BAN | Electric Shock Collars Ban | Have Your Say

Please use this thread to have your say if you DO want to see a ban (of any sort) on Electric Shock Collars.

I would like to see a total ban.

As a tool and a method, I believe it is cruel, inhumane and unnecessary. Dogs are forced to comply with a pain and fear inducing tool which I do not believe has a `right way` to be used by *anyone* on any animal of any species.

I believe the best achievements in training, and in rehabilitating dogs with problems, [ usually caused by humans one way or another ], is done by understanding how to motivate a dog to *want* to learn, by getting to understand the root of a problem a dog may have, to help the dog overcome it not just suppress it out of ignorance of what they have been through, and by all owners realising we have to earn the respect of the dog, as demanded respect is not respect at all.

Dogs do not choose to live with us, we choose them, and in making that choice we owe it to the dogs to give them the best life we can, with kindness, fairness, understanding, and guidence.

We must accept that we humans dont always express very well what we want of them and that its humans who cause the behavioural problems and poor training results in the first place, [ be it through lack of knowledge or through abuse ], which we as a society are so intollerant of. I do not believe dogs should be shocked with electricity at any level because of such human failings.

It does not just punish their behaviours or their lack of ability to understand poorly trained commands, it also punishes them for having an owner who does not have the patience or capability to communicate with the dog in ways the dog can comprehend and act upon willingly.

People should regard sharing their lives with dogs as a privelige, not a right, but while shock collars are available for people to use on their dogs as an inescapable force of pain, fear, and intimidation, to make them comply, rather than the owners be educated themselves, dogs will continue to be abused and turned in to frightened animals which will never know how to trust, nor know whats its like to be trusted, unless lucky enough to be rescued then treated properly after their minds have been damaged and spirits shattered.

If we want well behaved dogs, we have to learn to be better behaved humans toward those dogs, before we have any right to expect anything of them.

Please help ban shock collars.

Thank you for reading.

I would like to see a ban on shock collars, I think they are cruel. If you are going to use an electric shock to train a dog then you may aswell use hitting, kicking, burning or anything else like that. They are all considered cruel and shock collars should be too.

I've heard many times that they do not cause real pain, but that makes no sense to me. If the dogs do not feel a lot of pain or discomfort from them then they would have no reason to change their behaviour. And I don't think pain and fear should be used to train a dog. There are so many kind ways of teaching a dog that I see no need for shock collars.
If all those methods fail then I still would not resort to a shock collar. If a dog is that troubled then I think it would be kinder to have them put to sleep. Although that is a drastic thing to do and not something anyone would want, I would rather that a dog was free from misery, worry and pain than have them alive but subjected to electric shocks and the fear of getting them.

Finally, there are so many ways that these collars could go wrong in the wrong situation. No one can reliably say how a dog will react to this sort of training. It could make things much worse. And even if the problem appears to have gone away how do we know what goes on in the dogs head and how afraid they are at the thought of another shock. That could make them react in so many bad ways.

I am for a TOTAL ban!!!

I agree with everything that has been said, i have never used one, don't use one now and will never use one in the future, i think they are cruel and in the wrong hands barbaric, i have also read that used correctly they do not cause pain but i dont see how they would work otherwise, if i gave my dog a swift kick everytime he did something wrong he would soon learn the same lesson.

Animal cruelty is rife enough without giving people a tool to help them on their way, why not just beat it with a stick? It just tries to justify punishing a dog with pain by labelling it a "behaviour problem"

So..... if your dog has a "behaviour problem" then it's ok to beat the crap out of it????? I don't think so!!!!
These collars work on the same principal!!!

BAN THE ELECTRIC SHOCK COLLAR!!!!!

Jules

xxx

I have followed the debate regarding the use or mis-use of e-collars and am voting for a complete ban.

Who would be the judge of who would be experienced enough to use this device? How would they be able to ensure that they did not finish up in the wrong hands? There are enough bad dog trainers in this world without giving them tools to make it easier to ruin dogs. A partial ban would mean that there would always be those who would find a loophole which would put one of these shock collars into their hands and enable them to inflict pain onto another dog, and another, and another.

