For all you Folks that are still on the fence about using a gentle leader, I would like to share my experience. Long story short, I’ve worked with horses my whole life, not just ridding them once in a blue moon, but actually training to perform in rodeos. I’ve had the privilege of working with World Show horses and Ropers. I also volunteered at a Wild Mustang Rescue Organization. Along with horses, I have always had a love for large dog breeds. I’ve had a well trained Shepard, Rottweiler, Doberman and a Mastiff/Ridgeback. I never use chokers or prongs. Tyson is well trained and an amazing dog. The issue I had with him was he liked a tight leash. I spoke to many professional Dog trainers, read every book, also paid a Trainer, only to be told, because of his breed, I wouldn’t be able to break Tyson from pulling. I did test him, I released the lease on a walk and he took several steps ahead, then stopped and looked back at me with the expression “hey lady, why did you stop, lets get going”. The other odd thing was Tyson was excellent off leash but by law I couldn’t take Tyson off leash everywhere. I took Tyson to Lows and I got physically exhausted and frustrated holding a tight leash on a 110 pound all muscle dog, and to be honest I was embarrassed to have my dog pull. I’m usually a very calm, soft spoken person, but that day, I went bonkers. I usually don’t give voice commands on leash, but this day I was barking orders to heal, stay, backup, hold stop, and sit. Out of exhaustion and frustration I sat down on some lumber and Tyson lay next to me panting, looking at me with concerning eyes… I calmly talking with him like a human, sharing my frustration, even though he probably didn’t understand me, but it made me feel better being able to vent… lol… As we sat there, around the corner came an older man, maybe in his late 70’s wearing a cowboy hat. He saw Tyson and me sitting on some lumber and Tyson sat up to greet him. Most people are intimidated by Tyson and don’t approach, but not this Man.. He greeted us and we spoke for quite awhile and expressed my frustration. He stood in silence for a few seconds looking at Tyson then asked permission to take Tyson’s leash. I happily agree.. He walked up and down the lumber isle several times then to my shock He dropped the leash and they walked back to me with Tyson in perfect heal position. He proceeded to praise Tyson and tell him he is a good boy… Then he took the leash and positioned it around his muzzle like a horse halter, (noseband). I’ve done that many times with horses when I didn’t have a halter handy but never thought to do this with my dog. Tyson didn’t like it at first, and attempted to rub it off.. We stood there for several minutes as he pet Tyson and praised him, then he started to walk… OMGOSH…! What a transformation..!! The pulling immediately stopped.. I was amazed… Now mind you, this was before Gentle Leads for dog ever existed. He said Tyson is like a horse, leads with his face.. He asked me to put my finger on my nose and slightly push my nose to the left and right.. My face turned with hardly any pressure. He then instructed me to put my hand around my neck and direct left and right… lol I realized then what Tyson was going though.. The neck gave no direction. I was very thankful and gave him a big hug… Sorry this short story turned into a long story. But I hope it helps someone out there... ~Lori :)

Can we appreciate that the camera person during these videos is walking backwards the whole time lol. Props to the crew.

His reaction tot he gentle leader coming off shows exactly how well the gentle leader worked for him.

I love how psyched Joel got when there were dogs to pass.

My girl is a photocopy of this boy. I learnt so much! Thank you.

Haha I love how Dane did the best instant example of how good gentle leaders are ! Love them

My vet recommended the halti-lead when my 7y/o lab was a puppy. One thing he said that stuck with me about him not liking it “this isn’t a democracy”.

Joel, I started as a k9 handler in the military 20+ years ago I’m still training today. The techniques you use (loose leash and gentle leader) are NEW to me and I must say I’m really enjoying it! I do most of my training on slip leads, my pitbull has true aggression, your methods are working better then e-collar and prong (which I’ve done away with early on bc YES they increase reactivity!). I walk him on a DD collar and e-collar in case of emergency. I was caught in the middle of a dog fight with him and a loose 90lb Rotti! I now carry pepper spray, air horn, air in a can and muzzle! Thank you for posting more hardcore REACTIVE dogs, I am learning some new things..THANK YOU!

Everything in this channel is honest, i really apreciate it. Joel could just not upload the first video, but he did and show us all a failure. Then went home, though about it, figure aout how to solve the problem and show us the second part of the video. It might be just me, but i really apreciate it.

