[Adara]

Unfortunately my house is surrounded with rocks (drip edge), so keeping him away from the rocks altogether is seemingly impossible. There have been a few recommendations to try a "shock collar". Although I dislike the idea, I would rather him get a few zaps than risk serious health issues. has anyone had any experience with these collars? do they work? are they cruel? brand recommendations? Thanks

This is a bad idea. he's a young puppy doing something natural that can be easily fixed with training and consistency. You don't just throw a collar on a dog and zap away. First of all IF you use a collar you only correct for a behavior the dog already knows. It's not used to TRAIN a behavior.

Keep him on a leash, keep him supervised, consistently work on keeping him from eating the rocks.