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Location: Glasgow, UK
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 810
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Originally Posted by
Tupacs2legs
so are my sibes!
you choose to have this breed,did you think you were the one to 'change them'?
i find fenced in areas and different activities to furfill their needs not a 'lazy option'
a tickle is not going to stop something as determined and stubborn as say a beagle or a sibe!
if it is just a 'negative marker' as you say then surely you can train your dogs with a different method?
imo,it is nieve for you to say it doesnt hurt,i take it the goverment think its fine to use with children that the parents cant be bothered to keep an eye on too
we are talking pet dogs not cattle!
We all try to do what we think is best for our dogs. I'm sure you are doing your very best for your dogs and I don't for one minute think you are lazy for settling for enclosed spaces and activities where you can keep them under control. It's an approach that we are also considering.
We had 18 months of our dogs (the oldest at least) running free and she thrived on it so much that I'm willing to go the extra mile to find a way to keep her doing that safely. It may or may not be possible but I see no harm in researching things properly rather than making snap decisions about certain methods without being in possession of the full facts.
Never seen this before - do you have a link?
If I tickle my dogs while they're messing about, they do it all the more - not much of a negative marker. Also, I have heard of people trying to stop chasing (of game) using them, but I wonder whether training them to adhere to an entire boundary using an electric shock collar would require an awful lot of electric shocks. The dogs aren't going to percieve a boundary through this method unless there's one marked. If it's an unfenced field, I think it would require a lot of shocks, but if they're only a tickle, hey, they might enjoy it!
I've posted the link on these forums before. I'm sure I'll be able to find it again. Or if you can't be bothered waiting for me to find it try a google search as it's definitely on-line.
All that you are saying sounds like very reasonable theory. Yet I'm finding lots of people that have used the method and the results are very different from what you expect. As I understand it, it's not just a case of popping on the collar and 'zapping'. There is a training program to follow. Most people seem to report that the dog only gets zapped once or twice and never goes near the fence again after that.
I don't have firm views either way about whether to use this. It's just an approach that sounds very promising when you talk to people that have actually used it. And the in-depth government funded study doesn't back up popular belief that the method is cruel. So for anyone with a problem, perhaps even a life-threatening problem, that is hard to solve with other methods I think it makes sense to at least research all options and get the facts before making a decision.
As I said, I think we all do what we think is best for our particular dogs. One person might consider restricting the dogs activity to be a kinder approach than using an e-collar. Others might view things differently. Users of electric fences are telling me all that happens is the dog gets a very mild 'tickle' (I have felt it myself - against my throat - and it didn't hurt) once or twice and they never go near the fence again. If this is true then I personally consider this far kinder than restricting the dog's off-lead activity or putting it at risk of a road traffic accident.
But as of yet I don't have enough information to make a firm decision. Most people seem to be in the same boat, with many thinking that it's similar to the electric fences used for stock.