AWARD TO DANE! Dog with the MOST comments!! I've been working Joel's loose leash technique with Lola, my rescue, distracted, "in front" walker, prey driven, not-treat-motivated, reactive, 13 month GSD/Malinois for 3 months and seeing tiny improvements each day (Lola is a hand full!). If your dog is like Dane, DONT GIVE UP!!! Time your "pops" and remember to not to "pull", remember that the purpose of the walk is to "walk together" and not the destination. Although we can all relate to Dane - every dog is different. I used Joel's technique on my adult, ACD puller (whose pulling we had tolerated pre-Joel for years!!) and it literally took 5 "pops" and he is fixed! Still super frustrated with my GSD's reactivity issues though. All our good work goes out the door when a dog appears. A note on prongs vs gentle leaders....used a prong on Lola before the Gentle Leader and it added to her reactivity. She would react to the dog and next would react to the prong. Result = anxious frustration. Now using the Gentle Leader and although it annoys her, seems to re-direct her better.

I LOVE the gentle leaders for my rescued Pit Mix. Because of her past abuse and resulting anxieties, it is quite literally the only leash/lead/collar/harness that has ever allowed us a calm, relaxing stroll down a busy street.

My dog doesnt pull, stops when i do, waits at the doorway, but hes always like one paw ahead of me, and hes a tiny bit reactive and plays kinda rough. After i tried the gentle lead hes in a much better positioned on our walk , and plays nicer, and doesnt react anymore. Thank You

What a transformation! Thanks Joel.

Thank you so much for posting these vids with Dane and the one breaking down what most ppl get wrong. My GSD Timber looks EXACTLY like Dane and same size and similar temperment. I have had difficulty w him lunging and just over stimulated by everything. Couldn't get him to pay attention to me. Tried prong collar and have been using gentle leader with some success. Followed this to the tee from the moment we walked out the door. Within 10 minutes he got it. We were able to walk past dogs and squirrels like pros. We just had the single best walk since I brought him as a puppy (He's 3). You gave me the framework I needed to work with him.

I’m so glad you said that about horses. Even if you have a rope around a horses neck you will have significantly less control than you would have if you have a halter on them. Trying to control them from the neck versus having their nose, has a significant difference. Night and day as far as I’m concerned. Provided, the horse has been taught how to give to pressure and move off of pressure.

Thank you Joel, so helpful! Love your channel, love your ways.

Excellent video. I also came to the conclusion with my GS that she (like a bull) was willing to accept any leash correction without really changing her behavior - you knew after 15 minutes that it wasn’t a good idea to continue w same constant level of well-timed fair corrections if the dog is going to push through correction. I also saw my dog was able to get around or ignore a correction - after 2 1/2/seconds of not pulling or leaving me she went right back to continuing to do the walk the way she wanted. There was no progression of learning, and she got to practice how to ignore corrections even better. I finally knew this was not getting better, and not having a better solution, ended up exercising her in the fenced yard w throwing frisbees. I will order a gentle leader today - never tried one, but my dog acts exactly like Dane, so thinking this is hopefully a good solution for my problems w Luna. But you know it’s not just walking - it’s other commands also. Ask for sitting at heel, and she will do it for a treat, but without that, she kind of looks everywhere else and she’s a big tank of a dog that is usually high energy but now sluggishly stands there and I have to ‘put’ her into that position. And the next time I ask her to, she pretends to not really have heard me, and I need to move her into the position. She knows the command now, and for a treat she might do it well. But progressing does not happen so much. Would like to see you train some other routine behaviors w this dog.

Massive change with the gentle leader!!! 😎 Awesome! BTW the reason ppl usually don't like the gentle leader is because of the reactions of other ppl. I used it before and tons of people you meet during your walk think it's purpose is like a muzzle for aggression. So it's usually that association in my experience. To give an answer to that question from my experience 🤣

This is my dog I swear, he’s a 9 month gsd, and has the up front walk and constant stimulation to the environment, the same as this dog does. Love how relevant these videos can be, so diverse, from high drive dogs, aggressive dogs, and even silly goofy and excited dogs.

