Written by Robin MacFarlane (reprinted with permission)
Never use an electronic collar or SHOCK COLLAR on your dog! Never, never, never!
Well, at least that is what you find on the internet when pet owners ask questions about containment or keeping their dog from bolting out of a gate. Innocent people ask innocent questions, seeking information about a problem they are having. Then, opinionated people with no actual experience provide answers like the one above.
The problem with opinion is it is only based on one’s experience. I am always curious when those hysterics are expressed: what actual experience does the person have with an electronic collar or successfully training dogs to honor boundaries?
I also understand the advice of installing a physical fence to make sure a dog is safely contained. You can’t beat a physical fence for containment purposes. It keeps your dog in and other things out. That is certainly the safest scenario. But it isn’t always possible. There are residential areas that don’t allow for physical fencing.
The next solution is management. The “NEVER take your dog out without a leash” solution. Sounds good in theory…but seriously? How many have been guilty of “I just wanted to let him out for a quick pee, and he has always comes right back…..until this time.” People are human; they make mistakes, exceptions, or an oops happen from time to time. The reality is a leash EACH and EVERY single time you take the dog out doesn’t happen in most households. Not to mention, leashes break or slip from the hand on occasion. The “*#it happens” principle is true in everyone’s life.
Next comes the “Train the dog” response. The “you do not need to resort to an electronic collar and shocking the dog…” answer.
Now, this is where I take some contention and wonder how much experience the adviser actually has. How come using an electronic collar is equated with not training? The collar doesn’t DO anything by itself. It takes a human to teach the dog about the boundary line to create success.
Next, I begin to wonder, how many dogs have they taught a rock-solid recall to? How many Siberian Huskies do they have that are off-leash reliable under their training belt? How many goofy labs that Love Everybody!! have they taught not to cross the street when the neighbor kids are out playing ball with their own happy-go-lucky pooch? If it is so easy, please show me how to do it in a realistic time frame and with results that stand up to realistic day-to-day distractions.
Seriously…some of the answers floating around out there in cyberspace get me in a bit of a tizzy! Has anyone ever figured out what happened to common sense?
I have a fenced property—about 7 acres to be exact. But I also have an opening at the drive entrance that does not have a gate. Since the business is here, there is a need for people and service vehicles to come and go all day long. I’d love to have one of those automatic gates…but it isn’t in the budget.
I also supervise my dogs when they are out. They aren’t allowed to play unattended outside for hours at a time. If they are out, I am generally out there with them.
And I train my dogs. I do teach solid recalls, I proof with distractions, plus I work and maintain the skill through the dog’s lifetime. I’m not too much of a slacker.
However, I also use the electronic collar to teach my dogs that they should not cross the boundary at the driveway opening in the fence line. After a period of teaching them to stay away from that line, I then proof the training by using an aversive level on the collar (one that I would typically describe as Too High) to make sure they are aware that crossing the line is not pleasant.
In my mind, the fact that my dogs go through 2 to 3 taps on the e-collar before they understand offsets the pain they would endure of getting hit by a car. Or the pain my family would endure by losing a dog to that highway. Been there, done that, and don’t need to repeat the lesson.
The combined time of those 2 or 3 taps needed for the proofing is approximately 1.5 seconds. If that is cruel and unnecessary…well then I will stand guilty as charged. I figure I am saving my dog’s life. I figure the same thing when they flinch when they get a vaccination or whimper when they have an ear infection, and I must clean and medicate their ears. I don’t like it any more than the next dog lover, but I believe it is my responsibility to keep my dogs safe, and there are moments when a bit of discomfort goes with that.
The picture above was the real deal. Granted, I had to reset the scene to get a photo but…I was putting out the recycle bins and turned to find Diva, my 10-month-old Duck Toller pup, sitting right there at the boundary line. She didn’t follow me across, and she didn’t sneak out to grab the ball she had dropped either. I taught her that through training, practice, rewards, and the use of an electronic collar.
So, my conviction remains steadfast. Investigate the source when you are seeking information for your training questions. Are those responding with passionate pleas experienced or not? And most importantly, can they offer you a solution that fits your needs?