# My Heart Literally Stopped



## marshies (May 18, 2011)

The worst possible thing imaginable happened yesterday.

Amaretto was walking out on a prong that we just fitted to address some behavior issues. We were walking on the sidewalk right outside my house, located at an busy intersection at the downtown of a small city. Somehow, when she pulled a little on the prong, one of the links CAME LOOSE. She ran from the side walk INTO the busy traffic both ways. We have just started restrained recall, and we both SUCK at it. So naturally, she wagged her tail and thought it was the best game ever. Traffic stopped both ways and she was just running rampant on the road. At one point, she ran slightly under the front of an SUV, and the SUV decided, "oh, no dog on the road, must be safe to start driving now". I screamed like in the movies "puuppppyyy". And I guess the driver must've seen the horrific look on my face and stopped.

I ran across the street and into an empty lot slightly fenced with cement blocks. Luckily, pupper followed me in. About 10 pedestrians came and helped me block off the little gaps between the cement blocks and help grab her as she bolted around. She thought it was the best game ever. Someone helped me grab her collar as she was running, and I immediately hooked her back to her flat collar. We went to the pet store, and got a tab for her prong instead.

The prong was just a quick thing I bought at a local pet store. One of the links came out again when I was correcting from the tab. Needless to say, I am NEVER going out with that prong as our main collar again.

This is a lesson on the importance of recall and the importance of buying quality equipment.

Thanks to the people of Kingston for stopping in the road, and for helping me catch her.


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## bianca (Mar 28, 2010)

Oh that must have been terrifying :hugs:

I use a Herm Sprenger prong and have had a link come apart but I always use a fur saver collar as well. Both are attached to the lead.


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## Mrs.K (Jul 14, 2009)

OMG, my heart was pouncing when I read your story. Get a good prong. I got all of mine from tractor supply, none of them ever came loose, never lost a link. 

I am so glad nothing happened and that the traffic immediately stopped. That doesn't happen every day. 

If you go out, have both collars on your dog and two leashes. Never just one leash, always two.


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## BlackPuppy (Mar 29, 2007)

How scary for you! Its a good thing there were people around to help you. One thing my obedience instructors always teach when something like this happens is to, lay face down on the ground and make crying noises. Puppy will come over to see what new game you are playing. 

I hear sometimes prong collars break, but I can't imagine how. The ones I have are so hard to get on and off the dog in the first place.


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## BlackCat (Sep 22, 2011)

OMG! How frightening! I'm so glad all turned out well for you and the pup. I totally agree with you about quality equipment, too. I have used Herm Sprenger collars for years and never had one fail on me. Give Amaretto an extra hug from me.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

very scarey for sure! You can also put TWO collars on her, one prong and another like a martingale, attach the TWO to your leash with a coupler, this way if the prong goes as in your situation, the other one will hold..


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## bianca (Mar 28, 2010)

Mrs.K said:


> OMG, my heart was pouncing when I read your story. Get a good prong. I got all of mine from tractor supply, none of them ever came loose, never lost a link.
> 
> I am so glad nothing happened and that the traffic immediately stopped. That doesn't happen every day.
> 
> If you go out, have both collars on your dog and two leashes. Never just one leash, always two.


Mrs K, is it not ok just to have the two collars hooked to the one lead? That is what I do but should I not?

ETA: I have the fur saver as a back up.


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## Miss Molly May (Feb 19, 2010)

Thank god he didn't get hurt!!!! I made the same mistake of not attaching Molly's prong to her flat collar once when she was a pup. We had the chance to play the not so fun game of "catch the puppy"


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## Mrs.K (Jul 14, 2009)

bianca said:


> Mrs K, is it not ok just to have the two collars hooked to the one lead? That is what I do but should I not?
> 
> ETA: I have the fur saver as a back up.


How do you hook a prong and a flat collar onto one lead? With the tandem system? 

I'd take two leashes instead. You don't constantly have to use the prong and can let the leash hang through and only pick it back up when you actually need it.


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## marshies (May 18, 2011)

Yes. I immediately went online to look at Leerburg's coupler and Herm Sprenger collars. 

