Equipment: what goes on the dog

The gear decides the walk

The equipment you use when walking dogs will greatly influence the success of your walks. There are three categories: equipment that goes on the dog, equipment you carry with you, and equipment and supplies you keep in your vehicle.

• Equipment that goes on the dog: collar, tag, leash, harness, GPS tracker, sometimes a muzzle.
• Equipment that you will need to carry with you: a leash, poop bags, a treat pouch, treats, toys, your phone, hand sanitizer.
• Equipment in your vehicle: water bowls, water, crates, tethers, emergency supplies, first-aid kits, towels, sheets, cleaning supplies.

Why some tools stay off

Avoid walking clients' dogs on slip leads, choke chains, prong collars and flat collars, especially if they pull or lunge excessively or have other behavioral issues. These types of equipment can harm or injure a dog every time the dog lunges or pulls on the leash. They can also create negative associations to things in the environment: children, skateboards, bicycles, vehicles and other animals.

• Always carry a slip lead for an emergency.

Don't walk clients' dogs on:

• Slip leads, choke chains and prong collars: they can choke a dog, or even cut the dog's skin, when the dog pulls or lunges
• A flat collar as the leash attachment: it puts a lot of unnecessary pressure on the trachea if the dog has not learned to walk nicely on leash, and too much pressure on a dog's trachea can cause permanent damage
• E-collars (electronic collars): you are not professionally trained to use one

What goes on the dog in your care

• A head harness (Halti, Gentle Leader) or a "no pull" front-clip harness (Easy Walk, Wildebeest): ask the client's permission nicely
• Your own 4' or 6' nylon or biothane leash (always have at least two on you)
• A flat collar with a name tag, worn under a front-clip harness: for the tag, not the leash, in case the dog slips out
• A name tag with your own contact information, with the client's permission
• A muzzle, once the dog is properly muzzle trained, with the client's permission

When a client insists

Some clients may want you to use the equipment of their choice, such as a prong collar or choke chain, and you may need to take extra time to discuss other options with them. Your experience, observations, ideas and suggestions may be well received, or they may fall on deaf ears. Some will be uninterested in your advice and still insist that you use a prong collar, choke chain or e-collar while walking their dog. In this case, take some time to think objectively about the situation and avoid jumping to any conclusions.

Not every client is the right fit

Some clients you will have to refer out or turn away, because their choice of equipment does not align with your services, skills, experience, morals and ethics. Don't feel discouraged: not every client is the right fit. What you never do is criticize the client or other dog professionals: no condescending or judgmental statements about the tools they use.

Turning a client away, without criticizing anyone

I'd really love to work with you and your dog, but I'm not skilled enough to use a prong collar or an e-collar on your dog, and I'd rather not mess up your training.

Use this when a client insists on a prong collar or e-collar. This way you are not criticizing, blaming or condemning anyone.

The availability line

I have too many clients to take on another dog at this time, but I'll keep you in mind if any availability opens up in the future.

The other way to decline a client whose equipment you won't use. This one is a paraphrase rather than a word-for-word script. Say it in your own words.

Your reputation is worth more than one client

Remaining professional, with empathy and compassion for the client and their dog, is more important than arguing over your choice of equipment or personal opinions. It is always OK to turn clients away or refer them to other professionals. Your public image and reputation are also more important than one client who insists that you use aversive training tools while walking their dog. Another client may happen to see you walking one of your clients' dogs on a prong collar or an e-collar, and assume you would use that tool on their dog as well.

Leash styles: pros and cons

Leash length by job

Leash width by the dog's weight

Our recommendation: 4' or 6', nylon or biothane

We recommend 4' or 6' nylon or biothane leashes. Our preference is the 4', because the extra slack of a 6' can be burdensome and create safety hazards. You will go through a lot of leashes as a professional dog walker, so it may be a good idea to reach out to a manufacturer or high-quality brand about ordering leashes wholesale for your business. Many dog professionals offer to sell leashes to their clients to offset the cost of buying so many each year, and you may want to let clients know that you accept donations of old leashes.

• If you are comfortable and confident handling a 6' leash for a larger dog, never wrap the extra slack around your fingers, hand or wrist: if the dog jumps, lunges or pulls forward with excessive force, a wrapped leash can easily break a finger or wrist.

• If you don't have a slip lead, an extra standard leash will do.
• Slip leads are handy for moving dogs short distances.

Making a loop from a standard leash

1. 1
   Thread the clip through the handle to make a loop
2. 2
   Get the dog's head through the loop (use food to lure them through)
3. 3
   Put a collar or harness on the dog
4. 4
   Connect the clip to the collar
5. 5
   Slip the loop back over the dog's head
6. 6
   Give the dog several treats

Collars: carry spares

Store several extra collars in your vehicle at all times. Dog owners are notorious for loosening a dog's collar too much, and dogs easily slip out when collars are not fit properly. When dogs play, they may also try to bite each other's collars, which can cause a collar to come off. Have a variety of small, medium and large nylon collars for varying sizes of dogs. Martingale-style collars are great because they prevent a dog from slipping out of them.

As with leashes, you may want to contact a high-quality collar brand or manufacturer about ordering wholesale for your business.

