Posts made by Kate

Callie catches her small rubber ball, with her front feet, and legs! She uses them, to bring the ball to her mouth!

Do any of your dogs, use their front feet, to catch a ball? Callie does, and it is just hilarious!

All I'm saying, is that even though a lot of people don't approve, it worked wonderfully for us, because we didn't abuse it! We use positive reinforcement as much as we can also! I totally agree with you, that it is the best method! I used it with our first two dogs! Both came when called, did many tricks, and were very loving! We lost the first dog at 14 years, and the second at sixteen! They were both very well behaved! It didn't work with this dog, and the collar, plus positive reinforcement, did!

I know you aren't arguing; just want what is best for the dogs as I do.

I never said it was a perfect solution, or advised everyone to try it. As I said in my first post, it would depend on the dog, and the person, if you used it or not! If you have a bad temper, I'd advise you to never use it. If you have the patience of Job, and the dog doesn't want to listen any other way, you could try it! Just use the training video they give you, and learn to do it right first!

Let me reclarify! You don't get angry, and push the button, just because the dog isn't listening! You use the beep tone first, and if the dog still doesn't want to respond, you use the shock! It only takes a couple of times, for the dog to understand that they need to listen to the beep! After using the beep for a while, they learn to listen to your voice command! You never use it to zap a dog for being bad! Callie only ever got the number 3 twice, because she took off after a bunch of deer! That was all it took! Now, she watches them run, but listens to me, when I tell her no! Without the collar on!
My husband and son and I, all used the collar on 3 on each other! It didn't hurt, only startled you! The rest of the time, we only used the 2 setting, and that wasn't very often. Like I said before, I love my dog, and didn't want her to run off, and get killed! She seems to be much more relaxed now, and knows that she is a part of the family, but that we are in charge! We spent the early morning, with her laying on my chest, with her head under my chin! Such a sweetie! If you are someone that can't control your temper, I wouldn't advise you using a training collar! If you can, and are very patient, and loving, it will work!

Well, I know that this subject was controversial when I last posted on the subject, but I wanted to update, just to let you know that the collar training has worked very well for Callie! She hasn't really worn it much at all, for the last two months, and she knows the boundaries of our property, and comes back when called. Maybe not the first time, but she comes, even when chasing a rabbit or squirrel! She doesn't go onto the road anymore, but stops at the front of the property, (If you tell her, no) even when a squirrel is on the road! When she obeys, we tell her what a good girl she is! She is very sweet, and loving, and isn't as insistent to have her own way anymore! She is much calmer and relaxed than she used to be! We most always used only the beep sound on the collar, and if we used the shock, it was on 2, which is 230 milliamps, which is about like a big static shock, which doesn't hurt, but startles the dog! We now can go for walks in the field, without the dog running away, even though she runs and runs around us, and she comes when called, maybe not the first time or two, but she comes! I guess it depends on the dog, and the person using the collar, you can't use it as a punishment, only as a training tool, but if you have a very difficult dog, that won't listen no matter how hard you try, I believe the collar was what did the trick for us! Callie is our third dog. The first two dogs, trained beautifully without a collar, but Callie was very headstrong! She still is, but she is much more obedient now!

I buy the Canine Carryouts, in the Beef flavor? They are soft, and you can really squish them down in there! It takes quite a while, for Callie to get it out of there!

Callie has to be in her crate when we are gone, so I sleep on the sofa, and she sleeps with me, or on her bed beside me, with her blanky covering her up. She still has to go potty at 3 in the morning, so we can't move to the bed yet! It is upstairs, and hubby has to go to bed earlier than I do, and she wakes him up. Hopefully, when she is a bit older, she can hold it until he gets up at 5.

That sounds good!
I am working with the positive reinforcement, and for the most part it works, just in that instance she goes "deaf". I also "clicker" train Callie, and she loves that!

Yes, I trained her to stop, come, stay, now, sit, roll over, shake left paw, right paw, beg, lay down, but for some reason, when her mind gets set on something, she can't hear me! The beep gets her attention!

