercise. You have a few options here, which will hopefully save your arm from feeling like it’s being yanked out of its socket.

Firstly, you can consider types of exercise that aren’t traditional walks. Do you have a safely enclosed yard where you can play some energetic games with your dog, like fetch? If not, is there a dog park nearby? Or a dog field available for rent? Training offers some exercise, but it’s also important for our dogs to get the opportunity to run and stretch their legs. This type of exercise can be more satisfying and tiring for our dogs than a traditional walk anyway!

Another thing to consider is the safety of your dog. If you can’t find a safe, enclosed area to exercise your dog whilst you’re teaching them to heel, you will still need to walk them. In these instances, a head collar like the Gentle Leader may be necessary for your dog’s safety. Especially if they are so strong that they have pulled away from your grip in the past on traditional leashes. Or if you are walking them around traffic or other potentially dangerous places.

What is a Gentle Leader Collar for Dogs?

A Gentle Leader is just one of many head collar brands available to buy. For some people, it may help to stop the pulling issue. But for others it won’t work. And, it will always be an aversive method, as it pairs the action of pulling with an unpleasant consequence for your dog. If you’re interested in finding a long-term solution to pulling, no matter what type of harness or collar your dog wears, you should take a closer look at loose leash training, training a dog to heel, and positive reinforcement training.

References and Resources

• Haug, L. (et al), ‘Comparison of Dogs’ Reactions to Four Different Head Collars’, Applied Animal Behavior Science (2002)
• Ogburn, P. ‘Comparison of Behavioral and Physiological Responses of Dogs Wearing Two Different Types of Collars’, Applied Animal Behavior Science (1998)
• Bake, S. (et al), ‘A Systematic Review of the Biomechanical Effects of Harness and Head-Collar Use in Dogs’, Writtle University College (2019)
• Hunter, A. (et al), ‘Pressure and Force on the Canine Neck When Exercised Using a Collar and Leash’, Veterinary and Animal Science (2019)
• Ziv, G. ‘The Effects of Using Aversive Training Methods in Dogs – A Review’, Journal of Veterinary Behavior (2017)
• Hiby, E. (et al), ‘Dog Training Methods: Their Use, Effectiveness and Interaction with Behavior and Welfare’, Animal Welfare (2004)
• Schilder, M. (et al), ‘Training Dogs with Help of the Shock Collar: Short and Long Term Behavioral Effects’, Applied Animal Behavior Science (2004)