If you’ve ever needed a muzzle for your pet, you know about the stigma surrounding them. People associate muzzles with “bad” dogs, and not fearful, reactive, or just plain greedy ones. Dogs wear muzzles for all sorts of reasons, and even if they are aggressive—their owner is working on it.
Kaylah reframes muzzle wearing dogs in a positive light with her impressive social media accounts featuring atmospheric photos of her dog Stanley, wearing a muzzle. You can check out her socials on TikTok, Facebook, or Instagram. (All photos in this article are courtesy of Kaylah, and used with permission.)
Hey! My name is Kaylah and my muzzled dog’s name is Stanley. Stanley became fear reactive due to traumatic experiences with dogs and people. He is also a severe scavenger. This is what brought me to the muzzle community.
I wanted Stan and others around us to be safe at all times and his muzzle provides that for him without losing any value of life. I provide most of my muzzle education on my social media platforms to extinguish the stigma of muzzles by providing the proper knowledge about muzzles.
Stigma is a huge issue with muzzles and why people have negative thoughts about them. The stigma comes from the spread of misinformation and thinking off of emotion instead of facts. Companies need to do their part and provide the proper information for what type of muzzle your dog needs, because muzzles are not a one size fits all when it comes to situations and the proper sizing and fitting of a muzzle.
I show on my social medias how a proper muzzle and the proper knowledge debunks the stigma of muzzles. When it comes to people making rude comments, the one and only thing you need to try and do is just ignore it. As hard as it may be, I always say it’s easy to judge when you don’t understand. You can and won’t please everyone. You are doing what’s best for your dog and that’s all that matters. To help with the stigma try to spread the proper information about muzzles to the people who are willing to learn and be open minded.
What tips do you have for people who think they may need a muzzle? Where should they begin? What is most important when looking for a good muzzle?
If you ever find yourself needing to get a muzzle for your dog, your first step is to learn the fundamentals from reliable sources. I recommend visiting muzzle groups on Facebook such as The Muzzle Club and Muzzled Mutts.
Another very reliable source is the people who make the muzzles. Custom muzzles are the only way to go because they will fit your dog properly and safely and offer a wide variety of different types of muzzles for your specific reason for muzzling.
Custom muzzles can only be purchased online. Baskerville and soft mesh muzzles are for training, vet and grooming visits only. These can be purchased at your local PetSmart or Petco. There are many different types of muzzles available like:
Wire Baskets muzzles are bite proof lightweight metal muzzle used for bite risk dogs and can be used for scavenging larger items. Agitation muzzles are usually leather and used for bite work or for working dogs. Biothane muzzles are soft muzzles that are used if the dog is NOT a bite risk and is typically used for legal purpose as it’s legally required in some countries and businesses like transportation or inside a business.
Mesh or fabric muzzles are used for vet and grooming visits only, these muzzles are not bite proof! Baskerville (TPR thermoplastic rubber) are used for training, vet and grooming visits only, these muzzles are not bite proof or scavenger proof. Vinyl muzzles depending on the strength of the vinyl it can be bite proof and is used for scavenging and bite risk dogs.
All these different types of muzzles serve different purposes, that’s why it’s important to know why you need a muzzle and what kind of muzzle your dog will need. Sizing is also very important as you don’t want the muzzle to interfere with the dog’s full pant or the dog’s eyes.
This will require measurements of the length which is the distance from the tip of the nose to just below the eye line. The width which is the snout width at the widest point. Height is measuring from the top of the dogs snout to the bottom of the jaw at the widest point while the dogs is at its full pant or holding a ball that will imitate the dog’s full pant.
Open circumference is measured around the snout at the widest point when the dog is at a full pant or holding a ball to imitate the dog’s full pant. Closed circumference is measuring around the dog’s snout closer to their eyes. The muzzle should not touch the front of your dog’s nose and should roughly have 1/2 inch of space between the muzzle and the dog’s nose as this prevents the muzzle from interfering with the dogs eyes.
How would a raw beginner go about training a potentially dangerous dog to wear a muzzle?
When it comes to muzzle training, I go to the lure method. Luring your dog’s face into the muzzle with high value treats and positive reinforcement. With the lure method your dog is able to willingly put its face into the muzzle to get the treat and positive reinforcement.
Muzzle training takes time, do not rush the training process. You want this experience to be all around positive and fun for your dog and you! Depending on your dog and how consistent you are with muzzle training will give you an idea of how long the training can take to completely condition your dog to a muzzle.
Some dogs pick it up really quickly and others it may take longer. Work at your dog’s pace. When a dog is completely conditioned to a muzzle the dog will not try and take it off or act like something is on its face. The dog will be completely unfazed.
You and your dog will continue to have fulfilling lives. Don’t give up, there is hope and a muzzle will help you get there.
Muzzled dogs are good dogs too.
Similar Posts:
- Interview with Muzzle Designer, Hillary
- 6 Different Types of Muzzles and When to Use Them
- How to Measure Your Dog for a Muzzle
- How To Muzzle Train A Chihuahua
- Best Chihuahua Forums
