I was going to order Cesar Millan's Illusion collar but my friend recommended I get your prong collar. I read about how some dogs got out of the prong which scares me.

Question

Hi Cindy,

    I have two dogs - west highland terrier and pit-bull-coon hound mix (88 pounds). I use the gentle leader and pretty much it works and one time he got loose I think because my husband didn't attach it right, fortunately it had a second mini leash that connected to his collar and I held on to it. Because of that I always have this fear now and it makes walks torture. The little dog Snowflake, gets Bear more excited by her behavior. He does occasionally try to lunge at the cows as we are passing them. Bear is fear-aggressive. I was going to order Cesar Millan's "Illusion" collar but my friend recommended I get your prong collar. I'm not good with reading about how to do this or that and I just need something easy to use. I read a couple of places in one of your articles about some who's dog got out of the prong which scares me.

    Also, Bear has seasonal allergies. He is on prednisone every summer but we're well into September and he's still on it with such itchy skin. He cut himself out in the back woods and keeps licking it raw. We took him to the vet and they put him on antibiotics and the collar so he can't lick but the wound looked healed so I let him keep it off last night and he licked it raw again I think because it's very dry looking. Is there an ointment to use? I noticed you have a book on allergies. Is that a real helpful book?

    Thank you,
 MaryKay

Accepted Answer

Your dog won’t get loose if you use a back up collar like we recommend.

There’s a free video on this page that gives information on how to fit the collar and use the back up collar.

The allergy book is helpful, but I also recommend you evaluate the diet and vaccine history of your dog. Many times what appear to be seasonal allergies are either a sensitivity to an ingredient in a commercial processed diet or a symptom of Vaccinosis (or a combination of all of those ) Skin conditions are a big signal that the dog’s system is having problems and most vets want to suppress this with antibiotics and steroids. This doesn’t solve the problem and typically makes it worse over time.

Here is some suggested reading. Read this article on feeding a raw diet. It’s a work in progress but there is a lot of good information there.

I would also recommend these books, Natural Nutrition for Dogs & Cats and Raw Dog Food.

You can also go to our Feeding Dogs Page for a list of articles and books that will be helpful to you.

For information on vaccinations and the problems they cause please read our vaccinosis article. I ask that everyone do their own research and weigh the benefits and the risks of vaccinating their animals. We do not vaccinate our dogs, cats or horses here and will not sell puppies to people who insist on vaccinating and feeding kibble.

I would also recommend these 2 books, Shock to the System and Vaccine Guide for Dogs & Cats.

For more information on natural health care and homeopathic treatment of your dogs (and cats), I highly recommend Homeopathic Care for Cats & Dogs and Natural Health for Dogs and Cats.

I hope this helps.

Cindy