What can you tell me about electric shock collars?

Question

(apologies if I got the terminology wrong)

Have you ever used them?

Do you still use them?

Under what circumstances would you use them?

Are they particularly useful for training for some jobs more than others?

Could you also post links (if you have them) to any useful info about them please?

I've no intention of using one on my dog.

I am involved in a discussion about them on another forum, and I was hoping to add something else to that discussion.

Answer 1

Contrary to popular belief.... They are not cruel. I have two dobermans, One my female, is the sweetest most loving dog ever. The other, my male, would have been put to sleep (he's not even a year old yet mind you) had I not gotten him. He was badly bred and to say the least is a monster. He SCREAMS when he is put in his room when I leave. I'm usually only gone for an hour or two at a time and the rest of the day they get full run of the house including my bed where they sleep. But I have to put them away when I leave because if i dont its couch destroying time. My neighbors complained because it sounded like he was being killed and my roommate was going to move out so I did the drastic thing and bought a bark collar. It stopped completely. I also bought a regular remote E-collar from Basspro(DOGTRA brand). It's a two dog collar that has various levels of stimulant as well as a vibrating "pager". I use these in obedience and agility as well as around the house and at the dog park. Best investment I've EVER made. The stimulus doesnt feel like an electrical shock that you would get from an electric fence or even sticking your finger in an outlet. It doesnt actually HURT unless its on the HIGHEST setting (which i wouldnt recommend except in an extreme situation like a fight). I've tried it on myself and it is the same sensation you get from Electrical stimulation machines they use for physical therapy (I've used them myself) and my trainer actually uses the collars on her back when she gets a knot in her muscles (pretty ghetto lol). I think that for MOST dogs they would be a little extreme but it depends on the breed and on the dog. For my girl I only use the vibrate/pager setting because it's all the reminder she needs, she's NEVER been "shocked" , my boy who is the most stubborn dog that my trainer and everyone at the rescue has ever met. So he does get the stim. at varying levels for varying situations. They are the best investment I've made since obedience with my dogs. It kept Diesel out of a huge fight at the dogpark (every other dog, literally, except my two were in it my girls a wuss and my boy was being corrected with the collar) and he probably would have gotten hurt very bad since he's on the small side for a doberman. I wouldnt reccommend them for everyone or every dog but I definately dont think they are cruel. I've felt them on the highest setting and it's not painful, just weirdly uncomfortable. If a dog screams, it's not because it's painful it's more likely that it's because it scared the begesus out of them and they have no idea what that feeling was. I also think that you shouldnt just start using one, I highly reccommend going to a professional and having them work it out with you on when and how to use it. They are wonderful tools, and I have seen far to many aggressive, dominant dogs because people forget that dogs LIKE CHILDREN have to be disciplined. And whoever doesnt agree with a spanking is a moron! Also too many rotten kids out there because their parents didnt want to "abuse" their child.... *vomiting in my mouth* I let both of my dogs get away with far too much when I first got them and it took a lot of destroyed furniture to realize they DO need to be crated and lots of almost bites to realize that I need to be in charge by whatever means possible and politically correct doesnt factor into my thinking. Like i said, it's not for every dog or every owner, but our babies are not as fragile as we like to think and sometimes it takes a little zap to send the learning curve through the roof.


EDIT: I've tried the politcally correct methods taught by petsmart and petco and a number of other trainers since I got my girl. None of those work for a strong willed dog who will do what it wants when the treat isn't motivation enough. If you have a subordinant dog that will listen to your every command GOOD FOR YOU! but not all dogs are that way and most ARENT. I dont believe in beating a dog or starving a dog or any other extreme methods but there has to be a middle ground. I think that at first using treats is great to motivate the dog until it understands a command, but once they understand (dobies are smart they get it pretty dang quick) and CHOOSE not to listen, they need to be corrected just like anyone else. And to use the example someone else used, clicking and treating wont work when fido is chewing on your leg.... And our rescue has seen more and more dogs returned that had "obedience" training with clickers that have bitten or been agressive to their owners who they obviously didnt respect.

Answer 2

Yes.
Yes.
My lab would not stop barking,no matter what.Nothing wrong,she just sits and barks her head off.For nothing more than to hear herself bark.Tried collar that emits a high pitch sound.No results what-so-ever.I am talking NONE STOP barking.
I got a shock collar as the last thing to try.It was and is very effective for my purpose.I fastened it around her neck.She eventually started her bark routine.Barked a few times,the collar zapped.She barked,the collar zapped.She stopped barking!!! Few hours later,the same thing happened.Now she no longer barks in the house.She doesn't wear it when outside.(barking is alright outside) Now,she just has to see the collar and the bad behavior ends.

I was at my wits end as to what to do.Have never had this problem with any other dog.I got her from the pound and she already had this problem.Was tied all the time and I imagine that is how she kept herself company.However,now she has a loving family and is never left outside alone.Never.

Her indoor barking became unbearable!! All were miserable.Now,she and the rest of the family can live in peace. Yes,it does hurt her.But she has learned that she controls what happens and when. She has never associated this collar/zapping with us. These collars are not cheap. The batteries have to be special ordered also.Are not available in stores. I suppose this could be abused,but most animal abusers are dumber than the dog and I doubt the would go to all the trouble to even get one of these collars.

They do come with rubber tips that can be put on the electrodes so they do not shock.

Answer 3

A lot of people wouldn't condone the use of Electric Collars however as a very last resort and only where the dog is a danger to others and/or itself i believe they can be useful.

I would only use one on a dog that is a danger by continually running off or that has a habit of snapping at people or other dogs and only then when i had exhausted all other areas of training. Used wrongly they can do harm to your dog and i would suggest seeking professional advice before going down this route.

