I'm working with a 160 lb dog at an animal shelter and he's extremely reactive to other dogs. He had a neck surgery and can't wear a collar, do you have any tips on how to handle a lunging 160 pound dog on a harness?

Hi Cindy,

I work at an animal shelter and we have a very large Dane mix (160 pounds) with us at the moment. He's an unneutered male, just over 2 years old. He grew up without boundaries and pulled his previous owners off their feet several times, even broke their leg and shoulder.

We trained him to walk nicely on the leash without distractions, but he is very reactive to other dogs (sex doesn't matter, so I assume it's not a testosterone issue). When he sees dogs he lunges like crazy, growls and is completely unresponsive to the handler.

We previously used a head harness to manage unexpected out-of-training dog encounters. However, he had major spinal surgery on his neck 3 months ago. He's not allowed a head harness or any kind of collar ever again. Do you have any tips on how to handle a lunging 160lbs dog on a chest harness? We tried Halti chest harness and others, but he just pulls straight through any of those. Training goes well except with dog encounters.

Thanks for your time

Thanks for your reply. I was hoping there was some other option we missed, because the vet specifically said a collar would be extremely dangerous (risk for paralysis) for him due to the surgery and weakness in his cervical spine.

We did do leash pressure training with him and he's doing great on regular walks and with mild distractions. But we weren't far enough into the training yet when the surprise surgery had to be done.

I guess we'll just have to continue the battle with the harness until we find someone willing and capable to take him on 24/7.