The shock collar, remote training collar, or electronic dog collar is most commonly used in four areas –
- Keep dogs inside our property. Our dog is corrected every time he nears the fence-line. This is also known as an invisible fence or underground fence.
- Stop dogs from barking. The collar automatically delivers a correction whenever our dog starts to bark. If he continues to bark, the force, duration, and frequency of the shocks may be automatically increased.
- Train dogs and stop problem dog behaviors. Shock collars are most commonly used for off-leash training. However, some dog trainers and pet owners also use it for behavioral issues such as food aggression, and dog aggression.
- Teach dogs to stay away from dangerous animals and objects. A common use is in rattlesnake aversion training. A dog is shocked hard, but a very small number of times, when he nears a caged rattlesnake. This teaches him not to approach rattlesnakes in the future.
The use of shock collars on dogs is a very emotional topic. Discussions will often degrade into personal attacks, accusations of dog cruelty, and other types of name calling.
In this article, I will try to stick to the facts, and consider whether it is something I would use on my dogs. Note however, that facts are not always convenient, and facts are not always balanced between the two sides.
If you have already made up your mind about using electronic collars and are looking for validation, this article is not for you.
Electronic Collars vs. Shock Collars
Not all electronic collars are used as shock collars. There are three main modes – 1. Beep mode, 2. Vibrate mode, and 3. Shock mode.
All electronic collars have the shock functionality, but the beep or vibrate functions are optional.
1. Beep mode
In this mode, a beep is emitted whenever the collar controller is pressed. This beep can be used as a marker, in the same way that clickers are used in clicker training.
For the beep to be an effective marker, a dog needs prior training for associating the sound with a positive or negative consequence. For example, if the beep always precedes a sought after reward, then our dog may stop and wait, because he knows that something good is coming. Similarly, a dog may freeze or submit when he hears a beep, because he knows that failure to comply, will be followed by a painful shock.
The beep can also cause a startle response, similarly to blowing a whistle. This can be used to get our dog’s attention or to interrupt his current action. However, for this to work, we must only use the interrupt signal on very rare occasions. If applied too frequently, our dog will become accustomed to it, and just ignore it.
2. Vibrate mode
In this mode, the collar vibrates, similar to how our pager or phone vibrates to get our attention. Like the beep mode, this vibration can be used as a marker or as an interrupt.
Both the beep and vibrate modes do not deliver an electric shock to the dog.
3. Shock mode.
In shock mode, the electronic collar will deliver an electric current to the dog through two contact points at the dog’s neck.
This electric current will cause pain and physical discomfort to the dog, otherwise it would not be effective in conditioning him.
The amount of pain delivered to the dog will depend on three key factors –
- The power/voltage of the electric current,
- The duration of the current, and
- The frequency of the current.
The amount of pain that the dog actually feels, will also depend on the physical characteristics of the dog (e.g. size, skin, and fur), as well as the temperament of the dog. Some dogs are more sensitive to pain than others.
Sometimes, words like stimulation are used to describe shock collars. I even saw them described as gentle training collars.
Beware of these sales gimmicks. Accept an electronic collar for what it is. If you choose to use it, make an informed decision that is based on the actual pros and cons of the system, which I will discuss below. Note that the subsequent discussion is solely based on the shock functionality of remote training collars (not on the beep and vibrate modes).
The Good
1. Allows us to control the amount of pain delivered to our dog, and administer that pain from a distance.
One of the great challenges of implementing pain based aversive techniques such as leash jerks, muzzle slaps, and finger pokes, is in controlling the amount of force delivered to the dog.
- Too much force and our dog may break down, and become extremely stressed or fearful.
- Too little force and our dog will get habituated to the corrections, and just ignore them.
Master aversive trainers are able to deliver just the right amount of force, so that the dog will not repeat a bad behavior, but at the same time, he will also not become unbalanced and fearful.
Unlike other aversive methods, remote training collars allows us to easily adjust the amount of pain delivered to a dog, and to keep that level of pain consistent in subsequent corrections. We can also administer the pain from a distance.
However, it should also be mentioned that the amount of pain actually ‘felt’ by the dog as well as the resulting response, depends on many different factors, not just the level of shock applied.
