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Training a dog can be a rewarding experience, especially if the dog that you are training is your own. Having training aids can be a great help, if you know what you are doing. Items such as training collars have proven to be effective, if used in the right hands. If you are unsure and have no expertise in dog training, then training collars have the capacity to seriously injure your dog. This article is going to attempt to explain about the different types of training collars on offer and which ones you should be considering using. It is also advisable to get expert help as well.

The prong collar’s bark is worse than its bite. The collar itself is made up of metallic prongs that are linked together. When the leash is pulled, the collar gives the dog a pinch. The idea is that this is meant to remind the dog of its mother’s teeth, which would have been used in a similar way to restrain the dog as a puppy. The collar is safe as long as you buy one that is the right size for the dog. If your dog continually pulls at the leash though, the prong collar might not be the appropriate training collar for your animal.

The adjustment of these collars is quite easy though. Simply remove or add prongs to suit the neck of your dog. If you can just insert a finger between the neck of the dog and the prong collar, then you have just about got it right.

The Halti collar, also known as the Gentle Leader, is more akin to a harness than a collar. It fits over the dog’s face and works by closing the dog’s mouth when the leash attached to the collar is pulled. The theory is that if you can control the dog’s head, you will be able to control the whole dog. This type of collar is especially good for pulling or aggressive dogs.

There is a downside to this type of collar though. Dog’s, as a rule, do not like having restrainers on their face, and it might be quite a job to get your dog to accept a harness of this type. Care should also be taken bot to pull the head to hard, because the dog could suffer injuries to the neck or back.

One of the most effective collars used in dog training are choke collars. They can be abused though, either through ignorance or sometimes malice. If you do not know how to use a choke collar properly, seek expert help.

Correct use of a choke collar starts with correct fitting. They work by tightening around the dog’s throat when the leash is pulled. Equally, the tightness should be released when the trainer eases up on the leash, but if the collar does not fit correctly, this might not happen resulting in undue distress to the animal. If your dog is one that continually pulls on the leash, then the choke collar is probably not the right collar to use.

One of the newest forms of dog collar are the electronic one’s. They are considered to be a very humane way to train a dog, but equally can be abused in the wrong hands.

The electronic dog collars work by allowing trainers to give dogs small electric shocks via a remote control to control the behaviour of the dog. How much of a shock the dog gets is entirely in the hands of the trainer, so in good hands, the electronic dog trainer can be very flexible and very effective. As a rule of thumb, the shock that is applied should be just enough to make the dog’s ears twitch, but obviously the amount of electricity involved will depend on the size of the dog. In any case however, if the dog cries out when the electricity is applied, then the setting is too high. Once again, this type of collar is only really suitable for experienced trainers.

Tags: Dogs

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