RE: Puppy Tips 101 – House and Crate Training
What a wonderful article, it really does cover the bases.
I've got one small argument, and Sam is going to experience it early this coming spring. The local fire department has a 'snake course'. We missed it this spring, but will take it the next time it's offered. It uses a shock collar and live snakes (carefully caged) to teach your dog avoidance fast. I have worked carefully with Sam at every opportunity, but will take the course for a reinforcement. Snakes are bad for doggys. Even a small sidewinder can hit a dog hard enough to kill it. A diamond back is really lethal.
Sam isn't crate trained. Not that I don't agree with it, just his personality never seemed to need it. He does have an identical bed at both houses (he has coparents :) that is his 'safe spot'. When he's traveling his bed is where he stays in the car AND in the motel. Works for him.
Thanks for a terrific article. It's really good for people to have an idea what they are getting into with pups. I'm sure I'd love one of your pups that have been trained with love and affection.
Thanks Big T! That is indeed a valid argument and I would say for a lifesaving training aid such as this, there is certainly an argument for using the shock collars. I have to say now you have mentioned this, I seem to recall watching a tv programme where they used the collars to train the dogs not to approach snakes. It was fast and effective and I guess for something as important as this, it is definitely a better alternative to death!
However in the UK we are lucky in that there are no venomous snakes here in the wild that are likely to kill a dog, so there really aren't any reasons to use the shock collars. I can see how they would be useful though in a country that does have these natural preditors.
What I am opposed to (and I probably should have put that in the article) is using these collars to punish a dog when they have been 'naughty' or had an accident. I don't think they are suitable for that kind of use.
Thank you for opening my eyes to a suitable use for the collars! :D
BB xx
And I couldn't agree with you more. We have dogs on our route that wear 'bark collars' and bark through it. You can see them flinch. It really pisses me off, because dogs can be lovingly trained to stop their barking. Sign of a very lazy owner.
To be perfectly clear: I don't agree with shock collar training with the one exception: Fast and dirty for life threatening consequences. Years ago I met a bird dog trainer that used a shock collar to train dogs to not be interested in other species. I never agreed with that, and my bird dogs always figured that out in short order. If I didn't shoot they soon weren't interested in that species. My Springer could tell the difference between a hen and rooster pheasant. The Shorthair would set hens, but show her disgust with me for not shooting :) After a couple in a row she would come and walk right beside me for a while. If I didn't like what she set, I could find my own :)
Dogs are really intelligent, probably more so than most people I know! haha They pick up on our non-verbal keys as well as verbal commands. we just need to learn how to communicate with them properly. It sounds like you have always been very in tune with your dogs!
I once had a conversation with a 'dog' trainer and they said something that has always stuck with me... " to train a dog, you first need to train their human".