[Cayman]

Hey guys. I am trying to decide whether to use a choke , pinch, or any kind of collar like that. I don't want him to be aggressive but I know that he will probably catch on quicker if I use a collar like that. Anyone know what to do? Anyone with experience? All comments are appreciated. Thx

 

[prairiefire]

At 9 weeks a flat buckle collar is most appropriate. Prong and choke collars are for correcting known behaviors. At 9 weeks he doesn't know anything concrete enough to be corrected for.

 

[Cayman]

Yeah I know. I'm talking about for the future

 

[Rosemary]

Yeah I know. I'm talking about for the future

If you teach loose-leash walking and proper behavior now, there is a good chance you won't need anything more than a flat collar. And if he does wind up needing something with more "oomph" you can experiment when the time comes.

 

[bigfootlives]

I don't think you should even be thinking about correctional collars until your dog is significantly older. We didn't introduce one until our boy was over a year old and had a solid foundation in obedience using positive methods.

It is MUCH easier to train a dog by praising when they do something right instead of correcting when they do something wrong. Especially when they are babies.

 

[Cayman]

Ok thanks all!

 

[CRDobe]

Yes, all of the above - he's such a little one, taking it all in . Flat collar, positive training, for now, just be in the "now"...

 

[bigfootlives]

I also want to point out that using a correctional collar appropriately will not cause aggression! I'm not sure where you heard that from but it is not true at all. It is simply a way to communicate with your dog. They aren't meant for punishment or to cause pain, there is no reason that it should make any dog aggressive. If any dog shows signs of aggression when one is being used, either it is being used improperly or something else is going on.

 

[Cayman]

Alright. Thanks everyone once again!

 

[Artemis]

If you end up having trouble with leash walking, my trainer recommended the easy walk, which is a type of harness that ties the leash in the front. Honestly I feel like I've discovered the holy grail, it has made a huge difference, and now my puppy is coming along really nicely and walking loosely on the leash at my side, regularly looking up at me, unless she gets distracted, but we are also working on focus so she does look up/come back when I say her name.

As the others said IF you need to introduce a correctional type of collar, it should be when he's much older and has more of a foundation, you do not need to use it on your puppy at all.

Have you read any books about puppy rearing and training? If you need any recommendations I'm sure plenty of people here would be happy to provide you with a reading list

 

[MeadowCat]

It's much easier to teach your dog what TO do than it is what NOT to do Try a martingale collar so your dog can't slip out of it, and check out Kikopup's free training videos on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/kikopup?blend=1&ob=5 You'll be making great progress and having fun together in no time!