I'm a dog owner and this has been the most compassionate form of training for my dog. On his Dogtra 280c, his working level is a 5 of 127. It has allowed him to experience the world off leash. It has allowed him to be a dog.
Yes to all of these! 30 year dog trainer/instructor here. I took a 3 day seminar from dogtra years ago, best seminar ever ( next to Michael). To me, these are common sense, fair rules. Love how it's always people who have never seen a trainer use an ecollar properly ban them. Also,who have never seen dogs put down for bad behavior which could be solved with one. I was taught an ecollar is just a longer arm to get your dogs attention. Thanks for posting this.
Just want to put it out there that my dogs life has changed dramatically since implementing a mini educator e collar to my dogs life. She used to never be off lead because she'd run after rabbits and in doing so I had no control over her. Without the distraction of rabbits beautiful recall, but I cant control when a rabbit is going to pop out and risk losing her for 3 hours while she runs away and gets lost etc. So she had many years of just being on a long line. All dog lectures and training sessions I've ever done were from positive only people as thats a huge movement in my city - they would say prong collars and E-collars are cruel. Through seeing the work of some amazing overseas trainers I went down the path of learning about E-collars and seeing them in a positive light. I researched and taught myself for MONTHS before even buying one. The e-collar training with my dog went beautifully, she's excited when the collar comes out, she has the most remarkable life of off-leash freedom walks, I don't even use the e-collar anymore! (she still wears it and she will for life) I can call her back with a whistle and every-time she instantly comes back and with enthusiasm, including when theres rabbits around! Ive never seen her be so happy as she is when she has off-leash freedom, and we can only thank the e-collar for that.
I’m so happy to hear you talk about not training when you are angry or have lost patience with your dog. No one seems to address this. And I think people are uncomfortable with admitting that training can be one step forward and two steps back at times, especially when you have an independent thinking dog. Putting your dog in the crate and giving yourself a timeout can be very beneficial to you and your dog. 🙂
I have trained my 6 years old working line Gsd on Ecollar since he was 3. I have MS and I have to use wheelchair or mobility scooter or crutches, he’s very well behaved and I take him every where with me and train him in real life situations and places. Ecollar training has given me and Simba alot of confidence and freedom. He’s off leash most of the time only busy places I put him leash mainly for people to feel comfortable like shopping centres. I know several people around me who own dogs and never let their dogs off leash, which is sad. I may have to use the collar every couple of weeks and I have never had to use a correction level on high levels. As Edd correctly said if you take your time at introduction phase you will not need to use the collar all the time and on higher levels not needed. I hope they don’t ban it.
Thank you Sir! I go for long walks in woods with my 8mo Westie, only using vibrate and tone for praise. Stim #1 used only once in last week bolting for rabbit. This thing is a game changer!
I would also recommend a rule that says I never use the correction collar when the dog is touching a person. I don’t use it for jumping up on strangers or other living things. Great video. I’ve been a trainer for 20 years and I am a certified Ecollar technology dealer as well as a behavioral trainer. I don’t always use them. I don’t sell them for a profit. I want people to use the best equipment on the market if it is the right tool for the dog I am working with. Keep it up.
This is a great video. I understand the idea here and mostly agree, except for the jumping up part. A big dog jumping up on a stranger is dangerous (especially an older person) - my dog knew the command "Off" very well, but didnt care when people wanted to meet him - spent a long time correcting in other ways, including a very hard leash pop with his prong collar and it didnt work. Two times with the "Off" command and a correction from the e-collar and never jumped up again!
I wish everyone using e collars had your rules! As a trainer who is 99% positive reinforcement based, I am kind of an outlier among other positive trainers in that I can see the value of this tool *when used properly* in the appropriate circumstances. The problem is that they are freely available to the general public at any pet store with minimal or zero instruction for the humans.
I’ve had amazing results with a remote collar. I had a large nearly red-zone aggressive dog when I was in my early 20s and I just couldn’t manage him. I had to hide behind my apartment building and wait for people to pass by and run him to my car because he would charge at people so badly. When he was 6 I sent him off to be trained to an e-collar and when he came back 3 weeks later, both of our lives were changed forever. I never could’ve imagined we could be our in the world. He never even cared about people anymore. He was no longer stressed, or worried about anything, he was just relaxed. We could go to parks and on walks and he even laid in our driveway and just watched the world go by. His life could never have been like that without his e-collar. Now I’m having a completely different problem with a fearful puppy but I’m hopeful that an e-collar will again take the stress away and allow this new dog to relax as well.