Four tools, four jobs

Front-clip harnesses: steering, and slipping out

"No pull" front-clip training harnesses such as the Easy Walk and Wildebeest are very popular. The front clip is designed to steer the dog back toward you when the dog pulls or lunges forward. Be sure the harness is fit and adjusted appropriately: dogs are escape artists and may try to slip out of a harness, and front-clip "no pull" training harnesses are especially easy for most dogs to slip out of.

• Current veterinary guidance is that these harnesses are not the right choice for puppies and young, still-developing dogs. Most of them work by tightening across the shoulders when the dog pulls, and that is pressure a growing body does not need.
• They are also the easiest harness for a dog to back out of, which makes them a flight risk on a high-energy, high-drive, easily excited dog.
• Double-clip as a matter of habit: run the leash clip through the harness and the flat collar, so the dog cannot wriggle free of the harness alone and be loose.

Sport harnesses (Ruffwear, Kurgo)

Sport harnesses are very popular and preferred by many pet parents, and they are usually more versatile. They typically offer a variety of options for attaching the leash (a front clip on the dog's chest and a rear clip on the dog's back) with a good amount of padding in the chest. The straps usually connect under the dog's chest and around the torso, so the dog is less likely to get out of the harness and escape.

• If a dog is reluctant to let you put the harness on, try luring their head into it with high-value treats.
• For new dogs and some special cases, you may need to ask your client to put the harness on their dog before or when you arrive.

Front clip vs. rear clip

Head harnesses (Halti, Gentle Leader)

Head harnesses such as Haltis and Gentle Leaders are great for dogs that pull and lunge excessively. They are safe, humane and effective, and recommended by many veterinarians, behaviorists and dog trainers. The loop goes over the dog's snout and the strap clips behind the dog's head. The idea: with four-legged animals, where the head goes, the body goes. Some dogs with short snouts, such as French Bulldogs and Pugs, cannot use a head harness because their snout is not long enough for the nose loop to slip over.

• A head harness usually takes a moderate amount of training before the dog is comfortable wearing it, and it is well worth it: a dog trained to wear one poses a significantly lower risk to your safety.
• By following the instructions in this course, you and your clients can train most dogs to wear a head harness with a few days of the lesson 2 steps.

Muzzles: a bad reputation, an invaluable tool

Although muzzles can have a bad reputation, they are an invaluable training and management tool. Use a basket muzzle. It's the only style built for walking and working a dog: the dog must still be able to pant, drink and take treats while wearing it. The soft cloth muzzles carried in a first-aid kit are for handling an injured or distressed dog only, never for a walk.

A dog that is properly muzzle-trained should be able to comfortably wear a basket muzzle for any reasonable amount of time they are required to.

• Muzzles help handlers, dog professionals and members of the public feel safe and comfortable around an unfamiliar dog.
• They prevent dogs from harming other people or animals when they are over-aroused and over-stimulated.
• They allow people who are afraid of dogs to feel safe in a dog's presence.
• They can prevent dogs from eating things on the floor that may harm them.
• Some vets and groomers will ask for a muzzle on a large or anxious dog before they handle them.

Muzzle conditioning: a separate service, with permission

Muzzle training is not difficult, but it is slow, especially for a dog who already has a bad history with one. It is well worth the time for dogs who bark, growl, lunge or nip at people or other animals. Always get the client's permission first. Then treat it as what it is: a separate service, agreed separately from the walking, and priced separately if you offer it. It is not something you slip into a walk. Take it on only if you understand how to build a conditioned emotional response to a piece of equipment, at the dog's pace. If you don't, either refer the client to a trainer, or learn it properly from the muzzle-training videos in lesson 2 (equipment training) and go slowly, letting the dog set the speed.

Always on a leash in public

Always walk a dog on a leash in public, unless you're in a legal off-leash area and the dog is on a drag line with a recall you've built and proofed there (lesson 3, Drag lines). Even if the client tells you their dog is perfectly trained to walk off-leash, don't take the risk: dogs may walk perfectly with their owners and not with other people.

How to hold a leash

• Put your hand through the loop and grab the leash with the same hand.
• Hold the leash in the hand opposite the dog: dog on your right, leash in your left hand (the course default for sidewalks, so your body is between the dog and passing traffic) or the mirror image when the right side isn't available. Your free hand is then always on the side the dog is walking, so you can deliver treats without reaching across your body.
• Hold the leash in a relaxed manner, letting it fall in a "J" shape. Avoid holding the leash with tension: it causes frustration and safety issues.
• Never hold a leash with one or two fingers.
• Never wrap the excess slack around your fingers, hand or wrist. It does not take much pressure from a pulling dog to sprain or break a finger or wrist: an injury that could keep you from working for several days or weeks.

What goes on the dog, and why

Five things to carry out of this lesson.

• Aversive tools stay off the dogs in your care; when a client insists, decline without criticizing anyone.
• A 4' or 6' nylon or biothane leash sized to the dog's weight (never longer than 6' on a collar, head harness or front clip), cleaned regularly and thrown out when it is chewed, worn or smells.
• Spare collars in the vehicle, a slip lead you carry but don't walk on, and a tag with your number.
• Front clip to steer; rear clip for the long line, or only a dog with very good leash manners; head harness for the excessive puller; muzzle with training and the client's permission.
• Hand through the loop, leash in the hand opposite the dog, a relaxed J, never wrapped around fingers, hand or wrist.