# Fitting a prong collar



## malinois_16 (Aug 8, 2010)

Okay, I never liked prong collars. I will be the first to say that. I bought one years ago and used it a few times, didnt like it and put it away. Now I have been reading up on them and decided I want to use it for training again. I know how to use one, I used to work with a trainer with my previous dogs. But I am having an issue getting over how high it needs to sit. 

I was told it had to sit right up behind the ears, but wouldnt that hurt their throat?

I also have a different prong then I am used to. Mine has flat tips.








Are these okay? or should I get a rounded tip one? I dont really want to as they cost $20 here but will if its suggested. 

Also, I have been getting mixed messages. Any pet store I have called said I need to be able to slip it over his neck and it needs to sit low like the pic below with 7 links in it









Then the trainer I used to work with I recall him using them right under the ears like the below pic with 6 links in it









I was concerned about his throat being hurt, this is right under the ears but where it sits under the neck in a delicate area









Anyone care to help? I dont need to use a safety collar with him as his recall is solid.


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## Good_Karma (Jun 28, 2009)

I've seen a lot of people recommend the Leerburg site for how to properly fit a prong.

Leerburg | How to fit a Prong Collar

Sorry, I can't help any more than that, I've never used a prong.


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## Todd (Sep 6, 2004)

The trainer I worked with said it needed to be high on the neck like the second and third pics. 

I understood her that since the prong distributed the correction around the whole neck, it was a lot better for the dog than a choker which only put force on the front of the neck.

I'm pretty sure it should not be able to slip over his neck. My trainer was pretty firm that there should be minimal slack in the part of the collar that is not prongs (if that makes sense...i.e. minimal slack in the chain part of the collar).

The version I had made you put the collar on and off by taking apart a link. I think there are some versions that have some sort of clip or something.

I used the prong for walking for Heidi's whole life if we were walking near traffic. My trainer made an interesting point. "Even if she has a great recall, if you have to use it, then she did leave your side in the first place." OK, got it ;-)


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## Sunstreaked (Oct 26, 2010)

We also just went to a prong collar and it is working AMAZINGLY well!

Eva was fitted high up on the neck (your 2nd and 3rd pics) and it was NOT supposed to slip over her head. We clip it on every time (I believe it's one of the quick release ones). 

Here's the weird thing I didn't expect: It has made me much more aware of the signals I'm giving my pup. I don't want to jerk her anywhere and I find I'm verbally communicating what I want and VERY gently doing it with the lead. She is not lunging like she was after lizards (omg, we have a gazillion lizards everywhere!) and my face is no longer in danger of once again meeting the gate post. 

Our trainer told us the prong was to be "self-correcting" and that made me aware of watching how the pup responds to the prong. The difference in walking her on the lead is just so great and I'm now whacking the back of my own head for waiting so long!


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## lhczth (Apr 5, 2000)

The pinch should never be loose enough to slip over the head of the dog. It should sit fairly high and snug (not so tight it is almost impossible to put on). No, it will not hurt their throat if used corectly.


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## malinois_16 (Aug 8, 2010)

I have to take apart a link to put it on. it will not slip of his head. I want to use it to correct a couple behavoirs he is having that are starting to peeve me off. Once I stopped using the prong the last time these behavoirs got worse. So, I want to go back to the prong collar. 

One behavoir is how he greets other dogs by stalking them. He isnt aggressive when he does this, he just crouches very low when walking up to them like hes trying to make himself invisible. I dont want him to do that. 

The other one (thanks to the shih tzu that kept attacking him) he has become a bit more reactive with other dogs. Before, he would wait for the other dog to react lunging, barking etc before he would but now he seems to know thy dog and will react prior. I dont want him reacting at all. I dont blame him for reacting to an aggressive dog, but it makes me look bad so this has to stop as well. 

I basically want him to ignore other dogs as we walk by. He was doing so good, till I switched back to a flat collar then he sorta was like oh haha you cant correct me on this thing so **** you. I dont like this attitude and it will come to an end. 

I find I have been slacking and he has been sliding back because of me, so I need to pick it up for him. 

On the collar can I leave those little black nubs on there or should I take them off? I dont like the quick release collars only because if I am going to correct him and it gives out that correction is kind of pointless. He is NOT aggressive so I have no concerns about his reactivity getting up to aggression if this prong ever gave way, I just want him to ignore.


