I have multiple questions about my pup regarding collars, play time, and other time we spend together.

Question

I have a 4 month old / 30 lb Black Mouth Cur (Mya) and got her when she was 8 weeks old. I want to give you a little background on her before I ask my questions. She is a great dog and very smart and from what I can tell (after watching your videos and reading on your website) has incredible prey drive. I have been teaching her the basic commands; come, sit, and stay as you recommend in your video '8 weeks to 8 months'? and she has picked up on these quite well. She is also crate trained and is house broken with no issues. I am also hoping to train her to hunt with me in the future. We have two kids (4 and 1).

    I do have several questions that I would greatly appreciate your input on.

    1. How early is too early to begin using a prong collar or e-collar? When we (Mya and I) walk she pulls mildly sometimes, but for the most part walks along with me. I have not begun to train her to heel. However, when we are walking as a family she is always trying to get into the stroller or has to walk directly behind the stroller. If I walk with her further back behind the stroller she pulls like there is no tomorrow trying to get back up to the stroller. My wife walks her with the kids during the day to get her some exercise and it can be frustrating for my wife. Would a collar be of use?

    2. When I get home from work in the evenings I spend time with her working on commands, playing and usually going on another walk/run. We sometimes jog a little just to burn off extra energy. Even after all of this when we come inside she will sit and allow me to pet her and then she starts trying to bite my arm. It is never hard biting. When I correct her she stops for a minute and then wants to start again. I do a lot of redirecting, which works for a short period of time, and then right back at me for more. When I stop petting her she starts to bark at me like she wants me to play. This is not good because the kids are usually asleep by now. I end up putting her in her crate because I am out of energy to continue the redirecting all night long. She also has just begun biting the furniture when she stops getting attention. She will do it right in front of us as to get more attention. What are your thoughts?

    3. When we are playing in the backyard, I will throw her toy and she will bring it back but she tries to run right through me. Also, when I am getting to drop the toy she immediately turns to try and bite my arm. What is a good technique to get her to stop doing this?

    I appreciate any feedback you could give me with these issues. Thank you again for the wealth of information you provide on your website. It has all been very useful.

    Kind regards,
Jay
Katy, TX

Accepted Answer

Your pup is old enough to begin wearing a prong collar, if only to let her “self correct” on walks. I start my own dogs with the ecollar between 4-5 months old. I use the Dogtra 280 on my Malinois.

Electric collar Training for the Pet Owner DVD

I would keep your pup on a leash ALL THE TIME. People always are amazed that my dogs are so well behaved but it’s because I don’t give them the opportunities to go wild. They are on a leash with me OR in a crate. They don’t have the freedom to make bad choices. Don’t let your dog rehearse behavior you don’t like.

I’d be using markers to engage your pup in positive behaviors. She sounds like a cool puppy, she just needs some guidance on what she needs to do to get your attention.

The Power of Training Dogs with Markers DVD

You might want to try using 2 toys with her. When she brings the first one back, tell her to drop it with whatever your word for release is, then immediately throw the new toy. I would make sure she is dragging a line, so you can interrupt the biting behavior if she still wants to do that.

I hope this helps.

Cindy