Why do YOU use an E-collar?

Question

Why do YOU use an E-collar?

Answer 1

Yep, Wonderful training tool when used properly.



It is only cruelty when used in the hands of those who do not properly know how to use and apply the collar correctly.

Answer 2

Distance work. Mostly hunting and general recall proofing for safety.



My mix makes a passable bird dog. She has a good nose & a lot of enthusiasm, and she finds birds for me. If she gets into a lot of birds one after another, she gets incredibly worked up & will ignore my whistle, won't stay in range & starts hunting on her own. Or, if she scares up a rabbit while running, her brain shuts off & I don't exist.



An E-collar just gives the handler a lot more "leash" to control a dog at a distance. Since, ya know, carrying around 300 feet of rope & trying to give timely corrections to a dog who is immersed in a thick grassy field, all while carrying a loaded firearm, is just a little bit idiotic.



The correction my dog responds to isn't any more severe than a leash & collar correction. The stim level that works for my dog in most "normal" situations feels to me like a prickly tingle. Most of the time all it takes is a nick or two, and after that she responds to whistle/voice commands. And once I found the higher stim level sufficient to call her off a rabbit chase (probably the most highly driven state she encounters on a regular basis)....I put the collar on my arm & felt the same level myself. I *was* expecting it to hurt, actually....since I assumed anything that called her off the chase would have to practically knock her out. I was very wrong....It got my attention, but was hardly what I'd call painful. More like a "suprise".



I live in a very isolated area; surrounded by nothing but farmland. Thousands and thousands of acres. I rent a house situated on 3500 acres, most of which I have easy access to. If an e-collar can train them to respond to voice commands while off-leash, I can allow them to enjoy this huge area with me. They can play and explore to their heart's content and I don't have to worry that they'll get away from me and go harass livestock, or possibly even get hit by a car/truck/tractor/combine/etc.



The people who scream bloody murder about how "brutal" the E-collar is, has either NEVER encoutnered one in real life, or has witnessed someone using it in an abusive manner.

Answer 3

I usually let my dogs off-leash in the park. They get far enough from me and get enough interestingness going around to distract themselves. So if I just sit there and call they aren't going to come. Now, am I going to call them with treats?? What, so I am the "treat-lady" and they only come to me when I have treats? They MUST come to me whenever I call.



So instead of the "if you come you get a treat" I use "if you don't come you get a correction".



Clear as water!

Answer 4

I'm honestly thinking about using one for his obsession with livestock, he can easily pull me over, someone will shoot him one day for chasing their livestock.

I had a guy who's been doing some fencing for us mention that he used one on his cattle dog for the same reason & that he'd help me out.. his dog is AMAZING.. the cattle came right up to the dog when the guy was working, and he ignored them, I was amazed.

Answer 5

When used correctly, there is no better way to train off-leash reliability. The collars in the U.S. can also be helpful to increase drive. There are collars available in Europe that are better to "clear the head". As with any training tool...knowledge (or lack thereof) of using it correctly is the only thing that makes it good or bad.

Answer 6

I have never used one and the only reason why is because I am not comfortable with how to properly use it. There is also so many different types! I get confused. I would love to have a 'proofed' recall on Launi but I don't. If she gets out, 90% of the time she will come when called. That is if there are no distractions like another dog, person jogging etc.



If I could find someone in my area to teach me the proper way and which collar to purchase I would get one in a heartbeat.



I believe in knowing how to use the 'tool' before using it. I learned how to properly use a prong from a certified trainer. She has since moved.

Answer 7

I have used an E-collar, but not for about 20+ years. The reason I used it was because I had a fence jumping Dobe. She would not normally jump the fence, but when my young sons played basketball, and the ball happened to go over the fence, my dog would go to retrieve my kids when they went over the fence to retrieve the ball. My neighbors were not happy campers. Needless to say, it took zaps and she never did it again. Therefore I sold the collar to someone who was needing one for a different issue. I also used a no bark collar on a mixed breed dog that we had over 3 decades ago. (obviously, not the same tool)

Answer 8

Never had to use E collars. We had to resort to spray bottles/squirt guns, and that did the trick. It was only with one dog, and we owned dogs before him. People have called me lazy and so on, but hey, I trained my first four dogs without any of that stuff. Sammy has been quite the science experiment for us.



We were going to get an E Collar if the spray bottle/squirt guns didn't work. But it works great.

Answer 9

I think they can be great also, when they are used right. I have a friend who has a wolf hybrid that uses one. His dog is a great dog and listens very well, but he wears an E-collar when out in public (dog park, at the trailhead, etc.). I have only ever seen him use it twice and both were instances were his dog was overstepping his bounds a bit and beginning to get a bit aggressive with another dog. He knows his dog is very powerful and large and could easily hurt/kill another dog or person. A little shock from the collar and he snaps right out of the behavior. I think my friend uses more for piece of mind than anything, so he knows that if things start to get a little unfriendly, he can snap his dog right out of it, and return the dog's attention to him.

Answer 10

Because I want my Dobermann b*tch to obey a command first time, every time regardless of environmental distractions.



The recall command has been fixed to the expected behavior in her mind with practice, but prey drive is hard wired into her mind. Pursuing prey is instinct driven behavior & highly satisfying, so unless the lure I was holding was a live rabbit, she would ingore the recall command & continue the pursuit of her prey.



An e-collar would ensure that my b*tch obeyed the recall command not please me, her handler, but because she had been trained to be clear in her head that bad behavior caused a negative consequence she instinctively feared & wanted to avoid.



