Is it always a bad idea to use an e collar at a dog park

[japle]

@melanie92 Sorry, unsolicited input incoming. Feel free to stop reading now. I’ll just pretend otherwise

I don’t heavily treat, but I think that it’s only fair to maintain at least some treats so long as I ever have to maintain any e-collar use.

I feel 100% confident in my girl’s recall not because she wears an e-collar (note that I push a button maybe twice/month on average now, and it happens in spurts when she gets “moody”, i.e. heavily distracted) but because she gets a few treats every day during our walks. Yes, there’s a reason I couldn’t do positive-only training with her and turned to an e-collar, but there’s also a reason it’s virtually positive-only practice/reinforcement at this point in time.

Oops, this is a bit… lemme just… add a warning at the beginning. Sorry, I guess.

 

[melanie92]

@japle Happy to hear input from anyone. Let me clarify. What I said was “heavily treat” during new behaviors. I still “intermittently treat” every day. I want my dog to chase the chance for a treat, not the guarantee that he will get a treat every time. I don’t want to have to carry treats on my person everywhere we go. I need him to know that he just needs to perform consistently and that he is consistently rewarded in some way for doing that.

 

[japle]

@melanie92 Ah! Then never mind! Sounds like we're doing pretty much exactly the same thing and I wasted my finger energies. Thanks for tolerating.

 

[yoursmile]

@japle I’m with you. I tried positive only with my Aussie and it just didn’t take. Used an e collar for recall and “enough, place/crate” when visitors entered the home. Since then, I rarely use it as I can go 98% positive only because of its training.

 

[namakula]

@emotionallydrainedout Sorry but what do you mean shouldnt bring treats to a park? I dont see why not? Maybe dog parks are very different in your part of the world but I dont understand

 

[emotionallydrainedout]

@namakula it probably depends on the individual park culture but yeah it's a recipe for disaster as some dogs find food to be an incredibly valuable resource. same reason you dont bring toys to the park

 

[namakula]

@emotionallydrainedout Not sure why Im downvoted for asking. Ive never seen a dog park without people throwing balls/toys and bringing treats. Treats are the only way to recall some dogs effectively.

 

[emotionallydrainedout]

@namakula yeah that is why people say dog parks are accidents waiting to happen

 

[namakula]

@emotionallydrainedout Dog parks are the only place one can legally even off leash throw a ball to fetch. I dont do it but there's no where else they can play with many toys

 

[yourneighbor]

@namakula You should try the app Sniffspot!!!! You can rent people’s fenced in yard/properties for an hour or two for like $4-$20$ and let your dog run all by themselves!! It’s amazing depending where you live. I’m in a small city and there’s surprisingly so many places/yards people let you use.

 

[emotionallydrainedout]

@namakula it really depends on the region. i understand that this is the case for you

 

[darw]

@namakula Bringing food into a place that has strange dogs with varying levels of training is just asking for a fight to break out.

 

[jdmorris77]

@namakula Speaking from personal experience, you're just asking for fights.

I recalled my dog and gave her a treat. Another dog sniffed my dog's mouth and attacked her.

You'll also get some dogs that just won't leave you alone if they smell treats on you.

 

[jimmya617]

@melanie92 Perfect scenario for an ecollar, just make sure you're screening the park if/when you go. I'm not generally a fan of dog parks, but if you watch for 10min you 1) see if any sketchy people/dogs are there and 2) get your dog more calm and ready to enter the park in a good state of mind.

Keep in mind, the dynamics of a dog park can change quickly if one out of control dog is introduced. You could end there an hour, then one dog comes in and is too pushy or a resource guarded, or overly dominant and there's a fight. Also increased risk of infections.

There are risks with anything and the risks here are all about the park and not using an ecollar on your already-trained dog. It's your decision what level of risk you are willing to take

 

[cr0011]

@melanie92 E-collar is great at the dog park for exactly the way your dog is trained. Mine would hear barking or something and get excited to go investigate. I could recall him mid-sprint to keep him out of whatever scuffle was going on. Also for leaving when you want and they don’t.

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@melanie92 It's a bad idea to go to the dog park

 

[maygrace]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Especially right now with this virus!!

 

[melanie92]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Just objectively bad in all instances?

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@melanie92 Yes. They spread disease and are full of untrained dogs.

 

[cathyj]

@imagebeastmarkbeast In my area, dog parks are populated with untrained, uncontrolled under exercised, and over stimulated dogs who have been locked in an apartment most of their lives, and the owners are mostly NPCs running around repeating "don't worry, he's friendly".....

It's like an alternate universe