Using Tools in Dog Training

Canine Conversations #4 with TNCA. I actually just got this question from someone, so let's talk dog training tools. For context (and I’m paraphrasing), the question was essentially “should I use these particular tools on my dog?”

There are a wide range of dog training tools that are available to dog owners, some more common than others. Ones that you likely see on almost any dog are things like flat collars, martingale collars, harnesses, 4 and 6 foot leashes, and Flexi leashes. Less common and often more controversial tools are things like prong collars, e-collars, slip leads, choke chains, dominant dog collars, head harnesses etc. With such a wide variety of tools available, how do you pick which one is right for you?

To figure that out, let's think about why we use tools in the first place. Why isn't every dog outside, without a leash on, and doing whatever they want with no equipment or tools on them? That might seem like a silly question to you, but seriously think about it. Why do you put a collar on your dog every time you head out the door? Now you might come to a different conclusion than me, but my answer to that question is: as responsible dog owners, we need ways to effectively control and communicate with our dogs in all situations. Not because we're control freaks that need to control every aspect of our dog's lives, but because we love our dogs, and we realize that if we leave them to make their own decisions, just like little kids, they may make bad decisions that are detrimental to them and their well-being.

Now don't get me wrong. None of this means that your dog can't just be a dog sometimes. Of course they can. If you're like me, you love giving that freedom to them as much as you possibly can. You love seeing them run free, sniff what they want to sniff, and go crazy with their best friends. But just like everything else in their lives and ours, there are times and places when that behavior is appropriate, and also times when it's absolutely not. It's not going to matter if you give your dog all the freedom in the world if they get hit by a car, attacked by another animal, or do something inappropriate that's going to get them taken away or put down.

Any of the tools that we use are for the purpose of giving us better control and bolstering communication with our dogs. Now that we've established that, it's also important to understand that, just like people, not all dogs fit into the same mould. Some dogs will be perfectly happy working for treats on a harness. If you can get good results with that method, all the more power to you. But unfortunately for a lot of dogs, a harness and treats just isn’t going to do it.

For some dogs, tools like a harness are absolutely meaningless stimulus to them, and is often counterproductive, causing them to pull more. They could care less about the treats in your hand because the other things out there in the world are simply much more interesting or they’re just not in a state of mind where they can even take treats. I've seen countless owners being dragged down the street by their dogs on a harness while others are constantly trying to bribe their dogs to pay attention by giving them food. This isn't effective for a variety of reasons. Oftentimes, once the owner no longer has food, the dog stops paying attention. Other times, the dog will bounce between the food and the other stimulus and do something that I call “taking the money and running.” They take the food, say “thank you” and then they go straight back to what they were doing before. In many cases, this simply leads to long-winded and ineffective training that goes nowhere and is frustrating to both the dog and owner. This is where other tools like head halters, slip leashes, prong collars, and e-collars can be useful. They allow us to more effectively communicate and control dogs that might not respond to other tools or stimuli.

Now going back to our question of “which tool is right for me?” My answer to that is: it depends on you and your dog. I wouldn’t put a prong collar on every dog, just like I wouldn’t put a harness on every dog. You have to understand your dog, and understand what works for them. Like I said, if you can train your dog to the level you want entirely on a harness, I have absolutely no problem with you using one. But if your dog is dragging you down the street, reacting to other dogs and people, just about pulling your arms out of your sockets, making every walk a terrible experience for the both of you, and forcing you to avoid everything and everyone in the name of stopping some kind of behavior, it might be time to consider giving another tool a try. If you do end up using another tool, it’s important to learn, whether from a professional or just on your own, how to use the tool properly and effectively. All tools can be misused (some more easily than others) and it’s very important to know how to use tools safely and effectively in order to have proper long-lasting results and achieve the goals that you want with your dog.

Another thing to note is that no tool is a magic pill for a dog. If you’re expecting to put a tool on your dog and have it instantly be the solution that immediately changes them forever, that’s not going to happen. Even if you feel that the act of simply putting the tool on the dog does give you some measure of improvement, you’re simply suppressing the behavior. Once that suppression wears off, or the tools disappear, nothing will have actually changed. No tool is going to make up for mistakes made by the owner, and any tool can make things worse if you don’t know what you’re doing. As an owner, you must learn and have a certain amount of skill in order to effectively use all your tools to teach the dog right and wrong, what is appropriate and what is not, and work towards changing the underlying reason your dog might be misbehaving. The end goal is that your dog truly becomes comfortable and learns how to behave, both with and without the tools. Even if you end up leaving the tools on your dog, you should very rarely, if ever, need to actually use them once your dog is fully trained.

This is generally how I go about tool usage, and you can feel free to have a different opinion, but if you’re a dog owner looking to familiarize yourself with using these tools to help your dog, or you just have a question about, please contact us. We’d love to help you out and give you the skills to move towards the future that you want with your dog.