Thank you so much for this video! My German Shepard and Boston Terrier have been with my family for a year and came with an e-collar. I have attempted watching training videos several times and still don't feel ready to train properly with it. I've shared this with my husband and feel justified in my hesitation. I have much dog training to learn before using this Pro Educator.
Thank you for the super helpful info! I’m doing my research and prep now to be ready later and avoiding beginner mistakes for my dog’s sake. In Germany now, where e- and prong collars are banned. Not even the police department is exempt and it changed their whole structure. Now they don’t take dogs from the shelter anymore and their K-9 units are dwindling. I like the new prong collars with a cloth cover because I cannot walk my Malinois without one - I tried and believe in good training.
The rules and advice in this video is working wonders on my 3 and 2 year old kids! Talk about potty training made easy! Clean up time! Bed time! It's like magic
Great video. I use a Dogtra on my American bully. She responds well to level 4/5 with a +5 boost if she’s super engaged in a chase while hiking or sees a cat in the neighborhood she wants to run after to play with. Luckily I have zero aggression issues with her.
This is the kindest tool for dogs if one knows how to use it properly. I said this because they will not be tied up to a leash and can just be free but safe within our supervision. It's sad that no matter how many people who are successful with the tool, using wisely, effectively, and kindly to dogs have tried to reason, it will never be accepted as humane. For some, it's more humane to throw a leash on the dog all the time. I know there are some dogs that can get by with treats, stick to the owner, but every dog is different especially the high drive ones, or the reactive ones. And if the positive only method is that efficient regardless of the dog's age or temperament, why don't they volunteer to train those dogs in the shelters or high kill shelters so those dogs can get chance in life instead of being put down because of ignorant people whose image is far more important than the well being of the dog. Before these animal rights people, positive only trainers ban the tool, could they roll themselves into any shelter and train the aggressive dogs caused by positive only training or caused by the tools landed in the wrong hands?
Love how he says to place the collar on your own neck first. I have noticed that the best balanced trainers highly recommend that the owner put the collar on so they can actually feel what they are doing to their dog.
I've always taken my dogs to dog parks but not as a replacement for a good long daily walk. I take them to socialise with other dogs and play however I observe them and the dogs around them and will call them back the minute I see anything untoward. I also use dog parks as a training space; ie can they sit & stay while there are other exciting things going on around them. Unfortunately many dog owners use parks a substitute for exercise and a break from overseeing their dogs.
Remote collars are god sent, they work so well and I am a firm believer in testing it on myself so i understand what each impulse means. With my dog i will never go above 30, that gets as good of a response as a chain collar and my training is at 6.
Thank you for the information, I have a 9 mouth old Great Dane who is very stubborn , I’m introducing him to an E collar in some training sessions but I don’t need to use it only for corrections, so yes I agree with you. I think you’re awesome. Thank you.
Nice presentation (won't take off points for 50% poor spelling 1:52 ). The effort to ban ecollars is misguided on many levels. As you've pointed out, an educated user is able to communicate more fairly and more effectively with an ecollar than with other training tools. Beyond that, taking away any tool will not reduce the abusive nature or ignorance of any dog handler or trainer. It is certain that such a trainer will substitute with misapplication of another tool/method resulting in potentially more harsh unfairness and abuse. I would argue that incorrect use of an ecollar (which I am ardently against) is less harmful to a dog than any alternative tool of abuse. And just about anything (intended for dog use or not) can become a tool of abuse. The advent of the ecollar, even with the excessive stimulation level of the earliest models, immediately eliminated some horribly abusive practices that were implemented upon dogs. Banning ecollars would actually bring far greater abuse upon dogs from the people that are inclined to be abusive. Those people are out there and will remain out there. Of course the only answer is to continue to expand the reach of education toward fair, effective and balanced training methods, including (rather than excluding) the proper use of fair and effective tools.