I think I might be taking mine off and on a bit wrong, because one of my links can almost come off if I just pull straight out. How to fix?? Its the dead link linked to the little rings on the side too. I'm thinking of just keeping this until a new prong comes. 

THANK GOD she also had her flat collar on. I left the flat on just to check that the prong stays where it's supposed to be (high and far away from the flat). People were able to grab her by the flat. OH MY GOD. Can you imagine trying to catch a wiggling 6 month-old WITHOUT a collar?!


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## bianca (Mar 28, 2010)

Ok thank you  I just use the dead ring on the prong and hook the fur saver through the same clip on the lead. So the prong is in the right position but the fur saver is just there in case the prong fails.

I will try 2 leads tomorrow thanks!


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## Miss Molly May (Feb 19, 2010)

bianca said:


> Ok thank you  I just use the dead ring on the prong and hook the fur saver through the same clip on the lead. So the prong is in the right position but the fur saver is just there in case the prong fails.
> 
> I will try 2 leads tomorrow thanks!


2 leads seems like it would be a pain in the butt!! I use a 3 inch strap with clips at each end! One end clips to the prong and the other to the collar


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## Daisy&Lucky's Mom (Apr 24, 2011)

Ok I had to start breathing again before I could post . So glad you got Amaretto back and people were willing to stop and help.


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## pyratemom (Jan 10, 2011)

I have witnessed this exact thing with prong collars. We learned from the very beginning to use prongs in tandem with fur saver collars. No need for two leashes if the fur saver is loose enough not to interfere with the prong. I found with holding the leash, clicker, and treats, two leashes was too difficult for training purposes.


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## marshies (May 18, 2011)

Miss Molly May said:


> 2 leads seems like it would be a pain in the butt!! I use a 3 inch strap with clips at each end! One end clips to the prong and the other to the collar


Now, this， is fine fine idea.


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## marshies (May 18, 2011)

bianca said:


> Oh that must have been terrifying :hugs:
> 
> I use a Herm Sprenger prong and have had a link come apart but I always use a fur saver collar as well. Both are attached to the lead.


Thank you. YES, immediately came home to the Herm Sprenger website. It was TERRIBLE. I just stood at the sidwalk not sure if I should walk towards her or not since she ran whenever I did. We weaved through that area on the road SEVERAL times before I ran into the lot so she could chase me.

What size and material did you get?



Mrs.K said:


> OMG, my heart was pouncing when I read your story. Get a good prong. I got all of mine from tractor supply, none of them ever came loose, never lost a link.
> 
> I am so glad nothing happened and that the traffic immediately stopped. That doesn't happen every day.
> 
> If you go out, have both collars on your dog and two leashes. Never just one leash, always two.


I can't juggle both leashes unless one is a waist leash, so it;ll have to be prong on tab, and leash on flat. 

Thank you for the suggestion though.



BlackPuppy said:


> How scary for you! Its a good thing there were people around to help you. One thing my obedience instructors always teach when something like this happens is to, lay face down on the ground and make crying noises. Puppy will come over to see what new game you are playing.
> 
> I hear sometimes prong collars break, but I can't imagine how. The ones I have are so hard to get on and off the dog in the first place.


I couldn't take my eyes off of her. I was TERRIFIED. I will remember that for next time. I'm almost kind of glad I've dropped her leash once when we were on a small patch of grass away from the main road and I ran the opposite direction and worked, so I know that this mostly works. 

BUT OMG.



BlackCat said:


> OMG! How frightening! I'm so glad all turned out well for you and the pup. I totally agree with you about quality equipment, too. I have used Herm Sprenger collars for years and never had one fail on me. Give Amaretto an extra hug from me.


Extra hug given. :wub: Thanks, I'm ordering. What size and material did you get?



JakodaCD OA said:


> very scarey for sure! You can also put TWO collars on her, one prong and another like a martingale, attach the TWO to your leash with a coupler, this way if the prong goes as in your situation, the other one will hold..


I am thinking of a coupler, the tab is dragging on the floor alot. It's especially disgusting when she squats to go potty. I worry that her bladder muscles get just a TAD stronger and squirt just a TAD further. ugh. TMI. Sorry.



