Dog Training Questions

[crokett]

This past weekend I finally got the invisible fence repaired/redesigned after 10mos. I wasn't happy with the way I originally installed it. So I am retraining the dogs. It broke during the original training. The instructions I have say at day 3 you are supposed to let the dog feel the correction of the fence. My problem is our lab/chow mix is very sensitive. She felt the correction the first time and still remembers it. She will stay on the porch if I put a leash and/or the collar on her. That is ok, she will never challenge the fence but I need to teach her where the safe area is.

Compounding the problem, our dogs are not normally leashed - they have their fenced run for when we are not home and when we are they are either outside with us, or inside. So when she is leashed something bad usually happens - vet, car, getting zapped, etc.

So...
Best way to get her to come around the yard with me? Is it possible to train her to the border without the fence correcting her? If she feels the correction again I will never be able to get her off the porch. I need her to learn the border so I can continue our lab's training. He already has a pretty good idea where the border is.

[gearbuilder]

Does your collar have tone and shock? Can you use just the tone setting? I have been using a training collar with my dog for a little while with good results. When I first got it it was set to shock only. I feel that it works better with both.

Jamie

[crokett]

I don't think the collar does both, or at least it is not selectable. It gives a warning before the shock.

In any case I think I am going to first have to teach her that being on a leash can be fun.

[Tom Slick]

how well does food rewards work with her? will she follow you out if she knows she'll get a treat?

how often do you walk them on a leash? my dog gets excited when the leash appears because that means we are going around the block. the leash has become positive.

[Thom2]

I've never trained with an invisible fence, I've always used a leash to walk the dog on the perimeter several times, short leash at first, then feeding them more leash and when they'd cross too far, a resounding "NO" and a good tug. This was repeated at a minimum of daily for 2 weeks or so with good results.

Even if I were to have an invisible fence system, I would start with my old method until the dog had a good idea of the boundaries and then I would only use the collar to back up the whole idea of the boundaries. I feel that if they're trained properly without the collar, they should never experience what the collar does but maybe once or twice when they get a little overzealous. If they already have a good idea of the perimeter, they'll know something is coming when they cross it.

And then you run across that dog that just totally defies all logic and rationale and will endure the pain time and time again ....

good luck

[crokett]

Tom, food sorta/kinda works but right now the leash is bad enough to her that she will ignore food. I can't blame her really. I will start with walks around the yard and up the road and back.

[Tom Slick]

as cliche as it may sound, take a look at the "dog whisper" books/tv series they are worth getting the basics from. another similar book is "outwitting dogs".
I am far from an expert but their "pack leader" and positive reinforcement techniques work with my dog.

[jonmulzer]

Put up some pin flags. Dogs respond well to visual cues. And if your dog is that sensitive, make sure that the collar is turned all the way down and check into a collar that has a tone warning first.

[182much]

dog training

I had a dog that would wander off at times.
To fix this problem, I would drive a metal stake at the boundry and tie her up on a very short leash where all she could do was turn in a circle. I would leave her there for about a 1/2 hour.
The next day I would do the same thing but in a different spot on the boundry, I repeat this for about a week.
She got to where if someone was walking down the street, she would got right to the boundry, but no further.
She wouldn't even cross the boundry with me unless I told her it was ok

[havighurst]

I had purchased the "Invisible Fence" brand and it came with training sessions. Much of it was teaching them the boundries by using the flags that were previously suggested and the warning tone. The flags stayed up for some time. Now they never leave the yard. You can get the flags at the BORG if you need them.

[Warren]

"Kohler's Method of Guard Dog Training"

It's probably the best book written and most of it is applicable to all dogs, not just guard and attack. No pop science, dog whispering, or rewarding, just how to make the dog want to do what you want.