Nancy B Posted January 16, 2003 Share Posted January 16, 2003 Hey, I just noticed that now I have two paws! Pretty neat! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest roo Posted January 17, 2003 Share Posted January 17, 2003 Well If i had a puppy of only 14 weeks, i would not even consider a choke, a prong, or any other method like that on such a baby. Food, yes talking to her continually when out yes, gentle slow training. i would not even go to this trainer, but thats me. The most important thing with training babies is to make it FUN for them, make it something they want to do for you and them. I would never ever resort to that sort of training on a pup of that age. Roo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted January 17, 2003 Share Posted January 17, 2003 in the extreme instance that you may need a prong i wouldnt even consider it unti llike a year, there are too many other methods that may work to jump straight to the big guns. Keep it happy and upbeat for a pup so young. :black: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luka-pop Posted January 20, 2003 Share Posted January 20, 2003 I have exams starting tomorrow, so I haven't had time to read all the posts, so it's prolly repeated a bunch of times, but here it goes. If used [b]incorrectly[b/], the prong chains can do a lot of damage. The spikes make litlle bruises all around the dog's neck, which makes the neck area very painful and sensitive. Dogs may become fearful of going out on walks. Others may snap if you touch their necks (protective of their necks). Other dogs can bear that kind of pain, which causes them to pull even harder, causing tracheal injuries. Also, if your dog suddenly decides to charge at something, the prongs can pierce the skin with the sudden, powerful pull. A dog should be trained to use a collar, but for those who can't, what-chya gonna do? For a dog that pulls extra hard, Gentle Leaders or harnesses can be helpful. For a dog that tends to slip out of it's collar, a slip collar is very good. It is impossible for a dog to slip out of, but also very safe. It's basically like the chain choke collars, except it's made out of fabric or nylon, just like a collar. But if the dog tries to slip it's head out, it tightens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pets4ever Posted January 20, 2003 Share Posted January 20, 2003 Of course just because you have a pinch or choke collar on doesn't mean you have to "use" it. I think it truly depends on the type of dog i.e. you might not ever need a pinch collar on a sensitive type or one that learns and obeys quickly and willinglly, but if you have a strong dog that needs corrections repeatedly, a pinch is the way to go. Dogs have such strong necks that they can ignore a choke chains yanking or snapping until it cuts off their air. Meanwhile, the poor human on the other end is getting a sore shoulder/back with all the yanking. I had a dog like that, a VERY energetic, dominant large strong happy girl. I was sore trying to deal with her with a choke, so out of desperation and after reading this book, tried that cruel looking collar. What do you know? she totally started to listen! I didn't even have to yank that hard (and indeed you're not supposed to yank fast but rather do more of a slow version). It really did my hands, shoulders and back a favor. It's like a mother dogs or alpha dogs teeth saying "no more of that!"! :nono: I have never had one break but they will come apart if not adjusted correctly. They should seem "tight" to someone who's used to adjusting a choke. The prongs need to be touching the neck and the collar should not sag. They are potentially less painful for the dog. I have read studies done regarding comparisons of choke chains and prong collars. Of course, ideally it would be great if we never had to use any constricting type of collars but some dogs need it! I'm not a clicker expert though, I've never tried it. It sounds nice though - does it take a long time to teach heeling with one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nancy B Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 Actually....the easiest way to teach heeling is offlead. Whitney and Mason were both taught that way. Whitney is a superb heeler. I'm still fine tuning Mason. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pets4ever Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 Hmmm...interesting. I'm going to have to look into that. What do you do, click and treat when they just happen to come by your side and slowly tune it to exact heel position? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corgilady Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 [quote name='DogPaddle']To my understanding some dogs are just more or less inclined to obey. [/quote] I think THAT is the whole crux of the matter! I never would have believed that statement, having always owned Corgis....... then I got Knothead who is not inclined to do anything that might resemble "obedience"!!!! Nancy, I never thought about teaching the heel off lead....... what a great idea....... I'm going to try it! Thanks Newfie for explaining it in detail! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowlabsrule Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 I DO NOT like prong collars. Winnie does fine with a choke collar, but I think she does best off lead. :wink: (she's crazy!) :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nancy B Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 [quote name='newfiemom']First, you have to get them used to the clicking sound. Start with click and then treat so they get used to what happens. Then I started with a C & T every time they were in the heel position. Then with every step, then with every other step. I had them up to 30 steps on a variable reinforcement schedule. Then I weaned the clicker. There are several good books on this. Clicker Training for Obedience by Morgan Spector, Any of the the Clicker Training books by Gail Fisher.[/quote] That Morgan Spector book was one of the first clicker training books I got and I still use it all the time! It's just wonderful, breaks down obedience exercises into small bits that you train individually with a clicker and then string together later. Whitney was trained to heel with a target stick. Mason is training pretty much the way you've described simply because he was never good with a target stick...kept trying to eat it! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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