As an alternative there are squirt collars, these are activated by remote control and squirt the dog with air or water and distracts the dog away from the bad habit. I have a dog that used to like playing rough and would grab your hands all the time with his mouth.....being a big dog this could be quite painful for the human involved by using this type of collar the habit was broken in about a week.

For your information I used to breed German Shepherds and was an Army Dog Trainer in my Teens.

Answer 4

The e-collars are not cruel if used correctly. The amount of correction on these collars can be adjusted to suit the amount of correction the dog needs and the correction is not painful, it is more like an annoyance.

Any training tool can be bad if abused.

I have used them for distance training and for corrective measures, such as barking and for proofing things like a quick recall, perfect heeling, etc. I think ecollars are good for any kind of training.
I think the ecollar is an excellent training tool for teaching the dog and the dog learns very quickly that its behavior caused the shock.
I also think it is better if the dog thinks the behavior caused the correction because you need trust between you and the dog to have a good working relationship and every correction from you damages that trust a bit. Once trust is lost you will never fully gain it back. With ecollars the dog gets to decide not to engage in behaviors that cause the correction. It learns that certain behaviors cause the correction and the dog will do its best to avoid the correction and the trust between you and the dog will not be damaged.

http://www.loucastle.com/articles.htm
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AjXYzhdWoTS9lOBOPCbCbaHty6IX?qid=20070402092713AAHb8J4

My second link is a question Greekman asked and it has a great article, the first link is also a site he also had me read. Greekman is the expert so hopefully he sees your question and answers it.

Answer 5

We love our Inotech Train & Contain system for keeping our two dogs in the yard and for occassionally correcting our pointer's behavior. This system has a remote with four levels of shock and usually the first or second level is enough to make the pointer listen (we use it in the car since she goes absolutely nuts when people walk by). The system also gives a warning tone before it shocks so most the time we don't even have to do more than the tone. The dogs have never screamed in pain and my husband has accidently shocked himself on the highest level so he knows what it feels like. We only use the remote training system to curb our pointer's more aggressive behavior in the car, not for every little thing, and have never felt the need to use anything besides the warning tone on our golden.

Answer 6

My father breeds beagles and lives in the city so barking gets the neighbors riled. (He usually only kennels 3 or 4 outside) He got a shock collar that would zap them when they would bark. It was very effective. He uses it long enough to train them to not bark and then takes it off when they are trained. They do not nuisance bark but will bark if someone approaches their yard.

On the flip side though I feel that if used wrong they can cause aggression. There was a dog yesterday at the pet park, where I take my Sophie to play, that was very aggressive. I never saw a lab raise it's fur before or try to mount everything in sight like that one did. I overheard the owner say "I should have brought the shock collar, he would so be getting zapped right now!" I was so angry. No wonder the dog was so crazy! I thought to myself, "get your lazy butt up off the bench and pull him off my dog!" She should have pulled him off and taken him home if he could not behave. Instead I was the one that had to leave because he would not leave her alone and she was lazy and irresponsible. I do not feel that it is the best way to train your pet in every situation. I think it is a good idea for nuisance barking and training them to stay in the yard. But once they are trained take it off of them! It served it's purpose. (You can adjust the strength so it does not hurt. My father tests it on his hand before he puts it on the dog.)

Answer 7

A well-trained dog makes everyone happy, including his owner. Take a little time training him, and you'll never regret it; you'll always have an obedient dog by your side. Find more https://tr.im/s0crv

By their nature, dogs are pack animals with a well-defined social order. Through basic training, you need to consistently make sure your puppy understands that you are the leader, not him. So in teaching him the basic rules, you take on the role of pack leader.

To fit into the family circle, your dog must be taught to recognize his name and such commands as come, heel, lie down and sit.

Answer 8

I used a shock collar on a Shetland Sheepdog (they are small if you didn't know) and it worked fine. She didn't die, scream in pain, or get shocked constantly. It helped keep her from barking, and oh btw, we did try it on ourselves, it felt like more of a quick static electricity shock than anything else, more to get your attention than to hurt. If you managed to kill your dog or make it scream in pain, you're an idiot because you didn't set it right or got the wrong size. You can lower the shock and sensitivity on most collars.

Answer 9

I have an invisible fence. I had a large 130lb black lab (he passed a couple of years ago) and a 75 lb yellow lab. Our neighborhood does not allow chain link fences and we could not afford to put up a wooden fence (we have an acre of land). It took about 1 week to train the dogs not to cross the fence. I don't have to use the collars anymore, the dog knows her yard now (it's been 9 years). If she wanders out of the yard, I just show her the collar and she's back in the boundaries. I think it is a great invention! If you have an aggressive dog, however, you will want to post signs "Danger, Dog". If you are talking about the "barking collars", they are a hand held device that you push a button to send a shock to the animal to quiet them down, get them off furniture, out of a room or to keep them in the yard. My neighbor has that kind of collar for their 6 lb dog. They are not powerful enough for large breed dogs. But they are very effective on little dogs. Talk to your vet or local pet store for companies in your area.

Answer 10

No, I think they're really cruel, not to mention expensive too! you can get a small plug-in device that lets off a high pitched squeal ( humans can't hear it), it takes about a couple of weeks, but the dog will eventually stop excessive barking! Think most of the big pet stores stock them.

Answer 11

They are cruel. Inhumane. Barbaric.

It's for people who don't understand dogs and people who believe in a quick fix.

Dogs respond well to positive reinforments (just like all animals including human beings) and what they learn through this training method, although it requires patience and time and committment , they carry with them for life.

Shock collars would only make them more frightened of life and living and frightened dogs become problem dogs.

When dogs do things you don't want them to do, a simple verbal correction is more than enough. Efforts should be spent on rewarding good behaviour, not the other way around.