Another correction collar question: A food theif with allergies

[Tegan]

I know there is another post already going about the use of correction collars, but our situation is a little different so I thought I'd start a fresh post.

We have been working with a trainer to try and stop Kali's food stealing. She is very food motivated and will steal just about anything she can. When we go for walks if there is any food garbage or certain dog poop (which she recently discovered is yummy, much to my dismay) her brain just turns off. We've done puppy classes and training with a private instructor and other than her food issues she is a pretty well trained dog.
To make matters worse she has very sever allergies and every time she gets into something she is allergic to she has a flare. She's on prednisone to control her skin symptoms but it's really not very good for her. Our vet can control the environmental allergies with shots but they can't do anything for her food allergies other than restrict her diet.
We've tried every suggestion our trainer has had and nothing has worked. Her only solution was the use of a training collar. We really don't like the thought of using one and wouldn't even consider it if it wasn't for Kali's health issue. I was hoping you might share some thought and opinions. We are very conflicted.

[Adina P]

Has your trainer helped you set up situations with food planted as a distraction for practice? I KNOW there are ways to master distractions of all kinds with good training (though I'm not saying e-collars are bad training).

If you work with treats and mostly positive reward...use the most amazing treats on the planet that don't mess up her allergies and plant food/garbage as a distraction but make sure she can NOT reach it or if you are close enough...cover it with a mesh cover so she can smell it but can't reach it. Work far from the distraction and then closer and closer. Have her DO various things near the distraction like sit/heel/etc...reward her greatly and then take a break when she does well. Heeling is INCOMPATIBLE with sniffing the ground and would NOT get rewarded.

If you use corrections then STILL have her do different commands far and then nearer and nearer to the distraction and BE READY to correct the slightest deviation from the command.

If the training method is solid...I would think that lots of work around planted distractions would work.

Also have you tried a basket muzzle? They are a muzzle with holes so the dog can still pant and drink but merely keeps them from eating things off the ground.

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If all else fails I see nothing wrong with going to an e-collar, but remember that e-collar will ALWAYS have to be on during walks.

[Tegan]

We have been practicing working around food but it doesn't seem to make a difference. If the food she's trying to steal is good enough she'll go for it. She knows she shouldn't, you can tell when she comes across something she's trying to decide if it's worth getting in trouble for. If it's something less interesting she'll leave it with no problem. I have thought of a muzzle, but the idea of that is almost as bad as the training collar to me. I know it probably wouldn't bother her that much, but I've seen the way people react to dogs wearing muzzles. I don't want people to avoid her and not let their dogs play with her because she's wearing a muzzle. Just the thought of having to explain it to everyone we meet at the dog park makes me depressed.

[Maryann,Roo and Tigger]

I trained one of my doodles, Roo, with a trainer ( Scott Williams) who is a certified remote e-collar trainer. It isn't mean or bad when used correctly.( I also used Scott for Tigger, but had no real need for an e-collar with him, as suggested by Scott) The e- collar must go on when you get up and be taken off when you go to bed ( to be recharged). It can enventually be discarded or phased out. It is just a training device. In your situation, which is basically to refuse all food unless it comes from you or is presented to her in her bowl, it seems to me like the ideal solution. It probably won't even take that long, although the collar will need to be left on much longer. The other discussion centers on excited greetings a totally different behavior and emotion for the dog. Do a google search for a certified e-collar trainer in your area and take to that trainer. I would not even begin to try to tell you how to teach food avoidance with an e-collar, as I have experience with only my dog and this is a fairly sophisticated and easy to misuse training aid. You could google Beyondtheleash and contact Scott and ask if he know a certified trainer in your area. Good luck.

[Kim]

The E-collar or muzzle doesn't seem like it would be more painful / irritating than a skin rash. I definitely think it would be worth trying.

[Lynne B]

go to an APDT or CPDT certified trainer, please don't use an e-collar for an issue like that. My guess is that a good trainer using positive reinforcement will teach your dog the 'leave it' and 'drop it' command in no more than 2 hours, of course you will have to work on it after the trainer gets you going. Those are two commands that are so important and useful, I can't understand your trainer wanting to resort to an e-collar. Particularly concerning is that the use of an e-collar with a dog on prednisone could really kick off a fear/aggression reaction. My Aussie was on predinsone for lupus and it made her hyper sensitive and reactive to everything, we had to be really patient and reassuring with her while she was on it

[Tegan]

Our trainer is one of the best in our area. I promise you if it were that simple we would have done it. We have worked her leave it's and drop it's to death with no real change in the behavior. Trust me, we wouldn't be thinking of a training collar if we haven't tried everything else first.