Comment to 'electric collar and distance training'
  • Desiree: I am certain Platz has more experience in hands-on training than I. Further, I personally have no experience with CO’s. My experience is limited to speaking and working with trainers who train exclusively with e-collars and attending their classes and seminars. They train police, drug and explosive detection dogs as well as family pets. At these classes I have seen all types of dogs from beagles to English Mastiffs. As to your questions, first, I would question the collar itself. In the States most pet stores do not sell quality e-collars. In order to find a real e-collar, you must buy from a specialty store or private distributor. I have no idea of the brands and types available in Holland; however, I can say a decent quality e-collar will run you at least $300 to $500 in the U.S. Depending on the functions (tone, vibration, etc.) and number of dogs, they can run upwards of $700-$800 (multiple dogs, collars, transmitters, etc.) Second, I personally do not believe one should use an e-collar without some serious training from a very experienced professional for both you and your dog. The e-collar does not automatically train your dog, and employing its use without proper introduction of the product to your dog and proper training in its use is likely to produce negative results. As with any training method, there is no easy road and there is no substitute for time and practice. A major problem with these devices is that people think they can just strap it on and hit a button and voila, the dog is perfect. This experience and training is also not inexpensive; so if you are looking for an inexpensive method, e-collars and the responsible use of them, is not the way to go. Finally, your trigger question. I would never use the collar in a face-off situation. The idea with the collar, or any method, is to maintain or re-direct the dog’s attention prior to this point. The other topic you also brought up is usually referred to burn-through; meaning an agitated dog will not respond to the collar or simply burns through it. This is a whole other topic. As stated, I have no CO experience, but this happens with many guardian-type breeds. I would also add, this reaction would likely result from any other method as well. BK