I walk all of my dogs on 4 foot leashes, with either a plain flat collar or a limited-choke/"Greyhound" collar. I will use a Halti if the dogs are particularly awful or large enough to need power steering. (I prefer Halti's to the 'Gentle Leader' because I feel the Halti has a better design, and stays in place better.) I don't like choke collars and I really don't like those prong collars.

I understand that harnesses look like a great idea, but to me they just say that you've given up on ever being able to walk this dog without them pulling. And dogs are really good at pulling. Think Iditarod. For thousands of years, dogs were used to pull carts and sleds. They were smaller than horses, could live in your house, and doubled as an alarm system. Rottweilers, Bouviers, and a number of other large breeds were all used to pull small wagons. Sometime in the early 20th century this was made illegal, on the argument that it was cruel for dogs to work as beasts of burden. In any case, like a lot of quadrupeds, dogs find it very easy to pull things along behind them. Putting a harness on them just makes it easier. Those new harnesses, with the attachment point in the center of the chest just suck, by the way. I have yet to see one of them actually work. It looks like something designed by someone who has never actually walked a dog.

I see a woman in Soho who walks her Lab puppy with a prong collar and a Flexi-lead. This is very scary to me. I don't like prong collars because I don't see the point. You should be able to control the dog without having to resort to that level of discomfort to get their attention. There is this intact male Dalmation that's walked with a prong collar. Whenever he sees another male dog, he lunges at them, throwing himself to the end of the leash, snarling. This is with the prong collar. I suggested to his dogwalker that he try a Halti for the dog, since the prong collar didn't seem to be working. He did, and the dog stopped lunging because the Halti made it easier for the walker to prevent and correct the behavior. Not to mention that it was more difficult for the dog. Unfortunately, they have a new walker now, who has gone back to the prong collar. And guess what? The Dalmation is back to lunging at other male dogs. Advocates of prong collars will tell you that pain is not the point, and that in the hands of an experienced trainer a prong collar is an effective training device. Great. The problem is, any idiot can buy one of these 'effective training devices' at any pet store and use them on their four month old Boxer puppy.

I use a four-foot leash because it makes sense. Watch someone with a six-foot leash, and chances are they either have it all doubled up or wrapped around their hand. If not, the dog is six feet in front of them, free to scavenge whatever tidbits come their way. The dog is too far away for you to grab, and if they charge forward they can jerk you off your feet. At four feet away, I can easily get the dog if I have to, and I can hold the loop end of the leash. In NYC, there is no reason for your dog to be six feet away from you while walking. Why? So they'll think they're free? They know perfectly well they're on a leash, please. I do not use Flexi-leads because for one thing, NYC law says that leashes may not be longer than 6 feet, and Flexi-leads usually start at 10 feet. Second, the hard case is difficult to hold when walking multiple dogs. It's not easy to hold with one dog. And finally, the dog does not need to be 10 feet away from me on a NYC sidewalk.

I believe that those chain leashes (you know the ones) should be outlawed. Only absolute idiots think these are a good idea. These are people who like to tie their dogs up outside while the go to the store, and worry that the dog will chew through the leash. Leave the dog home if you need to run errands like that. Or make sure you have current photos for the 'Lost Dog' posters you'll be making up. Wrap one of those leashes around your hand and I guarantee that you'll end up with broken fingers at some point. If you have the chain pulled through your hand, it will hurt. A lot.

I found I can get the same results, training-wise, with a limited-choke collar, without the risks of a chain choke. You need to be able to administer an effective correction without worrying that you'll hurt the dog. Plus, regular choke collars are normally put on the dog so that the collar only works when the dog is on your left side. If you're doing on-leash obedience work, great. I need my dogs to walk on either side of me, not just the left. So I need a collar that works no matter which side they are on.

When first walking a dog, I am very strict about where they walk (behind me) and I insist that they pay attention to me - not the other dogs, not the enticing smells in the gutter, not the skateboarder - me. I'm in charge of the show. If this means I spend the whole walk correcting them, fine. Once they have the idea, I can back off and let the rest of the pack be their guide.

Most dog owners do it the other way - they go easy in the beginning. Then they wonder why the dog ignores them on the leash. Duh. The dog is only following the rules you set. Begin as you mean to go on.