Miss Molly May said:


> Thank god he didn't get hurt!!!! I made the same mistake of not attaching Molly's prong to her flat collar once when she was a pup. We had the chance to play the not so fun game of "catch the puppy"


Catch the puppy is just the WORST thing ever. Thanks for the comment!


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## Miss Molly May (Feb 19, 2010)

Miss Molly May said:


> Thank god he didn't get hurt!!!! I made the same mistake of not attaching Molly's prong to her flat collar once when she was a pup. We had the chance to play the not so fun game of "catch the puppy"


 
Sorry I called her a he again!!!:hammer:


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## shaner (Oct 17, 2010)

Good to hear that everything turned out okay. 

I'm from Kingston. What intersection was your dog loose by, just out of curiosity? Also, what pet store did you get this collar from, so I know to avoid it. 

If you're ever looking for a play date for your dog, just message me. I have quite a bit of land and have 2 GSD's (one is still a puppy). They both love other dogs and have wonderful temperaments. It beats the risk of dog parks.


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## Heidigsd (Sep 4, 2004)

I am glad that Amaretto is ok :wub:

I use a HS prong collar but one of the links still came apart on me. I always use a back up collar like this: Leerburg | Dominant Dog Collar™

I just saw that Leerburg now also has a prong collar leash: Leerburg | Leerburg's Prong Collar Leash™

Michaela


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## 1sttimeforgsd (Jul 29, 2010)

Glad that you were able to catch your baby before something terrible happened. I just use 1 leash hooked up to a prong and a choker, the choker is just incase the prong would malfunction. He also wears a flat collar when out and about, when he is home on the property he is naked.


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## msvette2u (Mar 20, 2006)

We used this on our last GSD's collar, it makes a huge difference.

Ella's Lead - Oscar's Attachment

Even if one breaks the other is secure.


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

Marshies-I'm so glad your girl is ok....talk about heart stopping! 

I have never had my prong collar come apart (have a HS) but I will be getting something as a backup because of this thread. Thank you to everyone that gave suggestions


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## marshies (May 18, 2011)

Courtney said:


> Marshies-I'm so glad your girl is ok....talk about heart stopping!
> 
> I have never had my prong collar come apart (have a HS) but I will be getting something as a backup because of this thread. Thank you to everyone that gave suggestions



Courtney, I am so glad you'll be getting a back up. That was exactly my hope in Sharing


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

I have Leerburg tabs that I use like this: 



















If the prong comes apart, the dog is still connected to the leash. No need for two leashes, no need for another collar since my dogs are already wearing their flat collars with tags anyway. Leerburg came out with the prong collar leash after I already had their regular leashes (which are GREAT!) and matching tabs for both dogs.


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## robinhuerta (Apr 21, 2007)

*I just nearly threw up.....my heart is still pounding, and my hands are shaking....*
*I gotta walk away from the forum right now.....*

*Marshies....I cannot EXPRESS how relieved that I am that you caught her, and she and you were not harmed.....*


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## Jelpy (Nov 8, 2009)

I'd always thought I was being excessively cautious using two leads. Guess I wasn't. Thanks for sharing. 

Jelpy


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

msvette2u said:


> We used this on our last GSD's collar, it makes a huge difference.
> 
> Ella's Lead - Oscar's Attachment
> 
> Even if one breaks the other is secure.


I just ordered this one. Thank you, msvette2u


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## Caledon (Nov 10, 2008)

I do what Cassidy's mom does. Had a quick release come undone due to my fault for not fastening it securely. We were just walking and it came undone. She didn't even notice. 

Glad your puppy and you are both ok.


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## Wolfgeist (Dec 4, 2010)

That is exactly why Hunter's prong is coupled with the fursaver, hooked to the leash. He wouldn't run from me though, perhaps if there was a squirrel, but I've called him off those plenty of times. You never know what can happen, accidents are easy.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

All part of the game of learning how to raise a pup. We all make mistakes... glad she's ok. As much as we'd like to all be perfect... these type of things can and do happen. Live and learn.


