Collar or Harness? 13 Dog Trainers Debate the Dos and Don’ts of Leash Training

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Laurent Shinar • Writer and Editor
Jul 5, 2026 12:15 PM EDT

The debate over whether collars or harnesses are better for our canine children has raged on for tens of years. No clear winner has arisen and the debate now continues online. So today we bring you the opinions of canine pawfessionals so that you can decide what is right for your pup.

Reddit's r/OpenDogTraining subreddit is a great place to pick up advice from professionals and pupper pawrents alike about the ins and outs of training your dog to handle the big hooman world around them. And in that discussion the decision between collars and harnesses is one of the more frequently addressed topics. After all, keeping our puppers safe from danger begins with a good attachment to their body which we can control in case of an emergency. So seeing as we are discussing a piece of safety gear, the requirements become quite strict and the correct usage becomes paramount.

However the results of this debate do not reveal a clear winner. But instead sheds light on why each of the solutions have merit. The classic collar is credited with being an excellent training tool, getting doggos used to leash pressue and promoting them to engsge in more polite behaviors. Though this does come with the risk of neck injures if your dog is reactive or even unintended escape if your dog has a small head. While on the other hand harnesses provide freedom of movement without discomfort, allowing doggos to pull on the leash as much as they want without sustaining injury. Making them great for reactive and large dogs. But some professionals argue that this enforces poor behavior and that this is overall a question of manners rather than adapting to the physical needs of a dog. So we invite you to dive in and find out what the pawfessionals have to say in detail and decide for yourself if your dog is going to develop manners or will they start wearing a harness?
 

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  • 01
    "All dogs should be taught how to respond to leash pressure, which is best done with a..."
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  • 02
    Dog trainers: What's your go to collar/harness/leash set up? I am just starting out in my dog training journey and I'd like to stick more towards the positive reinforcement side. What recommendations for collar/harness and leash do you have? Do you prefer nylon or biothane? Flat buckle or martingale? Collar or harness or both? Also do you prefer a standard treat pouch or the voila! treat pouch?
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    Electronic_Cream_780 Flat cotton collar for normal use. Y-shaped harnesses depending on the situation (scentwork, mantrailing, to clip in dog trailer). Short one metre matching lead for walking on pavements. Biothane long lead for mantrailing.
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    Zestyclose_Object639 depends on the dog and what i'm doing. i teach nosework so i normally encourage students to get a comfortable harness (i love non stop and ruffwear) otherwise wide flat collar and longline. i'll use anything from a flat to a slip or prong for ob and focus work depending on the dog though
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    Ok-Walk-8453 I like the limited slip or loop martingale and a harness. When the martingale is on, manners need to be perfect, we are training, loose leash walking, not sniffing everything etc. When harness is on- still can't pull, but can absolutely run around all wiggly sniffing everything and otherwise do what they want. I do a mix of training on the martingale and freedom on the harness (also hike on harness).
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  • You know what we really appreciate about these opinions so far? That they are not preaching one single solution. In so many cases professionals will tell you that this one single thing is the absolute pawfect thing and without it you are doing your dog a disservice. But the truth is that much like for hoomans, one size does not fit all, not even close. Meaning that there are different reasons to choose the different kinds of neckwear available to your dog. So if you are still trying to decide which is better for your pup, keep on reading and see if you can find an example that is similar to the challenges you have with your pupper. 
     

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    lefouteur Flexi leash and harness or flat collar for dogs who don't bear into the leash. Flexi and martingale if the dog has a skinny head and is a flight risk. Flexi and prong (not R+, I know) for dogs who will bear into the leash. I have a document on how I like to train with the Flexi and why the haters are wrong that I'll send to you if you want.
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    Ancient-War2839 Top 1% Commenter Generally harness and biothane long line, the beaches around me where most people walk their dogs have a lot of rocks, and the biothene lines don't get stuck underneath, I work with a lot of reactive dogs so I avoid restriction wherever possible and train staying close with cues, so being able to alter leash length works the best
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    nostalgiapathy All dogs should be taught how to respond to leash pressure, which is best done on a slip lead. In my experience 95% or so of dogs will do great on a 2.25mm herm sprenger pinch collar, they are the most effective and safest collars. Ideally, ecollar is best because if trained properly it essentially turns into a leash at any distance(starting by training leash pressure and then adding in stim, simply used as a pressure).
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    Mystic Wolf Front attach harness for a puppy in training. For a trained dog, a flat collar and 1m soft cotton webbing leash for street walks, and a back attach harness with a 5m neoprene leash for hikes or scentwork. Silicone treat pouches are handy if you need to use high value treats like meat, but otherwise just something with a front pocket that holds my phone, keys and doggy bags comfortably.
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  • We have to say that this is such a reasonable course of action. Often we find ourselves frazzled as pawrents, overloaded with options and we are given the feeling that once we choose one path we cannot change directions or make tweaks long the way. But in reality the opposite is true. We need to learn from our doggos, see how they react to different options and make our decisions based on that. Small, incremental changes that accumulate to success. Not to mention that by actively trying things your pupper will understand that you are doing your best to help. 
     

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    Van-Life_25 Had a flat collar and everyday lead to start, we have the same but added a halti as he pulls, he's been blummin brilliant with it. I have treated him to a made to measure black (outer) and red (inner) leather padded collar and matching lead, can't wait for it to arrive.
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    Huge Answer4287 I like an h or y shaped harness that has a front and back clip. I have a setup I like for large dogs with aj k ease on the front. There's a leash I love on amazon by three guys that has 2 connectors and is super adjustable. I set it sonthe front attachment engages 1st but the back attachment only a little loose.
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    Elrohwen Limited slip collar. Perfect fit harness. Leather leash in 4ft and 6ft and biothane for longer lengths. I mostly use pockets over treat pouches but when I like the Wilderdog fanny packs for walks (room for pp bags, treats, phone, etc). And if I need to grab a treat pouch at home and don't have pockets I have some of the little Outward Hound ones.
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    Quantum 168 Harness (Puppia) unless you want trachea damage or cervical injury to your dog. Where I live even big muscular dogs go on walks using some type of harness. I use a retractable lead (Flexi) with my dog, but this is only suitable for small to medium sized dogs, because of the velocity that dogs can move at. Whatever weight limit it says on the advertising, halve it for safety. You have to be hypervigilent with what's happening around you if using a retractable lead and you should still
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    [deleted] Love the flexi, dont love the flexi+ aversive combo. Flexis always have tension, so the pressure never actually releases. I do regular, short leash + flat collar or prong depending on the dog for my time, flexy + y shaped harness +ecollar for their time transitioning to full off leash with just the ecollar or keeping within leash laws.
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    lefouteu. I volunteer at a shelter as a dog walker and I watch the other volunteers get dragged around by the dogs on martingale collars and 6 foot leashes, and I watch the dogs just digging in frustration and getting mediocre walks at best. These are highly prey driven dogs who have never been on leash before and our walks on the prong and flexi are so chill and so much less frustrating for the dogs.
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