Prepare for plenty of discourse on the evils of electronic training. I attempted to buy one at a big box pet store and was sternly reprimanded by the clerk, left with my tail between my legs. We never opted for it, but are waffling now about buying one on amazon. We have a standard poodle that is 4 years old, and he is a great dog except his prey drive is incredible and since we live in the country the deer are everywhere. He chased a deer one night and was gone all night, we found him miles away when someone called us they had him. We just want something that we can give him a zap when he starts running.

It sounds like you are not enjoying this type of training and have good experience with hand signals and both you and the dog enjoy it. Why not just keep doing it that way. Your pup sounds like a good boy!

Yes, we have, for both competition level obedience and for field work. The old collars weren't as good, and too many heavy-handed 'trainers' gave them a bad name.

Look up bookd by Alice Woodyard and/or Jim Dobbs. Jim's got a website (old), https://www.dobbsdogs.com/

I am always frustrated by people who will use a e-collar for an invisible fence, but think that collars are evil. Collars are not bad, but many trainers are.

Keep working at it, and you'll love it.

Many years ago, we bought a shock collar to stop one of our dogs from barking so much. It was not effective. All she learned was to pace her barks further apart so that the collar would re-set to a lower level of shock. But it's a big ol' world out there, so it's plausible there is a place for electronic shock collars as a fine, effective training device. I'll look at the dobbs site sushipup recommended (out of curiosity, not a desire to use this method ever again myself).

My more recent dogs have done well with clicker training. Especially the border collie. She sees the clicker, her ears perk up and her eyes sparkle and dance :-) What does your pup look like when anticipating a training session?

There are tons of 'positive reinforcement' training videos on line. Have you tried googling for a dog trainer near you? Having an experienced person with you helps a lot. Good luck, you are a good person to want the best for your dog.

The very term "shock collar" is a misnomer. Try it on your arm, it's just a buzz.

I am in the camp of no electronic collar.

Maybe many will disagree but I am not a fan of leaving a dog out alone in a backyard for long lengths of time. Just my personal opinion.

Ken, some dogs are just more social. It seems you have a good handle on how to train a dog that was successful. Just because you got this as a gift, doesn’t mean it is right for you.

Side story about training: we now have a reactive rescue Pitt mix passed along from our oldest. I had a beautiful golden retriever for 15 years that was certified as a therapy dog for visits in a psychiatric ward.

Then, to go from that to this dog.

I wound up using three different training methods. What surprised me the most was the disparity in the what and how.

One said that you should never grab your dog’s collar. Another, Here is how you can train your dog to so you can grab it’s collar. For me, I needed to be able to as this is an instinct for me.

I will be following to see how others way in.

Years ago we had e collars with an electric fence for the dogs. Our yard was quite large and also had a real fence around the perimeter but the e fence was to make sure they stayed away from the area that had the pool, vegetable garden and my next door neighbor's property line. We didn't use the e collar for obedience training.

We now have an English lab who reminds me of yours - a quick learner, smart and also velcroed to DH. But she also loves being outside and will go out as often as we'll let her - she doesn't mind the cold or snow or even rain - but she's not keen on 90 degree heat and humidity. When she was 7 months old we had to board her for two weeks because I was having double knee replacement in NYC and DH came with me.

We have a fantastic kennel / training facility that's run by a retired police officer who trained dogs for police departments. We took that opportunity to have our dog trained while she was being boarded and he uses an e collar. We attended a few classes with him before she was boarded so that we were familiar and comfortable with his technique. We were also able to watch her classes online which was reassuring. She did beautifully and now DH only puts her collar on when she's off leash and we're hiking through the woods at our place in the mountains. She usually sticks to his side but every now and then she'll catch a scent that intrigues her and he might use the vibration feature to get her attention. There are bears, porcupines and rattlesnakes in the area and I don't need her to investigate them.

I wish you luck deciding what works best for you and your dog.

We have a really great dog- mild mannered, gentle, pretty responsive. I might add, it's about time because we have had some very high maintenance ones as well ( most liked people, but did not like other dogs for example. makes it tough).

Anyway DH takes him on very long walks almost daily - often off leash. DH has been using an electronic collar ( he only uses the sound option. It does have a shock option but has never needed it) when he remembers lol and the dog is off leash. As I mentioned, the dog is really pretty responsive BUT has been known to take off and bolt when there is a body of water that is calling his name for a swim. With that, if DH is paying attention, he can buzz pooch who then circles right back to DH.

