Martingale collar-Opinions

I have a martingale lead that I use for Tyler as his working lead and I love it.  He does too.

I use them all the time!!  I love them.... like others have said, it's definitely not for every dog, but, super handy especially in a situation where the dog can slip a collar.  I love the sight hound collars on my dogs, I just think they look perty!!

Any tool can be missues and as others have mentioned, not all people or all dogs should have these.

For Tyler, it's really great because he accidently learned that the martingale was for work and for him, there is a trendous change in behavior and attitude when he wears it.  With a regular lead, he's a regular dog, with the martingale lead he is "therapy dog extraordinaire"!

Jewlieee

They are required for all foster dogs in my rescue group. Too many rescues get spooked and slip their collars. Martingales are life savers for that. Literally. For training, they don't do anything for me. I see them as a dont slip the collar tool rather than a correction tool.

What she said!!!

I've had so many dogs ditch collars -- and with a martingale they don't.  Now the pug can't wear a collar and Cavaliers have a potential neck defect I don't want to annoy so neither Charlie nor Tink wear collars but when there's a collar to be worn, it's a Martingale for us.

My dogs wear them as their normal collars.  They don't wear any other style.  They are not used as training collars - training is done through training - not through any tool.  Most of my training is done off-leash, and when it is done on-leash, it is due to laws only, or because the competition is done on-leash and the leash is a distractor (say, Novice-level Rally-O, for instance).

 I don't think any collar should be called a training tool. A collar's purpose should be to hold ID tags. Period.  ALL collars, IMO, are management tools, and require the training (ie - eventually training withOUT that collar), to be truly effective.  For those collars used as "training tools", once that collar comes off, most often the training magically is removed too.

True "training" (ie learning) doesn't come from any special collar, because a "trained" dog should be able to do it naked.

 I started using one when Toots was a pup because she loved to back out of her collar. Fast forward 7 years, she wears one on walks because I love them.

I love martingales.  I used to use them, almost exclusively, until I fell in love with fancy leather collars.  I use a pretty, leather, chain martingale on Cher, as the only dog that we have who enjoys slipping her collar. 

Thanks for all the comments!

Kim, I agree with you 100%!

 I can see where fosters/new dogs would need them to be safe. Marley doesnt need one due to slipping his collar, his buckle collar right now is so loose that it slips right over his head and he is very well trained and we do all his work off leash too so I dont want one for training. Call me weird, but I just thought they were very purty too and found what I thought was a good deal on one at a local pet event and bought it.

What I have noticed with Marley though (and he may soon get over it) is it seems he is scared of the noise of it. I never yank on it or anything, just the sound of it when he stretches to look at something and the chain tightens and then releases...lol makes him try to look back like "what the"?

I have only used buckle collars and slip leads, so its never had a chain. He doesnt seem to really be bothered by the noise, more startled. Do you think he will get used to it?

ETA: He doesnt routinely wear a collar either so its not like he will wear it for a day or two and be good by day 3. The only time I put a collar on him is when we go somewhere or on a walk.

I've only used the all fabric martingales. I can see if he's never heard that type of noise before, though, it may take some getting used to! But I don't think it would take too too long. 

Even though you don't leave collars on him normally (I don't either, only when the dogs leave the house), you could put it on him when you're home and supervising so that he gets a little more exposure to it by wearing it a little more often for a while, till the noise becomes habituated.   That's what I do with my pups, so they get really used to it.