Opinions on Prong or Shock Collars

[Kendra K. Rhoton]

Don't get me wrong... Remington is my dream dog... he really is!  But... we've been having some problems with him lately. He's always been kind of territorial of his back yard and we have mainly kept him under control for the most part these past 3 years, but lately things are getting a little out of hand. 

 

Recently, he has start charging (running full speed and barking up a storm) around the front of the house when he sees or hears someone out there. This is a problem. We always have him leashed up when he's outside mostly because we don't have a fenced in yard and also because we live around a lot of little kids and in the past Remington has ran after them to play, which pretty much scared the poo outta them... 80 lb dog running full speed at you equals scary! The problem with the charging at people or animals though, is that I'm pulled right along with him. He has hurt my shoulder, torn off one of my nails, and given me several bruises when he has these episodes. I feel it's only a matter of time before I'm going to be knocked down, or heaven forbid I lose my grip and he's lost or hit by a car. 

 

So, Dan and I are thinking about looking into a prong or shock collar to pretty much let Remington know that when he does this it's not acceptable. I've always been against this kind of stuff in the past, but at this point I don't know what else to do, and my main concern is keeping Remington as safe as possible.

What are you thoughts about prong or shock collars?  What are some other suggestions you may have to take care of the problem?

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

I am not a fan of them. They are often misused. People tend to use them instead of proper training.

However, there are times/dogs/behaviours where a shock or prong collar can be useful - in this case, they may come in handy! I have had a dog shock collar on my hand - and it is very nasty, so use it with caution and start on the lowest setting. Dogs have different tolerance levels just like us so its hard to know how strong he will need it.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Kendra -- I just posted a discussion on the Prong collar a couple weeks ago in the Training Group.  You might take a look.  I have no experience with the Shock collar so can't give you any input on that.

http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/trainingmindsets/forum/topics/tra...

[3td08pz5vpw1h]

Not a fan of prong collars, sometimes just the wrong hard pull can do some damage to their throats. As far as shock collars, unless you really know what you are doing using one of those, you could make the situation worse. You mentioned you have kept him under control for the most part the past 3 years, that statement alone tells me he needs training.  Invisible fence is a great fencing if you don't have or can't have a regular type fence. No matter what size a dog is, training is the only thing that will teach them manners. Prong, shock or whatever won't solve your problem, if the collar doesn't happen to be on your dog.  My 2 dogs are 78 and 85 lbs. and I walk them everywhere and take them in stores with me, we go into nice hotels etc. and I am 63 years old and all I use on my girls is a harness. Your sweet dog needs some good leash training to solve your problem, no dog is too old to be trained and most love the bonding experience they have with you and all dogs are happy dogs when they know they are good dogs.

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

invisible fences still require the use of a shock collar though

[F, Calla & Luca]

Prong collars ae much less likely to damage tracheas than other collars I think since the pressure is evenly applied. Y dogs never "choke" on their prongs.

[Meridith and Lola]

Kendra - like the others have stated, you have to be trained on how to use the shock collar. For me it was incredible useful and fast (2 weeks) in stopping Lola from chasing bikers/roller bladers/joggers when she was off-leash in the NY City parks. 

I used an amazing trainer (that I got as a reference from another discussion awhile ago on DK).  He is based in northern NJ and does a lot of work in New York City but may also train in your area in NJ as well.  I've recommended him to a dozen people who have all been extremely happy with him.  While he does train on shock collars it is by no means his only method and in fact, most of the people I referred to did not use it.

It might be worth a call.  His name is Martin Herlan  at idealk9.   .http://idealk9.com

Good luck.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

Don't let the look scare you. Our minis have to use these!! It's worth a try for the safety of both of you!

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

This is exactly when you don't use a prong. Prongs aren't for strong pressure-strong pull situations. A prong is used to gently correct a dog. Not full speed, fight for your life situations. Again, it is a gentle training tool used for Communication :)
It should act or feel like a mother's mouth-not a full force bite. Serious injury can result if used this way

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

I forgot to add here, we do use a prong.  I am not against them at all.  I prefer them when I see them used correctly.  What I am against is using one without the direction of a good trainer.

[L.M.]

I was going to say the same thing as Joanne.  Any choke or prong collar in this situation could seriously injure the dog, as he is running at full speed.  We used a choke (non prong) for Seamus, but only to correct his leash walking....not to prevent him from running out of our yard.    

Is Remington attached to a stake in the ground?? Because even this could be dangerous if he is 80 pounds..... Can you try an invisible fence??  Honestly, any type of collar is not a good training tool for keeping a dog on his property....    

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

Also, any training type collar should only be used when you are in attendance.  You should never leave a dog alone with one on!

[F, Calla & Luca]

Absolutely.