# Sporn no pull harness



## marksteven (Aug 2, 2008)

Has anyone had success with the Sporn no pull harness with the padded leg straps. when i use a gentle leader, my dog acts like its a signal to pull. when using a Prong collar and corrections it doesnt help.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

I have not used it myself, but my friend has used it on her JRT mix. She encountered two problems - one, the harness rubbed underneath his armpits, and two, if there was enough slack on the lead, he could get both legs out of the harness. (Talented little dog.)


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## zad (Jul 17, 2008)

I just bought one for my 9 month old GSD. He stopped pulling from the first time we tried it just make sure you adjust the buckle strap then the ring where leash hooks up to must be also be adjusted. If it is adjusted properly and having the right size it should never come off. Good Luck


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## Sherush (Jan 12, 2008)

Yes we use it and it works well with Jesse. And we use it with a 26 foot retractable lead and it doesn't interfere with that lead retraction, and if he hits the end it slows him down and we don't get a huge jolt like before, now he seems to very rarely hit the length.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

> Quote:Yes we use it and it works well with Jesse. And we use it with a 26 foot retractable lead and it doesn't interfere with that lead retraction, and if he hits the end it slows him down and we don't get a huge jolt like before, now he seems to very rarely hit the length.


Not to take this thread off topic, but I have a question. The Sporn harness is designed to prevent a dog from pulling so you can work on good leash manners. A retractable leash encourages pulling by extending when the dog pulls against it. Wouldn't using both together really confuse the dog?


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## LisaT (Feb 7, 2005)

> Originally Posted By: Historian....Not to take this thread off topic, but I have a question. The Sporn harness is designed to prevent a dog from pulling so you can work on good leash manners. A retractable leash encourages pulling by extending when the dog pulls against it. Wouldn't using both together really confuse the dog?


Great point. It also might cause extra pain?

My husband used one on our GSD before we met -- I often wonder if that's where some of his shoulder and armpit pain and problems came from. Used to be that Max would lunge through all kinds of pain, regardless of equipment used.


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## Sherush (Jan 12, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: LisaT
> 
> 
> > Originally Posted By: Historian....Not to take this thread off topic, but I have a question. The Sporn harness is designed to prevent a dog from pulling so you can work on good leash manners. A retractable leash encourages pulling by extending when the dog pulls against it. Wouldn't using both together really confuse the dog?
> ...



Nope doesn't cause pain. Both together work great. It is not to cause pain... it just prevents them from moving forward if they are going to pull hard (which he has now stopped from pulling when he see something he really wants like my sister-in-law's dog in the middle of the park or another neighbors dog). On a light pull like from retractable it doesn't do anything, but if in a run and charging it stops him in his tracks at the end


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

I have used the Sporn harness with several very strong foster dogs and a dog I petsit and it works great. I petsit for a Lab who is a very strong puller, he is over 100 lbs of muscle (not overweight, just huge and stocky) and I tried every other training collar and harness I could think of, but none of them worked. Finally I tried the Sporn and I was able to walk him without being dragged along. If I could train him I would but I only see him when his owners go on vacation.


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## Riley's Mom (Jun 7, 2007)

I found one at Walmart that is very similar to the Sporn and tried it and it didn't have any effect whatsoever so that went back to the store. Found some better luck (for Riley) with the Gentle Leader Easy Walk harness:

http://www.sitstay.com/dog/supplies/serv...ge_13272_13977_

Nissa does better on collar very similar to the Gentle Leader. She hates it but she walks better on it. After looking it up, I found some really informative info that I didn't have before and it's possible I don't have it fitted quite right, so I'll work on that and maybe she'll like it better.

I'm thinking if I could find a way to attach the collar to the harness loosely at the point where the leash attaches to the collar, I might be able to make-shift something that really does work totally for them both.


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## floridahutch (Nov 1, 2008)

The Sporn harness is a thumbs down for me.

I have a 90-lb. 2 y/o male GSD rescue who's a strong lead-puller with a low arousal threshold. We've been working together for 3 months and I've tried a martingale collar, a gentle leader and the Sporn harness. We primarily rely on the head collar which we started using on the recommendation of our OB trainer. The gentle leader works well but, I'm trying to wean from it, both to prevent any potential cervical problems and because people so frequently mistake it for a muzzle. The sight of a head collar on a large GSD seems to create more fear and anxiety in uninformed folks and, most folks do seem to be uninformed. 

I find the Sporn difficult to get on and adjust properly. Even after I think I have it fitted well initially, he's often able to back out of it with movement/jumping when we actually start walking. I then have to re-adjust it so tightly it seems overly restrictive and uncomfortable for him. The fleece sleeves you position to cover the narrow straps that go under the front legs don't stay in place well while we're walking and one always manages to slip off completely when I remove the harness. These straps also seem too narrow and, so tight when the harness is fitted snugly, it seems they could cause a rubbing or pressure injury with regular use. It's also a pain to try to re-thread the narrow strap through the fleece sleeve to get it back on when one falls off. 

We're working on calm polite behavior before starting our walks so the worst part for me is, by the time I get the harness fitted and adjusted "properly", he's overly aroused and hyper and we're back to square one. It does prevent pulling but is much too problematic. Have put it aside.

After a lot of reading and talking with a member of the rescue group, I'm going to put my reservations aside and finally try a Herm Sprenger prong collar for my big teenage doofas. My goal is still to eliminate a "training" collar eventually. A CGC looks pretty far away...


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## matildacroley (Feb 22, 2009)

i used a prong collar and it does work if you use it properly. we have since put it up and no longer need it, which i thought was impossible.


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