Do not leash your yorkie around the neck! - Page 2 - YorkieTalk.com Forums

Ladymom · 01-19-2008, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by micah0104

This is very true and sadly i learned the hard way. When My baby Teddy was about 14 weeks he had a very scary accident due to his collar. He way playing in the living room floor an laid down on an air vent, when he tried to get up he couldn't because had his name tag stuck in the air vent. He screamed and jumped violently twisting up the collar and choking himself. I tried taking the collar off but the buckle to the collar was inside the vent and it was twistly too tightly for me to cut it off. Finally I grabbed a hammer -that i think god placed on my kitchen couter- and use the back side to rip the vent out of the floor and untwisted the collar. When I got him undone he was not breathing and blue. I held him and cried and a few seconds later he coughed and started breathing!!! That was honestly the happiest moment of my life!! I rushed him to the vet and she told me from what i described she should be dead. She gave him a steriod for swelling and said he would be fine. The emotional issues he had due to the accident where quickly healed with love but I think he has treachea problems. The vet says he is a very healthy 7 month old puppy but i'm going to be taking him for a second opinion later this week, He coughs ALOT and I want to 100% sure my baby is ok. Take it from me collars are Dangerous!!!!!!! A few extra bucks can save you little one's life!!! I also reccomed having them wear nothing at home. You just never know what could get caught on what. And please get this message out to all the pet owners you know. Putting a collar on an animal is a risk too big for anyone to take, and i would hate to hear of anyone experiencing what Teddy and i did!!

What a scary story!

We had a member on another forum lose her puppy because of his collar. She gated him while she was at work and came home from work one day to find he had hung himself on the gate by his collar. As you can imagine, she was hysterical with grief and guilt.

bettyeanne · 01-20-2008, 05:03 AM

I hesitated to post this additional caution because it was just a "freak" accident ... but who knows, it could happen again! We seldom leave Toto home but if we do, we put her in her X-pen for her own safety. We were out one day and I ran to let her out as soon as we got home. Everyone knows how they jump up and down with excitement when they see you? While I was fumbling with the door of her pen, she suddenly started screaming! When I turned and looked, there she was hanging from her topknot!!! I screamed for Patrick because she was wiggling so much I couldn't get her loose. There is a curved handlelike thing that you snap in place to hold all the sections of the pen closed when you fold it up to store. It had always been on it and we thought nothing of it because it was a part of the pen. Patrick grabbed his pliers and took the thing off. Toto was scared out of her wits and I know her little scalp had to be hurting but otherwise she was OK. I realize that this was probably not a life threatening thing but it nausiates me to this day thinking of what might have happened if she had gotten her topknot or even her little T-shirt caught on that handle and hung there for an hour?

wantingayorkie · 01-22-2008, 10:54 AM

I'm in the middle of buying puppy supplies and luckily I did not buy a collar or leash. I need to get a harness and collar or just a harness? I didn't think they would wear a harness all day? Any advice would be helpful!

micah0104 · 01-22-2008, 11:24 AM

Teddy only wears a harness, never a collar anymore. He doesn't like wearing it for long periods of time but isn't normally bothered by it. He only wears it when he needs to be on a leash, any other time he wears nothing. For identification without wearing a collar all the time i just had him microchipped. Hope that is helpful.

Boosted Panda · 01-22-2008, 11:34 AM

I use a gentle leader for my baby. She seems to like that the best!

Sweetums · 01-22-2008, 11:48 AM

We have several of these for our furbaby. They are step-in harnesses, so the front strap only reaches the shoulders and not the neck area, plus they come in cute patterns:

Sweetums · 01-22-2008, 11:51 AM

We have several of these for our furbaby. They are step-in harnesses, so the front strap only reaches the shoulders and not the neck area, plus they come in cute patterns:
http://houndsaroundtown.com/restrain...harnesses.html

buttonsmom · 01-22-2008, 12:54 PM

is this type of harness pretty easy to put on them?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweetums

We have several of these for our furbaby. They are step-in harnesses, so the front strap only reaches the shoulders and not the neck area, plus they come in cute patterns:

YorkieAunt · 01-22-2008, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by micah0104

This is very true and sadly i learned the hard way. When My baby Teddy was about 14 weeks he had a very scary accident due to his collar. He way playing in the living room floor an laid down on an air vent, when he tried to get up he couldn't because had his name tag stuck in the air vent. He screamed and jumped violently twisting up the collar and choking himself. I tried taking the collar off but the buckle to the collar was inside the vent and it was twistly too tightly for me to cut it off. Finally I grabbed a hammer -that i think god placed on my kitchen couter- and use the back side to rip the vent out of the floor and untwisted the collar. When I got him undone he was not breathing and blue. I held him and cried and a few seconds later he coughed and started breathing!!! That was honestly the happiest moment of my life!! I rushed him to the vet and she told me from what i described she should be dead. She gave him a steriod for swelling and said he would be fine. The emotional issues he had due to the accident where quickly healed with love but I think he has treachea problems. The vet says he is a very healthy 7 month old puppy but i'm going to be taking him for a second opinion later this week, He coughs ALOT and I want to 100% sure my baby is ok. Take it from me collars are Dangerous!!!!!!! A few extra bucks can save you little one's life!!! I also reccomed having them wear nothing at home. You just never know what could get caught on what. And please get this message out to all the pet owners you know. Putting a collar on an animal is a risk too big for anyone to take, and i would hate to hear of anyone experiencing what Teddy and i did!!

I can't thank you enough for posting this! I use a harness when I put Tessa on a leash but I always leave a collar on her with her name tag on it.

I thought it would be good in case she took off out the door by accident. I would never have imagined tags getting stuck in a vent! I am taking her collar off her right now and we will just have to keep working on the "sit" & "stay" when the door opens

Thank you again for the post

Sandysbabies · 01-22-2008, 01:11 PM

I agree completely. Even collars can be dangerous. I never even put my schnauzers in their kennel with their collars on. Several years ago when Tina was just a baby and chewing on everything, she started chewing on Mandy's collar. She got her teeth hooked in and somehow under the collar and Mandy was just slinging her. I liked to have never got her loose. Scared me half to death. Just be careful with collars on every dog, and the harness is the way to go with our little ones.

mrshelbysmom · 01-27-2008, 01:29 AM

I also learned the hardway. My sweet baby pulled and tugged with the collar and I knew they had trachea issues but since my other yorkies weren't as hyper as him I never had the issue..boy did I find out at about 3yrs old. He ended up developing heart problems later, probably as a result of that. I have asked anyone that gets a yorkie to please not use a collar except for ID purposes, but the micro chip is better anyway. or put their tag on the harness. I left his on all the time and he never minded.

Lee B · 01-27-2008, 06:23 PM

My pup IS chipped, but if he got out and someone found him, he'd have to be taken to a vet in order for it to be read, versus looking at his collar. He has a nice rolled leather collar, but it's notched about 2" too big. At this point, if he got it caught on something, he could pull out of it. However, it's not so large that he can get it hooked on his lower jaw. An alternative might be a simple strand of elastic banding, or a collar with a magnetic catch that would "pop" open under duress.

When we leave the house, he has several styles of step-in harnesses for his leash. I haven't decided yet which one he (or I) likes best. But no animal with a neck so small should have a leash attached to a collar.

I'm also considering getting a "lobster claw" jewelry clasp and having his tags attached to it; then I could transfer his tags from collar to collar or harness with ease. Duplicate sets of tags can get pricey ...