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## marshies (May 18, 2011)

robinhuerta said:


> *I just nearly threw up.....my heart is still pounding, and my hands are shaking....*
> *I gotta walk away from the forum right now.....*
> 
> *Marshies....I cannot EXPRESS how relieved that I am that you caught her, and she and you were not harmed.....*


I still shudder thinking about it.

Luckily, running away from her still solicits a "chase" response from her.


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## jcojocaru (Nov 8, 2010)

marshies said:


> I still shudder thinking about it.
> 
> Luckily, running away from her still solicits a "chase" response from her.


That's what I do when Max wants to play tag but I'm just trying to catch him. I run away and it ALWAYS works for me lol. 

Anyway, I'm glad I read this thread. I was thinking to get a pronged collar for Max and now I know to get a coupler as well.

Glad things worked out for you, it must have felt terrible (and probably embarrassing) as it happened.


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## middleofnowhere (Dec 20, 2000)

Bottom line (which I am starting with!) All's well that ends well. Now work to do.

With my last pair, I taught them to sit whenever the lead dropped. That worked.

Quality prongs come apart - part of that is because I lack the strength in my thumbs to open them unless I modify them a bit. You can fix the links back by using a pair of pliers to bend them back to where they belong. I have a quick connect HS prong that I use often. 

But - any system can fail you. The thing to do is to work on your commands so you have your control when you need it. Figure out what it is that gets your pup/dog to do what you need to have it do and be ready to implement that.

My last truly stupid move was having my dog in a long down on my street (short, lightly trafficed street). So when I saw a car coming, I ran back to my dog to release her (with me in heel position & her in a sit!) instead of calling her to me! (She'd have come in a heart beat.) I just knew I was supposed to really minimize calling her out of her downs...and ironically that was what stuck in my head right then. [Not always the brightest bulb around !]


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## BUBBAGSD (Jul 16, 2010)

*use the coolar.*

hi marshies

i'm glad to hear amaretto is safe, we have a number of sprenger collars in the house, the one we like the most is the 14 inch light weight collar. When we bought the collar we purchased extra links, so that when our pups get older and bigger we could still use the collar. They are also harder to see in a dog with a thicker coat and easier to hide under a bandana, as a lot of non dog people dont like the look of the collar.


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## marshies (May 18, 2011)

Cassidy's Mom said:


> I have Leerburg tabs that I use like this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Cassidy's mom, thank you for the pictures. They are tremendously helpful.



Wild Wolf said:


> That is exactly why Hunter's prong is coupled with the fursaver, hooked to the leash. He wouldn't run from me though, perhaps if there was a squirrel, but I've called him off those plenty of times. You never know what can happen, accidents are easy.


Amaretto and I just started working on recall. But yes, the prong is on a tab now since I only use it for a very specific purpose and correction and don't need it on leash all the time. She is hooked to a flat. I am almost tempted to hook her onto a second flat, but that seems slightly excessive.



Lucy Dog said:


> All part of the game of learning how to raise a pup. We all make mistakes... glad she's ok. As much as we'd like to all be perfect... these type of things can and do happen. Live and learn.


Yes. Learned a tough tough lesson. SO THANKFUL that she is okay. Robin is probably having some serious second thoughts about me though.


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## marshies (May 18, 2011)

middleofnowhere said:


> Bottom line (which I am starting with!) All's well that ends well. Now work to do.
> 
> With my last pair, I taught them to sit whenever the lead dropped. That worked.
> 
> ...


Unfortunately, I don't have the training skills (yet) to even figure out how to teach that. So Amaretto's collar and leash system must be fool proof right now. Thank you for the suggestion, I will definitely UP the training so that at least one of her commands is bullet proof. I think any distraction command would've worked in this situation and prevented her from bolting straight into traffic, or at least BACK into traffic.



BUBBAGSD said:


> hi marshies
> 
> i'm glad to hear amaretto is safe, we have a number of sprenger collars in the house, the one we like the most is the 14 inch light weight collar. When we bought the collar we purchased extra links, so that when our pups get older and bigger we could still use the collar. They are also harder to see in a dog with a thicker coat and easier to hide under a bandana, as a lot of non dog people dont like the look of the collar.


