The Halti: Vancouver, BC

This 10 month old Bernese Mountain dog is not happy. He doesn’t like the leash around his nose, aka the Halti. It hurts his nose. The problem is that he’s only 10 month old and already a big guy. He pulls, he pulls hard.

The Halti works because dogs have a lot of strength in their neck and shoulders but they have no strength in their nose.

The problem is that both the lady and the dog are doing it wrong. I’m an ‘Halti expert’. I used the Halti for 15 years with my first dog. He was pulling harder than any sled-pulling dog. With the leash around his neck, he would choke himself to death and still keep pulling.

1. The leash must be short.
2. The dog must not walk in front but on the side of the person. It’s much easier to enforce that when the leash is very short.
3. When (not if) the dog pulls, pull sideways. The pull is not gentle, it’s not strong either, but firm. Just like Goldilocks and the three bears it has to be right. It’s a strong reminder.