01-20-2008, 05:03 AM	#17
bettyeanne Donating YT 7000 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Alabama, etc. Posts: 9,031	I hesitated to post this additional caution because it was just a "freak" accident ... but who knows, it could happen again! We seldom leave Toto home but if we do, we put her in her X-pen for her own safety. We were out one day and I ran to let her out as soon as we got home. Everyone knows how they jump up and down with excitement when they see you? While I was fumbling with the door of her pen, she suddenly started screaming! When I turned and looked, there she was hanging from her topknot!!! I screamed for Patrick because she was wiggling so much I couldn't get her loose. There is a curved handlelike thing that you snap in place to hold all the sections of the pen closed when you fold it up to store. It had always been on it and we thought nothing of it because it was a part of the pen. Patrick grabbed his pliers and took the thing off. Toto was scared out of her wits and I know her little scalp had to be hurting but otherwise she was OK. I realize that this was probably not a life threatening thing but it nausiates me to this day thinking of what might have happened if she had gotten her topknot or even her little T-shirt caught on that handle and hung there for an hour? __________________ Toto's Mom - http://www.dogster.com/?206581 Yorkie Rescue Colorado - http://www.yorkierescuecolorado.com/ "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has limits." -- Albert Einstein

01-22-2008, 10:54 AM	#18
wantingayorkie Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Home Posts: 36	Getting my first Yorkie on Saturday! I'm in the middle of buying puppy supplies and luckily I did not buy a collar or leash. I need to get a harness and collar or just a harness? I didn't think they would wear a harness all day? Any advice would be helpful!

01-22-2008, 11:24 AM	#19
micah0104 YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: ar Posts: 3	Teddy only wears a harness, never a collar anymore. He doesn't like wearing it for long periods of time but isn't normally bothered by it. He only wears it when he needs to be on a leash, any other time he wears nothing. For identification without wearing a collar all the time i just had him microchipped. Hope that is helpful.

01-22-2008, 11:34 AM	#20
Boosted Panda BANNED! Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Manhattan Beach Posts: 460	I use a gentle leader for my baby. She seems to like that the best!

01-22-2008, 11:48 AM	#21
Sweetums Donating Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Kirkland WA Posts: 431	We have several of these for our furbaby. They are step-in harnesses, so the front strap only reaches the shoulders and not the neck area, plus they come in cute patterns:

01-22-2008, 11:51 AM	#22
Sweetums Donating Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Kirkland WA Posts: 431	We have several of these for our furbaby. They are step-in harnesses, so the front strap only reaches the shoulders and not the neck area, plus they come in cute patterns: http://houndsaroundtown.com/restrain...harnesses.html

01-22-2008, 01:11 PM	#25
Sandysbabies YT 2000 Club Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Dallas, Texas Posts: 2,234	I agree completely. Even collars can be dangerous. I never even put my schnauzers in their kennel with their collars on. Several years ago when Tina was just a baby and chewing on everything, she started chewing on Mandy's collar. She got her teeth hooked in and somehow under the collar and Mandy was just slinging her. I liked to have never got her loose. Scared me half to death. Just be careful with collars on every dog, and the harness is the way to go with our little ones.

01-27-2008, 01:29 AM	#26
mrshelbysmom Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: kentucky Posts: 43	I also learned the hardway. My sweet baby pulled and tugged with the collar and I knew they had trachea issues but since my other yorkies weren't as hyper as him I never had the issue..boy did I find out at about 3yrs old. He ended up developing heart problems later, probably as a result of that. I have asked anyone that gets a yorkie to please not use a collar except for ID purposes, but the micro chip is better anyway. or put their tag on the harness. I left his on all the time and he never minded.

01-27-2008, 06:23 PM	#27
Lee B YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Land O' Lakes, FL Posts: 735	My pup IS chipped, but if he got out and someone found him, he'd have to be taken to a vet in order for it to be read, versus looking at his collar. He has a nice rolled leather collar, but it's notched about 2" too big. At this point, if he got it caught on something, he could pull out of it. However, it's not so large that he can get it hooked on his lower jaw. An alternative might be a simple strand of elastic banding, or a collar with a magnetic catch that would "pop" open under duress. When we leave the house, he has several styles of step-in harnesses for his leash. I haven't decided yet which one he (or I) likes best. But no animal with a neck so small should have a leash attached to a collar. I'm also considering getting a "lobster claw" jewelry clasp and having his tags attached to it; then I could transfer his tags from collar to collar or harness with ease. Duplicate sets of tags can get pricey ...