Far better that I learn how to safely use an e-collar & use it to train her that obedience is demanded, not given at her discretion, than scrape her off the road becuase she ignored me & pursued prey into the path of a car.

Answer 11

Great examples, shame about the ignorance of the owners; though I do feel a tad sorry for the owners.



I don't use an e-collar and never head. I perfected my dogs recall from when she was 10 weeks old, and worked on it. She has 100% reliable recall to the whistle and never once (touch wood) have I had a slip up. That does not mean I will not use an e-collar, because at the moment she runs in at live game, which is a complete NO- if it continues and training does nor make an impact, then me and my trainers will work together with an e-collar.



My aunt had a Springer. The dog was born to work and had no interest in anything else. One she was off her lead, you wouldn't see her unless she brought you game back. It would take her around 10 minutes to return to the whistle. With a professional trainer, she worked with an e-collar. Sadly, it didn't make much difference. At first the dog came back, but after a while she got used to the shock and decided the shock was worth the hunt. This dog needed to be beating and retuning game, so my aunt re homed her. She now can only be left off work when they're actually working her, but her recall has improved tremendously.



I've suggested it to a few other Springer owners who's dogs have unreliable recalls, and they've agreed to work with the trainers to see how they react to the collar, as it could be very beneficial for both dogs, as well as them being allowed to work.

Answer 12

Well we got tired of the barking, the neighbors dogs bark everytime they leave and she feels the need to talk back.

We did verbal corrections all the time and at first it worked but then it became less effective and she would start to make a rumbling sound, not a growl, but whiny rumble sound. Then we talked to a trainer that suggested and plastic bottle with pennies in it. We were to shake it any time she barked, it was to startle her to stop her. Well the first time we did it she didn't care at all and actually grabbed it later and shook it, it bacame one of her most favorite toys.

Then as soon as we had the money to get a Bark Collar we did and it worked wonders. We then also got a remote control one for controling her better when company came over, can't have a 90 pound dog body slamming a 2 year old. It also worked wonders.



The bark collar malfunctioned, continuely shocked her, so we switched to the remote one and then loaned it to my aunt and it broke so we just put it on her while off and she behaves like an Angel.



ADD: We also tried the spray bottle, that was not even close to effective all she did was bite at the stream.

Answer 13

I have a trainer coming next week to show me how to properly us the e-collar. Although recently Notorious has had a tremendous turn around when recalled, it is not enough to convince me he would not be in danger if (God forbid) he ever got out and ran in the street. So yes I am going to use an e-collar on him.



But I feel the same as you do, a bad recall is unacceptable. And I feel the e-collar must be used properly, for the right reason, and I can honestly say I exhausted all avenues without the collar. But he will be the first, so either I met my match or I am slipping! (lol)

Answer 14

I used an electric collar once. I borrowed it from a friend.



My dog was around 3 years old at the time, and was highly trained. He was my competition agility dog. We have a fenced yard, but on walks around the farm he was never on leash.



He had on several occasions flushed birds, pheasants, rabbits and always called off...until one day.



Borrowed the collar, spent 3 days walking the farm until we kicked up another rabbit....zap! And that was that.



The shock was a correction for not responding to the most important command he already had been trained.

Answer 15

Yes and they are great.



TOTALLY get Dos Perros' point of view. She is absolutely right. When training a dog, if you are always a treat dispenser and NOTHING else, your dog is following the treats and NOT you. What would happen in an emergency.... And you had no treats? Would your dog come back? No. You had no treat in your hand... "Buh bye treat lady!"



On the other hand, if you have an e-collar, you can call your dog to you in a total different way in which your dog is respecting YOUR decision... Not the treat in your hand.



When used correctly they can cause terrible damage. But after all... Which training tool doesn't?

Answer 16

FIRST.... the term e-collar is commonly used by veterinarians to refer to the Elizabethan Collars, and the collar you are talking about is actually a shock collar.



To be honest, I can see using the shock collar to assist in training a recalcitrant dog who doesn't come when called, but I also believe that positive training is more effective. My breeder trained my 2 sibling pups to come for treat when called and whistled for BEFORE she sold them to me at 8 weeks of age. And I continue that training even now that they are 10 months of age as they've reached their exploratory pre-teen age time.



I don't like using a shock collar for barking, but my dogs are pyrs and supposed to bark to scare away predators and intruders.



I have a shock collar and when my first pyr was a pup, I did use it to assist in training to come when called. Most of my difficulty in getting her to come when called was my own fault, for becoming angry when she did not come. Pyrs are sensitive, and positive training with treats and praise are much better than anything else. To be honest, pyrs are stoic and bull-headed, and they often will ignore the shock collar so it didn't help her much. I've worked years to undo the harm I caused by becoming angry at her when she didn't come when called. The shock collar only gave me a little bit of help.



I prefer personal training with treats and praise, and attending obedience classes with your dog to use of a shock collar. They are much more effective, and you don't want to get into the habit of using a shock collar to punish a dog for not obeying. Punishment and yelling usually make the problem worse as the dog is trying to avoid your negative behavior towards them.



My husband agrees with you about using it for no-bark training. I don't.



You probably live in a city or town. I live in the country where immediate recall is rarely critical.



Part of what has brought you to your belief in the use of the collar is bad experiences your friends and acquaintances have had. While sad, you cannot undo what they may have done wrong. It's sad that they never learned what would make their own dog respond as needed. A lot of people who have dogs don't learn how to get the dog to do what you want... and the best way is to find out what will get the dog to WANT to comply. That's the challenge. The price for failure can be very high and painful, as you know -!-