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.
I am at my wits end with our 4.5 year old border collie/akita mix… we adopted him last about 8 months ago from a family that was moving and couldn’t take him with. They neglected to tell us that they were taking all of their other pets EXCEPT this dog with them. Understandably, he has some anxiety about being left home alone – he chews on his paws and has some destructive behaviors (he has ruined the trim around the door, scratched the paint on the wall, tore down blinds on the front window, etc). He is the sweetest, most gentle hearted dog – perfect for our family – but I can’t afford to keep replacing everything he is ruining. I do not want to get rid of him – I think rehoming him again, less than a year later, would not be in his best interests. But he has had 4 years of these behaviors being allowed in his previous home. What would be the best method to work with him on this? I should add, he is not completely alone while we are at work – we also adopted a miniature schnauzer several months after we got him, when we realized he needed companionship.
Hmmm, it sounds like it could be separation anxiety. Here is more information on separation anxiety-
http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/separation-anxiety
http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/vmth/small_animal/behavior/local-assets/pdfs/Separation_Anxiety_in_Dogs.pdf
Here are some things that I do with my dogs to help lessen and prevent separation anxiety.
Crate training would protect your house from being damaged. Many anxious dogs benefit when introduced properly to a crate. They find it a relaxing place.
Also, rehoming dogs with serious behavior problems is not fair to anyone, especially the dog. The dog’s previous owner dumped the dog hoping someone would come along and love him enough to help him (love him more than they apparently did). I am a firm believer in fix the problem with the dog in your care or put them down. Don’t pass along your problems to the next guy.
I have a 11 yr old dachshund part chihuahua male who was potty trained and has been fixed. I’ve had him since he was a few months old. Over the past year or so he has gotten to where when I and my husband leave the house even for 10 minutes or just go across the street he will initiate and hike his leg and pee in my house and poop. Now my female is doing it as well and she is 9 yrs old. I do not know what to do. I have never and will never use any form of shock collar on them. If I see them do the deed where they are not suppose to I get on them and they know right away they have done wrong. It is mainly my male dog that is doing this. I have taken him to vet and they said it is a behavioral problem. I reward them for going outside as soon as they come in. But when we go to work we have a mess at home waiting and its stinking that area up. He also tends to get snappy when we are laying in bed if we move our feet and its near him. He growls and tries to bite….don’t know why? I have tried secluding them to one are while we are gone, and done the kennel thing but he chews or gets out. And I don’t want him to hurt himself or be in a kennel. I have never had to do the kennel thing and I am not real comfortable with it. My dogs are real spoiled. I’m just wondering if they have separation anxiety or what? Please help I am at a loss here. I am afraid he is too old to stop this behavior. I hope you have some answers. Thank you!
So the pooping and peeing in the house only started about one year ago and before that there were no mistakes in the house? Did anything unusual happen when the behavior change occurred? Were there big changes in your routine? or in the dog’s environment? Does he only pee and poop when he is alone? What is his current routine like?
Here are two useful articles on separation anxiety-
http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/separation-anxiety
http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/vmth/small_animal/behavior/local-assets/pdfs/Separation_Anxiety_in_Dogs.pdf
What I do to prevent separation anxiety with my dogs.
Dog behavior is very dependent on the temperament of the dog and the surrounding context. Therefore, to accurately identify the source of a behavior, it can be very helpful to consult with a good professional trainer, who can visit and see things first hand.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
“I control my dogs and keep them safe through two general approaches – training and management.”
YES!!!!!!!!!! Agree completely.
My dog (a Aussie / Husky mix) & has never had a shock collar on, pinch or choke. She is a certified therapy dog and does canine heel-work to music. She is my first dog and as such it is ME who could be better at training her. Dogs want to please. I promote positive reinforcement training. One thing I ask children, ‘if you were at a baseball game and you got hit by the ball several times would you want to go back just to get hit again?’ They always say, ‘no’. Positive activities that you the trainer control (your management) work.
HI,
I have an 18 month old female English Mastiff. Although inherently sweet and submissive around ALL dogs and most people, she goes ballistic watching dogs and their owners walk by our home. Most days she sits in our living room with floor to ceiling windows. She barks and leaps on the windows (140 pounds) causing fear that she will smash through them and land on the ground 10 feet below. There is really no other place in the house for her. Would a shock collar work each time she lunges towards the window?
Thanks for all of your insight,
Bill
The behavior you describe sounds like barrier frustration.
Several articles on barrier frustration-
http://www.dogforum.com/dog-behavior/reactivity-leash-aggression-barrier-frustration-12538/
http://dogcare.dailypuppy.com/dog-barrier-frustration-4431.html
http://pets.thenest.com/dog-barrier-frustration-5147.html
In barrier frustration situations, using pain and other types of punishment is usually inappropriate. The pain will create added stress, which may further increase a dog’s frustration. In addition, an otherwise friendly dog may start to associate the pain with the other dogs and people that he sees from the window, and start developing even more behavioral issues.
My daughter has a Norwegian Elkhound/Golden Retriever mix. He bites her hands and bites her in the butt. He has never broken the skin. He also bites our Puggle in the neck. She is a lot smaller than him and she yelps with pain. We can’t trust him alone with her. I don’t think he hurts her on purpose but, I’m not sure.
This is what I do when my dog bites on me.
This is what I do to stop my dog from biting on others.
This is what I do to keep things safe and friendly between my dogs.
I got my babies December of last year, and I have been trying desperately topotty train them, my pads just lay in the floof while they pee and poop on my carpet, I have cleaned uplittle piles of mess til I’m disgusted, they are Pekinesse and Daschund mix, Chauncey my Chiuauhhua, goes outside and lets me know. My husband suggested a shock collar and watch them all day and when they started to do their business, shock them and say “No, Outside”. I’m going crazy trying to get them trained, they have urinated on the pads in the past very seldom and pooped, and I have rewarded them with a treat saying good girl. But my babies are just like my children, and I feel like I have 2 of them problem children without the drugs, alcohol, and gangs. I lost a tiny jack russell when leaving Ft. Walton, Bch, one of my sons opened door at Taco bell and she got out and didn’t realize she was gone til I was all the way back in Alabama, I came home and for 2 days could not sleep, cried, and I told my husband I have to go back and look for her, So I took offthat morning and went back to Fl and walked areas searching , calling her name, asking posted $500.00 reward. I know who got her but she knew I was looking and she hid my dog so cops could not legally retrieve or know they had my dog. My husband said we were going back and ride by her house in a different vehicle and when he sees Bella, hes walking up and taking her, and pitties anyone that gets in his way. I love the ones my son got me to help ease the pain from Bella, Harmione and Allie Bear, but I need help, I don’t really want to hurt them. But I know it’s just like diciplining your kids, you have to spank them for them to learn when talking doesnt help, Right? So I shouldn’t feel guilty, atleast that’s what my husband says. With Bella and Chauncey, I had no problem training, None of my dogs bark, they are great in this area, you let Hermione and Allie Bear out and they run off. Any advice to make me feel less mean, for resorting to a shock collar purchase, would be greatly appreciated. HELP!!!
Dear Sonya,
I really *would not* recommend using shock collars for potty training. This is because there is a *high risk* of the dog making the wrong association, and developing more behavioral issues, including submissive urination.
Schalke’s study which I summarize above, as well as other scientific studies show that shock collars significantly raise stress levels in dogs, and can cause other behavioral issues.
It is also important to note that shock collars are commonly used to eliminate unwanted behavior through pain. In potty training, we are *not* trying to eliminate a behavior, because our dog needs to poop and pee. Instead we are trying to teach our dog the “right place” to do his potty.
If a dog gets shocked every time he tries to potty, he *may* very likely associate the pain from the shocks with his potty behavior. This will cause him to learn that pooping and peeing causes pain. As a result, he may try to hold in his poop and pee (i.e., stop responding, which is unhealthy), he may learn to only poop and pee when people are not around to shock him, or he may become generally fearful and insecure because something he *needs* to do is causing him pain.
Here is what I do to potty train my dogs. As you say, supervision is key. It is also very important to consistently show our dog what the right behavior is, and to reward the behavior extremely well. Timing, supervision, consistency, and repetition are all crucial while potty training my dogs.
Hi. I have a german shepard cross of 2.5 years old. We take him for walks etc and he really is a lovely dog most of the time, with our kids, bird and other dog.
Our pro blem is when he is outside – its that he constantly jumps against the wall of our yard to bark at passers by. We have tried planting hedges and he pushes past them. We have also tried erecting fences in front of the hedges and he pulls them down or jumps over them to jump against the wall. He is damaging the wall so badly and scaring the living daylights out of the people walking by.
Another one is that he chases my older son whenever they are outside together. It seems he wants to take a nip. Especially when he is on his bicycle. Yet he ignores my younger son flat.
We do not know what to do with him – we have tried training and it just hasnt worked. Do you have any suggestions? We do NOT want to get rid of him but we are really having a problem.
Dogs may bark at outside people because of their protection instinct, i.e. they are protecting our property from intruders. German Shepherds are commonly bred to have a strong guard drive. If a dog barks and the “intruder” leaves, then the dog learns that Barking = Keep intruders away = Success.
What have you tried and for how long? What is his daily routine like?
My Shiba Inu also has pretty strong guarding instincts. When he alerts to let me know that someone is near the house, I go to check things out. It is a great way to catch people who don’t pick up after their dogs. One time, he was barking at the garage door and we discovered that some rats had gotten in, so having a guard dog can be very helpful.
1. Usually he stops barking as soon as I arrive. If he does not, then I give him our pre-trained Quiet command and make sure to reward him well for staying quiet.
2. If he continues to fuss at the fence or window, then I engage him in doing something else. If he redirects, I reward him by interacting with him.
3. If he does not want to redirect, then I bring him inside the house and he temporarily loses his outside privileges. This also has the advantage of removing him from the trigger stimulus (people walking outside).
4. If he continues to bark inside the house and will not stop, I put him briefly in a timeout.
In this way, he learns that –
Non-stop barking = Lose outside privileges and may lose freedom in the house as well.
Stop barking = Get rewarded with attention and games.
Most importantly, I make sure to stop Sephy from continuously repeating his fence barking/charging behavior, which will ultimately become a habit. I put a lead on him if necessary to control him and lead him inside. Proper dog socialization, daily walks (at least 1 hour per day), structured games, a fixed routine, and a consistent set of house rules also helped with my Shiba Inu. I also follow the Nothing in Life is Free program with all of my dogs.
Sounds like he may be trying to herd, which is another in-bred trait of Shepherds. All dogs are also born with prey drive, which is an instinct to chase moving things (especially fast moving things). This is a self rewarding behavior, i.e the chasing is the reward.
What helps with my dogs is to give them other outlets for the need to chase and herd. For example, there are places that do herding training. I also play *very structured* chasing games with my dogs including recall training, flirt pole, and more.
When I play games with my dogs, I set up and teach them the rules of the game. For example, there is no jumping, nipping, or biting on me. If they do any of these things, I no-mark, briefly stop the game, and we have an obedience break. In this way, they learn that –
Biting people = Game stops,
Not biting people and following rules = Game continues, and get attention.
If Sephy starts chasing when he not supposed to, then I no-mark and give him an alternate command. If he does not stop, then he temporarily loses his outside privileges. As with the case before, it is important that I consistently stop him from repeating this behavior, which is self rewarding, and which will ultimately become a habit.
In changing dog behavior, timing, repetition, and consistency are all very important. If I want to stop a particular behavior, I make sure to supervise my dog very well (especially in the beginning) so that I *always* catch the behavior, and can *always* respond to it in a very consistent way.
If we only catch our dog sometimes, and sometimes not, then our dog will learn that it is sometimes ok to bark and jump at the fence. Therefore, he will keep barking and jumping because the next time, he may have success and nobody will stop him. This makes him bark and jump even more.
During Sephy’s early days, it was also helpful to visit with a professional trainer. A good trainer can help us with timing, consistency, reading a dog’s body language, management, and more.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
Here is a bit more on how dogs learn.
I would like to know if its ok to keep a shock collar on a dog at all times even when the owner leaves and puts the dog in a crate? Everytime the owner does this, the dog barks like crazy. Is it possible that the crate can affect the shock collar some how? Could he be feeling shocks in e crate?
As I understand it, the shock collar is a training aid. It is put on for the training session, and removed at the end of training. For example, in this study of shock collars and dog barking, the collars were only put on for 30 min/day, for 3 consecutive days.
Incorrect or prolonged use of a shock collar can lead to high stress, anxiety, and more behavioral issues down the road. It can also lead to physical damage. Another experience of physical damage.
As for barking, dogs bark for a variety of reasons (anxiety, excitement, warning, etc). To stop my dog from barking, I first identify the source of his barking behavior. This is important because punishing an already anxious dog with shocks, will increase stress, make the dog even more anxious, and make things a lot worse.
What type of shock collar is the owner using? There are bark collars that deliver shocks when a dog vocalizes. Therefore, if a dog gets anxious in the crate and starts barking, such a collar will deliver shocks to the dog based on the barks.
Thank you so much for this wonderful site and all the feedback you offer! I would like to ask your advice on my 2 dogs with territory and barking issues. They’re both female mutts, 5 and 2. They have been called “two of the best dogs ever” by my pet sitter, and they were trained with the clicker method. They get along great with other dogs and people after they are briefly introduced, but they’re getting increasingly territorial and obnoxious.
I live in the country in New Mexico where there are no fences for miles. Everyone in the whole area lets their dogs run free, and this was a big reason I moved here, so I don’t want to change that. But they keep running off too far from my property and barking at people on hikes, photographers in the canyon, dogs they haven’t met yet, and coyotes. They often run away so far I can’t track them down, and I just keep hollering for them until finally they shut up and come back. It seems to have been made worse by them befriending a dog-wolf mix next door that is poorly trained and runs off and barks at EVERYTHING and starts fights. Because the neighbor’s wolf-dog, the landlord’s dog on the other side of the property, and my 2 dogs are kind of a “pack” now, it’s becoming harder to keep my dogs well-behaved.
I don’t make enough to even cover my bills at the moment, so I do not have the money to hire a trainer. Do you have any thoughts on reigning in their territory so they just protect the immediate area around my house and stop this excessive barking? I’ve been running around outside in my bathrobe all morning and am fed up. Thank you so much!
I control my dogs and keep them safe through two general approaches – training and management.
1. Training
Before letting my dogs off-leash, I make sure they have a very solid recall (come when called command). This article from the ASPCA has a good list of recall training techniques.
However, motivators, context, and timing are all very important in dog training. If there are very strong competing motivators when we try to recall our dog, for example other dogs, running deer, cats, and more, then it will more of a challenge to get our dog to respond. Therefore, when I do recall training with my dogs, I always start small, in an enclosed low stimulus area, and slowly build up from there.
Dogs also have certain drives and fears (just like we do). These may sometimes cause a dog to lose control of himself – which is when instinct kicks in. When we are running for our lives, we will likely not be very responsive to commands, and neither will our dog. Dogs also go into instinct mode when chasing after prey (also known as prey drive). This is when proper management becomes very important.
2. Management
A good way to keep our dogs within our property is to build a fence. A real fence keeps our dogs in and also keeps outside dogs, coyotes, and wandering hikers out. Invisible fences on the other hand, only *try* to keep our dogs in, they do not keep other dogs or wandering people out. Scientific studies show that invisible fences are risky, may increase dog aggression toward people, and increase stress levels in dogs. Therefore, if a hiker should accidentally wander into our property, our dogs may charge and attack. However, they are much cheaper than building a real fence and require little training effort from us – which is why they are sometimes used.
In my old house, I did not have a backyard, and it was difficult to properly enclose my front-yard. When a fenced backyard was not available to me, this were some of the things that I did –
a) I kept my dog in the house, and cleared out a play-room for him inside the house.
b) I took him out for several walks during the day, and we would also go to our nearby SPCA to play in their enclosed exercise area.
c) Other times we would visit the less popular enclosed dog parks in our area, during off hours. We usually have the whole place to ourselves then, and can have lots of fun in a safe play-space. If friendly dogs should come, we would have a fun supervised play session with others. If unfriendly dogs come, we just leave and come back another day.
d) We would also go to hiking parks, but for those, I only let my dogs off leash when I am *sure* of their recall response and we are far away from cars.
Another possibility is to fence up a smaller area of our property or to have a dog-run, which would save on cost.
Some people also do boundary or no-fence training with their dog.
http://www.petsbest.com/blog/boundary-training-no-fence/
Here is more on dog barking.
Hi , I have a 8 year old female Jack Russell ( Myla) that is really mean towards other dogs , I actually just bought a female Siberian Husky (Frances) that is about to turn 3 months on the 24th. The pet shop owner recommend to keep my husky in a cage for about a week or two it’s only been like , 3 days and it seems like my jack is slowly getting to be okay with another dog being in the house . Sometimes she will bark and I would have to put a Muzzle on her for like a few and then take it off and she will be fine , I actually took out Frances for a few and had myla there too , they were okay for about 3-6 mins and then myla started to act up , I was wondering if I should buy a shock collar for her ( I never used one but she’s been really Aggressive towards other dogs for awhile and I would just like if she can stop and enjoy others and play, please !!’ NEED HELP …
Also she pulls when walking
If we consistently shock a dog when he is interacting with another dog, he may associate the pain from the shocks with the other dog rather than to his own behavior. This will make him view other dogs as an even bigger threat, which will cause stress, more aggression, or other behavioral issues. This was shown in Polsky’s study and others.
With my dogs, I set up clear dog-to-dog interaction rules, and a fixed routine. I make sure to properly teach any new dog these rules, so that everyone knows exactly what to expect from each other. They also know that I set the rules and I enforce the rules. If there are any issues, they will let me know and I will deal with it. I *do not* let them correct each other or bully each other. Structure and routine helps to reduce uncertainty, which helps to reduce negativity and stress. In addition to reducing negative encounters, I try to create as many positive interactions as possible so that my new dog will associate other dogs with fun, play, and positive experiences.
My Shiba Inu was more reactive to other dogs, so I helped him be more comfortable by using structured desensitization exercises. Desensitization exercises help to raise my dog’s reactivity threshold, teaches him to use alternate behaviors for dealing with his stress, and helps him to associate other dogs with positive events.
Here is more on what I do when introducing a new dog.
However, note that each dog is different in terms of temperament, background, routine, environment, and more. Based on what you describe, I would get help from a good professional trainer who can come to meet the dogs, observe their body language, behavior, routine, and more. In this way, he can accurately identify the source of the aggression and come up with a good plan for retraining.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/