I purchased an E collar from Leerburg and placed it on my GSD, took her leash off and let her walk around the back yard. Just as I know she would she bolted. I gave her the command to come to which she promptly ignored. I gave her a level three so to speak and gave her the command to come again. Promptly she came. Heidi listens very well now and seems to be most obedient since installing the Dogtra on her. I can't help but wonder if dog owners can fall into a trap using an E collar and if so what to anticipate and look for in the future.

The biggest trap is the simplest one to avoid and that is the same one people find with prong collars and leashes as well and that is the one collar off collar distinction.
The dog must wear the collar all the time. It is eventually not worrying about it. It will then pretty much generalize its behavior and not associate it specifically with wearing the collar. You also have to balance to the program. You must provide the dog with a very positive response to the correct behavior (food, toy, handler praise) in large quantities to make sure that doing the right thing has VALUE to the dog.
It is easy to push a button and get a desired response but it takes just as much work to train the dog with or without the e-collar. Dogs only learn at their rate!! What can help is well thought out and well timed work on our part and well balanced work making it clear to the dog.
If you don't have this e-collar training or any other training is just more poor training.
The e-collar is not a panacea. Often I just see bad training done in the past now done with electricity.
I tell everyone I work with that the e-collar is the greatest thing since sliced bread. But, it still doesn't make a bad dog trainer anything more than a bad dog trainer with an e-collar.

Although the electronic collar is a powerful tool, it should be used as a supplement to your entire training program, not as a substitute. The most appropriate use of the electronic collar is after you've laid a strong foundation of obedience exercises on your dog.

Being the devil's advocate here. But, what real difference does it make if you use the e-collar as your form of compulsion in training and not other means?
Though I believe strongly in the use of motivators in dog training the idea that the e-collar cannot possibly be THE means of compulsion for those that use compulsion defies logic. Just part of the old bigger stick mentality about e-collars which are now useful as very gentle as well as very powerful means of compulsion.
Young dogs that I have placed into police work that started day one into their training wearing a collar consistantly do better than those who have had a collar added after they acheive proficiency. Of course this is with very intense instruction by me with the handlers.

My GSD has a solid foundation of obedience training (95% motivation). I keep the collar on her 100% of the time. The reason I bought the collar was to stop her from running off and not to jump up on people, she tries hard on that one. I would like to take E training a little further but I am a bit cautious until I educate myself. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Carl I think you were very lucky with your first experience with the Ecollar. I'd suggest that you use it with more structure. Do a search on this board for "Ecollar" and take a look at the training articles on my website.

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I disagree with the last post. Although the collar is an excellent tool for stopping inapropriate behavior, and having made this mistake myself, I would not introduce the collar in this way. If a "beginner" starts using the collar to only stop the dog from digging, etc.. it's my opinion that the dog will quickly create a negative association with the collar that will later become a hinderence in more advanced training.
I would encourage a "beginner" to do a little research (like Lou's articles)before putting the collar on the dog. The collar has way to much potential as a training device to limit yourself right off the bat. You can work a dog through this negative association but why create it in the first place?

Alberto,
What really rubs me the wrong way about that forum is the degree of control that the owner exercises over content. I feel that this inhibits discussion too much. I realize it's a business, and his goal is to sell his materials, but I feel he goes too far in prohibiting free discussion. It's as if the "discussion forum" is nothing more than a forum for endorsing his materials and methods. I also dislike the "one size fits all" mentality of his methods.

I'd get out of dogs myself before I'd depend on training tips and advice from Adam I'mouttomakealotofmoneyoffofyou Katz. :rolleyes:

And his book is famous amoung professional trainers, but not in a positive way. Notice the complete absence of upper level trainers on his forum that do not have a financial stake in his business.

But that's just my opinion.