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Originally Posted by lovsthosebigdogs
Have you tried a Gentle Leader collar? I know that labs are big and strong and also that Gentle Leaders look like muzzles but they are not. They are a tool for you to gain control of a dog that wants to go her/his own way when you walk. The idea is that where the head goes, the body will follow. The collar comes with instructions and maybe even a video (Not sure about that). Dogs are usually not thrilled with it at first but once they get used to wearing it it's not a problem for them and it makes it much easier for you to control them. My brother in law was complaining that his 1 year old mostly pit bull mix was dragging him all over and pulling his arm out of the socket. I visited him and brought the GL collar with me. After less than 5 minutes his dog was walking perfectly next to me. He didn't like the look of it and refused to use it so his dog is still dragging him down the street. The collar goes over the dogs muzzle with a strap but the dogs get used to it pretty quickly if you stick with it. Good luck. You can get them onliine or at PetSmart.
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You can get them much cheaper on ebay than in the stores. All the guys in our family were dead set against the gentle leader, and I was the only one using it on our golden. Finally my husband tried it and was amazed at how much easier it was to walk the dog. Then our son (football tackle) was visiting and wanted to take the dog out for a walk. I "made" him take the leader along. He had switched to it within two city blocks.
The only problem is rude people asking you why your golden is wearing a muzzle. It's really nobody's business, but I get tired of explaining.
Oh, and the initial trick with training the dog to the leader is KEEP MOVING!!! In the beginning, as soon as you stop walking to talk to someone, the dog will drop to the ground and start trying to wriggle the thing off of his snout. This only lasts a couple weeks. Much better to keep him moving. I ignored the instructions to have him wear it around the house, because he just kept trying to paw it off of himself.
Good luck!