I agree with everything u said. I experimented with collars and settled with Garmans Tritronics. But I had no idea this video existed so I ran the gauntlet blind and figured things out. Sometimes I failed but I got back at it. But just two things. Can u educate people on how to properly put the collars on and how tight it should be. Then could you educate people on how long the collars should be on the dog for time wise. Whether u add these to your rules or make a completely separate video, I think average owners/trainers would again benefit from your knowledge. Thanks Del
Well this is the first time on your channel. My first Cheap dog collar is coming tomorrow from Amazon. Wow I going to watch the video again. My dog is about 4 years old I think I am the Third or Forth owner. We got her 8 months ago she pulls, she is always walking the fence to find that weak spot. Four days ago at the dog park I looked for her and she was gone. I said anyone see my dog,Ellie Mae,? She a pointer,White with big Brown spots. Probably 15 or 20 people immediately started looking, someone said there she is, I called but she looking for Rabbits and just keeps going. 6 minutes later she was back with me in the truck. As far as the dog park when another dog is picking on my dog I just go to the other end far away. I know all this bad behavior is my fault. I trained her with treats not to Pull for a long time. She walked by me and always paid attention. It’s been two months since I’ve trained her at all with treats so like you said, you got to keep doing it and I quit. She is walking my neighbors new white plastic fence looking for away under right now. I’ve got to get some 12 x 12 concrete blocks and put along the fence. Thanks for all your information.
I slightly disagree about not using the remote collar to stop a dog fight from escalating. With appropriate timing and a verbal correction it is possible. It has worked for me on multiple occasions. My male Doberman was over correcting my female Rottweiler for being too energetic and rough with play. Once my female backed off and ran away he continued to chase her while barking and growling. I gave him a loud “ENOUGH” and an e-collar correction. This was affective for me. The dogs were not face to face and sizing each other up so the situation was appropriate in my eyes to use the e-collar.
Most dog fights I have broken up have been from people that only use positive reinforcement. People don't understand every dog is different, and some dogs need discipline and structure to live a happy life and not be a danger to those around them.
So I see ecollars being used in 2 ways: One: as a extra stimilus to complete a behaviour faster/ with more intensity Two: as a correction. But it seems these two can bleed over in eachother as well. Would it be oke to use the ecollar for both cases or will this confuse the dog? Maybe to make it clear for the dog the vibration mode should be used for cases such as eating poo or other unwanted behaviours. And the shock mode can be used when training, not so much acting as a correction but more as that extra stimulus. Above is just an example, might want to switch the mode depending on the dog, I heard sometimes dogs find the vibration more aversive than the low level shock. I'm trying to learn as much as possible about the tool before using it, I might not need it at all but with certain behaviours I'm reaching the end of solutions to try. And my last hopes would be on the training collar. To me it seems to be a more efficient and less physically harmfull solution than popping or yanking the lead when your dog is about to pick up poop for example.
Excellent! Remote collars are conventional for AKC field trial training...the ability to instantly communicate at 200-300 meters is a key concept in training. Typically the most important rule is always precede a collar correction with a KNOWN command. In retriever training also the handler must be CERTAIN the dog can hear the command, for example on a water blind retrieve if the retriever is in lunging water or in tall grass with high winds, the dog is unlikely to hear the sit whistle and a collar correction would be unwise. In retriever trainer, the collar correction is always preceded with an known command, thus the collar correction is for not obeying a command. You would never catch me in a dog park either!
Hi Sir, some say they never use the vibration option. Can we chose to use it specifically when or if a dog is damaging the fence or like you mentioned eating something dangerous or poisonous
I just got Dogtra Arc 802 for my 2 dogs,we are just starting with ecollar training and conditioning,doing in house training thru play and reward, the girls are responding good to the collar and are already more focused on commands which they already know well
My rules in addition to these: no cheap collars (I value consistency and I don’t trust cheap pet collars to have that), and don’t use one until *I* know what I’m doing with it. I will not practice on a dog. I took leerburg’a course and it was worth it. Don’t use it on the dog until the dog knows, but as a human you need the training more than the dog. ;) great tips here-especially not using these corrections for dog aggravation/aggression.
Would you, michael, and other top trainers be open to creating a licensing program? It could work as a compromise by requiring a license to obtain am e-collar. I know it's not ideal, but I feel this could also help promote a healthy and fair use of these lifesaving tools while taking the wind out of the sails of these "activists".
If a dog is on leash and starts staring at another dog that stares back. And you know your dog will at some point bark and maybe lunge, you try to get your dogs attention but he's too focused, can you use the vibration to get his attention? Or will the dog think the other dog made this happen to him? What makes the dog think it comes from you or from the thing he stares at/ is anxious about? Is it conditioning the ''No'' to the collar before using it in such situations?
If you need to ask this question - you have not done your foundation training with both you and your dog . Without that training you should not use the remote for this purpose.
Yeah! Thank you! Always makes sure the dog knows what you want them to do. I only go to dog parks. Stay on the outside for a distraction. Never free roam with strange dogs. Great rules! FAIR, FIRM, and most important CONSISTENT
My dog just ran into the road following my daughter's car and into the road. Better a shock then my dog being roadkill. She had left 30 minutes earlier. He followed her cars tires scent.
