prong?

I see nothing wrong with a prong collar, provided it is fitted and used properly.
 
BTW, I absolutely love your area of the country.  Are you a rich horse person or, perhaps, a poor horse person, like me?  []

I use a prong on one of my dogs.  I tried everything else first, but the prong was the only thing that worked for her.  It was that or no walks.

You could use a prong, but my preference, especially with a young pup, would be to use an Easy Walk Harness while you teach polite leash walking separately from your potty/exercise walks.
There's a really good article by Dee Ganley and Nancy Lyon on [linkhttp://www.clickertraining.com]www.clickertraining.com[/link] about training loose leash walking with a clicker.
 
BTW, I like KY, too.
Billy, I am a middle class horse person LOL. 
Are you sure that an armed society is a polite society?  I always thought it was just an impolite society at a standoff! []

I use a prong, but suggest you have someone teach you the correct way to size it and how to use it (if you don't know already)
 
Somewhat OT- I find it is so *#@! hard to get those links undone/done, especially when my arthritis is flaring up. I am a bit nervous the Herme Springer model with the clip may come undone. Has anyone used them and if so, opinions please? (I have a runner when he gets loose. I know- bad mom, not bad dog...)

I have a six month old GSD and I use a prong on her.  Just be aware to use it very carefully and it does not take much for a correction for the little guys.  My older dog can take quite a correction and still have the behavior, however with my pup a slight correction and she is right by my side for the next hour.  I would say go for it, just be real easy at first.
Julie

I use a prong with my dogs for their walks, too.  I have a really nice prong collar that has a hook closure out of a leather connection (easy to put on).  It is a little less harsh than the regular martingale type prong collar. 
 
I bought it from [linkhttp://www.4dogs.us]www.4dogs.us[/link]  .    They even have prong collar with leather or fabric ribon woven through the links so that they don't look so formidable. 
 
 

The prong collars that have the metal alligator clip can be risky.  I have seen dogs tip there heads back and pop them undone. 
 
The prong collars at the link from the post above are very nice (as far as prongs go).  They are secure and will last a life time.  I really like the woven leather look.
 
Why not put this pup on the GL.  They are pretty flexible size wise, and you already know how to use one. 

I never knew there was more than one kind of prong.  Max uses the one where the two prongs slip into the holes of the piece on the other end. As long as they're slid all the way in, it doesn't seem like it could slip out.  And yes, it is a royal pain in the arse to get the dang thing on - mainly because Max is so excited to see the leash & prong come out of the drawer that he starts doing the *happy dog dance* an it's hard to fasten a prong on a wiggly dog. []

You can use the prong collar on a dog once they are 4 months old, so I would say definitley go ahead and use it on your puppy, especially if you're having trouble walking him.

 It would be a good idea to find someone who knows how to use them if you're not sure, to show you the correct way. With puppies, you don't have to use as much of a correction usually, but it's a great thing I think [] I've heard that the smallest size is the best for even big dogs, as it gives the best correction, but the medium size I would say would work for a dog that either has a lot of hair or is pretty big, that's what size I have for Cassidy. It should fit pretty snug, and not be too loose, but you should be able to fit two fingers in between the dog's neck and the collar, like with the regular collar.


Cassidy was pretty good on leash and I didn't have many behavior problems, so I only used a choke chain for training, but once she was about 1, I got her a prong collar, because I wanted her to be more reliable with the commands, and obey right away, kind of an advancement with her training. I would have gotten her one earlier, but didn't really know about them much. I am wanting to use a prong collar with my 5 month old puppy, but unfortunatley, the service dog organization doesn't want me to use that, so I am  trying out the Gentle Leader with her. Good luck with your puppy![]

I would wait until the age of six months to use a prong collar...not 4 months....

I absolutely agree with Anne on the Easy Walk harness and I agree with Mic not before the age of 6 months.  And I don't agree with using ANY leash corrections on a dog of any age.  A prong is self correcting.

I bought it from www.4dogs.us . They even have prong collar with leather or fabric ribon woven through the links so that they don't look so formidable.

Wow! Those are REALLY nice prongs! I bookmarked the site, in case I ever need one. Thank you!

[link>http://forum.dog.com/asp/showProfile.asp?memid=13550]prob[/link]e1957, unfortunately i am not a rich horse person! We did have a few walking horses and a few quarters, along with a retired racing thoroughbred...but i don't have any right now. I do have the Jack russells and Ridgeback to go along with rich horse people though! lol
 

I use a coupler and attach one end to the prong collar and hook the other end to the martingale collar my dog wears just for added security.  I have the prong with the clip, so it is easy to get on and off.
 
I would most certainly try the GL, Halti and Easy Walk first and use the prong only as a last resort.