Hi all, I have a question as to wether an e-collar will work for me. My 1yr old male akita is doing great with ob. and I would like to move him up to an e-collar for off leash work but I have 2 concerns.
1: This guy is smart
2: He also has a high pain threshold

I'm concerned that between the 2 he will figure out that the collar can't really hurt him and since he's off leash we I'm sure you can guess. So far he's gotten loose a couple of times and came when called no problem but he is maturing fast and this breed is not known for being great off leash. Any ideas or sugestions welcome.
thanks. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Yes it will help but only if the correct training methods are used. I'm a big fan of ecollars but they are not for everyone. Prior to understanding them the way I do now the tool was of very limited value to me. I suggest you attend a ecollar seminar and get with a experienced ecollar trainer to help you apply this to your dog. The problem with finding an ecollar trainer is you need to find one that understands your needs and their training approach needs to adapt to those needs. In closing please don't attempt ecollar training with just the knowledge gained from what is supplied with the collar. This type of training is difficult to teach in words and needs to observed. Best of luck to you.

Mark, thanks for the reply, finding a reputable trainer around here is difficult at best. If all else fails I'm hoping the tapes put out by this boards owner and Donn Yarnall will be of help. This boy goes everywhere with me including to work which is my problem, I have a couple of guys I work with that don't like him. He (the dog) see's them as big play toys. Coments like what if the door or gate got opened by accident have prompted me to make sure his off leash work is Very Good.

In my opinion you could benefit from the use of an e-collar. You can also screw up a dog to the poing of no return if used improperly. My advise to you would be to seek out someone in you're area that is knowledgeable in the proper use of e-collars. If this is not possible then read as much as you can about the operation of the collars. Ed has some good articles on his web site regarding the use of collars. I think the articles are under Tri-Tronics and the Three Way Action. You can also purchase a good video to give you a good idea of how to get started. I've witnessed one to many conversations from so called dog trainers who feel that giving a dog the shock of his life is always the way to go. This collar can be abused and if abused you will reap the "POOR" results in the end. You could end p ruining a perfectly good dog if you try and speed things up by using too much stimulation. Some people are out there frying their dog for the hell of it. The object of the e-collar is to make the dog respond with the least amount of stimulation. I assure you you're dog may have a high threshold for pain but I have one mean ass dog that respects the hell out of the collar even on the medium setting. I doubt very seriously if you dog is that mean. In the right hands these collars are the best thing since apple pie. You need to buy a good collar. I use the Tri-Tronics Pro 100 and this is way more collar than I need. It has a variable intensity level with constant and momentary stim. Good luck.

Tamar,
You can learn plenty from the articles and videos that are available. If you are dedicated to laying a proper foundation for your dog, and you use common sense, you won't ruin your dog. He'll learn to respect the e-collar without having to experience pain. I suggest looking into the Dogtra collars that Ed sells. You'll get a lot more collar for your money than with most other brands.

Thanks all for the responce, I am looking at the dogtra, As for using hi shock to punish that is most definatley not what I want. This guy works well off his p-collar with very mild corrections most of the time, the only times I have problems with him listening is during extrem excitement which is when he slams into the collar. He will stop and sit but his attitude remains happy and excited. I have been reading and printing like crazy most of the mentioned articles. The more I read the more I like. He does not respond well to force but works like a dream as long as you are fair. My biggest concern was spending the money only to end up with nothing. So far what ive read has convinced me that as long as the training is done right it will be a very good investment for both my dog and me. Thanks again. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I strongly suggest that you go to a seminar before you damage your dog by going it alone. All of the e-collar videos give a very small amount of instructions and most use dogs that have been trained with the collar for some time. After you have decided on the collar you want to buy try to find a trainer who uses that collar. The tritronics collar is very different than the dogtra collar. I speak from a very bad experience that I had back in 1985.

Griffin the collars of today are SO much more advanced than they were in 1985. Lou Castle would be the guy to ask about using the collar as a tool to take your dog to the next level. I have the Dogtra 1100nc and it is awesome. Has momentary and continous stim with a 12 second safety shutoff. Good luck

Lou is a great resource but much of what he has said could be found by checking out some of our recent threads. He loves to chat though and if what you are looking for is not there leave him some mail.

i suggestcoinsidering remote collars strongly when moving to off-leash work. as for the high pain threshold, innoteck has a collar out now with 30 different levels, i dont think you will have a problem gettign the dog's attention.