I have an amazing pitbull and the moment the ecollar went down, my dog’s old behaviors came back and affected my good relationship with her. I got us a new one and guess who’s best friends again..
I want to use one and they are being band. My friend uses one with her husky and she tough herself and she got me to hold it on a two, which she used it on. It's hardly anything goes through it.
I have a pure bread shep. He is an excellent dog. He listens and very obedient! However when it comes to sticks... He is oblivious. He wants to.play with everyone. Even with young children. And he is not gentle with them.
In rule 7 You said never stimulate a dog. But what about using an ecollar to train your dog to recall (using the tone) to prevent a dog fight and break the tension. I’ve done this to my dog and have trained her to come to me and stay away from certain dogs. Not needing to use a stimulation. Now she anticipates what behaviors she will be recalled on. And chooses to walk away and makes better choices. My dog use to not be able to take a correction from another dog but now will respond and walk away if a dog tries to go after her and run to me. Now without the tone. Just the fact I’m in her vicinity. I agree to never use the stimulation in any potential dog aggression. But I have trained her to recall back to me by just using the tone mode. And her consistency to choose to walk away has even increased our trust in another. She will still correct a dog if a dog does actually does something rude, like mount her. In or outside a dog park. But if a dog growls at her for approaching a ball, I’ve been able to train her to leave the dog alone and come to me where I will play ball with her. I’m very proud of her. She’s even been snapped at by other dogs and will look to me to recall her and will run to me where I will then body block the dog. And her social skills with other dogs has greatly increased. In the way she approaches dogs and respects their boundaries.
I have a question if anyone can help, if I have to give a correction to 1 dog for non-compliance in the presence of another dog who is complying, how do you mark the bad behavior before the correction without confusing the compliant dog?
Great video. Thanks! Question: is there any danger with stimulation so close to the brain or spinal cord? That’s my only fear. Thank you for your advice.
You advised not to use a "cheap" collar but you don't mention what is considered a cheap collar. I purchased an Invirox for about $50. Is that considered a cheap collar?
Yes. I have used Dogtra brand successfully for 23 years with three different Labs. The brand is highly rated and has a long history of positive results. Do some serious research on the brand before putting e sims on your beloved pets.
I agree about the dog park I was concerned about Rex the dog I mentioned in the previous comment and I remember that did bunch of dogs ran up to him and he just basically really growly just kind of did the leave me alone type barking along that fence line you know and he just didn't want to be bothered and that but I I was very hesitant about letting him be off leash and then the people who had dogs said it was fine but I I can definitely agree with you that it did make me feel strange and I mean he enjoyed it in a sense but he was still kind of like wondering why is it okay and you know he just it wasn't really what I had expected you know I mean cuz he was he was highly trained you know as far as I was happy with we walk we go on walks and he basically it you know basically look back at me a lot cuz he had we have that connection so I don't really see the point of a dog park in less people just don't have their dogs that don't want their dogs right with him but Rex I'm sorry this is so long-winded Rex was basically the kind of dog who enjoyed people and the he wasn't big about you no wanting to be around a bunch of other dogs all the time
Hear hear. You won't catch me and my dog in a dog park. Horrible idea. As for e-collars, I have a dog with very high prey drive and neighbours with cats. There's no way I would let her off leash without some means of effectively recalling her. People who don't understand what an invaluable tool an e-collar is are the people who call them 'shock' collars.
I have an old tri tronics unit from 1996 with levels 1/2-5, does it work like a Tens unit? I’m about to start working with my puppy and I was hoping to use the collar I already have.
Could someone that has used several brands and has used the Martin Systems Chameleon III and if it's worth the investment over an ecollar technologies or dogtra with boost and lock?
I would say this conversation is very similar to the guns rights conflict we are experiencing currently and have been in the past. You have a few bad apples that ruin it for the majority. We also shouldn't have to have Uncle Sam babysit our every move like children. Definitely support the use of e-collars here.
Yeah like it when the dog follows me everywhere and had a black lab and I still miss him I miss him that relationship we had you know where he would literally follow me everywhere and he lived like the 20 and I believe it was we didn't get him as a puppy and but he was he was really my best friend and I miss our relationship I mean I miss that that tremendous closeness that we had like I haven't been that close to human being except for my mom I mean that understanding where he could just make me feel better I mean it we we related and he cared about me and he was completely accepting of me we sent him off to be trained and and we we did the maintenance training course you know he did hit the end you know he he did have some hearing issues or whatever but that that relationship we hadn't I just don't think I could have that with a with anybody the same
Rule number 7 dog fight. 100% right. I pulled a pitbull off my bandog puppy. Like that it had my thumb in is jaw, it looked me in the eye like when a dog has a tug toy before severing my thumb. It was reattached but has no nerves or tendons.
