To e-collar or not to e-collar That is the question
Hello! E-collars have come a long way since they first came out. Today with the miniaturization, the e-collars are very small and you can change the setting of the stimulation from the remote control in your hand. The first time I used e-collar was over 20 years ago. They were bulky and the only way to adjust the stimulation was to move a resistance directly from the collar itself. You could not adjust it from the remote. The stimulation was very strong even at the lowest setting and dogs would usually yelp.
Todays collar have a great range of stimulations from a tiny tickling sensation up to stimulations that can stop in his tracks a hunting hound running after the wrong quarry. I think this will work for your bike chasing dog.
It is important to remember that e-collars are tools. Like any tools you must first learn to use it. With an e-collar it is very easy to become trigger happy with the stimulation which is the worst way to use this tool. This is the reason why almost every body you will talk to would give you a dirty look if you ask them about e-collar. Most people think they are torture devices for dogs.
You and your dog must get use to the e-collar. Do not think of putting an e-collar on your dog the first day and zapping him at maximum power when he is running after a bike. Doing this will certainly ruin your dog and chances are he will start to run in the other direction instead of coming back to you.
This being said, e-collar are wonderful tools when they are used properly. They will speed up the training of your dog immensely because you will be able to communicate and stimulate him from a long distance.
Personally I always used e-collars for the Tri-Tronic cie. They are very well built, the remote and the collar are waterproof. Some of the more sophisticated models can control many dogs with the same remote and have a range of up to 1.5 miles
I have no experiences with citronella collars. I do not even know if they are such collars that are remote controlled. I always though they were use for anti-barking purposes. As for the side effect of citronella. Citronella is not recommended to be use on people. So I do not think it is that great for dogs either. However the smell is pleasant and your dog will not be bothered by mosquitoes as citronella is a natural bug repellent.