I've trained a lot of dogs over the years (just for myself), and I've never used a gentle leader or any other kind of head collar. So... after watching your videos, I decided to give it a try with my young border collie (still puppyish; 18 months old). I was AMAZED at how well it works. He's not aggressive, but kind of like Dane- a very strong, determined dog who really wanted to lead, rather than follow. Because he's being trained to be a stock dog to work on the ranch (along with my other 2 border collies), I do not want to over micromanage him or make him more dependent, but I want him to respect me and the leash. This seems to be doing the trick. I appreciate the tip on this!

I’ve learned so much from your videos. Thank you, your methods have made a huge difference for my dog and me.

Excellent video mate.

Absolutely brilliant. Are you going to do a 3rd video of Dane loose lead walking? Dane is so much like my Max. I'm learning so much from you. Thank you.

This was a great video Joel! Really appreciate showing the training live with real dogs making progress and I like that it's not always an instant change. The change in Dane after the GL was amazing to see, his whole attitude changed. I was using GL and then went back to dabbling with with prong and ecollar but I'm gonna try to stick with GL as my dog is reactive on leash and I could see how over correction on prong or ecollar can create a problem.

Beautiful work with the GSD!

I had to finally give into the gentle leader, 150lb king shepherd. He is reactive to other dogs on walk. Right off the bat collar and leader comes off and he runs up to two dogs barking. See a newf while sitting on a bench, he is pullingg the face off himself. Almost at end of walk had a lady stop in the path. I turned back 4 times, 5th time he only started up alongside them, but we kept going. Today, I'm looking forward to see what he learned. Lol Darn you have helped me soooooooo much! Wicked good

I am so glad you made a follow up video to your first video. It is helpful to see the process....thank you

The gentle leader SAVED my relationship with Blue Bear, our 10 month old Aussie Shepherd/Wheaten Terrier mix. He was just Dane - I didn’t exist to him except for the blabbering of confusing cues that I was giving him. I’m a total dog n00b with a high energy puppy. Joel, I really appreciate the tips on how to get him off of the gentle leader, as my trainer is saying to walk him for 3 to 6 more months on it. I’m going to try your techniques with a very close eye. As for why people are hesitant to use them, I can say that I had thought that they were painful (they’re not) and that they’d give other dog owners the impression that he was a bad/mean dog. It turns out that it’s basically itchy for him if the neck-collar is too loose, and that he’s actually MUCH more calm, and other dog owners admire his impulse control and his natural friendliness now!

Thanks for teaching us what a gentle leader is.

Brilliant stuff!

So glad I followed up with the second Dane video. This is exactly my dog all the way through. Gentle leader in hand👍🏼. That you said we can be more confident meeting other dogs was HUGE for me. I have kept him from meeting dogs and I know he wants doggie friend but doesn’t have manners…. Looking forward to introducing the gentle leader and changing his life and mine🙏🏼❤️🎉

I just bought gentle leaders for my cattle dogs and this is giving me the encouragement to move forward with the training. Thank you!

This video is so unbelievably helpful i think you’ve turned a down day into a positive. My dog is so similar out on the walk i haven’t yet tried the gentle leader. My dog is determining the walk and will not go unless you lose it and drag her a bit. We thought it was her insecurities as a rescue now i’m seeing different.

Absolutely fantastic! THIS is how to do it. Dog want getting it, didn't want to keep correcting on a collar, switched to a gentle leader and bingo! SO SATISFYING, I love it! Thanks Joel 👍

So glad you are doing more gentle leader videos, it’s such a fantastic tool to see you use. I’ve been using a halti and it instantly helped with pulling and reactivity (with the occasional butt flip to break focus if it was needed). You really should have more subscribers.

Kudos for another great video

Joel, this was such a great video! I've been trying your method on my 10 month old dog for about 1 month. It has definitely improved his walking although he is very much like Dane where the corrections don't seem to affect him anymore. After trying for 1 month you have just convinced me to buy myself a gentle leader and try it out. Thanks for the tips about phasing it out too. Please continue to give us updates with Dane - I truly appreciate this!

Thank you for clarifying Gentle Leader pros vs other collars/harnesses.

Dane is a beautiful GS. He is getting a lot better.

Joel sounds like me when I see multiple dogs on a walk. I just received my gentle leader. Can’t wait to use it tomorrow. 👍

That is what more trainers NEED to offer. That is the best example of a good safe intro!! I love your place and if I was 20 years younger I would create a place just like yours!! What a great set up and you are such a gift and agreat trainer!!