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## tintallie (Aug 6, 2008)

If you have the Herm Sprenger prong collar, the tips of the metal links are rounded and not flat. I do not use the rounded rubber tips on my prong collar and I have the basic one where you have to pinch a link in order to place and remove the collar on the dog. The Leerburg site has a very good illustration for where the prong collar should sit, and it should not slip over your dog's head.

Have you tried working on focus with your dog when a neighbourhood dog is nearby? I still work on this too, but my trainer had shown me that if you see something that could ramp up your dog that you get your dog to "watch" you and reward that behaviour.


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## jmoney (Jul 21, 2010)

Good job on the fit! I see so many people that have those on wrong


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## LuvMyDog_Worldwide (Jul 23, 2011)

The Leerburg site is a good resource for fitting a prong collar, but the picture of the doberman wearing the collar high up is a very bad angle because it looks like a garotte and I know people who have fitted them way too tight after seeing that pic. Being too loose isn't ideal, but being too tight is worse because the collar can't release, it's a permanent correction and that won't teach the dog anything. Having the collar right tight behind the ears isn't necessary either, that's just a preference, anywhere on the top half of the neck will work fine.

The collar has chisel cut ends, I'd recommend the plastic caps because they're notorious for scratching the skin. I see the links have been unclipped from the loops and the top prong moved down the collar so the prongs can be reversed in the middle like the HS Ultra Plus collars, that must be affecting the flexibility on that section.

regards,

LMD


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## WarrantsWifey (Dec 18, 2010)

I've always put it high on the neck with one less link so it sits up there on its own. You need less correction and get more effect that way.


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## LuvMyDog_Worldwide (Jul 23, 2011)

WarrantsWifey said:


> I've always put it high on the neck with one less link so it sits up there on its own. You need less correction and get more effect that way.


 
If you want to keep the collar in place, lift your lead hand higher or use a shorter control lead.....there's no need to have the collar so tight it doesn't move 

No-one actually has the definitive answer to this question, trainers and owners experiment with the collars and find what works for them. Someone told me once a collar that's too loose is the worst thing you can have, I've used a 23" prong collar on a 17" neck and it worked just fine, I just had to keep the tension on the martingale to remove the slack and be mindful of the dogs movement. Takes a lot of concentration but it can be done, it's simply easier with an adjusted collar.


regards,

LMD


regards,

LMD


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

malinois_16 said:


> I have to take apart a link to put it on. it will not slip of his head. I want to use it to correct a couple behavoirs he is having that are starting to peeve me off. *Once I stopped using the prong the last time these behavoirs got worse.* So, I want to go back to the prong collar.
> 
> ...
> 
> I basically want him to ignore other dogs as we walk by. *He was doing so good, till I switched back to a flat collar then he sorta was like oh haha you cant correct me on this thing so **** you. I dont like this attitude and it will come to an end*.


Thanks Malinois_16, I was seriously considering trying a prong on Bear. Will not now. No help on how to fit them, as I don't use them.


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## malinois_16 (Aug 8, 2010)

selzer said:


> Thanks Malinois_16, I was seriously considering trying a prong on Bear. Will not now. No help on how to fit them, as I don't use them.


Selzer what is the point your trying to make because I am not seeing it. Its up to you to decide if you want to use a prong collar not me.

Anyway, when theres a distraction like a dog trying to lunge at him no matter the distance he cant focus on me. I can throw a 5 pound steak in front of him and he will not focus on me. This is the reason I wanted to go the correction route with a prong collar.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

LuvMyDog_Worldwide said:


> Someone told me once a collar that's too loose is the worst thing you can have, I've used a 23" prong collar on a 17" neck and it worked just fine, I just had to keep the tension on the martingale to remove the slack and be mindful of the dogs movement. Takes a lot of concentration but it can be done, it's simply easier with an adjusted collar.


How do you give a correction if you are constantly applying tension? Why not just fit it correctly rather than needing "a lot of concentration"? I would not be able to even use a prong collar on my dog if it were 6" too large because that would mean the martingale part is always as tight as it can be leaving no room for an actual correction, only room for me to pull or the dog to pull which is exactly what I don't want.

