Best e-collar for training? - Page 1

Can someone recommend a good e-collar for obedience & schutzhund training? I heard Tritronics & Dogtra are good...but what are the best models for schutzhund training?

Mark

Hi Mark...I have used most of the different e-collars on the market including the powerful German collars...but the best...hands down...is the Dogtra...I would suggest that you look at the different models...and choose what fits for you...One suggestion is that I would also be sure that the collar has a "pager" tone on it too...The main differences are whether or not they have a "pager" tone...and the distance they reach...I have and use the 1 mile range one but you don't need that much if your going to use it for Schutzhund...Also if you've never used one before that you work with someone that is confident in using them...I personally don't use an e-collar on my dogs until...basically...they already have a SchH1...So in another words I use them when my dogs start to work off-leash and at a distance...Like running blinds away from you...

~Bob~

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There are no good e-collar it is only fore pepol ho dont know how to make result in a normal way, and dont love there dogs

For me, Tri-tronics makes the best collar.  I have the G3 basic model.  Even with the basic model, you can run 3 collars off it, if necessary.  It's lightweight and most importantly, very consistent.  I own a Dogtra also, and have never liked it.  I think they have improved in their quality, but still don't compare to Tri-tronics.  I also have an old Tri-tronics LR100, that uses the intensity plugs.  I've had it rebuilt once in the the last 10 years.  I don't use it much anymore, but it was always a reliable, tough collar.  For Schutzhund training a basic G3 model is all you really need.  You can get them for about $240. 

The best e-collar is the model recommended by an expert in e-collar training. This is the knowledgeable person (with excellent timing) whom you can trust to handle the remote for you during the initial stages of e-collar training. You must train with this individual exclusively and extensively. E-collar training techniques are not something one learns overnight by reading a book, watching a video, or attending a seminar.

In the right hands, an e-collar is an excellent training tool. I have successfully used them on my own dogs when I wished to retrain and fine-tune them for absolute obedience, reliability, and drive-containment--all the while not diminishing the dog's spirit and innate drives. I did not use an e-collar for the initial shaping of behaviors. I trained my dogs for over a year with an e-collar expert (not a wannabe expert) who is an e-collar guru and who has been a consultant to e-collar manufacturers and responsible for their early development and subsequent advances/refinements over a period spanning several decades.

I have also seen the e-collar be abused by wannabe's--often with their own problems of lack of restraint and anger management.

I like and use the dogtra 1200NCP.  The "P" stands for pager, which vibrates like on the old beeper.  I like the multi adjustable rheostat knob.  Like someone already said I use it for distance work on advanced dogs.  An added benefit is I use it when walking my dogs in the woods.  Sometimes when the call of the wild hits, OB can go out of the window.

One early morning just prior to day break, I had a dog get the call of the wild for a deer I only heard.  It took me about an hour to locate him.  He was soaking wet in a drainage culvert on my neighbors farm a mile away.  Two sessions with the e-collar, no issues.  He now responds without the collar.  He is a sch 2 dog.  He was also not fried either during the training. 

Kyle

I think the people who need e-collars for their dogs - should take the e-collar for themself.

senta and vennebjerg, tell us al what your credentials are with regard to schutzhund training and titling dogs. The e-collar is merely a "tool" and a very good one in the right hands.

You betcha, I have applied the e-collar to my own neck and to the bend of my arm (where blood is drawn). It is not like feeling a static electricity shock--but more like a tickle on the skin--at low levels of intensity.

I suggest that you confine your editorial comments on training to areas in which you have expertise and experience.

FYI, virtually all of the truly credible, successful trainers (including Joanne Plumb, Gottfried Dildei, Ivan Balabanov, Bernhard Flinks, etc.) and podium-level competitors use the e-collar for fine-tuning their dogs at one time or another.