Gentle leaders are incredible! It was an absolute game changer for our Newfie/GP/lab pup mix. Literally the first walk I still remember smiling for the first time. It’s been wonderful for our relationship bc he could more easily pay attention during training 🐾

This was excellent. Spot on. One can see how much more obviously relaxed and attentive Dane is in this follow up.

This dog is exactly like our staffy. She is like what you had on the first walk. Will Def get a, GL and give it a try. Thanks for all the updates.

The gentle leader for my girl changes her night and day. I literally use my gentle leader everyday. Thank you for posting these videos, they are so knowledgeable! I have shared your videos as a tool with many of my friends and family who struggle with their pups. Cheers!

Great and very helpful video. Thank you!

Improvement immediately after you placed the gentle leader on!!amazing!! I will be buying one for my husky!!

I love the gentle leader! I've used it both on my border collie and my shepherd mix! I am going to use it again on my shepherd mix again because I think she needs it again! I also love that you do the stops and turns etc...! That was how my mom taught me when my border collie was so awful to walk! My shepherd mix is a big girl and I always refer to her as my other horse lol

Great video as always! Nice to see this update on Dane. I totally agree 100% on what your saying! If a similar tool can control a super energetic and powerful horse it sure can control a dog.

OMG I NEEDED THIS VIDEO! I have a gentle leader and am trying it out on my American bulldog

The gentle leader is a game changer I. So glad you showed me to keep their head up when they try and get it off,my Aussie is great now,I was at a state park and other people were having trouble controlling their dogs but mine with the gentle leader was perfect

I've not owned a dog yet, but I'm soon to be in circumstances where I can have my own. And I've been watching many training videos and as someone who has worked with horses most of my life, the way you train dogs uses so many similar techniques that makes me hopeful all my experience with "pressure and release" will help immensely with my own dog. Also I love the way you reevaluated the way YOU went around the first training session, in order to get a different response from the dog.

Thank you this answers my question

Awesome job!! Same for me!! I have a great dane puppy. 7 months old. And the gentle lead is amazing. It's like he just knows that he has a job to do 😇

Hi Joel, thank you for this terrific update. I am seriously considering getting a gentle leader for my lab. Keep up the good work

This is the first time that I am positive about a gentle leader. Thanks it was a eye opener.

Our dog is the same way. She wants to walk in front of me all the time and will not check in. I’m so glad I found this. I will be getting a gentle leader

My German Shepard is just like this. This helped me thank you.

Like for increasing the challenge and letting the gentle leader go off for the 2 dogs at the end. That's what makes excellence.

Gentle leader was the answer for 1 of my dogs! Hes so much like dane... total mover. Great video

Great videos. I always learn alot. I have a 3 yr+- mixed breed dog that weighs about 65 lbs. We have used e collar (not any more tho, and only used the vibration not shock when we did), regular collar, slip lead, and martingale collars. None have worked very well. We currently use the gentle leader and it definitely helps but she still walks way ahead of me and doesn't check in. She is pretty fearful when dogs bark while we are walking as well as when people get near. I will keep watching your videos and doing my best to practice your tips with her. Thanks so much for taking the time to school us.

Dane is doing so much better! Go Dane !

Thank you so much for sharing real situations. My doberman is 21 months and I trust you as Prince grows into a gentle big guy.

Thanks so much. The cleverest solutions are always the easiest ones.

Fantastic video! I have a Doberman that is reactive on her walks. I was worried about using the gentle leader due to a Doberman’s fragile neck. But in these two videos, you showed how to work both collars. What happens to a dog that loves to move ahead and cross over while you walk. AND a dog that has gotten use to cues, prong collars and treats ( on a frantic dog) Thank you I will begin my training on a flat collar and a leader ( after 3 years of hard walking)❤️

Love having a setback day with my new husky/mix and revisiting your content. We've had two months of solid improvement on walks since I started watching your vids. The door technique, checking in when walking, the corrections on leash, etc. In our neighborhood, the positive changes have been fantastic. Yesterday we went out to a new area on a gorgeous day and there must've been 100 dogs and people out and about wanting to pet her. The wheels fell off and it was my fault for attempting that too early. With all of the dogs and people wanting to pet her, she was a pulling mess and her check-ins with me were the last thing on her mind. We did lots of corrections and sits, and she got better after a while, but ooh boy I knew it was going to be a hard test. She has a lot of Dane's tendencies, so it's off to the store to give the gentle leader a shot so I can work with her before the next walk in town to get ice cream.

