Electronic Dog Training Collars

electronic dog training collar

I am regularly asked if I use e-collars or electronic training collars in my training program. My emphatic answer is “yes, absolutely!”  I use them for two reasons, first, I am able to give a dog feedback (positive – turning the collar off, or negative – turning the collar on) at the exact instant that it is needed. Dogs ability to chain an action with a consequence is very short (< 2 seconds), and with the collar you can reach them at that exact moment. The second reason is that I can reach them at any distance, whether it is three feet, 50 feet, or 500 yards.  That said, I use the e-collar very lightly and only as a teaching tool, never as a control. If you are using an electronic collar as a way to control your dog, you’re abusing it. I have heard it sometimes called a dog’s hearing aid. I rank this thinking somewhere near pelting the dog with bird shot at 50 yards to get them under control. A good way to ruin a bird dog, rather than bring out their best. Two months ago I purchased the Dogtra 202 gold – two dog e-collar system and have been very pleased with it. The collars are very small and light as well as being water proof. They seem to hold a charge for a long time and with the dial setting, they can go from no current gradually to a very strong one. The transmitter is small, hangs nicely on its lanyard around the neck and is quick and straight forward to use. I haven’t yet taken advantage of the page (vibrate) button feature, but suppose it could be useful. I also have a Tri-tronics sport 50 e-collar that I have used for about five years. I liked this collar and found it easy to use. One thing I like about my new collar over this older one, is that the power settings are infinitely adjustable with the dial, as opposed to only 5 click settings on the older Sport 50 model. I noticed that the new tri-tronics sport series have 10 click settings for a finer range of adjustments. I am sure these new collars are nice, as Tri-troincs products are always quaility. I also liked the idea of being able to marry additional collars to your transmitter in the field. Although, I don’t know how practical this is. I’m not going to let my hunting buddy take the reins on my dog no matter how much I like him, nor is he going to do that for me. I also have an old Tri-tronics collar (~1990) that you have to change the contact points on the collar to change the intensity level. It was a pretty good collar in its day. The problem is that in changing situations (distractions) you can’t increase the power to fit the need. One of my training partners purchased the same Dogtra trainer that I have in the one-dog model and has really liked it. Another training partner is getting ready to purchase the DT H2O 1800. I look forward to seeing this collar in action, so I have another one to compare between. I think most of these collars are comparable. The things I look for are receiver size (small), adequate range (my opinion is that ½ mile is plenty – beyond that and you can’t see your dog to properly know when you should correct and when you shouldn’t), ease of use, range of power settings – especially at the low end, and finally warrantee service.


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