Akeisha wrote to me with some very good questions. I’ve
included her letter (and my responses) below:
[Akeisha]
Hi its Akeisha again. I do see what you mean if it is on all the
time the dog will soon forget it is on and then will behave regardless.
Ok, so the dog never wears a buckle collar again? This is what irks
me. I want to be able to control the dog regardless of what collar
is on not just the pinch or it could be no collar at all and the
dog still behaves. What if the owner for some reason takes off the
collar then they put the buckle collar on for ID but then forget
the pinch collar? Then there is no control.
[Adam] WRONG! The dog gets conditioned. Take off
the collar for awhile. Doesn't matter.
[Akeisha] Do you ever in the training go back to
the buckle collar after months of what you recommend with a dog
that is happy with doing the commands?
[
Adam: ] Yes, the dog does the command because he is happy
and he likes it. But eventually, there will be something that tempts
him. This is where conditioning comes in.
Think of it like this: You’ve lived in the same house for
10 years, right? You get up in the middle of the night and you reach
for the light switch that is to the LEFT of the door. Pretty soon,
you get conditioned to reach out to the LEFT of the door.
One day you travel and stay in a hotel. You wake up in the middle
of the night and reach out to the LEFT of the door for the switch...
even though you cognitively saw that the switch is on the RIGHT.
In fact, you may wake up for several nights-- perhaps even weeks
or months-- and still reach out to the LEFT, even though the switch
is now on the right. Some people will continue reaching to the LEFT
for the rest of their lives. Some will begin reaching to the right.
Those people need to be reinforced. Get it?
[Akeisha]
Motivational corrections if on the right dog won't frighten them
or make them hate you I know but aren't there other ways except
using the collar that will eventually be established thought training
that will allow you to take the collar off and have control?
[ Adam: ] Yeah, this way you can take the collar
off and have control, ONCE THE DOG IS CONDITIONED. But eventually
you'll have to go back and reinforce, for most dogs. And definitely
if you start expecting to work the dog around new distractions that
it's never been proofed around, such as chickens if the dog has
never seen chickens.
Look, I don't make the rules. The dog is not a robot that you can
suddenly say, "He's done" and expect him to act consistently
for the rest of his life. Like any relationship you have with another
person, boundaries need to be established and maintained. The dog
is like your wife or husband… they will eventually test you.
:)
[Akeisha] Last question, how can the dog not realize
the don't have it on since it feels a lot different than the buckle?
Its like my id around my neck at school I have gotten used to it
but I do realize when it is off? Just for the record I have no problem
with pinches, many members in my 4-H club use them and they work
great on the right dog.
[ Adam: ] Because the way you should be using the
pinch collar is that the dog (since he has limited reason and logic)
does not KNOW that it is the pinch collar that allows you to give
him good corrections. But it's more than the pinch collar. If I
put the dog in a number of small yards, with no collar on ... and
I'm able to chase him down and make him come back to me, if he doesn't
come when I call... then the dog will learn THE UNDERLYING PREMISE
that I can make him do it, if he doesn't. So, the pinch collar and
the long line make my job easier, but ultimately, the dog knows
(or he thinks at least) that I am a man of my word and when I tell
him to do something: If he doesn't do it, I'm going to make him
do it. And his life will be a lot more fun if he does it willingly.
So the dog starts to extrapolate this principle to other commands,
too.
[Akeisha] Hope I am not being irritating I just
like to know why certain trainers value certain methods over others
since I love competing in obedience with my dog.
[Adam:] Keep training. -Adam.
Do you want to be able to take your dog anywhere, and KNOW that
he'll listen to you... even if tempted by another dog, a cat, or
even a piece of food??? Then check out: "Secrets of a Professional
Dog Trainer: An Insider's Guide To The Most Jealously Guarded Dog
Training Secrets In History!" By Adam G. Katz, Owner of South
Bay K-9 Academy. For more information, go to:
http://tinyurl.com/4efaq
To read more of my dog training ramblings, read about my book (click
below):
Secrets
of a Professional Dog Trainer!
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