I’ve been using a gentle lead for awhile! It works so well! The whole thing makes perfect sense

I learned w/ my Rottie gentle leader ended pulling - now after watching how to do the pop with it - using it for my foster shepherd. Has helped tremendously!

I am going to start using the gentle leader! We've done the slip collar, the prong, the e-collar & she just doesn't care. Like you mentioned, as long as they can see wherever they want to focus on, they will take anything. I'm excited to start using it!

That prancing after you put the gentle leader on made me laugh 😅 I love the gentle leaders, definitely prefer them to alot of the other tools ❤

This video and the last one of Dane is brilliant. He is the mirror image of my dog, I have been training with her now for months with no real progress, she is also a dog which always goes forward, after watching this I will buy a gentle leader today on my way home from work. Thankyou so much from showing this, best wishes from Germany.

I love the gentle leaders.

Omg this is my dog. It all makes sense now. Thank you.

My rescue Catahoula mix needs exactly this. He pulls, reacts to other dogs and animals with barking and lunging, nudges us with his nose, etc. Just got a gentle leader the other week, now I need to train properly with it. Thanks!

Great informative video. TY TY TY TY

This is great!! I went thrift shopping one time for a cat harness and accidentally got a gentle leader. (I had no dog but decided to keep the thing out of laziness. ) Fast forward one year and I get a VERY active dog like Dane. When I came across a pinterest post about the Gentile Leader. I mentally wondered if that was what I got thinking it was a cat harness. (It was!) Anyway, I have tried it a few times in the backyard with puppers and I was very unsure of it and how great it could be. Seeing these Dane videos has inspired me to try using it way more with your techniques. Thank you for these videos!

Yes. Gentle leader ❤ I feel like people that have loose leash walking issues should 100000% watch your videos with Dane.

Another excellent video. It's really good to see the follow-up on this dog and the progress inside such a short time. I'd love to see more of this dog's progress if possible. Thanks I have to agree about gentle leaders (Halti where I'm from) they have changed my walks with a very similar type of dog (powerful Carpathian shepherd) from being extremely frustrating to close to a pleasure. I think people may associate them with agressive dogs or think the dog it's uncomfortable for the dog. It's only uncomfortable when the dog pulls/lunges which is kind of the point.

omg I went out & got a Gentle Leader. I had one a long time ago but I had no guidance so it wasn't helpful. Joel it's ur method + GL that works miracles!!! On both my pitbulls. Explaining ur attitude sooooo helpful !!! Nearly in tears from joy 🐾❤️🐾❤️🙏🏽❤️

Glad you said your list, I wanna use a gentle leader! I've been thinking about it a lot that I should use one for reactivity. But yeah I also wanted to solve it first without it. I'm not in the US though, but I'm learning from U a lot Joel! And I really appreciate that you actually showing what you're doing and that it's tough sometimes even for U. And we not just see a bad behaving dog, then ....few weeks later, woow it's a miracle, the dog behaves good now! How did U do it, you're a magician, bravo! Sorry for that, I've been watching a lot of dog training videos and got tired of magicians and e-collar-, prong collar-, only positive trainers :) I'm happy that I've found your channel.

THANK YOU!!! That is exactly what my puppy does with and without the Gentle Leader. Good to know I'm not alone. She does the same thing without it thinking she can leave in a hurry, doesn't pay attention. Even my trainer, who doesn't really like the gentle leader agreed that it was best for her. Ill try your method of taking it off during the walk. One lady said she thought the gentle leader was inhumane...so I explained that it doesn't hurt the dog at all. They just don't like having to do it our way.

Thanks Joel, I am using the gentle leader after seeing these videos with Dane as my 14 month Labrador has a similar personality. I was sceptical but needed to do something different. What a difference, he doesn’t like it but we are able to go for a walk without me dislocating my shoulder and getting frustrated, every day gets better!