That is why I want to stop her. Catahoulas are trained to chase after cows, and pigs, and herd them! I have cows, and horses, and sheep around my home also! She wants to eat their poo and roll in it! I told you I have two very different breeds in my dog, and I'm trying to cope with them both, because she is such a smart animal! I know I'm not perfect; I'm just trying to do my best! I have had two previous dogs that I trained without the collars, and had no problems! My first was 14 and a half, and had to be put down from arthritis, and my second, was over 16, and had to be put down because he collaped of old age and was unconscious! I never even thought of a collar for them! But this dog is different and I love her also. I am planning on taking her to obedience classes sometime this spring, so hopefully she will calm down, and listen better after that!

It's ok, I understand! I HATE people who abuse dogs, and I really don't have an area to take her to, that is safe! We live 12 miles from town! Yes, the first time she took off after a deer, she associated the beep with the mild shock, and she comes now! My friends have the shock fence that you are referring to, but it still doesn't work all of the time. Their dogs race off after deer! They live on a deer farm! They learn that they get a mild shock if they get near the fence, and Callie knows she will get a mild shock, if she doesn't obey the beep! Since I"ve only done it three times, she gets several chances with the beep, and usually obeys with the beep,when the tone of voice, gets to me saying "NOW!!"

Did you ever see Whippet races? Callie runs like that! She runs the length of the field, and back, over and over! She just loves to run! The collar was a LAST resort! You can judge me if you want, I'm sorry you don't agree with them, but I tried everything else! I got a CD with the collar, to train Callie with, and it is working, that's all I can say! WITH the sound function!

Because she spends most of her day, begging to go out and run! She won't rest until she does!

No, I bought the collar, because it doesn't hurt, it just startles her! I used it on myself, before I ever even bought one! Actually, my husband and I both did! It is only used, when she runs off from me! It is on the lowest setting! A lot of rescues, won't even allow a dog to be adopted, if they don't have a fence, or a shock fence, which is the equivelant of what Callie feels, if she runs off! My dog is also part Catahoula, and if she doesn't get to run, she isn't happy! It is the only way to get her to come back. Like I said, I have had the collar for several months, and have only used the shock three times. one time, when she took off after a deer, one time, when she was racing for the road, and the last time, was when she disappeared up over the hill, chasing wild geese! The rest of the time,she comes from the five beeps on the collar! The sound function! Believe me, if it hurt, I wouldn't use it!

Well, Callie has to have a remote collar, much as I hate it! She just doesn't seem to listen when she sees a rabbit, squirrel, deer, cat, or mouse, or anything, lol! Anyway, we've had it for a couple of months, and when we go for walks, she has to wear it, as we live surrounded by farm land, and woods! Today, we went out through the fields, and she saw a rabbit! Since I mostly only ever use the tone to get her to listen, it didn't work today, so I tried the lowest shock! Nothing! I didn't have it around her neck tight enough! Oh, great! Off through the woods she went, with me screaming my lungs out! Finally, she decides to come back, and somehow ends up in a sheep pasture, surrounded by fence. Meanwhile, her mommy, who broke a rib two weeks ago, has to climb up over the metal gates, two of them because they are padlocked, to go in and retrieve the muddy and sheep poopy dog! I had to lift her up and over, hang her down as far as I could,and drop her to get her out, twice! Needless to say, we came home and took a bath, lol! I was NOT in a very good mood!

Do any of you have a Kong for your dog? Do they like them? Callie will carry hers to me, and plop it on my lap, and I will fill it for her, then she will proceed to push it up against a wall, and get what she can out of it, then carry it to the kitchen, where she will actually throw it, and bounce it, to get what comes out! She does this over and over, till it is empty!

Callie is looking under the desk, for the dog, and running around the house, through the kitchen doorway, into the living room doorway, and around, and around, lol! She also looks at the computer screen intently, once in a while! Cute video!

Sounds so familiar! Ok, picture this! I live with Callie, who has to be right there with you, when you are cleaning, trying to take the dust rag, "helping" you scrub the floor; anyway, I clean houses for a living! One house has two boxers and a cat, one has three Westies and a cat, one has two cats, one has two schnauzers and a cat, one has a shausapoo?, and the grand fanalie has a chocolate lab puppy, who insists on crawling underneath you, while you are scrubbing, and tries to take the rag, as do most of the other dogs in the houses I clean for! Guess which one is the worst? MINE!

Yes, I agree! My other dogs never really cared where they went!