by Grayson Schaffer | on July 22nd, 2009 | in Features, Training
From left: E-collar, pronged pinch collar, flat slip collar, flat buckle collar
A lot gets made of which training collar you choose for your dog. There are plenty to pick from—chokers, pronged pinch collars, e-collars, slip leads, and regular old flat buckle collars. One way or another they all do the same thing, which is relay information from the handler to the dog. In the course of training Danger, I’ve tried every collar you can imagine and talked to a dozen experts, who each swore by a certain one and dismissed the others as utter nonsense. All of this has brought me to my own conclusion, which I feel equally certain about: Everyone pays far too much attention to the collar. Instead, we need to be thinking about what information the collar is conveying and—more importantly—whether the dog understands what we’re trying to tell him.
One of the big things that leads to miscommunication is this idea of the collar correction. That’s when you snap a choker chain or apply an electric shock as a means of letting the dog know he’s just done something wrong. The problem with collar corrections isn’t that they’re inherently mean or dangerous, though they certainly can be in novice hands, it’s that they miss the opportunity to supply useful information and instead say only one thing: Wrong! If you want to then show the dog the correct behavior, you’ve got to do it as a second step: Wrong. This way. Many dogs will learn new skills like this, but mathematically it’s more difficult. The number of ways a dog can do any task wrong is nearly infinite. The number of ways to do it right is only one. And since dog training isn’t a quiz show, it’s probably a lot easier to tell him the right answer rather than let him guess.
Collar pressure drills are the answer. ADW’s founder, Jill Felice, showed me this. She also trains horses, which are too big and powerful to use something like a collar correction on. So, instead, she teaches them that light reign pressure is a directional instruction. Same goes for dogs. Light collar pressure to the left means move left. It’s really easy to teach, too. Put light pressure on the lead in one direction and reward when the dog moves toward the pressure. This is a good exercise to use a clicker on, as well. Once you’ve got a dog that understands that light collar pressure means move toward the pressure—and not, say, pull harder to get out ahead—you’ll be able to offer real collar corrections that mean something—”I want you over here“—rather than the spirit-dampening, Wrong. The nice thing about teaching your dog the meaning of collar pressure is that you can do it with an ordinary flat collar.
I ended up at this collar pressure exercise because the snap of a choker collar had absolutely no effect on Danger. Ditto the pronged pinch collar. It could be because he’s a big strong boy with a thick neck, but more likely my novice timing and repeated jerks just hardened him to it. Remember what we learned from Steve White’s Eight Rules of Punishment: Punishment is reinforcing to the punisher. In other words, you’ve got to use punishment carefully, because it wears out the more you use it.
The goal in all of this is to have a dog that’s calm and dependable. And to that end, you don’t really need a collar. The same way you can teach a dog to move with collar pressure, you can teach him to move with hand signals, touches, or even eye movements. Jill has taught her own dogs that a touch on the top of the head means “It’s your turn”—a necessity for things like feeding and coming and going into different holding pens, since she has 13 dogs and can’t very well be muscling that many animals around all the time.
As a general rule, think about what you’re telling your dog with whatever method you choose. Most of all, ask yourself whether you’re supplying the right answer or just shutting your dog down when he gets it wrong.
by Mike Stewart | on April 6th, 2009 | in Features, The Wildrose Way
An electrick shock collar
OK, so we have an independent-minded, self-employed dog that just will not come when there are tempting distractions. What then?
If Part I and II of our recall training did not work, we have the final option of force. An effective tool is the electric collar. I recommend E-collars only as a last resort for stopping a determined dog from engaging in dangerous or uncontrollable behaviors like chasing cars, bolting, or chasing animals. Using a modern e-collar with variable levels of intensity, we can apply just enough discomfort to get results. The training begins at the lowest setting of intensity that will get a response from your dog. First, teach the dog the appropriate command as we did in parts I and II. You can’t teach anything with an E-collar—only reinforce what the dog already knows. To assure a response in the field when those interesting distractions appear, we will want to begin training with our dog close to us backed up with a 50-foot check cord.
- Place the E-collar on the dog as instructed by the manufacturer.
- Work the dog for several weeks through obedience skills just wearing the collar so they become accustomed to it.
- Test the level of responsiveness on the lowest level possible. Walk the dog forward, then abruptly back away in a reverse heel while calling the dog to you. As the dog turns, activate the collar as you give the recall command. Hold the button down until the dog takes his first step toward you. If he doesn’t respond, use the check cord to encourage them forward.
- Our student quickly learns that coming toward you relieves the discomfort. Now, gradually lengthen the distance and distraction of your recall in small increments. Each time, be consistent: 1) Call the dog, 2) activate the collar, 3) release the button as the dog comes forward.
Cautions, warnings, and downsides
- Never use an E-collar to punish a dog, and never lose your temper. E-collars are incredibly powerful tools but can deliver incredible pain (like a wall socket or stun gun) at the touch of a button. Treat the button with respect.
- E-collars are a good training tool when they’re necessary, but they make a terrible training methodology. As with a choker chain and other training equipment, an E-collar shouldn’t be used as a crutch to make up for a trainer’s lack of ability or experience. Before you convince yourself that your dog is too stubborn to learn, have a professional evaluate your training style. Often times it’s the handler and not the dog that needs correcting.
- If you’re using an E-collar, you’re using it to correct undesirable behaviors. You’ll know you’ve succeeded when you no longer have to use the collar. Always keep this in mind. Once you start using the collar, it’s hard to stop.
- If you use the collar for any length of time, you’re certain to end up with a dog that has two personalities: One with the collar on that obeys; one without the collar that does what it wants.
An electric collar is often euphemistically described as “stimulation” or “pressure.” That’s not quite right. An E-collar produces an electric shock that all dogs (and humans and just about everything else with a nervous system) know to avoid after very brief contact. The dog avoids the shock or relieves the shock by responding to the command. Never use the collar until the command is totally understood, then keep the collar on for extended periods of time so your dog does not become collar wise.
This is the training method of last resort, never to be considered a shortcut, only used for the most difficult subjects that continue to behave in a dangerous or uncontrollable behavior.
