Monday, May 27, 2013

Premier/Petsafe Easy Walk Harness Review

Yesterday, I purchased an Premier Easy Walk Pet Harness, Large, Black/Silver at our local Pet Supplies Plus.  I had been contemplating buying one, and it happened to be on sale.

I took Neeko to PSP with me, as she is always game for an outing.
 Modeling her Premier/Petsafe Gentle Leader.


 Her version of joy-LOTS of toys.
 
The Easy Walk is a front clip harness that has a martingale action horizontally across the chest when the dog pulls.  The strap that goes on the underside is in a contrasting color, for ease of application.  It is very sturdy nylon, with a nicely secured D-ring and sturdy plastic buckles.
 



I bought this with Faolan in mind, both because of his pulling at times, but also because I figure a harness would be safer than a collar on our adventures, after my near disaster. I first put it on Bruce.  The first time was a bit confusing and time consuming, but I figured it out.  After tightening and clasping appropriately, the horizontal chest portion gaped, even on big boy Bruce.  I took him on a quick walk with it, and when he attempted to pull, it had very minimal affect.

Bruce modeling the Easy Walk Harness.
 
I then put it on Faolan, and it gaped horribly across the chest.  I purchased the Large size, designed to fit dogs with chest circumferences of 26-36".  Faolan is 30", Neeko is 33" and Bruce is 34".  It did fit all three in that regard, but gaped across the chest on all three.  I visited their website, and they advise purchasing "tweener" sizes for very narrow chested dogs, which wolfdogs are.
 
Today, I returned to PSP, hoping to exchange it for a M/L "tweener" size, which the size chart indicated would fit all three of mine's chest circumference.  Unfortunately PSP does not carry, and is unable to order that size.  I simply returned it for a refund of my money.
 
I am contemplating purchasing either the Freedom harness, or the Sense-ation harness.  These are not available at any stores in my area, so I would have to order online.
 
Which harness do you like, or would you recommend?

5 comments:

  1. We use the Easy Walk harness for Beamer and I think it works great. He has the large size and he's a very thick dog at 90lbs. I can't tell you how many people I've told about the Easy Walk harness. I think Petsafe should send me a cheque!

    Sorry to hear you didn't have any luck with it.

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  2. I think the Freedom looks better, but I'd honestly try to find the Easy Walk harness in your size. I've heard nothing but good things!
    Nola's Mom

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  3. We tried the Easy Harness once too, but couldn't get it to fit very well. We use the Gentle Leader on Lightning since he is the only one who still pulls a bit. Mom hopes he can give it up soon too. We will be interested in hearing how whichever harness you choose works out.

    Woos - Phantom, Thunder, Ciara, and Lightning

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  4. I don't like these harnesses, nor head halters. I think they are just silly. You can buy a regular harness and clip the leash to the ring on the front and get the exact same results without making the dog uncomfortable and for a heckova lot cheaper. (A lot of dogs gait's are altered in these things, since they rest right across the shoulder muscles.) I've seen plenty of dogs who still pull in these harnesses, and a large number who have been flipped over when they lunged at something while wearing one.

    I think the problem is training the dog to walk correctly on a leash, not trying different gadgets and expecting the dog to do all the work. Which is the wrong way to use any piece of equipment anyways.

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    Replies
    1. I hadn't taken into consideration effect on gait. Thanks for pointing it out.

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Thanks for the howls!!