I use the gentle leader (actually we switched to the Halti brand) when we are likely to encounter other dogs. It gives me more control over her, as I can direct her face toward me instead of the dog. She tends to freak out over dogs. We have done some behavior modification training and stuff too, but the gentle leader is very helpful. In town, she is also more prone to pulling, so it helps with that too. She is not a huge fan of it either, so when we are hiking I usually just have her on her flat collar with the Halti easily accessible if I need to put it on. She will walk with it fine, but if we come to some soft-looking grass she will immediately put her face down into it, rubbing the top and sides of her nose. Supposedly, dogs who are properly introduced to it will not mind it, but I think it is just not that comfortable for her.