People are often asking about it. All I know is he got it on Amazon and it was about $40. (well spent!)

I wouldn't use an electric collar, especially not with a dog with the apparent intelligence yours has. The risk is doing so could make him fearful, skittish or tentative, and could limit or remove his confident attitude.

Dogs want to do what they're told to do, the problem is human to dog to human communication. The key to training is praise and repeat, praise and repeat, with consistency.

Good luck to both of you. Show your love by not zapping him.

I just use the beep for recall...

I prefer positive reinforcement and my food motivated dogs respond pretty well to the word snack. But some dogs can be so in the moment they don't even hear your recall request. I'd hate to be looking all night for a dog run off on deer scent.

No comment about the collar but from the OP the only things I see mentioned are the dog comes in immediately after pottying and likes to be with the person that they like. Neither one unless the dog comes in and finishes the potty. Perhaps a mention of what the dog is being trained for. Training may stop the second if that is what is happening but in an area that labs are routinely stolen for hunting or other purposes I would be glad that any dog would want to come in immediately. If possible the human should also partake of the fresh air with the dog.

I haven’t read the responses, but I have a lab that I spent years training and my heart just sunk when I read that you’ve been training with an electronic collar, expecially with a Lab. Labs are people pleasers, food driven, smart and they love (even need) challenges, all of those traits make them literally the easiest dog to train and the most enjoyable. Why the trainer even thought it was a good fit for the breed is beyond me...I mean, why inflict pain or hurt on an animal that obviously loves you and wants to learn already? I get that the lessons were a gift, but if it were me, I’d stop immediately and use a method that promotes bonding and trust instead. I hope you’ll reconsider.

nyc-efarmer ... if you may have been operational for half a dozen decades or so ... have you found a button on that device of yours that's been helping you in that "recall" problem that plagues so many of us oldsters that you'd be willing to share?

ole (what's that name again?) joyful

I see nothing wrong with giving a dog a vibration or noise (not shock) as part of a carefully crafted training program. The problem is, they'll sell a cheap shock-collar to ANYONE. No wonder most outcomes are not good.

Slight tangent, for those whose dogs tend to run off, have you looked into tracking collars lately? They are greatly improved. I recommend "Whistle" but there are others just as good.

Excellent point about most labs being food driven people pleasers.

If you want to have a sound as part of your training system, get a clicker. They work, it simplifies communication. The dog learns that hearing a click means - YES, THAT'S RIGHT!

Yes, and they make clickers that are extra loud for use outdoors. Maybe not loud enough for every training application -- but MUCH safer for the general public's dogs.

When I adopted a dog that was 80 lbs and not well behaved, I tried the training classes at Petsmart after having no success at home. Petsmart was too crowded and chaotic for him with all of the distractions. Eventually I happened to see an episode of the Dog Whisperer (Cesar Milan). I was so impressed I got whole seasons on CD's from the library. This was before you could watch seasons easily on TV. I learned so much! I can tell by your post that you are struggling with the collar. If it doesn't feel right, stop using it. There are other methods. There are in home dog trainers in this area. Not sure how you feel about that with covid. Maybe you could work something out in the yard with a trainer.. Or get dog training books from the library. My dog was quite food driven which helps. Getting a Gentle Leader for walks made a tremendous difference too. A puppy needs plenty of exercise to burn off energy or he will get into mischief.

I watched Cesar Milan's show regularly. I found him very good. I remember him tying the leash around his waist so that his hands were free and the dog had to follow him everywhere he walked.

I met a man and his 1 yr-old dog today out on my walk. The dog was a pittie-looking breed (pit bulls are banned in Ontario) so a breed that looks similar.

He had that barbed collar on him. I didn't even know they were even sold anymore.

One of the most useful tools I learned from Cesar Milan was the idea of distraction. Works EVERY time with my dog, especially when she’s nervous or afraid of something.

I’ve brought this up before, but when it comes to high energy dogs, doggy day care can really make a difference with training. When a dog has tons of pent up energy, it’s impossible for it to focus on you and/or training. Letting it work that energy out in a dog park or controlled environment a couple times a week can calm the dog down and also help with it’s social skills.