Complete ban for me.

I am for a total ban.

There is no excuse for using them for basic training at all.

No reason for using them for punishment.

No reason for using them at all, in my book.

I like this quote from James O' Heare:

"This is an animal who you have put into a foreign world. He is having some adjustment problems(read The Culture Clash). Please do not harm your friend. If you can find no way to solve your problem except to suppress through fear, then euthanize the dog. It's more of an insult to abuse him. If you love your dog then be creative, get help and figure out a way to get what you can live with, without abuse. Please, I implore you!"

In the above quote he is not specifically referring to electric collar use, but harsh methods generally. I felt however his words are wise ones.

I vote for a total ban, and I have seen these collars being used. Not a training aid but as a cruel punishment for bullies who were embarrassed that their dogs did not perform as well on the shoot as some other peoples. Admittedly these are the same people who will beat and kick their dogs, an yes I have seen it. However, when they use these collars there is NO escape, unlike when they have hit the dogs and they've ran away. So IMO only a total ban will work, or how else can you ensure they will not be misused?

I believe that the only way to train a dog is through love and care. These collars are going to drive a wedge between dog and owner(carer). I have mostly had dogs who have been badly treated by previous owners, and so see the 'baggage that comes with them. A dog needs stability and not to be trained through fear. This collar sounds so horrific that it should be banned permanently, and totally.
Annex

I vote for a total ban on ecollar. Ecollar are unnecessary and have the potential to cause irrevocable physical and physiological damage to a dog.


We are told ecollars are used in the 'training' of dogs and to correct behavioural problems...


The main reasons why we train dogs,
To teach a few house rules that make cohabitation a mutually pleasant experience.
To teach a dog to react appropriately when mixing with other dogs/people/animals.
To enable a dog to work using the natural traits of a particular breed.
To give a dog mental stimulation and physical exercise.


I consider training of any kind should be a pleasurable not a painful or distressing experience for a dog.There are painless humane training methods available to train dogs, I can see no reason to use an ecollar or any method of training that inflicts pain or discomfort on a dog.


Ecollars are also used to correct dogs which developed behavioural problems .
I think the main reasons dogs developed behavioural problems are /fear/incorrect training/in appropriate handling/lack of socialisation/illness/ the wrong choice of a breed by the owner who didn't take into account the breeds traits and the amount of exercise and mental stimulation required.


Dogs with behavioural problems should be referred to a suitable trainer or behaviourist and not subject to painful corrective measures like an ecollar.


The following organisations are in favour of banning ecollars.

•British Small Animal Veterinary Association and British Veterinary Association
•Scottish SPCA
•Scottish Kennel Club
•Kennel Club
•Dogs Trust
•RSPCA
•Blue Cross
•Association of Pet Dog Trainers
•Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors
•The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
•Association of Chief Police Officers
•Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland
•UK Armed Forces

I don't see that there's any real or workable alternative to a complete ban, for the following reasons:

1: No owner can say with certainty that they have tried everything else. For example, you may well try three dog trainers/behaviourists, but who is to say that trainer number four wouldn't be the one who made required rapport with the dog?

2. Their use is just so open to abuse. Unless I'm mistaken, there seems to be absolutely no limit on who can purchase and use one of these devices. Thus increasing their potential to do harm. Of course, the same can be said of any training device in the wrong hands, but the collars are just too convenient, too unnatural, and too ungoverned.

3. I just don't see a need for them. For every dog I've rescued, I've almost gone out of my way to take that dog which is highly unlikely to be rehomed elsewhere because of its behavioural issues. Not once have I ever needed, or even conceived using an electic shock collar to teach them that a boisterous or aggressive response is not the only response to give. It just needs patience. No more and no less. Sadly, these collars seem to cater for those who want "results" overnight, and with the smallest amount of effort required to achieve it. It's saddening, it really is.