I don't like them fit too loose because they get caught more easily. Also when fitted too loose, I've had the links come apart while the dog is at rest (yes with a genuine Herm Sprenger). When the collar is fitted correctly it stays in place closer to the skin so there's not enough slack for as many things to catch, and there is just enough tension to keep the links from sliding apart.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

Didn't you say you used to breed malinois? And you say you worked with a trainer with them? So why on earth would you call and ask a petstore employee how to fit a prong?


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

malinois_16 said:


> Selzer what is the point your trying to make because I am not seeing it. Its up to you to decide if you want to use a prong collar not me.
> 
> Anyway, when theres a distraction like a dog trying to lunge at him no matter the distance he cant focus on me. I can throw a 5 pound steak in front of him and he will not focus on me. This is the reason I wanted to go the correction route with a prong collar.


Exactly what I said. Your post, the highlighted parts have encouraged me not to go that route with my young dog. She will be two in March, has had some pretty fragmented training, and pulls like a freight train. I have considered trying a prong on her, but if it will only mask the issue until I put a martingale back on her, then it does nothing for me, because I know for a fact that she is smart enough to differentiate between collars. Would she blow me off like the second highlighted point? I don't know. I know that her current pulling is simply being excited to get wherever we are going, and if I remind her, she will let up. But if I use a forceful technique with her, she may require that force down the line. 

I have plans for the bitch that include more than just not being dragged down the street. I might consider a training tool as a temporary measure, but it sounds like this one might backfire. I cannot use a prong collar with what I want to do with her, so I do not want to raise my level of compulsion to that so that she does not raise her level to require that. 

My post was not attacking your choice to use a prong collar. I HAVE a prong collar, two of them. I find them unnecessary if I put the work into the dog, so I have not used these on my current dogs. You have different dogs, and are a different person, and there are different issues.


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## malinois_16 (Aug 8, 2010)

Rerun said:


> Didn't you say you used to breed malinois? And you say you worked with a trainer with them? So why on earth would you call and ask a petstore employee how to fit a prong?



How does me breeding Mals have anything to do with a prong collar? The trainer that the breeder hired used shock collars. The trainer I used for my previous Shepherd used a prong. I wasnt sure if its suppose to fit high on the neck or low on the neck as I have heard different opinions and thought I would ask here. I have also seen this trainer use it high and low.

Dont like me, dont post on my threads with a statement that doesnt even help what I was asking to begin with.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

It has to do with prong collars because typically a person who is a responsible breeder of a breed like the malinois has experience with working dogs in active sports such as schutzhund, and therefore typically know how to use a tool as common in the working world as a prong. Also, you stated that your trainer fitted your dog previously, so I was confused as to why you were calling up petstores and asking how to fit them. And it didn't make much sense that you think it would hurt the dogs neck given that, again, you stated you had experience with a trainer who fit your dog, so one would think you had used the prong and learned that the dogs neck wasn't hurt. 

Don't know why you're being so sensitive wondering who likes you and who doesn't. My post had nothing to do with anything other than the prong and some inconsistencies that made me wonder.


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## malinois_16 (Aug 8, 2010)

Rerun said:


> It has to do with prong collars because typically a person who is a responsible breeder of a breed like the malinois has experience with working dogs in active sports such as schutzhund, and therefore typically know how to use a tool as common in the working world as a prong. Also, you stated that your trainer fitted your dog previously, so I was confused as to why you were calling up petstores and asking how to fit them. And it didn't make much sense that you think it would hurt the dogs neck given that, again, you stated you had experience with a trainer who fit your dog, so one would think you had used the prong and learned that the dogs neck wasn't hurt.
> 
> Don't know why you're being so sensitive wondering who likes you and who doesn't. My post had nothing to do with anything other than the prong and some inconsistencies that made me wonder.


I wasnt a trainer. I worked with this breeder in certain areas. I wasnt really involved in the training. Also, I called pet stores before I ever bought my first prong. This was years ago, I was recalling what they told me. I was concerned about him being hurt because he has yelped when being corrected and it wasnt even a hard correction. I never had a dog yelp before when using one. 

I already know theres a few members out to make me look bad, that is just obvious.


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## sagelfn (Aug 13, 2009)

If you are dealing with a reactive dog in my experience corrections don't work. Clicker, treats, time are the only things I have found to improve reactivity. You should read Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt. I used the Look at that game in the book and have had great results.


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