Thank you for the precise sizing suggestioN! That is REALLY helpful. The numbers and sizes really mean NOTHING to me when I see them on the online store.


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## TrickyShepherd (Aug 15, 2011)

... I would have died right there on spot.... 

I am sooooo glad you caught her and everyone stopped... What a scary situation!

Both my shepherds have prongs, but I also have a small black nylon collar attached. This way if the prong snaps open, I still have them connected to the collar.

However, soon, the SO and I plan to buy two Leerburg prong leashes. They are amazing! Such an awesome idea! 

Anyway, hope there are no more scares with that!! Glad everyone is okay! 

(Btw, both my prongs came from Petsmart, and I have NEVER had them open up while being used. I'm just paranoid and take all precautions... but, they are excellent, never had a single issue!)


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## Syaoransbear (Sep 25, 2008)

Gosh, that is so scary. I had something similar happen with my dog, but I grabbed his tail before he ran into the street. He was just on a flat collar and he pulled the D ring out of the collar. It's definitely a heart pounding moment. I was so scared I forgot he even had a recall and I never even tried calling him :blush:.

I'm using a Secret Power collar now, and one thing that I like about them is that I don't need to worry about prongs coming undone. While it has never happened to me, I hear these stories about them coming undone pretty frequently.

This is one of Chrono's:








You can see that if a prong did manage to come undone, the collar wouldn't come undone and it would actually still function as a prong since they are individually hooked into these black elastic thingies that hold them in place.


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## DFrost (Oct 29, 2006)

It's just "smart" dog handling to use a back-up collar when training on the prong. 

DFrost


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## KingsCastle (Jul 20, 2010)

Glad your puppy is ok! Looks like you have plenty of collar options. Have you spoken with your trainer on recall commands?


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## robinhuerta (Apr 21, 2007)

Marshies......I still believe that you are a wonderful owner, and will be a good handler, once you have experienced help to guide you!
I'm just grateful that you BOTH were not harmed.


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## Mrs.K (Jul 14, 2009)

It's not even her fault. I've seen the prong thing happen first hand with a friend of mine. It was a quick release and she didn't do anything wrong and yet, as soon as the dog pulled into the prong it popped and fell off. 

I don't like those quick release prongs.


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

Mrs.K said:


> It's not even her fault. I've seen the prong thing happen first hand with a friend of mine. It was a quick release and she didn't do anything wrong and yet, as soon as the dog pulled into the prong it popped and fell off.
> 
> I don't like those quick release prongs.


I don't even think Leerburg sells them anymore. I considred one until I saw Chris Wild post they create a weak point from use and I passed.


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## Wolfiesmom (Apr 10, 2010)

My heart was pounding reading your story! That is one of my worst fears with Wolfie. I have him on 2 collars, one leash. The prong and a choker collar for back up. The choker is the only thing I could find that would work with the prong. Never thought of using 2 leads.


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## GregK (Sep 4, 2006)

Mrs.K said:


> It's not even her fault. I've seen the prong thing happen first hand with a friend of mine. It was a quick release and she didn't do anything wrong and yet, as soon as the dog pulled into the prong it popped and fell off.
> 
> I don't like those quick release prongs.


I use them exclusively and never had one fall off at the clip.

I don't get it; are people not making sure the clip is closed all the way?


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## Mrs.K (Jul 14, 2009)

GregK said:


> I use them exclusively and never had one fall off at the clip.
> 
> I don't get it; are people not making sure the clip is closed all the way?


The clip was closed.


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## Gwenhwyfair (Jul 27, 2010)

I've never actually had a prong/link fail but the quick release clip, yes.

Leerburg has a pretty good explanation on the problems they've seen with them, even with experienced handlers.

Leerburg On Demand | Why Leerburg Will No Longer Sell Quick Release Prong Collars



GregK said:


> I use them exclusively and never had one fall off at the clip.
> 
> I don't get it; are people not making sure the clip is closed all the way?


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