I have a 11 month old female GSD that is much like Dane. This isn't my first GSD either but she is definitely one of the most out front and highest drive dogs I've ever had. She takes a while to get settled on a prong collar and does react to an e-collar but I prefer to not use it. You can forget walking her with only her nylon collar! Ordered a Gentle Leader and received it today. I've never used one before on other GSDs or Golden Retrievers. While sizing it and introducing it to her I used small treats. That went surprisingly smooth. Then came the first walk. She pranced and acted just like Dane. BUT, she was instantly a different walker! We did some very basic walking for about 10 minutes. Zero pulling! She wasn't happy, but wasn't that agitated either. Got plenty of praising as well. Can't wait to see how she improves over the next couple of days on the GL. So glad I saw your video with it on a GSD and how he reacted. Thanks for the video. 👍👍

I love the “Stalking Dogs” videos 😆

I needed this video! I have a 7 month old black German Shepherd and she is acting exactly like Dane. I mean exactly like this in every way. I walk her every day weather permitting and I have worked so hard with her since the day I got her at 3 months old. Nothing seems to work. I'm going today and getting a gentle leader. Hopefully this is the trick that I need. Thank you!

That dog is a perfect walker now. Wow!

Thank you very much I'm going to try it with my shepherd.

Thanks this helps alot!

Thank you, my GSD rescue (had him 4 years, was 1.5 when I got him). Tried just about everything, he’s a out in front guy. Friendly as can be, going to get one of those.

THANK YOU! My GSD is just like Dane.

I love using the gentle leader

My black lab is the exact same way on a walk with a regular collar. We went to a gentle leader and he so much better. We can actually enjoy the walk. I’m not worried about ever going back to a regular collar for the walk. It works and I wish more people would use them.

My 90 Lab is 8 yrs old. He has had 3 trainers over time. He never stopped pulling & always walked in front of me. I saw your video & immediately used ether gentle leader. First day he was a different dog. Several months later he no longer pulls. He does not walk in front of me & he always comes when called. I still use the gentle leader almost all the time. Thank you for your incredible training concepts. My dog now is a pleasure to walk all the time again thank you Joel for the gentle leader & your incredible videos. Arnold Miller Franklin, Tennessee

The behavior really is night and day, I used one with my pitty when i had to deal with neighbor dogs running free. My only issue was it felt like he was having a harder time breathing towards the end of our walk so I stopped using it, but he is much better now no longer needs it. Walking my dog now is so much more enjoyable for both of us after using your methods and we are improving every day with every new video.

Dane is just like my GS, she uses her big nose and is an infront dog. I have tried many harnesses. I did a walk today using your correction method and her halti head collar. The best walk I have had in years. She was so much calmer and not as reactive to other dogs. I have someway to go but can see progress. Thank you so much

I bought a gentle leader because of you

This was the absolute most helpful video yet. My girl is an "in front" dog and acts just like Dane! I've tried regular collar, harness, prong (with trainer). I switched to gentle leader and it's the only thing that's really gotten though to her. She has never checked in with me before and now she actually looks at me during walks. She also uses her nose as an appendage and when you said that it was a huge lightbulb for me. She is a beagle mix and very scent driven, pops to the neck did next to nothing. I was like, do I have to stop every 5 ft forever!?Thank you Joel!!!

Joel, On this video I believe you said you didn’t know why folks didn’t use the gentle leader. Granted that was probably rhetorical:) For me personally I was just really worried about the dog getting out of it and getting lose. I don’t know how many others have shared that sentiment but that’s what it was for me. After watching some of your videos I decided to break it out of the training drawer and work with my current Doberman foster. He did well after a short practice time in the backyard and I felt much more comfortable using the device. Thank you for sharing your experiences.

My staffy likes to walk in front but does not pull. I found that treading on the leash worked well. Kind of like a spaniel, she walks beside me to heal much better when off lead than on. I tried the techniques in the first video every day for weeks. Thank you for your videos. They are great.

If you’re thinking about the Gentle Leader, just go do it. I tried a slip, prong and was going to try an e-collar and saw another of Joel’s videos recommending the GL and decided to use. My dog is like this dog, he’s just off and going on a leash and it’s not a relationship issue, we have a great relationship, people even comment on it. It is the best thing I ever did! Thanks Joel for the tip how to transition to the flat while walking, I will work on that.