E collar Defective or not?

[smartrock]

I'm with the others who would discourage you from using an e-collar to train him to play nicely with the little dogs. I'd be concerned that he would start to think it was the littles giving him the shock, not the collar, and that he might turn on them for "hurting" him. Are you planning to hunt with your dog? All our dogs were/are house pets, not hunting dogs, and having gone to at least 2 levels of obedience classes with all 7 dogs, I've never had a trainer recommend an e-collar for any reason. There is a trainer who comes onto this site once in a while who posts videos of dogs being trained with a Dogtra collar (I think). Since she's trained so many dogs with the e-collars, I'd be interested in knowing her thoughts. I use them, I do not consider myself an expert on them.

That said, I have collars by Garmin. When I first got them I started on the lowest level and gave myself a shock, then edged it up incrementally until I could 1. feel it, and 2. really feel it. There was definitely a difference and I didn't get beyond about 3 on myself out of 10 settings. I pretty much just use the collars to give my dogs the tone that means Come when we're out at the beach or somewhere that they can't hear me, they don't need to get the shock.

[Tanya]

I would get a new trainer. I don't say this lightly either, but I agree with the others who said it before me.

Always do your own research even if a trainer recommends something (especially such a drastic tool like an e-collar). there are many trainers and ways to train. and many trainers with little to no education on dogs and training they just "have always been "good" with dogs" or whatnot. There is no regulation at all in this area and of COURSE every trainer will be able to fin you a list of happy customers but that still doesn't mean they are good nor knowledgable. just because something works at first glance doesn't mean it is the best way to train nor that it has the best long term outcome on the dog's mental health and your relationship.

ETA: I am also not anti e-collar. there is a time and place for them I believe. But the described situation is an example of how not to use them.

[arentspowell]

Our little dog is the bully around here. She plays rough, biting on the labs ears, face, and legs. I intervene and tell the little one to knock it off when I sense that the big dog is getting tired of it. You can redirect your lab verbally, I wouldn't use an e collar for this purpose.

[barry581]

Bruce and Sophie go at it hard. You'd think they were trying to kill each other at times. Full on, no holds barred, full speed Lab bitey face. Even though Bruce is bigger, heavier, and strong, Sophie can kick his ass at will. A while back I started using the command "enough" followed by "here". I'd give them a treat as soon as they came to me. It took a couple months, but now, when they are going at it, I can pretty much stop it with one "enough".

[Snowshoe]

Double ditto all said above. I have a question though; how does puppy play with dogs bigger than himÉ, and olderÉ. How old was he when taken from the litterÉ Too soon, before 8 weeks, and they sometimes have a hard time understanding how rough they are and how hard they biteÉ Is he really rough or just carelessÉ

The É are question marks, sigh.

[TuMicks]

I think there is about 100% agreement here (and that almost never happens!)

Did your trainer explain about collar conditioning? It's a non-trivial process where the collar is integrated into the dog's regimented training process. It's part of a total program. But it's the only way to use the collar that is at all fair to the dog.

[indybindy]

As Jen said, you get what you pay for. Cheap ecollars have no place in dog training. Get a reliable brand so that you are consistent. Then find someone that knows what they are doing, to teach both you and dog.

To answer your questions about different stimulus levels, you should absolutely be able to tell the difference. My collars all go from hardly a tickle to very uncomfortable