Which harness to use
Perfect-fit style harnesses work well because you don't need to put anything over your puppy's head, or fiddle around getting their legs through holes.
How to put the harness on
- Let your puppy sniff the harness first
- Get the harness the right way round, with the top piece at the top
- Bring your puppy in front of you with a piece of food in front of their nose
- Scatter pieces of food on the floor and do up the first clip while they eat
- Scatter more food and do up the second clip
- Scatter more food and do up the third clip
- Check the harness is fitting correctly
Attaching the lead
Use the same food-scattering approach to attach the lead:
- Hold food in front of your puppy's nose while you find the D-ring
- Scatter the food on the ground, then clip the lead on calmly
- Try to avoid the clip making a loud click, as puppies can learn that this noise means it's time to run off
Taking it all off
- Lead: food on the nose, unclip with one hand, then feed and remove the lead
- Harness: food on the nose as you unclip, scattering more food on the ground if you need both hands, then slide the harness off from underneath
The long-term goal
As your puppy gets older, you'll need less and less food. Eventually, they'll stand calmly for the harness and lead without any food at all.