Although these devices are presented as a highly controllable method of modifying behaviour, via the controlled administering of pain/discomfort (the collars are designed to allow operator to set the duration and intensity of shock), an individual animal’s experience when a shock is applied will be influenced by numerous factors. In addition to individual temperament, the experience will be affected by the dog’s previous experiences, frequency of application, location of shock, thickness of hair and level of moisture on skin (Lindsay, 2005). Given that many of these factors are not easily determinable by the operator, this makes the device far less precise than suggested.
~~[RSPCA]
2. Can automatically deliver a shock correction to the dog, even when we are not there.
Another challenge of implementing proper aversive corrections, is using the right timing. We want to correct our dog as soon as he performs an unacceptable behavior, and stop correcting him as soon as he stops that behavior.
Electronic collars can be tied to a particular trigger event, such as barking or proximity to our fence-line. In this way, a shock is automatically and consistently delivered to the dog, as soon as he starts to bark or tries to escape. In fact, the invisible fence or shock anti-bark systems are convenient, because we do not even have to be there to deliver the corrections.
Shock collars such as these may sound tempting and easy to use, but unfortunately, consistent and automatic timing does not necessarily mean correct timing.
Studies show that automatic collars are risky, because tying a shock correction to a single trigger event, such as barking or proximity, is too simplistic and will frequently result in bad timing. This can subsequently lead to aggression and other dog behavioral issues.
There are some anti-bark collars that use sound aversion to stop dog barking, for example the Ultrasonic Anti-bark Collar. However, customer reviews have been poor because the sound stimulus is often insufficient to prevent the barking behavior.
3. The source of the aversive stimulus is less clear.
When we use other pain-based aversive techniques, it is usually obvious that the pain comes from us. This may teach our dogs to associate people with physical distress, which can also lead to fear. If this happens, we may lose some of our dog’s trust, and jeopardize our bond with him.
For example, when we apply a leash correction, it is apparent that the pain originates from the leash, and sometimes (if not redirected), from us. Therefore, the dog may decide to fight with the leash, or worse, with us.
This is less of a problem with electronic collars because the source of the pain is obscured, and there is no leash to fight with. However, because the pain comes from seemingly nowhere, our dog may mistakenly associate it with something he sees in the environment (e.g. another dog), the environment itself, or to multiple unrelated objects and events. This may cause misplaced stress, fear, and aggression, toward those objects.
Automatic shock collars also have a high risk of over-correcting a dog.
The Bad
1. May increase aggression in dogs.
According to Polsky’s study, dogs kept in shock containment systems (i.e. invisible fence or underground fence), can show extreme aggression towards humans, over and beyond their normal behavior.
Polsky’s results show that a big danger with electronic collars, especially automatic e-collars, is that they may cause dogs to make the wrong associations, and learn the wrong things.
Dogs may associate the pain from the shock with the environment or with objects in the environment (including humans , dogs, or cats), rather than with their escaping or barking behaviors. This may lead to anxiety or negative associations with those objects, which can ultimately result in aggression.
Some dogs that have been conditioned in this manner, may not want to set foot in the yard, for worry of pain. They may also start to attack humans and other animals, that wander too close to the fence perimeter.
Some dogs may get habituated to the shocks, and learn that if they can tolerate the pain close to the fence-line, they can escape. Once they escape, they are rewarded with no more shocks. In this way, the dog learns that escaping is a good thing, whereas staying in the backyard is not.
2. May increase stress in dogs and reduce their quality of life.
Schalke et al. conducted an electronic collar training study on fourteen laboratory-bred Beagles. Shock collar training was conducted over 7 days, for 1.5 hours per day. Then the dogs were released to freely hunt for 5 days, and to hunt on leash for another 5 days. Schalke’s study showed that the dogs who
… were able to clearly associate the electric stimulus with their action, i.e. touching the prey, and consequently were able to predict and control the stressor, did not show considerable or persistent stress indicators.
~~[ Excerpt from ScienceDirect.com ]
However, the two other groups of dogs that were not able to so clearly predict and control the delivery of the shocks, showed elevated stress levels, with the highest levels present in the dogs that were arbitrarily shocked.
Most importantly, the group of dogs that received a shock for not abiding by a recall (Here) command, were also significantly elevated.
Even more distressing, is that the results remained the same when the dogs were reintroduced to the testing area after four weeks. Their stress levels remained high, even though they did not receive any shocks during this reintroduction period.