I really like the humility in the Fresh Approach I never met somebody that is really good with dogs and it's a human into a professional is he is who isn't humble one time I had hope hope is a my dog hope is a kind of a red Chow mix and she has some I think catalog German Shepherd in her but anyway I was out and I was walking we were staying at Motel 6 and I took her a long or walk out kind of far away and some grass and and lo and behold she just stopped and she sat down and I pulled the least cuz I didn't know anything about really I mean I was kind of thinking I was anyways she was really young and dumb Alicia little she wouldn't budge she just said all the way down on her haunches and just sat there and I start walking I was just like you know I thought well for whatever reason she won't walk on this grass and next thing you know the grass I almost fell in this these posts have been pulled up you know the signs signage it would been pulled up and I could see that she wouldn't walk on it because the grass had grown over and it was pretty deep and I said how on Earth is my puppy know this and you know I was amazed it's being so little she still could sense the depth and that's why she wouldn't get on the grass she just stayed on the concrete and then I was like wow
Use my ecollar mostly for barking in the house or car. I have 3 terriers and that has been a big problem. So I say quiet and then if not stopped I use the stim . Never go to dog parks either mostly because most people don't train their dogs and don't vaccinate.
We don't need the government telling us anything because they are messing the world up enough without interfering with dog trainers that have years of experience. I don't use an E collar but I don't disagree with them and yes I would use an E collar . I see so many dogs who would benefit from an E collar and I have felt them and I have played about with those pads for fun and a E collar is perfectly sound when use and tought right. It's all wrong just like our country our run .
yes they are a great tool my dog listens perfectly w it i think ive yoused the shock part twice in 4 years german shep listens to the beep 99.9% beeps dont hurt the dog keeps her out of the road so she doesnt get mutalated by a car the peope that wana band them know little about the animale
HI I AM USING A REMOTE WHEN I GET HIM COMING BACK AND FORTH AND GET HIM TO SIT AND DOWN I HAVE THE COLLAR ON NUMBER 30 HE SEEMS TO BE OKAY I HAVE TRIED IT ON ME FROM NUMBER 1 TO 31 I FEEL IT AT 31
I’m trying to understand…. On the training sessions you use low settings, which to a dog is simply a stimulus, in the same way as your cell phone would vibrate to alert you. The sensation in no way is actually unpleasant, so it’s like someone tapping you on the shoulder. I therefore don’t understand how this is different to say a whistle other than it can operate over longer distances. So far so good, the e collar is somewhat an expensive dog whistle. However you state that in “emergencies” when the dog does not come back because of an overwhelming distraction, you crank up the charge at which point it is actually unpleasant. Don’t quite understand why the dog should come back if the distraction is so great that it ignores the owner's commands and at the same time at the same time experiencing something unpleasant. So if my dog is not responding to my whistle why would it come back if in some way it got a nasty stimuli. So for example someone else near by was to smack the dog hard. This would only work if the dog on repeated occasions failed to obey the command to come back, and each time got this unpleasant sensation, then it would quickly learn that unless it comes back without fail it will get this unpleasant shock. OK the dog would then come back each time. But what sort of dog physiologically will it turn out to be. I have this young kid who I’m teaching him/her to play the piano. This involves doing lots of drills. So I would get him/her to wear the e collar and when it's time to do the drills I would activate the collar on a low setting. Nothing particularly harmful here, no different than say a bell or a tap on the shoulder or a cell phone vibrating. However should she/he stop before the drill is up a more powerful sensation will be delivered that would not be actually that pleasant. Up to around 100 volts all it feels like to a human is a sort of tingle (not pleasant or unpleasant, just very noticeable). So an e collar graded 1 to 100 this would be around the 10 mark or so. At maximum settings voltages are at lease 1,500 volts. Do you think the kid would love the piano.
Thise 2 states are blue states. You have to educate yourself before using this collar. Education is everything when you use these. I love my dog and would never use one without knowing what I'm doing
The contradictions in your own "rules" is disturbingly but laughably ironic. I agree with a 100% ban on shock collars, and your own speech here promoting them has only convinced me further. I keep being told "you just don't know how to use them properly" but in your own words you describe how these tools only work through fear and intimidation and that is NOT the relationship we should have with our dogs.
