Anthony and his service dog Heimdall

Heimdall came from Indianapolis Animal Control where he was surrendered by his previous owners. After many months of training with Medical Mutts (medicalmutts.org/), Heimdall graduated as a mobility assistance dog for Anthony. They immediately bonded, and during the 10 days of team training at the Medical Mutts facility, they learned how to work together as a team.
#servicedog, #servicedogtraining, #medicalmutts, #assistancedog, #dog, #rescuedog

[@carolemuenzer5490]

I agree people need to learn the right way to use these tools. My dog is keeping my brain working and improvement of my balance, after TBIs

[@evie9239]

It’s great to see an American service dog organisation that doesn’t have dogs in prongs or using aversive tools

[@spicynoods788]

Im working with medical mutts right now and am so happy to see such a wonderful team coming out of this program!

[@jwhite2082]

Yeah, Sounds like you guys are a perfect team. Wishing you many great years ahead.

[@lilieiner2151]

Just so that guy knows prongs and e collars are not harmful if used correctly and in my experience are safer than my flat collar

[@medicalmutts2781]

When comparing physical harm, you have an argument and all forms of collars present risks. That's why our dogs are not placed with leashes hooked to their collars unless necessary and unless the dog is well trained enough to not pull and hurt themself. We cannot say the same about comparing the types of collars on the dog's wellbeing and on the impact they have on the relationship between the dog and their person. Inflicting pain or even discomfort and punishment on a regular basis elevates stress and anxiety with negative consequences that go along with that. Not to mention how it influences our own behavior and how we treat others in general. We don't need to physically bully other beings into cooperation. "Using correctly" is often used an excuse for justifying methods that in my opinion, should belong to the past. We know better today and need to make more ethical as well as effective choices. Dr. Jennifer Cattet, CPDT-KA, Executive Director

[@lilieiner2151]

@@medicalmutts2781 yes I agree with that part but for some dogs as my own service dog the chain is the best form of communication I thinks that it just differs from dog to dog

[@medicalmutts2781]

@@lilieiner2151At our training facility, we train 30+ dogs and any given time and have trained close to 200 service dogs since we started in 2013. In all those years, we have not used a single choke chain, prong collar, or e-collar. Half of those dogs came from rescues and shelters with poor leash habits. The other half belonged to dog owners with various degrees of training experience. We have chosen to not resort to those tools, and don't need to.

[@lilieiner2151]

@@medicalmutts2781 i understand that im just stating what works for me

[@redfailhawk]

I use a prong too. I tried everything else, including my go-to Martingale. It was the prong that my dog really seemed to find made the most sense. While I firmly believe they are not the solution for most dogs, they are for my latest one. My previous SD used a flat collar and nothing else. I never needed more. She hated harnesses because she was a chow chow. My current SDiT uses a prong and a guide harness. She prefers the harness and the prong to anything else. I never expected to see a dog tap dance over seeing her prong, but she knows she'll be going to fun places when she wears it, and she literally dances if I so much as move her gear around. I can walk her perfectly on just a prong, but not a flat collar (which she can slip). She likes the guide harness because she knows she can use it to move me towards or away from sounds (I am HoH/Deaf.) And that said... I've used a prong on myself. It's not uncomfortable at all. I really did my research though and she's using a 2.25mm Herm Sprenger. I wore it for a full day myself before I ever put it on her. I practiced taking it on and off, practiced correcting with it. And when it comes down to it... I know exactly what she's experiencing on the other end, and feel happier for it. I had never used a prong before her. Never wanted to. But someone talked me into trying for her because nothing else was working, and it has become a standard part of our gear. She doesn't mind it whatsoever and since it's on a loose, longer line (my guide harness connects to me via a shorter hands-free lead), I can't pull on it accidentally. I only use it maybe 1-2 times an outing.