The results from Schalke’s study indicate that electronic collars are extremely risky to use even for the short term. Stress levels of the dogs were high after just 7 days, and were elevated as soon as they returned to the shock treatment environment. This is consistent with Polsky’s study, which show that dogs may associate the shock and stress they receive, with the environment itself.
This study provides strong evidence that shock collars are inappropriate for most kinds of dog training, as even common recall training will result in elevated stress levels, and a lower quality of life.
3. May weaken our bond with our dog.
Polsky and Schalke’s studies show that dogs often associate the pain from electronic collars with their environment, as well as with people, animals, and other objects in that environment. Even after shocks are no longer administered, the dogs still attach the environment to something stressful and negative.
Therefore, using a remote training collar on our dog may cause him to associate our home or backyard, with stress and pain. Or worse yet, it may cause him to associate the stress with other dogs, other people, or with us.
Remember that Schalke’s results show this negative attachment forming in a matter of 7 days.
Alternative to Shock Corrections
When I first got my Shiba Inu, I had a lot of problems with him. At the time, I was under the false impression that reward methods would not work on my dominant, stubborn, and aggressive Shiba Inu. Therefore, I was using aversive training and briefly considered the use of electronic collars, because the other aversive-based methods were not working well.
However, after doing a lot of reading, I decided to give reward dog training a chance.
Reward training is not a miracle cure, and it will still take a lot of work, consistency, and patience, to train our dog. However, reward techniques can work on dominant, stubborn, and aggressive dogs. It has worked well for training my Shiba. In fact, he stopped showing aggression toward me and others, after I stopped using pain-based methods.
Common Justifications for Shock Collars
1. Save a dog’s life.
Proponents of electronic collars sometimes argue that they are used to save a dog’s life, by preventing him from running into traffic.
It is important to note that off-leash recall is never 100% reliable, whatever equipment or training methods we may choose to use.
This is why there are leash laws in most neighborhoods. This is also why off-leash parks require dogs to be on-leash when they are in the parking lot area, or in areas that are close to roads and traffic.
I use a no-slip collar and secure leash to walk my dogs in the neighborhood. I also regularly check the collar and leash to ensure that they in good working order. Off-leash exercise can be had in fully enclosed spaces or large parks, where we are far enough away from traffic that a failed recall, will not result in an accident. Do not play Russian Roulette with our dog’s life.
2. Do not cause much pain, just a tingle.
Some people try remote training collars on themselves, and report that it only causes a tingle, so it really does not apply much pain to our dog.
However, to closely experience shock collar conditioning from my dog’s perspective, I would have to put the collar on my neck and surrender the controller to a handler. I will not know why, when, or where the shocks will be administered.
As I carry on with my day, I may feel the need for a smoke. I reach for it, and feel a tingle on my neck. It is just a tingle, so I continue.
At this point, the tingle not only persists, but increases in intensity. I am strong willed though, so I keep going. After all, that is exactly why I needed the shock collar in the first place.
The intensity keeps increasing until finally, I drop the bad object. My hand shakes. The experience was unpleasant, and now I want relief more than ever. Unfortunately, I do not even have a patch, all I have is this locked-on collar that I cannot remove. My eyes stray and my hands start to reach again …
Electronic collars are NOT harmless, nor are they just a little tingly. If they were so, they would not work. Their use is illegal for children and non-consenting adults. Here is another case in Utah. Trying the collar on ourselves, and doing a single, short, expected shock, at low intensity, is *not* how the collar will be used on our dogs. It is merely a gimmick to convince us that the collars are innocuous. If they were truly so harmless –
- Why is their use banned for children and non-consenting adults.
- Why is there so much scientific data showing how risky they can be.
- Why are they on the “do not use” list of so many well-respected dog advocate organizations.
- Why would they “work” on our stubborn dog, when other pain based aversive collars such as prong collars or choke collars have stopped working.
Logic tells us that this is a false claim.
3. Everybody else is biased and dishonest.
Another common argument, is that those who point out the risks of remote training collars are biased and dishonest. Personal attacks or ad hominem arguments such as these are not only pointless, but they also discourage rational discourse and the exchange of ideas. More on bias.
In this article, I describe what attracted me to look into electronic collars as a possible training tool for my Shiba Inu, as well as some of the risks that were of concern. Based on the studies and articles that I found, I also include counter-arguments (if present) for each of those points. In general, I found very little scientific evidence to recommend its use, while at the same time, there are many studies that show the risks involved.
After reading the results of Polsky and Schalke, it is difficult for me to come up with cases where the shock collar would be appropriate in dog training. Perhaps the only case would be in animal aversion training, such as teaching our dogs to fear and stay-away from rattlesnakes.
If you know of supporting scientific studies or substantiated data which highlight the good of remote training collars, it would certainly contribute much to the discussion, so please share them with us.
However, based on current reliable data, shock collars are not something I would use on my own dogs or generally recommend to others. It is also worth noting that the ASPCA, AVSAB, RSPCA, Kennel Club, and Blue Cross, are all against the use of shock collars for companion dogs.
Hi:
My dear dog is a 5 years old mutt, really big and lovely, the problem is she jumps really high, I mean she jumps our back yard wall into my neighbord’s yard. My neighbord has been really nice about it, but she has jumped at least 30 times. We had to chain her, she is so big we hired a person to walk her and play with her, we tried to train her, we play with her, but if we are not with her all the time she jumps to my neighbord’s yard and into the street, She even disentagles herself from the chain. We feel so bad, we just don’t know what else to do, we give her away? our neighbord asked us to take “measures” because she is so big it scares his mother in law, it’s completly understanding. So we read about the perimetral fence and thought “this is it!!” But then read about your pros and cons, and I’m like “Is this really human?” She is a healthy and beautiful girl, i don’t want to be forced to make her sleep because she just can’t stay put.
In terms of escaping from the backyard, regular exercise helps a lot with my dogs. I walk all of my dogs daily. My Shiba Inu is less energetic so I walk him for at least 1 hour per day. My Siberian Husky Shania loves being outside, so we go out for about 1.5-3 hours daily. I enjoy my outside time with her, and I read while she lies around and watches people.
In addition, we play games, do grooming and obedience exercises, and we follow the Nothing in Life is Free program. I also set up a fixed routine and a consistent set of rules. My dogs really want to be around their people, and they also need activity to keep them engaged every day.
Most of the time, they like staying inside the house with me, especially when it is hot outside.
Here is more on why dogs escape and what I do.
Here are some articles on chaining-
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/lifestyle/pets/2009-08-12-stilwell-dog-chains_N.htm
http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/chaining_tethering/facts/chaining_tethering_facts.html
Hi, I’m looking for some direction. We rescued a lab/pit mix just over a year ago. He is very sweet and very intelligent but fearful of a lot of things, noises, people, water etc. We walk him daily and I also put him in day care so he would be around other people and dogs. He goes 3 days a week and loves it, they have a structured daily routine and it includes play time. It was helping tremendously with his behavior, he is now 18 months old. We moved a couple of weeks ago to a small beach front community. We live near the water. We have a fenced yard but there is a side walk in front of our hose and a small street and on the other side, the bay. People walk by constantly, alone, with their pets, jogging, etc. Unfortunately Harley (the rescue) is beginning to show very aggressive behavior. He barks and lunges at people, not everyone but I’ve noticed there’s no consistent type or trigger that I can tell. He’s beginning to pull while walking so much that I haven’ walked him for a couple of days because I just can’t deal with it. People are afraid of him, although I don’t think he would hurt anyone. I’ve tried to normal commands to keep him calm but none work. Leave it used to get his attention but no longer. I am at a loss for what to do, I think he’s afraid but can’t have him showing such aggressive behavior, especially because of the type of dog he is. I am considering getting a shock collar. Any suggestion would be most helpful. He is apart of the family so I am feeling desperate to handle this as quickly as possible before someone complains to the local authorities.
Thank you so much!!
Theresa D.
I really would *not* use shock collars on a fearful dog. The pain from the shocks would only make the dog become even more fearful and anxious, which will likely worsen the symptoms of aggression, degrade quality of life, and cause other bad behaviors.
Dogs, especially fearful dogs need help to cope with change, especially big changes in their environment and lifestyle. Moving from a more quiet area to a high traffic, noisy area would make it even more difficult to cope.
Some things that helped with my dogs when we moved-
1. I set up a fixed routine right away as well as a consistent set of rules. I also increased the amount of daily exercise.
2. If my dog cannot cope with being outside, I keep him inside, in a quiet area, and mask out whatever outside sounds that he is afraid of.
3. I very slowly desensitize him to the scary noises.
4. I very slowly desensitize him to people.
We also visited with several professional trainers to trouble-shoot Shiba Sephy’s reactive behavior (mostly towards other dogs).
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
Here is a bit more on dog anxiety.
I can’t really advise you on all your problems, but my three dogs were really bad pullers. The gentle leader or halti head collars have worked miracles in getting them to walk nicely and there are no adversive corrections involved.
Have a 6 month old pomeranian. Shes very fiesty. Loves to bark and chew on everything. I can’t trust her at all because she likes to destroy everything. Sometimes when I try to correct her she growls at me or just doesn’t care. She and my 5 month old poodle are very disrespectful when someone us eating rhey well jumo on you and try to jump on your plate And take your food. And when people comeover they don’t know how to behave they will jump on them the poodle will try to jump on them like crazy and lick them in the mouth. While the pomeranian thries to nibble on their hands and feet. & tge poodle consistently licks to the point where it feels pretty gross. & can’t take them on walks and expect them to mind their own business because they bark and try to get to anyone or any dog they see. I can’t seem to discipline them, can a shock collar help with any of these issues?
Shock collars are very risky to use. When not applied with exactly the right timing and force, they can encourage more aggression in a dog. In addition, a dog may not always make the right association.
For example, if a dog receives a shock every time he jumps on a person, he may associate the pain received not to his behavior, but to the person he is jumping on. As a result, he may start to view people as threats, and try to keep them away or protect himself with his teeth. Shock collars also increase stress levels, and can cause a dog to become anxious or fearful, which makes them especially inappropriate for puppies and younger dogs.
What type of discipline methods have you tried so far?
Puppies are going to be high energy, and they will do what seems natural to them (as dogs). Jumping up on people is a natural thing for dogs to do, and we further encourage this behavior by giving them attention when they do it.
For initial greetings, I put my dog on a leash so that I have good control, and then I teach him what *to do*, and what not to do when meeting someone. I also help my dog to associate people with positive rewards so that he enjoys people and does not become fearful of them. Here is a bit more on dog jumping.
When I get a new puppy, I set up a consistent method of communication, a consistent set of rules and a consistent routine. This teaches my puppy what I expect from her and what she can expect from me in return. Here is more on how I trained my puppy.
With our Shiba Inu, we also consulted with several professional trainers. They can be helpful in troubleshooting problems, pointing out problem areas, as well as creating a retraining plan that suits our dog. Shock collars are a very extreme measure, that also requires a fair amount of training experience. It can cause even more serious issues when not used in exactly the right circumstance and in exactly the right way. I would definitely talk to a professional trainer first before going down such a path.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
I was wondering if a shock collar would be a good idea for my situation. I also have a shiba, and she is a big sweet heart in many respect. We adopted her when she was almost 3, and she’s a little over 4 years old.
Due to a lack of exposure to children, she is very sensitive to them. Pays them way too much attention, in a stalking way (like she does with squirrels and other prey animals), even if they are minding their own business and not even running around or looking at her. As we do not have kids of our own, and it’s unlikely that anyone will want to lend us their small child for training, we have simply kept her on leash (with the leash around our waist) whenever children are around. This allows us to restrain her and verbally discipline her if she lunges for them. When we were able to respond quick enough, we have tried “alpha-rolling” her a couple times. We hold her on the ground for a few seconds and release our hands but stare at her with angry eyes for about a minute until she relaxes. She’s very good about it and does not resist us.
There has been a couple of incidents where people have small children at the dog park where we let her off leash (and all the other dogs are fine, not paying attention to the kids), and our dog will start running full speed to lunge at the children. It’s really hard to respond fast enough, so I usually run full speed after her calling her name and yelling No and Sit and Come. Usually I get to her when she reaches the kid, and she runs away (after giving the kid a big scare, lunging/an attempt at nipping at their hands). I she knows she’s done wrong, so she’ll dodge me and runaway for another minute, before obeying my sit. At which point, I cannot reasonably punish her, since she’s actually obeyed my command and sits while I approach her (which I want to encourage).
At the cottage we have her on a long lead outside tied to a tree, under our super vision, so that she can explore and hunt chipmunks (she never catches anything). She will quite often bark and lunge at the neighbor cottage kids who walk by and it is very scary for everyone. I could just get her a basket muzzle and get back some piece of mind, but that doesn’t change her behavior/mindset.
I wondering if having shock collar training would help her in this specific situation, perhaps to the point of a warning sound or vibration could be enough indication that she should stop right away, instead of ignoring me, plowing over a kid and then finally obeying the command.
I have also tried positive recall, where I whistle and when she comes I give her a high value treat. Sometimes that works, but I can’t use that when there are other dogs around, because she is also treat possessive and will act aggressively towards any dog hovering remotely near me when the whistle is blown in an attempt to defend her treat.
Any feedback would be much appreciated!
I think it is *extremely* risky to use shock collar training in situations with children. What ends up happening is that the dog receives a shock every time he goes after a child. Likely, the dog will associate the pain with the child rather than to his behavior. As a consequence, the child or children in general, could be viewed as a threat that the dog may try to attack, or keep away with aggression especially when he thinks he is cornered. I try to make sure that my dogs have positive or at most neutral experiences with people, so that they do not become afraid of people and do not associate people with negative events.
Alpha rolls did not work well on Sephy at all. More on our experiences.
This article from the ASPCA has a good list of recall training techniques. Still, Shibas are not known for their recall abilities.
http://www.aspca.org/Pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-articles/teaching-your-dog-to-come-when-called
With Sephy, we did people desensitization exercises with him to get him comfortable with meeting new people and to teach him proper greeting manners. Desensitization can work with fear and also over-excitement cases. There are also a fair number of children in our neighborhood, so I train him when we run across them during walks. Getting help from a professional trainer can also be helpful. There were always some older children in the training classes that we went to.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
Most of the time I teach Sephy to ignore children during our walks (he is on-leash). When a child wants to greet, his parent is ok with it, and the child is calm and able to follow instructions, I get Sephy to do a Sit once he gets up to the child, and they can meet. If I notice even the slightest amount of hesitation or stress, we either don’t meet or we end the meeting.
As for enclosed dog parks, they are too unstructured and unsupervised for Sephy’s temperament. He does much better in smaller playgroups that have rules and are well supervised. More on our dog park experiences.
Thanks for the feedback. I was worried about that too. I don’t think the electric collar is for us.
Sometimes when she is on leash, and I get her to sit and let a calm child pat her, she’s totally fine. I usually have on hand around her collar and one hand stroking her head neck area (so the kid is patting her shoulder, back area only). But quite often even after meeting the kid (we make the kid demand some tricks from her and give her treats) and being perfectly good/calm for hours (on leash around my waist), if we let her off leash, she’ll instantly change behavior and go after the kids. When she senses fear she pursues them even more (it seems our dog has bully complex).
Sometimes when we are just walking past kids (on leash) on our usual walk around the neighborhood, she’ll do a little lunge towards their unsuspecting hands (most times she ignores them). I’m not sure what the trigger is (since the kids weren’t even paying her any attention during those scenarios). I just jerk her back on the leash with a brief no, and then walk on.
It’s hard to understand what is going on in her head, since she is very sweet with us, and even somewhat social with most adults. We are definitely getting her some training, it’s just hard to practice with kids. For the time being, I just keep my eyes out for any kids entering the dog park, and instantly call her and leash her back to my waist before they get in.
Hi,
This is an excellent article, thank you so much!
This fall, we adopted a shelter dog. They told us she was a heeler-terrier mix. She has many wonderful traits, but she is also incredibly wired and obsessive. On walks, she is usually very good and walks right along side us, but if we encounter smaller dogs or birds, she instantly stops listening to our commands. This is annoying, but we hike a lot in fairly remote places so it usually isn’t an issue. The biggest problem we have with her is that she incredibly obsessed with our cat. As soon as she sees the cat, she freezes and stares, shaking. She isn’t particularly aggressive, even letting the cat drink out of her water bowl, (although admittedly she has nipped at the cat once or twice) but she is constantly cornering the cat and staring at her. When she can see the cat, she doesn’t come to the door when someone comes in, she doesn’t come when called, and she doesn’t even come to the kitchen when we fry sausage. We have had the cat for years, and we all love her very much. We feel that the dog is seriously ruining the cat’s life. Our dog is very sweet and wonderful when the cat isn’t around, but as soon as she sees the cat, she suddenly becomes this trembling, deaf stalker. We are at our wits’ end with this. My sister is her main caregiver, and the dog listens to her the best, but she is leaving for college this fall. My mother is talking about taking her back to the shelter if her behavior doesn’t improve. Although we have always been very against shock collars, we are beginning to think that they may be a lesser evil than taking her back. We would really appreciate any advice you might have.
Sincerely, The Ecksteins
Hello Nina,
If a dog gets shocked every time a cat is around, she may associate the pain from the shocks to the cat, rather than to her own behavior. This may cause her to start to see the cat as a threat, and she may feel the need to keep him away by whatever means necessary, including aggression. Rather than helping matters, a shock collar can make things worse, especially when not properly applied with perfect technique and timing.
This article describes some good alternative ways for dealing with cat chasing-
http://www.patriciamcconnell.com/theotherendoftheleash/chase-this-not-that
The comments section also has a discussion on shock collars.
I would get help from a professional trainer *first* before resorting to shock collars.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
When the electric collar or the prong collar is used properly at the right timing, you can teach your dog that a cat is not a prey very quickly. Remember that some dogs have a high prey drive while some have less. If a dog has a high prey drive, like mine, he will value the prey higher than the valuable food. Also, it may not be possible to carry treat at all time. I made a big mistake shortly after I adopted my dog by letting the cat escape from her room when I jogged with the dog in the morning. When I returned home and opened the door, the cat was waiting to greet me. The dog smelled her and thus rushed into the house and went completely out of control. Although the leash was on and the cat escaped fine, it took the cat a long long time to recover.
As mentioned by the author of the article, a prong or electric collar must be used in the right time and the right way with positive re-enforcement. The dog should know what not to do but please also tell him what he should do.
If used correctly, you can teach the dog that the house cat is a family member, not a prey, in no more than 3 attempts. If they are not not used properly, the dog can develop an aggressive behavior towards the cat as mentioned by the author. Also, keep in mind that a still or walking cat is different than a running cat to the dog.
I love my pets and it is my responsibility to create a happy and yet risk free environment for them.
I have a Golden Retreiver that has a strong pray instinct. She is a rescue and in her prior life she was a stray. She tends to be a bit ADD and become fixated on objects, like small animals or even children and ends up nippy at them. Recently, she nipped at a small child that was running in the yard with her and she nipped the childs rear end. Could a shock collar help curb this type of behavior? We need something that will break her out of her trance like activity.
Hello Cindy,
The problem with using shock collars in such a situation is that the dog may make the wrong associations and learn the wrong things. If we shock a dog every time she goes near a child, she may associate that pain with the child, instead of with her nipping behavior. This may cause her to become fearful of people or start to view people and children as threats. This *may* in turn cause her to use aggression to keep people and children away.
With my dog, I use desensitization exercises to –
1. Teach him what *to do* in the presence of people. I get him to Sit and reward him for being calm when in the presence of other people. Instead of just suppressing a behavior, this allows me to teach him what is the right thing to do, and reward him well for it.
2. Help him associate people and children with positive events.
I also supervise him closely when he is playing, and throw in many play breaks to manage his level of excitement. I try to keep him below threshold, so that he is able to learn and stay in control of himself.
Here is more on people desensitization.
Hi There,
I have a beautiful 11 month old lab/rott mix (not sure of his breeds since he was a stray). We live in a fairly rural area, our closest neighbor is about a mile away. The puppy is having issues running away from home. We have 4 fenced acres with plenty of toys and bones and an older dog to hang out with while we are away during the day. I run him between 10-20 miles/wk out on the trails and yet, he’ll come back home only to escape again. This is becoming a serious issue with the county (he has been picked up by animal control several times) as well as with my irritated neighbors. I’m afraid that he’ll end up on the highway and cause an accident. My husband and I are very busy people. We have two small children and run a business. We always make time to be out with the dogs in the evening and make sure they get enough exercise. I refuse to keep a dog that needs to be tied up. We have done all we can to secure the fencing and gates. We still haven’t figured out how he is getting out since he only goes when we are away. I’m interested in correcting the behavior but am lost how to go about it. Our last resort is the shock collar to set up fence boundaries. I’m wondering if you have any suggestions before we give up and end up finding a new home for this puppy. He is very intelligent, loving, gentle and will become a great dog when he matures.
Thank you so much for your time.
Some things that I do with my dogs to prevent escapes –
1. I set up a fixed routine and a consistent set of rules.
I set up consistent rules for interaction, house rules, play rules, etc. In this way, my dogs know exactly what to expect from each other, from the people around them, and they also know what I expect from them. A fixed routine helps to calm my dog down, makes his behavior more predictable, and reduces stress. When I get a new dog, I slowly teach him, and get him accustomed to our rules and routine. I also follow the Nothing in Life is Free program so that my dog works for all of his food.
2. I increase the amount of supervised exercise.
Young dogs and puppies have a lot more energy, so they will also need more exercise and supervision. We do daily walks of at least one hour, I play with them in the backyard, we do obedience exercises, and I supervise them when they play with each other.
When Sephy and Shania were young, I did not have enough time to spend with them so we got a dog walker for Sephy and we put Shania in daycare some of the time.
My dogs are all older now so they need less supervision. However, they still like being around their people, so they prefer to stay in the house a lot of the time. Having them in the house keeps them happy, they are calm, and follow house rules. Plus, I like having them around. 😀
3. I check my fence line.
Dogs often escape by digging under or jumping over a fence. We put in a 6 foot fence and also put concrete blocks all around the fence line to prevent digging. I also make sure there are no objects next to the fence that my dog can use to climb over.
Here is a bit more on dog escapes.
Big hugs to your puppy. He sounds like a fun-loving boy, who is full of youthful exuberance. 😀
I have to strongly disagree with Polsky’s theory of invisible fence method of containment.We have 5 rescued dogs, and they all have the invisible fence shock collars. They have NEVER become aggressive,have never become anything that he states. The dogs must be trained with the fence and collars, and it takes about a week to do so.We have been using the invisible fence for 7 years and have never had a problem with our dogs.
1. Many studies show that shock collars raise stress levels in dogs.
2. Not all dogs will have a fight response when they feel stressed or threatened. Some dogs will appease/submit, some dogs will freeze or shut down, some dogs will run away, some dogs will respond with aggression. Polsky’s study shows that shock containment systems *CAN* cause
Avoidance motivated aggression is a very dangerous type of aggression because
– The dog does not produce any signals to indicate onset of aggression.
– It produces a much more serious attack than other forms of aggression.
3. There are people who like the convenience aspects of shock collars, but there are also people who have had bad experiences with them. Scientific studies help to minimize bias and inform us of the risks involved.
Thank you. I was afrade there would be no hope using the invisable fence. My dogs are alaskan huskies with intelegence and energy. Training them is a challange to say the least. I need this to help in focousing there attention on stayinsg home in the yard.
Thanks again.
My cocker spaniel has started becoming very territorial and aggressive. At first, it was towards my cat. Now, it’s gotten worse and he growls, barks, and snarls at people in my apartment. He has even charged and snapped at them (and now at me!). Outside, he’s fine, loving, and his normal, wonderful self. In the apartment, though, he’s getting scary if there are people other than me there. Would a shock collar be suitable in this instance? I’ve heard, also, of citronella collars to help with behaviour training. Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?
Dogs have a natural instinct to guard their home and family. Some breeds and some dogs may have a stronger guarding instinct than others. Strangers may be viewed as threats, which is why a dog may use “aggression” to get the threat to back-off.
It is up to us to teach our dogs what behaviors are desirable, and to teach him what to do when faced with something new and possibly threatening. What worked well with my dogs is to introduce them to new people in a structured and positive way.
I do people desensitization exercises. With desensitization it is *important* to do training in a structured environment and to always start with a weakened version of the problem stimulus. With people, I use distance to weaken the stimulus, as well as a calm demeanor. I want the stimulus to be weak enough so that my dog is still in-control, and is still capable of learning. Then, I can teach my dog to associate people with positive events (rather than as a threat), and to use alternate behaviors for dealing with stress.
If we shock or otherwise apply pain to our dog every time he sees a new person, he will learn to associate people with pain, and see them as an even greater threat that needs to be kept away at all costs.
This was shown in Polsky’s study and others.
With aggression cases, it is usually best to get help from a good professional trainer.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
I have a 11 month old pitbull who has to sleep outside so he cries and barks all the time. I use the shock collor at night but some days he doesn’t even need it there are times where he can go a day maybe 2 without it. Is there anything i can do? I hate using the shock collar on him
http://shibashake.com/dog/woof-woof-stop-dog-barking