# Gentle Leader-- does it leave a mark?



## floridabird

So my trainer suggested a gentle leader for our puppy. He's 3 months old. I've read up on it, seen plenty of threads here and read through those. 
I'm willing to give it a try, but my main concern is every so often I saw some folks talking about a mark it leaves. Tried to find more information, but haven't yet. Just wanted to know everyone's experiences-- I'd HATE to have a mark on my little boy!


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## blackshep

It rubbed my dog's face. That said, it does work, but my vet said they can damage the tear ducts and cause neck injuries.

Anyway, we're not allowed prong collars at training class, so I only use it there. Otherwise it's a flat collar or prong.


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## Blanketback

My trainer told me to use one too, but I didn't. My puppy jumped and lunged though, so maybe you don't have the same training issues that I had. My trainer was wrong to suggest it in my case, but she was taught that this was the only tool to use - she doesn't believe in the prong.


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## Chicagocanine

It can but I think it depends on the dog, and how frequently it is used, how well it fits, etc...
I used a Halti and it never left a mark. Some of the newer models are padded of the Halti, possibly the Gentle Leader may have a padded version also?

What are the issues? How about a front attach harness instead?


I also wouldn't use a prong collar on a young puppy...


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## Cassidy's Mom

You're talking about the GL head collar and not the GL Easy Walk Harness, yes? I don't see any reason why a 3 month old puppy would need the head collar, and I'm surprised that a trainer would recommend it for a young puppy. 

He's at a perfect age to train leash skills on a flat collar, but I do like front hook harnesses such as the Easy Walk and the Sense-ation (which I have) if you're having trouble with pulling. I found that my pups were a bit more aware of me at the other end of the leash in distracting environments when they were wearing the Sense-ation harness vs a flat collar, so I was able to get more rewardable behavior. 

I would not recommend a traditional harness with the leash connection on the dog's back - those can actually encourage pulling (think sled dog!).


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## Blanketback

What Chicagocanine said - I wouldn't use a prong on a 3 month old either. Just to clarify. But I did want to point out that a trainer can be wrong about which tool to use, so don't think just because they 'say so' it's the right choice. Not to knock your trainer either, lol.


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## floridabird

Well I was leaning towards no. He doesn't really have a bad pulling problem (he pulls a little bit, but stops when I remind him not to), no jumping or lunging and all.


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## blackshep

Oh sorry! I totally missed that it was a 3 month old pup.

Yeah, that's too young for a prong. You can try the GL, but be careful about fit, keep an eye on your dog for any rubs or that it's not going into the pups eyes and don't jerk hard on it. 

Otherwise it did work. My dog hates wearing it though. lol


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## SukiGirl

The gentle leader left marks on Suki's face and she hated the sensation. We'd walk 10 feet and then she'd flop to the ground and try to pry the darn thing off her face. We stopped using it. 

We were trying to get her used to something else because she was on the prong but started showing fear when we'd get it out for walks. Our first trainer had us put her on the prong way too early and I think it really effected her.

We really just amped up our training on a flat collar after trying the gentle leader and now she wears a martingdale.


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## Shade

I've used both the halti and gentle leader and much prefer the halti. It's padded and I like the self adjustment of the halti rather then the set fit of the gentle leader


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## Zeeva

Yes, I used to use it on my husky who pulled like a train wreck, even with a GL on, and it left marks on his face that didn't go away for a long time :c. I quit using it and switched to a prong...best decision ever! As blanketback said, my trainer suggested it and I listened to her. She was wrong...


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## Mikelia

I have seen the gentle leader leaves marks on dogs faces numerous times. Usually it is with overly rambunctious, bouncy puppies and the owner relies on the GL for management, but not real training is being done. So the dogs pulls as much as it can, which causes friction on the face and causes the hair loss. I have not seen the halti leave marks.
I prefer the GL for puppies though as it is much more adjustable and you can get away with a bigger size for the pup to grow into. I find the halti much more effective at controling pulling. And the easy walk harnesses work great too


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## Olivers mama

Ziva used to pull a LOT while walking. Trainer said to use the GL. So, stupid us, we did as we were told. It has left a permanent mark across the bridge of her nose. Her fur covers most of the scars left by previous owners. But the one I always see is the one we did - by that darn GL.

I don't like any of the head harnesses for dogs. Just IMO. And certainly at 3 months - I wouldn't be using anything other than a flat collar.


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## blackshep

BTW - my pup was really strong even at 3 months old, which is why we used the GL. We continued to work on leash respect, but even still, it's a work in progress.

Also, she gets very overstimulated by other dogs, so using a GL in out obedience class REALLY helped.

One thing that did help with the rubbing, was putting something called mole skin on the underside of the nose band. It's a soft material, with an adhesive on one side.

Still I only use the GL in places where I know there will be lots of other dogs or excitement. My pup is 6 months old now, so I've transitioned to a prong, which she's much happier wearing. It works well for us, but they are not for every person or dog.


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## pyratemom

I have used the GL to train a few dogs. It worked on most pups I tried it on, not Raina. There were also a few dogs in class that I noticed got rubbed spots but the hair grew back afterwards. Mostly the rubbed hair spots were due to trainer mistake. There was one dog that seemed to be allergic to the material the collar was made from and the owner sewed old terry cloth around the nose part which took care of that problem. I would not discount the GL as a training tool but it does not work on every dog. Raina was too hard headed.


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