So, you lot have changed my mind, I see why one would be used, and in what situations. I have only ever seen them used in an unnecessary and negative way, so my opinion was tinted (hence why I asked yesterdays question, again, oh well)
At what point during your dogs training did you decide to use the collar as a training aid?
How old was your dog, what breed is your dog, and why did you use it?
What did you try before that, that made you consider the electric collar?
Or was it a last resort all together? If so, why?
Nice detailed answers please!
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Electric collars are BAD for dogs, do not use them. Use POSITIVE reinforcement for dogs. Shocking a dog does not fix the behavior in the long term, all it does it deliver a painful shock that stops the dog in his/her tracks. This does not teach the dog what behavior you want to see.
You must teach a dog what you want him/her to do, not just what you don't want him/her to do.
Shock collars are IMO one of the worst things you can do to your dog.
PS. Sooner or later the dog will realize that he/she can either run out of the shock collar's range, or will learn to just completely ignore you when the collar is no longer on. Because then, without your ability to shock your dog, there is no reinforcement to cause the dog to listen.
Remember, Positive Reinforcement. Never use negative reinforcement with a dog.
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- if your having problems with your dog, and you think you have to use a training shock collar, then you are wrong.
if your child was a baby and couldn't communicate with you because it couldn't talk would you hit your child for not doing what you want?
the same is with a dog. i am sure that if your dog understands what you are saying he would stop his behavior in an instant, but of course, that is impossible.
so what you need to do, if you feel you can't control your dog for whatever reason that i don't know, then consult an animal behaviorist. this person will tell you how bad your dogs case is and how to fix it. he or she will most likely suggest positive reinforcement. if you don't know what that is look it up.
then, you can try on your own to train your dog with positive reinforcement, or you can contact a professional, positive reinforcement trainer who has experience with whatever problem your dog is having.
good luck. and please don't get mad at people who you feel are "judging" you. their educated about shock collars, and any person who is educated on dogs will tell you not to use those things. they just care for your dog.
well good luck, and hope you take this into consideration. - i do not agree with electric collars. there are also collars out there that shoot air or water up under the dogs chin which are more humain. You haven't said what your problem with your dog is so it is hard to recomend what the best training method would be. there are lots of training aids out there that i would try before i ever went near an electric collar. there are choke chains, clicker training, halti's, toy rewards etc.
- I like explaining why I chose an electric collar.
We live adjacent to fields and also near train tracks. While the fields are completely fenced and I am not worried about my dogs getting run over, they are, at times, out of earshot. To still feel like I have control, I chose to use the e-collar.
I have a large breed dog who is now 9 months. While I questioned using it on him so young, he is a 100+ pound 9 month old. His size made up my mind. If he was smaller, I may have waited a bit longer. I also felt he was mentally ready. I had him on good control in the house and the small yard. He knew his basic commands, sit, lie down, come, and wait, so I knew that he understood what I wanted when I said one of these words.
I started with "come" on the e-Collar. When we were outside playing, I would stop and say, "come" to him. He already would acknowledge this command about 90% of the time unless he thought he has something better to be doing. If he came right away, he got tons of affection and praise. If he did not, he got a buzz from the vibrate feature of my eCollar. I love the vibrate feature. It gets attention without using the shock. If he still chose not to listen, I would give him a low shock. My collar has several settings and I have never turned it past the 2nd setting of 5.
I honestly only had to do this about 3-4 times before it was instant. Every time he felt the buzz, he knew that if he didn't come, a shock would follow. I am SO glad I chose to use the eCollar as it was an effective training tool for me. I much prefer the kinds with a remote for me to control when and what type of correction to use (vibrate or shock).
I have seen it be poorly used by people who don't know what they are doing, which I think is terrible. It is not an easy fix and if done improperly, will do nothing more than scare a dog. It must be clear what the collar's purpose is. The shock needs to mean something to the dog. It can mean, "come back now" like for my dog, "stop barking", "no", or even "stop".
Thanks so much for asking and not prejuding. I felt it was a necessary training tool for the purpose and look at it today the same way I look at a choke collar. My dog does not wear it all the time. Only when we go to the fields or somewhere I want him off leash but want control over him. Just like when I want to go for a walk, I grab his leash and choke chain.
Add: Nikki~ My dog is not my child. It is a dog. If my child is misbehaving she gets a time out or a punishment of some sort. My dog does not understand time outs. I love my dog dearly and have taken the time to train him for his own safety.
I have also tried the collar on my hand to experience it. While it didn't feel nice, it got my attention.
I also feel that the collars are OFTEN misused, giving all people who use them a bad name. I am not using one in subsitution for training. I am using it in conjunction with training.
That being said, everyone is entitled to their own opinion on the matter. The question wanted to know how people who used the collars do so, not if they are bad or not. :)
I forgot to answer one of your questions. I have used it on my bullmastiff which was the dog I referred to in my example and a german shorthair pointer (not the one I rescued who was abused...not a canidate for and eCollar in my opinion)
ADD #2: Was I one of the only ones to read the question? The asker asked people who use an eCollar their personal experiences...not if it is good or bad or that they even needed or wanted to use one. - An E fence 1 foot off the ground caused a Boxer to become neurotic. He'd sit & bark & bark & bark at the wire, it did not matter if it was working or not. Poor dog NEVER got over it, til the day he died. Not because of the fence but of old age.
I tried the same thing with my dogs & I spent more time walking the fence line to see if a weed or piece of grass was touching the wire & grounding it out. I tried it 1 foot off the ground & I tried it at the top of the fence line. It never phased my dogs at all. What was a little electric shock to getting to run all over the neighborhood?
I would never use the E-collar cause shock therapy is not what I wanted. I had to train them & went through all kinds of stuff just to keep them in their yard. Finally a 6 foot high fence with chicken wire attached at the bottom finally did it.
What is stopping your from putting up a good fence? Zoning?, neighborhood coalition?, You are renting?
Zoning here will allow any kind of fence. Block, wood, wire, chain link, just what ever. A fence is the only safe way to keep your dog at home.
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It only takes a split second to cross the line of electricity & after that he is free to go where he wants to. At a full run it is less than a split second to cross the line & he is gone. This is not your answer. - I Have read your question and all i can do is to tell you that the collar i used did not shock the dog,i hate that term. It just gave him a mild tweak even at the highest setting.Dogs just do not like the sensation. I had an 80lb lab mix and live near a street with traffic and figured a mild tweak was better than a fast moving delivery truck. Yes it was a last resort,a clicker or voice command was not enough. He was smart and learned quickly the joys of being able to roam freely within his home boundaries. Try one on your wrist and if it is a humane collar it will not harm or hurt you. I paid $200.50 for mine.
- I assume you mean by training collar, actually an electric collar?
I used one once with my last Sheltie.
We live on a row crop farm. From the day I got "Micah" at 9 weeks old I began training him meticulously. Before a year old he was reliable off leash on the farm. He was my competition agility dog and companion. We took him hiking, fishing and camping....reliable off leash.
Then one day, when he was about 5 or 6, while out walking the farm he kicked up a jack rabbit. But this time he wouldn't call off.
Micah was a trained dog, he knew what "come meant". He had called off birds and bunnies before. This time he "chose" not to respond.
Borrowed an electric collar, went walking the farm for several days until we kicked up another rabbit, he started to take off. "Micah leave it! Come!" no response. "MICAH! COME" no response....zap!
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