Taz startles easily in public and reacts by barking and lunging at whatever frightened him. Because he listens well to me, people often think it's okay to pet or approach him without asking me.
We had been using a baskerville muzzle, however it didn't fit him properly and training him in it was difficult.
We both love our tye dye muzzle! He is much more confident wearing this muzzle, even after just 15 minutes, it was clear this muzzle was a good purchase! He is no longer afraid to take treats from me, and he is much more his goofy self while wearing it!
I got the removable head strap because he pawed at the baskerville occasionally and I was worried about him getting this one off. However before our muzzle arrived, the baskerville cut up his nose where the head strap crossed the muzzle. I didn't want to make it worse so I removed the strap. He does brush his muzzle against my leg when asking him to return to heel, but he does not try to remove this muzzle with his paws.
The nose opening is great! He can sniff and explore without shoving the muzzle into the bridge of his nose.
The treat hole is amazing! I can feed him easily while we are in motion. Luring him into various positions is also much easier than the baskerville. He was reluctant to take treats in the old muzzle, and he seemed to have a hard time performing many of his commands that he has no issues with unmuzzled. He is much more responsive in the tye dye muzzle! He also can drink water with this muzzle on, which he never really did with the baskerville. We opted for a short distance between his muzzle and nose which does allow him to eat treats off the ground, though he does have some difficulty with that, especially if the surface isn't flat.
We decided on around 75% of his pant height for our muzzle. I think this was a good fit for us, because we are not wearing the muzzle for strenuous activity. He wears it to our 1 hour group training class, 15-30 minute training sessions in the backyard, 15-45 minute walks and will wear it when new people come to the house. It is deep enough for him to relax and release stress, which is something his previous muzzle did not allow for.
The construction and sizing of the muzzle is excellent! Hillary confirmed what we were looking for before beginning his muzzle, and sent me photos before shipping. It allowed for further customization on arrival, and I didn't need to make many changes to the fit. I did end up cutting the extra straps down as there was quite a bit of extra material that I didn't care to have in the way. Cleaning has been very easy as there aren't groves for food/drool to get trapped in.
The colors match his current gear well! I wanted something bright that could easily be seen from a distance. The purpose of muzzling Taz is to deter people from approaching us so I can build both his and my own confidence in public. Our first walk with it on was in the evening while the sun was starting to go down, I had people dragging their dogs and children across the street to avoid us. With the black baskerville, people often didn't notice he was wearing it until they were close enough for him to be reactive. Because people are able to see the muzzle, they are giving us the space we need to comfortably exist in public!
Shadow, my parent's dog, is also much more relaxed around him in this muzzle vs the baskerville. Shadow has some ptsd from another dog who used to wear a baskerville. I think the fact that this muzzle allows Taz to use calming signals, it looks and smells different than the baskerville and Taz is more relaxed wearing it, Shadow is able to relax more around him while he has it on.
I am a dog trainer and occasionally work with dogs who are not comfortable at the vet or groomer, I will definitely be recommending this muzzle to clients to help make the process safer and less stressful for all parties involved! I also occasionally work with reactive dogs like Taz, who just need a bit more confidence to comfortably exist in public!
I was also sent extra screws and superglue to permanently secure his muzzle to his fit, as well as a tye dye muzzle sticker! I have a water bottle that I am decorating with training stickers and look forward to adding this sticker to my collection!
Overall I've had a wonderful experience with tye dye muzzles, and I'm very greatful I've found something that works so well for us!
