Pointers for using electric dog trainers

01-01-2007 | Anna Holland

Electronic dog trainers are readily available, reasonably priced and advertised ‘to solve most dog problems’.

Some of you love them, some of you think they don’t work or ruin dogs, and some of you are dead against them because you think they are cruel.

What do I think? I think they are better than sliced bread.

Electronic dog trainers do work and are a god-send if used correctly. Most of you have absolutely no idea how to use them correctly.

The first electric dog collars were large, heavy and had one level of electrical current. They were cruel and more often than not, harmed and ruined more dogs than they cured.

Not all dogs are the same. Not only do their natures vary but so too does their sensitivity to the electric shock. By that I mean you can have the same (mild) voltage and one dog won’t react and yet another will yelp and run for home - literally.

There is also varying degrees of intelligence with dog owners – the brainless variety purposely leave their finger on the button and take pleasure from seeing their dogs screaming and turning summersaults in pain. Yes, sadly that is true.

The manufacturers realised there was a huge problem that needed to be solved and solved it was.

The electronic dog trainers of today are a far cry from their earlier counterparts.

Now they have various intensity levels so that you can actually “train” rather than punish your dog. There is also an automatic cut out for the heavy-handed barbarians.

If the right intensity level is used the training collars are not cruel and if used correctly, they are not a waste of time.

Firstly, not all dogs need them – as I have said before, softer natured dogs often respond well to just a gruff voice.

Secondly, if you can’t control your temper and actions don’t ever use one.

And finally, if you think that it will magically train your dog – think again – it won’t.

Your dog has to be trained first. It has to have been taught basic commands and to have a good understanding of these commands before a collar goes anywhere near its neck. Please re-read this last statement.

Imagine – a young dog has never heard the word “sit”. The handler puts the trainer collar on. He says “sit”. The dog doesn’t sit. He gets a shock – he has no idea why.

Stupid isn’t it? And unbelievably, many of you do it. The dog must be trained first.

I have been using these collars, off and on for years, but only as a last resort.

And, by using cunning means, my dogs have no idea when they are on – they do not associate the collar with the feeling.

Here’s how I do it.

Young “Lass” has had all the lessons – with the rope, stick, sheep etc – described in previous articles.

Not only will she obey commands on the rope, but she will also obey them in a small yard, holding paddock.

She is praised when she does the right thing, “good girl” and corrected when she doesn’t.

Everything has been going well – most of the time she does what I ask, and doesn’t when feeling confused – this happens with all young dogs and you must make allowances. By repeating, clearly and insisting by tone, she gets it right.

But inevitably the day will come when she either knows better or refuses to listen.

If she gets away with it, she will do it again – it’s only natural – children are the same, so it needs to be nipped in the bud before the habit of disobeying is formed.

Because you can’t reason with a dog and because a minute or so after the event it won’t remember, getting hold of it for ‘a tune up’ doesn’t have a good success rate. By the time you have walked over to the dog it is too late for it to associate the reprimand with the act.

And that is why the electronic dog trainers are so good – it is immediate. Also the dog associates the discomfort from the act, not from you - therefore still trusting and being unafraid of you.

Don’t ever, I repeat – don’t ever call your dog over then punish it. The dog will think it was punished for coming to you. The last thing it remembers is happily coming to you and the next thing you kick or beat it.

An electronic trainer kit consists of the collar, a charger and a dummy (non working) collar plus instructions.

If you put the collar straight on a dog and give it a zap it will soon work out that the heavy odd feeling thing around its neck delivers an uncomfortable sensation and before long it will obey you only when it is wearing it and go back to its old tricks when it is not.

What you want is obedience each and every day regardless of what it is wearing, and this is achievable though it does take time. Believe me it is worth it because a dog that is ‘collar shy’ is a pain to say the least.

Back to Lass. At the first sign of the ‘adolescent know it all phase’ plan B is underway.

I don’t want her working and getting away with disobedience so she has a few days off and I put the ‘dummy’ collar on her. She needs time to adjust to the new weight and feeling of the collar without any repercussions.

She will wear it for a few hours, then have nothing, she will have it taken off and then put straight back on again, she will have an ordinary collar put on.

What I am trying to do is confuse her by regularly playing with her neck and what is around it.

Lass is now blissfully unaware of her neck adornments and ready for work, so the real collar goes on. This time when she ignores me she will be corrected, and naturally not associate it with the collar because she has become accustomed to the ‘feel alike’ dummy.

Incidentally, when you fit both the dummy and ‘the collar’ make sure they are neither too tight nor too loose. The probes need to be in contact with the skin but not so tight that it is uncomfortable.

It is vital to check the dog’s neck daily and to have time out from either collar otherwise you will end up with an infected neck where the probes have irritated the skin.

Before fitting the collar on Lass, I have tested it to see that it is working and put it on the lowest correction level. I have found that most dogs need only the lowest level.

The next statement is of critical importance – you do not want your dog to ‘overly’ react when corrected.

If your dog yelps, jumps sideways or runs away the shock is too strong and you will ruin everything and possibly your dog.

You know you have the right level for that particular dog when you see no reaction except it stops doing what it was doing wrong. It’s almost like the dog says “oh, what was that?”

However, some misdemeanors do require harsher punishment and a higher voltage. For example bolting, severe biting, chasing cars.

Remember to only correct one thing at a time. Do not zap it for not sitting, not walking up, going too fast, cutting a sheep off, all in the space of 15 minutes or even the same day – you’ll ruin your dog permanently.

If you have trained the dog properly chances are it is either not stopping, running out before being asked or not coming back.

If it is doing all these things, you have let it get out of hand.

I strongly advise playing around in the holding paddock in a non-work situation and have things going well again before going back to work.

For example, Lass won’t sit (stop) when told. “Lass, sit” – nothing –“Lass, sit” nothing, now I hold my finger down on the button saying “sit”, at the same time, until she stops. As soon as she stops release the button immediately.

Let’s look at this. I say the command once, a second time, still nothing. Now she gets the shock as I say the word, and continues to get it until she obeys. Because the shock stops as soon as she ‘sits’ she associates everything – the unpleasant feeling with disobedience, relief when obedient.

If the intensity was too strong it would be counter productive because she would be running away from the pain. That’s how animals react and you would achieve nothing. That’s is why it is so important to start on the lowest level.

If there is no reaction what-so-ever either the collar is too loose or the level too low for that dog. Check the collar first before raising the level.

You can see why it is important that the dog fully understands the command asked, before employing the aid of the collar.

Another example is the dog won’t come when called. “Lass, behind”, nothing, “Lass behind” nothing. Now I press the button until she starts coming saying ‘Lass behind” as I do so. The second she starts coming, the button is released – “good girl”.

Once I put the collar on a young dog it will wear it every time it goes to work for a month or two, so that it never gets into the habit of disobeying me. When it isn’t working (in this period) it will wear the dummy collar off and on so that it is totally used to the extra weight.

I might add here that I won’t zap her willy-nilly – dogs make genuine mistakes, and sometimes they genuinely don’t hear, but it is there, and used for out-right disobedience. She may not need a reprimand for a week or two, but if she does, I am able to do it immediately.

Remember - patience, understanding, control (of yourself), consistency and common sense when using these training devices on young dogs.

If a dog becomes collar shy, hardens to correction, sours, runs for home or becomes a nervous wreck it is not the collar, nor the dog at fault - it is you that is at fault because you have abused the training collar, you have abused your dog and you have abused your position of power and control.

• Anna Holland can be contacted on (06) 372 5722.

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