And, if I was ever going to use a prong (which I wouldn't but if I was) I would absolutely, never, ever, 100% ever use one with a fearful or aggressive individual. Almost all aggression is fear based, the animal is uncomfortable with something. If we start punishing for fear or aggression instead of actually teaching the animal to be comfortable with the stimulus, we can create more anxiety, fear and aggression. Yes, it might suppress the behavior (barking, lunging, whatever) but the animal has not learned to actually feel ok about the stimulus that he is reacting, in fact he now has more reason to feel anxious ("oh no, here comes another dog, I don't like other dogs this makes me uncomfortable but if I react I will get in trouble from my Mom, I don't know what to do, I am trapped" = anxiety spike). I treat aggression with desensitization and counter conditioning so animal learns to feel comfortable with the trigger,not just stop doing something. If that makes sense.I've done a lot of training with giant breeds, and trust me when I say these are much more humane for training purposes than a choke. However, I prefer to use a flat, buckle collar or harness first. If I have a 200 lb. puller or one with aggression issues, the blunt ended prong is used. There is no compression on the trachea like the choke collars. The only time I ever used choke collars were for my well trained (on flat buckles) conformation show dogs. Then, the choke was only for "show" never to be utilized as it was intended.
Last edited: