If you google for "training collars," you will find pages of choke (chain), prong/spike, and electronic (shock) dog collars and instructions for how to use them. They are all created for one purpose. When your dog does something wrong, you correct him. This is done by giving a "leash pop" (yanking on the leash for the purpose of making a startling sound in the case of the choke chain, or digging the spikes into his neck in the case of a prong collar); or with the electronic collar, pressing a button to send a static shock into his neck. If the application of this correction is aversive enough, the idea is that your dog will stop doing the behavior.
Trainers who use these methods will tell you that it doesn't "hurt" the dog. But the truth is that if it's not sufficiently unpleasant to create a desire to avoid it, why would it stop the dog from performing the behavior? And if it is such a humane and effective method of behavior modification, then why aren't we using it to train our children? If your child is having a temper tantrum, you just hit a button to shock him. It would probably only take a couple of shocks before the kid decided to be quiet and behave, don't you think?
Training based on punishing incorrect behavior is a flawed and outdated concept. Dr. Ian Dunbar, veterinarian, animal behaviorist, writer, and founder of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT), writes in his book Good Little Dog Book, "Whereas there are an infinite number of ways for the dog to get it wrong (which require an infinite number of punishments), there is only one right way! So in terms of your time-investment and your dog's speed of learning, it is far better to show your dog exactly what is required and to reward it for complying, than it is to attempt the impossible - trying to punish the dog for each and every mistake." In After You Get Your Puppy, he adds "Sadly, many outdated trainers, and hence many owners who have read outdated training books, tend to focus on punishing untrained dogs for getting it wrong, for breaking rules they never knew existed. It is much quicker to teach your puppy the rules of the house - to show him what you want him to do and to reward him for doing it."
All you really need to train a dog is a reward, something that he is eager to earn. Food is easiest for the trainer to work with, and highly motivating for most dogs. But even a dog who is not motivated by food will like something well enough to work for it, i.e., a toy, a brief game of tug, a throw of the ball, a belly rub. A clicker, used to mark the moment of behavior that you are rewarding, can also be very helpful in the process of helping your dog understand what he is being rewarded for more quickly. But in general, training "tools" are not necessary.
For information about how to train your dog, see Dog-friendly training part 1 - the lure/reward method and Dog-friendly training part 2 - clicker training. For help on finding a good trainer, see How to choose the right dog trainer. And to find a good trainer in your region, including Orlando and surrounding areas, visit the international listing of dog-friendly trainers at the Truly Dog Friendly website.
Those in the Oviedo area may want to check out the Dog Willing site for information about dog-friendly Puppy, Adult Basic, Intermediate and Tricks classes that are starting this week.
Comments
yes but when your child is throwing a temper tantrum does it bite NO YOUR CHILD DOESNT U IDOIT
@Patty - do you have children? Because actually yes a child throwing a temper tantrum can bite, and often they do out of frustration. When you take an animal that is already showing that it is suffering from some kind of stress like a child or a dog, and punish it for the behaviour - you are only attempting to stop the symptom, you are not addressing the underlying cause of the behaviour.
Punishing to treat the symptom is only a reflection of the Emotional Intelligence of the Punisher, not the one being punished.
People need to reflect on their emotional reaction in these situations, and calmly and rationally address the situation and reduce the animals stress.
@ Jen u r really antropamorphic (giving human like qualitys to pets). in the case of a dog never having a leash or collar on in its life what would u do be like oooo its ok buddy or just say knock it off (giving a pop on the leash) its not the end of the world. just like why your kid might be throwing a tantrum because he wanted that candy bar. NO u cant have it and it is not the end of the world.
Have u ever tryed a pinch or electric collar on yourself it does no harm to the dog. my dog works on a level 15, on a 127 collar most people being my clinets cant feel it until 30.
I think if your dog is still working using a shock collar than I guess it's not working. It seems to me that the dog hasn't learned anything. Why is it okay to use inhumane tools on dogs to teach them a simple behavior? I rather work with my dog than against them. Hmmmm... would you rather work for pain or for something you enjoy? If there i something better, I'll take it. I'm sure dogs would too. You really think a dog think's, "Yes please! shock me I LOVE learning this way!"?
I can tell your dog walks all over you! I have to go outside, feed me, pet me, tuck me in at night. She is not working on a collar anymore I used positive and negtive puishment and rewards (toys, treats, praise) Do you have proof of these tools being inhumane. Me and my dog are not against each other when training. She does not work for pain she works for a reward. "You really think a dog think's, "Yes please! shock me I LOVE learning this way!"?" Dogs need discpline just like kids do. My parents always told me what to do and made me do it and if i didnt there was consiquinces. They would nag and nag and nag same thing a shock collar can do. I would suggest backing up your story before pulling something out of your ass!
Using a clicker and treats isn't going to work on every dog. Many dogs do require fair corrections as part of their training program. One-sided never works out well. Unless maybe you have a very easy dog or don't expect a lot. What are you supposed to do when you did all the positive clicker/treats and the dog still won't listen when needed? You need to correct for certain behaviors, and using an e-collar is not a quick fix, it takes time to teach the dog how to turn it off, and prong collars work excellent especially with a weaker handler or a difficult dog, but works well on any dog when used correctly.
QUOTE, Expd-Trainer:
"a clicker and treats [won't] work on every dog. Many dogs do require fair corrections..."
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now and then, i MAY need negative-punishment: take away something the dog WANTS, to discourage unwanted behaviors.
Ex: an excited dog jumps on me when the owner introduces him - i step out of reach, chat with the owner, wait for him to get over the initial excitement, then quietly re-approach - this time i'm ready, if his front-feet leave the ground, i'm out of reach and ignore him again.
i work with dogs who have bite-histories, phobias, are severely undersocialized, were abused in the prior home, are born-spooks with global fears, and sometimes if i'm lucky, a normal dog with a normal problem,
like nuisance barking or manic door-greetings. it has been DECADES since the last time i "needed" to punish a dog physically - dogs do not 'need' choke-collars, prongs, shock, pokes, jerks, to be pinned, etc.
teaching the dog what i want in a given context works great - they don't need wrong-answers, so i skip them.
specifically re shock, if dogs "LEARNED TO TURN IT OFF" they'd carry the remote, and it would not ever be turned-on; but since dogs have paws not hands, WE choose to use shock - or not.
happy training and joyful B-Mod,
- terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
"dogs R dogs, wolves R wolves, and primates R us."
tmp, Sept-2004
It always amazes me when people say that positive reinforcement doesn't work on all dogs. I'm still waiting to meet that dog that doesn't respond to it.
I absolutely agree with you, Leah! I have received more attention and focus from my "girs" using positive reinforcement than the old, yank on the collar, choke the dog by the neck training system. using that old way managed to shut down my soul mate Aussie. Every time that collar came out, her head would drop, ears dropped....why? Because it wasn't enjoyable to be yanked around. So I looked into positive reinforcement....WHAT A DIFFERENCE!!! And happier, more focused, attentive dogs now live in my household. We live in harmony together, they know the rules, what I want, know I am the leader. Changing my leadership skills with positive reinforcement has been the best thing I could have ever done!
Note that the link for dog-friendly training classes in the article has changed to http://dogwilling.weebly.com/dog-training-classes.html
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