I tend to be careful about the things I choose to react to…I once heard a line in a cowboy Western years ago, where the lead character admonished another person with the line, “I let people kill their own snakes.” I’ve tried to live by those words of wisdom, letting others fight their own demons. However, from time to time, I’ll see or hear or read something that gets to me and leaves me unsettled.
Recently on social media, I read a post from someone praising the fact that in parts of Europe, electronic dog training collars have been outlawed. The body of the posting was a complete repudiation of e-collars as a dog training and communication tool. To my way of thinking, these are the ramblings of a person who is ignorant of the many benefits of training dogs with an e-collar when properly used.
Unfortunately, many people who research effective methods of training and communicating with their dogs encounter this type of fear-based rhetoric. This results in them shying away from using the most effective tool ever developed to communicate with your dog from a distance. For comparison, this would be like ditching your cell phone and trading it back in for two cans connected with a piece of string.
Now, I do understand people’s concerns. There are mean people in the world, and some of those mean people use e-collars to be mean to dogs. I’m not an innocent. I am acutely aware of the brutality that exists in the world. I wish it wasn’t so, but I wish for a lot of things. Santa still hasn’t made good on the list I gave him all those years ago. I am truly sorry for all those who have witnessed and/or experienced that brutality. I understand because I’ve been there.
However, I don’t want to live in a world where carpenters can’t use hammers and mechanics can’t use screwdrivers because these tools have been outlawed as a result of brutal acts perpetrated by mean people. If you think I might be overstating this, take a look at the crime reports for any city in the world. Our guideposts should be to anticipate the best from all of us and not be limited by the actions of the worst of us.
My life’s work has been to educate people about their dogs and how to train them, communicate with them, and strengthen their connection. The first part of this education involves unraveling all the erroneous information people have encountered regarding the use of an e-collar.
We create the world we want to live in. Please do not be afraid to use an electric collar. This highly effective tool can be used to develop a deeper positive bond with your dog. Effective communication develops this bond, and the very best tool to accomplish this connection is a modern electric training tool.
Please check out our website, freerangedogs.com. I am available via online consultation and for individual or group in-person sessions to guide you through the process of purchasing and learning to safely and effectively use an e-collar to communicate with and train your canine companion. Modern e-collars come with a variety of options that include a beeper tone and vibrations for communicating, corrections, and GPS to keep track of him while you are out on the trails. These tools keep your dog safe, enhance communication, and deepen your connection. Don’t hesitate to add this to your training tool chest, you’ll be happy you did!