Is it ok to leave a walking harness on a puppy all day?

Question

My 5 month old Shih Tzu puppy goes absolutely mad when I am trying to get his harness on him to go for a walk. He bites my hands and I have tried giving him treats to distract him but it makes no difference it is a real struggle every time. So I was wondering if I put the harness on first thing in the morning and left it on all day would that be ok or would it be too uncomfortable for him.

Answer 1

Hes only 5mths old. Don't expect to much from him. If hes biting you when its being put on then distract him 1st .give him a chew stick.or a tug ball.then while his mouths "occupied" put the harness on. Id not advise to leaving it on all day the fur will rub,Persevere . dont let him dictate,

Answer 2

Id take it off. They might not like it and chew it off. Then you dont have a harness anymore.

Answer 3

No! a friend  did this with a dog and it ended up with a bit of a skin rash from it rubbing n stuff, and it getting damp underneath the straps. it needed medication to sort this rash out.

Answer 4

you could but it would make its fur go like the harness and i have one for my dog but you cant cuddle with it on so its up to you

i would take it off personally  

Answer 5

I dont think the harness would become uncomfortable if he wore just for the day. However, it would be a huge distraction to a puppy mind. Let him get a little older before you try that.

Answer 6

I was leaving the dog harness on my dog all the time -taking care to readjust it as she was getting bigger- but I only put the leash on when I was taking her for a walk.

For a young dog it might be a good idea to leave the leash on for a couple of days so she gets used to it but in the long term it is uncomfortable and the dog will start biting it and soiling it so it will be difficult for you to use it as well.

Answer 7

Sorry, I know its easier, but it is bad for the dog. Plus you need to train your dog and your just taking the easy way out. Make your dog behave, otherwise how is it going to act when it is an adult?

Answer 8

If he doesn't seem uncomfortable with it on, then it's no problem while he's supervised.

But, if he's going to be on his own with it on, it could get snagged on something and hurt him.

This is a band-aid to a problem that need to be addressed.  Your dog needs to be properly trained to accept the harness.  His biting is not acceptable and it sounds like the two of you need to get a proper trainer to deal with this before it gets out of hand.

Answer 9

I would dedicate a weekend and a good pair of gloves to putting the harness on and taking it off....over and over again till he doesn't care anymore.  Leaving the harness on constantly could rub his skin raw and could get him hung up on different articles in the house.  Also, Shih-tzus have alot of hair and can get matted from harnesses.  Try the taking it on and off over and over again for a weekend.  He'll stop biting.

Answer 10

I would say its fine as long as its not "digging" into his arm pits. Just saying that because that happened to my pug once and I didnt notice right away.

Answer 11

Its not bad at all. Its like a body collar. No one ever talks bad about dogs who wear collars. In fact they encourage it. And walking harnesses are much better for dog because if they get a running start and the collar runs out of slack their body is pulled instead of their throat. Our dog wears her harness all day sometimes and it never hurts her or makes her uncomfortable. Don't be too worried. Its like wearing a bra.

Answer 12

First of all, you need to take your Shih Tzu puppy to puppy training. It's about at least 100 a month for a 6 week session lesson.

It would best if you had the harness off and just slip over the collar over his head instead. If he bites, tell him no in a stern voice, and don't coax him later afterwards after scolding him...

...because he will think it's okay to bite or play bite you again.

Puppies are pretty darn smart and if you keep aiding and talking with cute voices to them, they won't take you seriously. If all else fails have a consultation with the doctor for a puppy shrink.

LOLS! Good luck to you!

Answer 13

Whether it would harm him or not is one thing but the puppy will only get used to you putting the harness on ... if you keep putting it on when you need it... it wouldn't hurt to leave it on occassionally like when you are in the floor playing with him and such so he knows that the harness isnt a bad thing, but leaving on all day just to keep from having to get him used to putting it on and off is not going to be very productive to training and could... maybe it wouldn't but could get caught on something... all though it less likely to choke it with a body harness opposed to just a collar... hmmm makes me wonder why we put collars on and never take them off...  

Answer 14

Not only uncomfortable, but dangerous. He could get caught in something. And anyways, you can't just avoid it forever. He's never going to learn if you do it that way. Just be consistent and he'll get used to it. And as he gets older, he'll mellow out a bit so it won't be so difficult. Good luck (:

Answer 15

it depends on how tight it is on your little Bruiser lol- as long as there is no visible pinching I don't see how it could be any different than him wearing a sweater. try it for a day; and keep a check on his skin to see if it gets rubbed places.

Five months is a great time to teach him that he's not the boss and maybe a couple of days of having to have the harness on will help show him that its just part of his life.