Hey Woofa’s,

It’s never too late to train your dog.

It’s no secret that I mistook Billy’s anxiety as just being over excitement when we were out on walks.

He jumps around and plays tug-o-war on his lead and half the time I’m not sure whether he’s hating his walk or enjoying it.

Hating it because he just wants off the lead and to run without being restrained.  Or just full of anxiety that he can’t wait for it to be over so he can come back home.

Our Dog Trainer Neighbour pointed out to me that while we were talking Billy didn’t relax.  He wouldn’t take treats and seemed on edge, that’s how the anxiety came into it.

She said it’s best to try desensitising him to the whole walking process.

Affiliate links are in this post.

DESENSITISATION!

Desensitisation is where you slowly re-introduce the ‘thing/action’ that gets your dog anxious.

For example –  we put Billy’s lead on before we go on the walk.  He starts to whine and we wait until he stops.

Then we sit on the veranda, if he gets worked up there, again we wait until he’s calm (or as calm as he can be).

Only then do we go for a walk.

The below video is of Billy walking and playing up.

Please Note – I do not blame Billy for his behaviour this is on me for not catching it earlier and recognising it.  But I have now, and we’re doing something about it for him.

On not so great days he’s like that most of the way so we generally cut his walk short.

Recently he also got so worked up because he saw our neighbours dog out walking he got out of his lead.

Needless to say I was on the search for a new harness (one he can’t get out of) and lead.

DOG FRIENDLY COLLARS!

I recently came across Dog Friendly Collars (their ad is also down the side of my blog if you’re interested in looking them up) on line.  I read reviews and searched, and spoke to another customer who has an American Staffy who pulls a lot on her lead.

She had one that connected at the front and the back and mentioned how it’s much easier to walk her.

So I thought OK done deal I went on-line and purchased Dog Friendly Collars – Training Strap Harness and Long Lead.

We still do the desensitisation process for Billy and will continue to do so until he’s calm from the word go.

However you tell me if you can notice the difference in Billy’s behaviour on his walk from the previous clip to the clip below.

Might I add this is only his first go with the Friendly Dog Collar – Training Harness and Lead.

We couldn’t believe the immediate change, he still had a few goes at the lead but that was it, what’s on the clip is all he did.

We will definitely continue to use the Friendly Dog Collar – Training Harness and Lead.

REVIEW!

Friendly Dog Collars have a wide range of collars, harnesses and leads for dog’s with all sorts of issues.

Even those who are subjected to Breed Bias, can have Friendly written down their harness and lead so other’s know they are good to mix.

Whereas for those who need their space from other dogs there are collars and leads for them too.

I find it was money well spent where Billy is concerned.

I speak to a lot of dog owners who struggle to walk their dogs because all they want to do is pull their arm out.

The quality of the lead and harness is great as well.  Both are nice and thick quality with no chance of Billy chewing through them : )

The Friendly Dog Collars come in colours that represent their needs.   The sizes are great too.

At first I thought the Extra Large for Billy was going to be way too big, but there’s plenty of room for adjustment.

It would be too big for smaller dogs however they do have a variety of other harnesses and leads for smaller dogs.

They have colours appropriate for behaviour and needs as well.  I could go on BUT GO CHECK THEM OUT – FRIENDLY DOG COLLARS.

With more practice and more walks I know Billy will be on his way to enjoying his walks in no time.

Billy would Like to Know in the Comments Below – What you think of Friendly Dog Collars?

Cheers