Measurement Guide

areas around your home and start using the e-collar in
new areas. Your dog may have been a textbook case
of perfection in yard drills but acts as if the collar is
turned off when you stimulate in new locations.
It is not uncommon for a dog to adjust its tolerance
of the e-collar to the distraction. If your dog is
comfortable on a level 3 in the yard, it would not
surprise me if a level 4 or 5 were required to stop
a deer chase. This is one reason you have variable
intensity levels accessible via the transmitter instead
of on the collar. Do not let your dog’s stimulation level
be etched in stone. Instead, pay attention to how
motivated it becomes with each distraction and most
importantly to how your dog accepts the new level
of stimulation.
This material has scrambled a lot of people’s brains in
the past because they went too fast or skipped steps
along the way. Nothing you have learned is difficult for
a knowledgeable trainer to understand. Likewise, it is
easy for your dog to understand and accept as long as
you proceed in an orderly and comfortable pace. So,
take your time and have a little fun along the way. Keep
your dog’s tail wagging with plenty of rewards. You will
find the excitement your dog displays upon seeing the
collar is contagious. If you use positive rewards when
your dog does well, then both of you will look forward to
training with an e-collar.
Keep That Collar On!
At some time, you will get to a point where you feel like
your dog no longer needs to wear the e-collar because
it never makes a mistake. Congratulations on a job
well done! However, your dog should always wear the
e-collar when in environments that contain distractions.
Would you drive your car across the country without
automobile liability insurance? You should now think
of the e-collar as your insurance policy in case you and
your dog get into a wreck. It gives your dog a way out of
trouble in an orderly fashion that it understands even
when its instincts are telling it to do something else.
What does it hurt for your dog to wear the e-collar when
you go to the park, Grandma comes for a visit, it is time
to go to the vet or a million other unknown distractions?
You taught that the e-collar means the two of you are
getting ready to do something fun, so keep the
e-collar on.
Enjoy the Trip
You have now learned how to start down the road to a
life of enjoyment with your dog. Some of these steps
may need to be covered again if your dog has repeated
failures. That is no problem as long as you take it easy
and enjoy the ride together. Arriving is one of our goals
but the trip that takes you there will be filled with
memorable times that will cement you and your dog’s
relationship forever.
Good Training!
29-30
APPLICATION
OF THE
ELECTRONIC
COLLAR
Most SportDOG remote
trainers can also be used
as a reward system. They
feature a button that
when depressed, emits
a tone on the receiver.
Some folks like to use
this as a warning tone
for their dog before
stimulation. A better use
would be to tone your dog
each time it gives you a
positive response
to a command.
You can start toning your
dog while stroking its
shoulder to begin
conditioning it to the
praise tone. Then, each
correct response is
followed with a praise
tone via the collar. This
can be a very effective
method of rewarding your
dog at a distance when
voice or touch are not
available.
REWARDING WITH THE E-COLLAR
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