Training with an Electronic Collar – Part 2 – Preparing the Dog
February 21st, 2010 | 
Author: This series of articles is based on my personal experiences training with an electronic collar.
Part one of this series explains how the e-collar works, the features, intensity levels and the need to prepare the dog before initial use.
This article explains how to prepare your dog for training, fit the collar properly, how to select the correct intensity and the first exercise.
My goal in training any dog is of course to teach the animal to understand and carry out my commands. But I also want to communicate my intentions in such a way that not only will the dog obey, but he will do it with enthusiasm and enjoy his work. I want to see a happy animal working beside me, not a nervous reluctant partner, always fearful of making a mistake or looking to escape being under my control.
Back when I first heard about using “shock” collars, I envisioned using electric shock to punish a dog for misbehaving. It seemed severe and possibly cruel. I am not against using force where necessary, but in my mind I pictured cartoon images of a dog crossing a line, and when corrected he stiffens, leaves the ground and lights up illuminating his skeleton, as the shock is delivered amidst a loud cracking and then, on returning to earth his eyes would be wild and his coat smoking. I know I would not achieve my goals using such a harsh method. (No, I didn’t really think he would be electrocuted.) Shock collars had a bad reputation in some circles but those that were critical were missing the point and failed to understand how it can be a good thing–a very good thing actually.
If you are reading this far, you must be at least a bit curious about how this method can be used to create a happy working dog, so please read on.
Preparing the Dog
I am sometimes rather impatient, always anxious to get right to work, but I am glad I took the time to lay a good foundation before even charging the collar for the first time. This has proved to be really good advice.
I strapped the collar on the dog as recommended. The blunt contact points have to be in contact with the dog’s skin at all times in order to have consistent results. I was surprised at how snug the collar has to fit to be effective, but my high-drive dog did not seem to notice it or show any signs of it being uncomfortable. He loves to work and putting on his work gear is exciting for him. I placed the collar high up on his neck, just behind his ears and snugged it up so that I could just barely fit two fingers under the collar. The part of the collar that delivers the vibration was on his left side of his throat.
My dog was a male German Shepherd from Police Service Dog lines, about one year old and already doing well in obedience. He had started tracking and bite work as well. He knew how to look at me when there was a distraction but I wanted even more attention. We had done a lot of work on the long line and his recall was decent but my big concern was “crittering”. We walk in the woods and through open fields everyday and if he came across a coyote or deer running it was too much for him to resist. I could not risk him being injured or killed in the chase and I needed to make him much more reliable without diminishing his drive. The type of dog I chose for the sport of schutzhund had to have high prey drive which of course is the very reason he is so keen to chase prey in the first place. My goal is not to weaken that drive, but rather to channel it into ways he can exercise this drive in a controlled way.
He wore the collar through our regular training and even in the house sometimes, for about ten days prior to turning the collar on. I also carried the remote and was familiar with where the buttons were without having to look. I did this because I did not want him to have a strong connection between the stimulation and the collar. Yes I know that most dogs are smart enough to figure it out but I believe it is possible to repeat a behavior consistently until it becomes such a habit it would be unlikely he would think of reverting back to the undesired behavior. I would eventually wean him off the collar just as I had introduced it.
Turning On The Collar
The first time I was ready to actually use the collar, I had done some obedience training and then went for a walk in preparation to having him feel the collar for the first time. He dragged the long line and was pretty much enjoying himself walking with me through a field. This was our normal routine after training. During this time he is free to sniff and explore and he was pretty good at staying within a hundred feet or so from me. Now and then I would be close to the end of the long line and practice a recall and then release him to go exploring again. I turned the collar on and set it to 1/2 which is the weakest setting on the model I was using. (see part one for more on the Tritronic Sport 60) When he was busy sniffing something on the ground and quite interested in it, I pushed the button briefly. I used the button that you hold down and will provide the preset stim for as long as you hold it down. To this day I still use that button about 95% of the time when training. The idea here was to make sure he was concentrating on something else, but that I was close enough to watch his reaction. Before putting the collar on him earlier that day, I checked to make sure it was working properly. So I pushed the button. He did nothing, absolutely nothing. I tried two more times and no reaction at all. I checked the placement of the collar and I noticed that in the hour or so he had been wearing it, it had become bit looser so I pulled it one notch tighter. While adjusting the collar he didn’t even pick up his head, something he was exploring smelled pretty interesting I guess. I walked for a few more minutes and once again when he was distracted I pushed the button watching for his reaction carefully. He flicked an ear when I pushed the button but did not raise his head or react anymore then he would have if a piece of grass and brushed him in the wind. I pushed again for a bit longer..maybe 2 seconds. The ear flicked again but that’s about all. About a minute later, I increased the setting to 1 and tried again. This time he lifted his head and kind of looked to his left where the unit was situated sniffed the air and quickly went back to what he was doing. I tried again and this time he lifted his head a bit quicker but more like if a fly was on him. He was not “shocked” but more curious about where this new sensation was coming from. I had tried this on myself and the sensation is kind of annoying and a bit of a tickle sensation. He had showed the reaction I was looking for, now I could move on to the actual training. He was showing me that he felt it at the lighter setting but he is a very strong dog so I decided the slightly higher stim was where I wanted to start. I could always increase the intensity later if I felt I had to but I wanted to use the least amount of stim as possible. If the dog had been shy and more sensitive I would have left it at 1/2.
The First Exercise
I had written myself a few short notes and consulted them briefly to make sure I was doing it properly. Keep in mind that the dog already knows and understands the basic obedience commands. I pressed the button and within maybe 1/2 – 2 seconds I called out “here”. The very instant he turned his head toward me I got off the stim. It seemed a bit unusual for me to use the stim and THEN give the command but I had to remind myself that it is not a correction. I did this about four or five times on the walk back home and he reacted really well. He was always pretty good at responding to recall so I couldn’t really tell if he was responding to the collar or not. My goal is for him to figure out that he can stop the stim if he responds quickly. Later he would learn that he could avoid it all together if he was very quick. I was happy with our progress, it had gone exactly as I wanted it to, and so I went back to the kennel and removed the collar and I left him to rest for a few hours. I was looking forward to more training as it was starting to become more apparent to me the many ways I could use this method to my advantage.
I think training should be fun for the dog and that they have the ability to turn most things into a game. This is a game he would enjoy and if I started getting the desired results I would be having fun too and our combined energy would snowball into something great. It is basically the same principal I had used in his foundation training. If he responds to a command in a way that I want, he gets a reward, usually a chance to chase his ball or a quick tug of war with a length of hose I carry in my back pocket. With the remote trainer he will learn he can turn it off quickly if he responds fast and it becomes a game and, he gets the toy too. I will still use all of the positive methods of play in the training routine. I want my dog to focus on ME, I want him to see me as the most exciting fun thing in his environment. I was thinking I may be on to something good.
In part three I will explain my experiences in teaching the dog to pay attention to me under distraction
You can find a selection of Electronic Training Collars at the SBR Dog Store.
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wow! nice!!!