Recommend a dog muzzle

Can anyone recommend a muzzle for a springer?
Do muzzles allow the dog to open their mouth any bit at all?
Did anyone find muzzles making a dog aggressive?

VonVix

Baskerville Ultra, allows a dog to pant, drink, take treats, very nice design. If it's too narrow you can shape it by putting it in hot water. Do not use fabric muzzles when exercising your dog.

If you muzzle train your dog properly they will not be distressed with a muzzle on, follow steps shown in this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FABgZTFvHo You do not just slap a muzzle on and take a dog for a walk, they need to be conditioned to wearing it, otherwise they will constantly be pawing at their face and dragging their head on the grass which can cause injuries.

The Muzzle Up Project also has some useful information: https://muzzleupproject.com/

Are you addressing the reason for your dog needing a muzzle? Are they fearful of dogs/people/something?

Muzzles are brilliant in calming dog owners as well, you are safe in the knowledge that your dog cannot cause harm out of fear/frustration. Also, if your dog needs space, often when people see a muzzled dog they will give more room to that dog, which in turn can create calmer, happier walks.

He is used to wearing a head harness when on a lead so hopefully that will make it easier.
Thanks for the advice.
Unfortunately he has never been a fan of other dogs. Things are at the stage where I need to put one on him now.

VonVix

bubblypop wrote: »

He is used to wearing a head harness when on a lead so hopefully that will make it easier.
Thanks for the advice.
Unfortunately he has never been a fan of other dogs. Things are at the stage where I need to put one on him now.

Even still, the sensation of a muzzle is different. Train as if he never wore anything on his head before.

Is this happening on leash or off leash?

VonVix

VonVix wrote: »

Even still, the sensation of a muzzle is different. Train as if he never wore anything on his head before.

Is this happening on leash or off leash?

Off leash.
He is off leash in areas he can be, when anywhere else I have him on lead.
On lead he may still growl, lunge at other dogs.
Mostly off leash he is grand, but I'm worried now because an incident that happened at the weekend. I think all round it would be better for him and me and everyone else if he gets used to a muzzle

muddypaws

You may find that other dogs and people will perceive him differently in a muzzle. Other people will assume that he is a vicious creature, and other dogs may be uncertain as to what it is on his face, which could possibly lead to aggression towards him - not reasons not to use a muzzle, just for you to be aware of.

I have a dog that I am working with at the moment that has pretty bad fear aggression, he is used to wearing his muzzle now and pushes his nose into it wanting his treat, and it has really helped with his behaviour modification, I know that he can't hurt anyone, and as he is only meeting people who understand what is going on with him, they are more willing to interact with him, knowing his teeth can't do any damage, so he is getting the socialisation that he desperately needs.

Fair play to you for being responsible and putting your, and other dogs' safety first. Good luck

dashoonage

Another fair play from me here OP....great to see a responsible owner.

Another +1 for a Baskerville as well. I use one on my akita cross. She loves it. She can drink water and sniff all the smells and pant away to her hearts content with it on.

As muddypaws said, some people will look at you and the dog differently. But give it time. I've had great success to the point where people are now happy to let their doggie walk along beside us.

It has also kurbed a lot of the aggressive behavior as my dog has now realized its pointless with the muzzle on :P or maybe she is just lazy....ha

muddypaws

Oh yeah sorry, its the baskerville that I use

dubjay

Is it mandatory to have a muzzle with certain breeds. i have a 8 month Lab/Rottie mix very well socialized mixes with the cats and has been brought up with our 4 year old retriever with great temperament. walking with a halti now but i am unsure if by law he needs a muzzle as before we rescued him they said he might have to be on a muzzle if i was to walk him in public.trying to avoid them for now

dashoonage

dubjay wrote: »

Is it mandatory to have a muzzle with certain breeds. i have a 8 month Lab/Rottie mix very well socialized mixes with the cats and has been brought up with our 4 year old retriever with great temperament. walking with a halti now but i am unsure if by law he needs a muzzle as before we rescued him they said he might have to be on a muzzle if i was to walk him in public.trying to avoid them for now

Yup,

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/environment/animal_welfare_and_control/control_of_dogs.html

Even if he is a mix/cross...I have an akita cross and keep her muzzled. If anything ever went wrong id prefer to have all the boxes ticked. Plus it shows you respect the dog in my opinion and shows you understand what the dog can do and are a good responsible educated owner.

