On Mon, 07 Nov 2005 00:50:08 +0100, Bonsai wrote:

He described (his own first test of an e-collar) how he tried to stop
his hunting dog from unwished hunting. He had in mind to support a
"stop" when the dog was running off, but the only thing he achieved was
the dog running even faster. His later analysis was, the dog was
thinking beeing punished for not running fast enough.

George Hickox describes it thus:

http://www.properpet.com/doing_it_right.htm

I believe in electronic training for dogs. The key is to use the
electronic collar correctly. As in most things, there is a right way and a
wrong way to use this valuable training tool.

Far too often, a dog owner buys an electronic collar because Fido runs too
big, hunts out of control, and responds to the "Here" command only if he
feels like it. So John Trainer straps a collar on his rebel and turns him
loose. When he later gives the command "Here", the delinquent gives John a
more-than-subtle "To heck with you!" response. John then fries (insert
"zaps", "cooks" or any other word here that typifies improper electronic
collar use) Fido.

Such a process will indeed teach the dog something: How to beat the pain!
The dog will normally respond in one of three ways. One, he bolts from the
spot and runs as quickly and as far away as he can. If the collar has an
automatic safety shut-off, 10 seconds for example, the dog learns that if
he bolts like a runaway freight train for 10.1 seconds, the stimulation
shuts off. A second response may be to freeze on the spot until the
stimulation turns off. In both cases, the dog learns that if he grits his
teeth for 10 seconds, the stimulation goes away.

The third probable response is Pup comes running back to his owner.
Terrific, huh? Not necessarily. When the pup gets back to his owner, the
stimulation turns off. Dogs are extremely place-oriented. The dog may
associate the spot by his handler's feet with safety and hunting out in
front with danger.


--
"It is better to die on one's feet than to live on one's knees."
-- Mordechai Anielewicz, 1920-1943, Warsaw, Poland