Muzzles

[Ziggy17]

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Hi everyone. I'm new to this group so please be kind. I'm looking for advice about muzzles. I have two whippets which I bought don pare 103 muzzles for. One can get out of it and both have managed to bite through them, destroying them whilst wearing them. I'm looking for muzzles for whippets which are escape proof and are strong enough to withstand determined scavenging. They are never left alone with them and are only used on walks.

 

[JudyN]

Welcome, Ziggy. My lurcher always wore a muzzle when out and about, but only destroyed the occasional Don Pare 101. I can thoroughly recommend https://www.themuzzleshop.com/ - it started out as part of the Lurcher Link rescue organisation, and the people who run it have a lot of experience. There's a lot of info on their site, so have a browse, and contact them if you want more advice.

Personally, I didn't find muzzles much use to prevent scavenging - it was amazing what my dog could manage to eat through his muzzle But then, he had a very iffy personality and it wasn't a good idea to try to separate him from his new-found prize even with his muzzle on. If your whippets are more 'normal', at least muzzles might give you a chance to grab whatever they've found before they manage to eat it.

You're probably aware, but any muzzle that holds the mouth closed or interferes with airflow can be dangerous to a high-speed hound, and should only be used for short periods of time when absolutely necessary. So if you're hoping to stop your whippets eating dog/cow poo on walks... Well, I never found a solution to that one but thankfully my dog grew out of it.

 

[JoanneF]

I'm wondering if the reason for them destroying the muzzles is worth exploring a bit further. If it is because they aren't too keen on wearing them, you might need to go back to the start with getting them accustomed to wearing them. Squeezy cheese is a great product to encourage them to just lick off the muzzle initially,gradually building up more time with their snout in the right place before eventually fastening the clasps.

There's a good video here that might help too.

 

[Ziggy17]

My muzzles came from the muzzle shop. I ordered a stronger version of the 103 from them when the first muzzle broke but it hasn't come yet so I don't know if it will be any better.
I used a similar video when I first startedmuzzle training and found it helpful. I used peanut butter though (the 100% peanut kind).
They wreck the muzzles scavenging. They are so determined to eat some dead carcass that they bite all the way through the muzzle to get at it.

 

[RGC]

I’m intrigued re your rationale for muzzles. Please believe me, this is no criticism, merely a quest for enlightenment. Is it purely to prevent scavenging when you can’t get to them to prevent eating of the spoils? We were advised to put Mabel into a muzzle when we adopted her as she had been observed growling at other dogs when running with them. We decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and, with experience, decided against it. Her ‘growling’ wasn’t aggressive, merely competitive.

 

[Ziggy17]

I confess that they do also like to kill small furry things. I understand that I can keep them on the lead but they really do need to run and their recall is pretty good.

 

[RGC]

I confess that they do also like to kill small furry things. I understand that I can keep them on the lead but they really do need to run and their recall is pretty good.

Thank you. Our previous two rescued whippets were of the same ilk. They used to work together in a pincer movement towards squirrels, not something we encouraged. They were successful on only three occasions and I have to admit it was brutal - these gentle and graceful dogs turning into automaton killing machines. It got to the stage where we couldn’t say “squirrel”, but had to spell it. I do appreciate your reply, thank you. It’s good to meet fellow whippet people. PS - our current rescue isn’t prey driven.

 

[JudyN]

Would something like this work?: https://www.themuzzleshop.com/product-page/don-pare-small-box-walking-out-kennel-muzzle It has a more closed-in bottom section... though that might just mean they put more effort into getting their teeth through it. It might give the prey a better chance of escaping though.

If all else fails, are there places you could let them run where there's less wildlife, reserving the usual areas for on-lead walks? It's not ideal, I know, because there's nothing better than seeing your dogs run free.

 

[Ziggy17]

I only let the two of them off together (they're much less effective separately) in the open fields where the theory is I can spot something quickly and get them back on their leads. They are sight hounds however with much better vision than mine so this is obviously not an 100% effective strategy. Never had such a problem with the wildlife until we got our second dog RGC. Ours are the same working as a pack. Can't reconcile our sweet, gentle, quiet couch potatoes with these killers.

 

[Ziggy17]

It might Judy. Thanks

 

[JudyN]

Can't reconcile our sweet, gentle, quiet couch potatoes with these killers.

To them, though, it's no different to us going round a supermarket to get our food. Well it is, in that they've been bred so that hunting is hardwired into them - it's almost their purpose in life, their vocation, and absolutely nothing to do with aggression. It just doesn't tend to go down well with people taking their children for a walk

 

[Ziggy17]

So true. They can be so lethel and yet are so gentle with my 1 year old grand daughter. I call them my Jeykll and Hyde dogs.

 

[Ziggy17]

Thanks everyone for being so helpful and understanding.

 

[RGC]

Thanks everyone for being so helpful and understanding.

Thanks for the enlightenment. It wouldn’t have occurred to me.

 

[RGC]

I only let the two of them off together (they're much less effective separately) in the open fields where the theory is I can spot something quickly and get them back on their leads. They are sight hounds however with much better vision than mine so this is obviously not an 100% effective strategy. Never had such a problem with the wildlife until we got our second dog RGC. Ours are the same working as a pack. Can't reconcile our sweet, gentle, quiet couch potatoes with these killers.

That’s very interesting re the duo. We had our first whippet, Poppy, as a single dog. We adopted Blue a few years later and that’s when the prey mayhem started. At first I’d hear him ‘screaming’ in the garden at a squirrel he’d seen in the woodland behind us. It was definitely from the start of having two that the prey chasing went into fifth gear. We had to put them on leads when walking on Coppet Hill because of the deer - we’re in rural Herefordshire. Now we’ve got the wild boar. Do you have photos?

 

[JudyN]

Do you have photos?

Just to remove any doubt, I think RGC means of your whippets curled up on a sofa looking cute, not of them 'in action'

 

[Ziggy17]

We have a Blue too. We have no photos of them in action as I'm too busy whistling and trying to get them back on their leads. No wild boar in our neck of the woods thank goodness though I don't doubt they'd attempt to tackle them too.
Picture of the nose on the sofa is Cally. She brought that blanket through from the kitchen and wrapped it round herself one frosty morning.

 

[Ziggy17]

We never really had much bother until we got our second dog. It's not that Blue's a better hunter (I actually think Cally is) just that they work so well together.

 

[RGC]

We have a Blue too. We have no photos of them in action as I'm too busy whistling and trying to get them back on their leads. No wild boar in our neck of the woods thank goodness though I don't doubt they'd attempt to tackle them too.
Picture of the nose on the sofa is Cally. She brought that blanket through from the kitchen and wrapped it round herself one frosty morning.

Yes, I endorse JudyN’s note re the photos. No way do I want to see any animal being tortured. Had you seen my previous contributions on this forum you’d have been aware of such faux pas.

 

[JudyN]

They are lovely