choke collars - Page 2

When my 1st gsd died I was horrified at the ridge around his neck and still to this day cannot forgive myself for it.  This had been caused by over use of a check chain.

Now this was over 25 years ago and he was my 1st dog and was certainly not ideal as a first time dog.  I went out several nights a week with a trainer who had my put the check chain up behind his ears and I seemed to spend all my time yanking at that dam chain.  It was at this point I saw my first pinch collar and boy was I shocked no way was I going to put that on my dog!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well I did and what a new lease of life he had I could take him anywhere and everywhere no yanking, no frustration just put the collar on and off we'd go.  He was able to join in the walks with the other dogs that we had by then aquired.

I know a lot more now (I hope) and hope never to let another dog down like I did him

Jess

just like to add i wouldnt put a pinch on a young pup or a check just a normal collar and TRAIN TRAIN and train some more that way you might never need to use a pinch or check .....

No one is choking any puppies.   

My puppy is five months old on the 10th, he has been on the long line for a week and has been trained in the house for two months.   He does sit and stay, and comes on command.  He is now doing a long stay with me out of view.   He is going over obstacles and climbing.  We are always socializing and bringing new things into the picture as well.  Today he took his first swim and chased wave's.  He has been introduced to cars and roadways, dogs and cats, water and heights, he has seen horse's and cows up close and sheep soon.   He has heard gunfire and city noise's, he is house broke, crate trained, and loves to ride in a car.   And he showers when he gets all muddy.   Oh and he does a real mean bark and hold on my older female....lol, thats just play time.    I just prefer to have him wear a chain as opossed to a collar.  He has never needed to be forced or corrected beyond a light tug and a strong word.  We use a lot of rewards and praise as well.  After all he's only a puppy.   He's gonna be a damned nice dog when he grows up.

I am amazed that so many people think that just because a young dog of at least 5 months wears a correction collar that the person on the other end of the leash is doing awful things to that pup. The responses here make one invision that a 5 month old is being yanked, cranked and hung. In my case that is not a correct assumption. Yes, when adult teeth are all in, I put a correction collar on the dog. IMPRINTING!!!! That collar when placed around the neck of a dog signals to that dog that training is coming. Our one on one fun time. Even now with my adult dogs, who I do use a prong collar on, when they see that collar, they are abuzz with excitement, that collar signifies to them, we are going training.

A correction collar is a tool like anything else we use when training our dogs. Just because I put that collar on a 5 month old, it does not mean I do not work in positive training methods. All of my dogs are filled with excitment when I bring out their collars. GOD FORBID, I take a collar off and not put it right away, and have to move it to its correct place later on. All HELL breaks loose as my dogs bark and run back and forth to the door, thinking it is training time, pushing each other out of the way to get to me first for their collar. Yes, that indeed sounds like dogs that have been abused because they had a correction collar placed around their necks at 5 months.

I won't put any kind of training collar on a pup under 4 months except maybe a martingale for a particularly obnoxious pup. My dogs live in my home, they are NOT kennel dogs, and I require manners in my home. Under 4 months we just use a flat buckle collar. Our Boudica can sit, down, come, and heel a little bit and do very short stays. She is 14 weeks old. But you bet in a few weeks we are getting rid of the cookies and the buckle collar and teaching her to work.

Quite frankly, any bleeding heart who thinks a correction collar of any kind on a pup is wrong has no idea how the collar should be used and has never been exposed to someone who knows what they are doing with it. There's a difference between being fair but firm and just cranking a dog around.

If you ask me, teaching a pup to accept appropriate correction at a young age actually builds confidence, and accepting pressure in the bitework later is a piece of cake. Fairly applied, it strengthens the dog. Unfairly applied, it crushes the personality right out of them.

Deeswolf- my dogs, too, jump up and down with excitement when they see me pick up their training collars.

Its amazing how no one stops to think about the way dogs interact with each other, and how they maintain their hierarchy naturally. People ask me in public, "Your dogs are so well behaved, why do you make them wear that collar?" to which I answer, "They are well behaved because they wear that collar!"

If you don't know what you're doign with that kind of collar, no, you shouldn't use one. But don't bash people who are more experienced with that kind of method than you are. 

Nobody said anybody was abusing any type of collar.  Why does everyone on here have to get their panties in a bunch, so easily? 

KC

I don't understand how experience equals a just handler.  Some of the heaviest hands I have ever seen are old-school very experienced handlers with more years in training than most clubs combined. 

My Black male is almost two and finished with his obedience, he learned fast and was easy to train.  He never particularly cared for the chain and now wears only a flat collar.  I take him everywhere and he's very well behaved with only a look or a soft word.  My Two Females still wear chains and dont mind them at all.   The one female is very strong willed and sometimes she still needs a tug when she's misbehaving but its only a reminder and not a true correction as in training.

Everyone has a technique they prefer and everyone is training an individual, every dog is different as far as I'm concerned so nothing is etched in stone here.   My dogs get excited to see me with a leash, same difference.    Or all I have to do is say outside or go for a ride and boom!!  its like the circus is in town. 

I have never used a prong by the way, but I have used shock for specific problems.  If someday I need a prong I will use one.   I think patience and resolve are better tools than rushing or short cuts in training my dogs.   There is also something new to learn everyday for us both.   

My real problem now is I'm getting older and not so energetic anymore, its a lot of hard work.   Thats why I started my last pup a little earlier, to spare me some wear and tear..lol

Good training to you all.

Brent.

>  Same old, same old, just like any other tool in training there is a right way, a wrong way, and countless suggested ways. Why criticize when you have not seen the method used with the dog being trined to even determine if it is cruel or inhumane?

I don't know DC, but it's the same emotional bullshit every time.