Harness recommendation for poodle mix...

[WFHbore2023]

Hi

I have a large poodle mix.

She's 9 months old, brushed regularly and groomed every 5 ish weeks. She has a fleecy, long coat.

Yesterday the groomer found her first mats, under her front legs. Groomer thinks it's where the harness has been causing friction. She suggested a rolled leather harness.

Just wondering if anyone has any recommendations for a specific harness that could help?

Do you specifically want a harness? A few dog trainers I know are saying a collar and lead is actually better for the dog . Plus would eliminate the knotting problem from the harness.

Interesting as my groomer said today that she would avoid harness use as much as possible so as not to cause matting.

We do use a harness in the car as we attach a seatbelt to it but most of our pup's exercise is off-lead in an open space so no harness needed then.

Yet I thought for onlead walking a harness was considered better as it distributed the pressure. So confusing!

A well fitted Y fronted harness is more comfortable and less likely to cause damage to a dog than walking on a collar and lead.

If the harness fits well it should not cause major matting.

Look at perfect fit harness

I have a poodle and we don't use a harness due to the matting along the harness edge. Collar and lead perfectly fine.

Had to have her shaved completely when she wore a surgical suit for a week after spaying so I'm quite careful now.

Do you brush your dog out after you take the harness off?

Not straight after, no. But we do brush him daily.
Straight after would be difficult due to the times she's walked.

Hi OP, we also have a poodle mix and when she was about 9 months old, had to be shaved because of matting. In our case, i think it was when her fluffy puppy fur grew out while her adult fur came in. She doesn't mat now and doesnt need a shave when she goes for lher groom, we use a perfect fit harness and brush some times.

Thank you - she is also going through her coat change.
Did your dog's change completely? She is currently fleecy and long, which is how we'd like to keep it (first time the groomer has found a mat, we take her every 5 weeks and have done since she was 12 weeks), but have had people stop us when she was a pup to tell us that their dog looked like her as a pup, and was now a totally different colour and curly instead of fleece!

Lots of dog trainers in our area keep warning against harnesses as it makes it easier for a dog to pull against. Why not just try a collar & lead?

Rolled leather collar and lead used here and recommended by breeder.

I'm being a wimp..but what if it hurts her neck?? How do I make the change?
She has a rolled leather collar already so I would have to change anything there

@WFHbore2023 her coat didn't really change I don't think. It's still soft and fluffy, but finer and a a bit longer hair. We do take her for a groom every 6 weeks, but don't brush every day.i remember feeling so ashamed that my fluffball had to be shaven and thought everyone would be judging me for not looking after her coat, so would say give it a chance and maybe shave her now.

Use collar and lead

We have a perfect fit harness for our poodle mix and absolutely no issue with matting. Many independent pet shops sell them and the staff are trained to fit them correctly. Might be worth giving that a go. They come in three parts with many openings for size so each part of the body fits perfectly.
I don’t like the collar pressure on their neck if they’re a puller.

Many options for size

We use the Perfect Fit harness that we had fitted properly - never had any matting. I’d never use a lead and collar, there’s too much risk of damage to their neck. If you’re worried about pulling then good loose lead training is the way to go.