hi, i have a 16 month old staffy male, the problem is he never stops pulling when taken for a walk, he use to be on a leather staffy collar but he broke the ring where you clip the lead on, he his now on a choker chain, because he is such a strong dog i dont know what to try him on next, should i try him on a harness but then i worry about the ring if it will be strong enough, if anyone can offer me any advice i would be grateful
thank you
jay 

Personally I would try him with a harness as constant pulling on a chain/collar may hurt his neck BUT a harness will not stop him pulling - that parts down to training.
Every step you take while your dog is pulling you is only re-enforcing the pulling - pulling gets him to where he wants to go, therefore he will continue pulling.

This thread is worth taking a look at, there are a couple of training techniques for lead walking.

I have an Ancol padded harness that fastens on the back, it has 2 'D' rings to clip a lead to. It was less than £13 and I have never worried about it breaking (and that's on a Mastiff!!!), it's really heavy-duty :)

I had a bit of success with a halti. I have to admit that she absolutely hates it and probably considers it a form of punishment so I only use it as a last resort. I have no idea if a headcollar type of gadget would work on a staff but might be an idea to head along to an obedience class or two and get them to help you out.

With a staffie I would think the Gentle leader would be less likely to slip off the nose as you adjust the fit of the nose loop.

I have walked 5 or 6 of my breed for years without a headcollar/halter as they are not bad pullers.  After staying away with them this winter in the country with lots of distracting/exciting sheep and horses I decided at LKA to get two Dajan head collars, what a difference, so much so that I made up another from bits I had at home (old child harness and various metal rings from old collars etc), pending being able to get another two at a show.

It is like having power steering.  I didn't realise that even without seeming to pull, with that many there was always pressure on the leads and my shoulder was suffering for it.

Now it seems I can walk them with one finger, even though only three are on Head collars.

Yes they do sometimes try to rub them off against your legs, but as long as I keep walking it is fine, and one of the three (two year old) takes no notice of it at all, the puppy tries for a bit then accepts it, and the 9 year old will still thrust her head between your knees if you stop, LOL.

I teach dogs to heel without a lead, so neither of us is tempted to pull on it!  Using a treat or a toy, or stopping for a game after a couple of steps, I pat my leg to encourage the dog to walk beside me.  Once the dog understands the command, I put the lead on.  Hopefully he/she understands the walking business straight off.  You might develop problems if you only walk the dog on the lead to go to off-lead exercise - like on the way to the park.  Try driving to exercise for a while and walking on the lead just for practice.

I've never had a staffy but have you tried going back to basics.
don't put the lead on till the dog is calm, maybe even put the lead on and don't go out for a walk for a few mins, so the dog isn't wound up and so excited.then when you go out you walk out the door first and if the dog pulls then you just stand still and say nothing until the dog calms down and stands still too. this does work but you will have to go through alot of stopping till the dog gets the message that pulling gets him nowhere if he pulls.
i have had success with this method with all three of my dogs,you must be patient but they soon learn that if they want to go out then they must be calm and wait for you.

I have a 6 year old Staffie.  I do walk her on a harness but only because she has a tendancy to cough on a normal collar - although she doesn't pull on the lead at all.

I taught her to walk to heal using the stop, start method e.g. every time she pulled, I stood still.  I'd walk on and if she pulled we'd stop again.  You need alot of time and patience for this method!  However, after 2 walks she got the hang of it and only needs reminding if she has too many walks across fields instead of road walks.

I used one of the stop pull harnesses from PAH as a very temporary measure and my staffy hated it.  I only had to use it a couple of times when she was a pup and just taking it out the cupboard was enough to calm her down.  It appears to be very uncomfortable for the dog as having choke wire looped round your armpits would be.

thank you for your replys, i was thinking of getting a trainer in does anyone know any good trainers in the manchester area, 

> i was thinking of getting a trainer in

Instead of getting a trainer in to see you are there any classes you could attend?  A home trainer is unlikely to teach you much that you can't learn at a good training class (and for a lot less money).  If there is someone running KC Good Citizens it might be a sensible place to start.

Learning to walk to heel is often easier indoors as there are fewer distractions.  Once you've both mastered it in a controlled environment it can be reasonably easy to transition outside with a bit of perseverance and some patience.

Try looking at the APDT site

What you've got to remember is that your dog has gotten away with pulling you for a very long time! My advice would be to use the stop walking every time they pull method. My two GR's walk with only flat collars, and people comment all the time how beautifully they walk.  They both pulled like trains when pups, but the above method really does work!!!

Unfortunately if you have a smaller breed, there doesn't seem the need to teach them to walk properly without pulling. I see so many Staffy's dragging their owners along, yet there is an owner locally who has 3, and they walk beautifully!!!

Its so worth putting the time in to achieve what you want... it only then needs reinforcing every now and again, but generally it will solve your problem for a lifetime!!!

Good luck