P.S probs for rescuing a doggie

dubjay

thank you i have to figure out now the transition from halti to muzzle as he is just walking properly since i got a halti last week. thanks again. is there a nutrition thread here as i have him on grain free with rice and chicken and trying to find a balance with him. he seems a lot different than our other dog food wise as i have to give him prebiotics called revive but i read here yum pro is better so if anyone has any info that would be great. thanks again

dashoonage

dubjay wrote: »

thank you i have to figure out now the transition from halti to muzzle as he is just walking properly since i got a halti last week. thanks again. is there a nutrition thread here as i have him on grain free with rice and chicken and trying to find a balance with him. he seems a lot different than our other dog food wise as i have to give him prebiotics called revive but i read here yum pro is better so if anyone has any info that would be great. thanks again

A baskerville muzzle should fit over a halti, someone else will confirm as i dont use a halti.

Id say start a new thread about your nutrition questions.

dubjay

Some people can argue the point that a halti is a type of muzzle as it controls the dog and can restrict his jaw opening if pulled upwards. not a big fan of putting two devices on his head.

DBB

dubjay wrote: »

Some people can argue the point that a halti is a type of muzzle as it controls the dog and can restrict his jaw opening if pulled upwards. not a big fan of putting two devices on his head.

The legal requirement is that a dog must be"securely muzzled".
This means that no matter what device you surround your dog's mouth area with, if he manages to bite someone, then it's not a secure muzzle.
No headcollar manufacturers claim that their devices are secure muzzles, and rightly so, because they're not.

tk123

dubjay wrote: »

is there a nutrition thread here as i have him on grain free with rice and chicken and trying to find a balance with him. he seems a lot different than our other dog food wise as i have to give him prebiotics called revive but i read here yum pro is better so if anyone has any info that would be great. thanks again

I use YumPro or YuDigest as they call it now every now and again and find it good. Kefir is a much cheaper alternative and does the same job for my two anyways - you'll get it in the Polish section of Tescos etc or in any Polish shop/

dubjay

thanks. price wise i dont mind for now. he gets gas on foods with wheat or grains/oats and no gas on grain free but trying to firm him up for now. he got very bloated on hills development after 6 months so switched him to grain free barking heads

dubjay

DBB wrote: »

dubjay wrote: »

Some people can argue the point that a halti is a type of muzzle as it controls the dog and can restrict his jaw opening if pulled upwards. not a big fan of putting two devices on his head.

The legal requirement is that a dog must be"securely muzzled".
This means that no matter what device you surround your dog's mouth area with, if he manages to bite someone, then it's not a secure muzzle.
No headcollar manufacturers claim that their devices are secure muzzles, and rightly so, because they're not.

i see what you mean. the baskerville muzzle is sold by the makers of halti also so i will give that a go im sorry if i posted the question wrong as i should only use the halti as a tool which hopefully can be removed or do people use both devices ??

DBB

dubjay wrote: »

i see what you mean. the baskerville muzzle is sold by the makers of halti also so i will give that a go im sorry if i posted the question wrong as i should only use the halti as a tool which hopefully can be removed or do people use both devices ??

Ah don't be apologising I was replying to someone else anyway!
I don't think a headcollar will work with a Baskerville, but the Baskerville is the muzzle to go for. I could be wrong, I've never tried the two together but knowing both products, I don't think they can work together? Anyone else know?
Have you tried a front-connection harness op? If your dog is inclined to pull, it'll do the trick for most dogs without the histrionics caused by headcollars!
The Blue Cross have a really good video on how to train a dog to accept a basket-style muzzle...
http://youtu.be/6BjPpXer8IE