Harness or collar for a Pomeranian puppy?

A three-month-old Pomeranian is exactly the situation where getting the collar-versus-harness question right really matters — small dogs have delicate tracheas, and a collar puts direct pressure on the neck if they pull or lunge, which puppies absolutely do. Most harnesses have their own problem though: they're cut for slightly chunkier builds and end up too loose on a Pom's narrow chest. So you're right to pause before just grabbing whatever's on the shelf. To point you to the right thing — roughly how much does your pup weigh right now, and where are you mainly walking? Street pavements, parks, somewhere with a lot of distractions?

At 1.2kg, a collar genuinely isn't safe for regular walks — even light pulling can strain the trachea, and Pomeranians are already prone to a condition called collapsing trachea later in life. A harness distributes that pressure across the chest and shoulders instead, which is much safer. The tricky bit is finding one that fits a puppy that small without gaping around the chest. What I'd recommend is the Puppia Soft Harness in size XS — it's a mesh vest style that wraps around the whole chest rather than just clipping under the belly, which means it sits properly on a narrow Pom build. It's adjustable, washable, and lightweight enough that she won't even notice it. The step-in styles tend to fall off dogs this small, so the over-the-head vest design is important here.

Pomeranians are fully grown by around 12 months and typically end up between 1.9kg and 3.5kg, so yes, she'll grow — but the good news is Puppia's XS fits roughly 1–2kg and their S fits up to around 3kg, so you're likely looking at one size change, not constant replacement. The Puppia Soft is inexpensive enough that buying two sizes over her first year won't hurt. I'd measure her chest girth now (just behind the front legs) before ordering — if she's already close to the top of XS, start with S with the straps tightened. The adjustable chest strap gives you a decent range to work with as she fills out.

Keep the collar on her as an ID tag holder — that's genuinely its best job for a small dog. Just make sure it's loose enough to fit two fingers underneath and that you're never attaching the lead to it. Walk on the harness, ID on the collar. That way if she ever slips out of the harness (rare with a vest style, but possible), she still has her tag on. Once she's lead-trained and walking calmly, you could revisit a lightweight lead-collar setup for very short, controlled outings, but for now harness for all walks is the right call.