Dog training is no different from any other activity — you need the right equipment for the job. Using the appropriate collar and leash allows you to correct the undesired behaviors a dog does on his own during training. Use the following information to help you choose the best leash and collar for your dog.
Deciding on a leash
Leashes come in an assortment of styles, materials, widths, and lengths. The following are the best choices to use during training:
Cotton web: Cotton web leashes are readily available in pet stores and through catalogs and websites, and they come in a variety of colors.
A good training leash is a 6-foot cotton web leash — it’s easy on the hands, easily manipulated, and just the right length. It’s also the most economical. For the average-size or larger dog, use a cotton web leash that’s 1/2-inch wide. For toy dogs, use a leash that’s 1/4-inch wide.
Nylon: Looking a lot like the cotton web leash, the nylon leash can be easily manipulated. However, nylon isn’t as easy on your hands as cotton web, especially with larger dogs.
Selecting a collar
Collars come in a dazzling assortment of styles, colors, and materials. When training your dog, you need two types of collars:
A trainingcollar: The purpose of a training collar is for you to be able to guide your dog when he’s on-leash and, if necessary, to check your dog. (A check is a crisp snap on the leash, followed by an immediate release of tension.) A check is used mainly for abstention training, which is when you want your dog to stop doing something that he wants to do but you don’t want him to do, such as chasing a squirrel. The check creates an unpleasant experience for the dog, which he can avoid by stopping the unwanted behavior.
A buckle collar: When not training, your dog should wear a buckle collar with ID tags attached. The collar can be leather, nylon, or cotton web. Buckle collars come in an assortment of colors and styles and are made of fabric or leather. Collars made of fabric usually have plastic clasps; the leather ones have metal clasps. If your dog weighs more than 50 pounds and hasn’t yet been trained, you’re better off using a leather collar with a metal clasp — a plastic clasp may break when your dog tries to go after a moving object.
You must use the two types of collars — training collars and buckle collars — correctly. Remove the training collar when you aren’t training your dog or when you can’t supervise him. And don’t try to use a buckle collar to train. For the untrained dog, buckle collars are virtually useless.
Nylon snap-around collars
The snap-around collar is effective and versatile. The nylon snap-around collar has a metal clasp that enables you to fasten the collar around the dog’s neck. That way, you can fit the collar high on your dog’s neck where you have the most control. This collar also has a stationary deadring opposite the clasp that can be used when you aren’t training and a loose or floating liveringthat should be used when you are training. The following figure shows this collar and its rings.
The floating ring is the live ring and the stationary ring is the dead ring on a nylon snap-around training collar.
For maximum control, a snap-around collar should fit high on your dog’s neck, just below his ears, and as snug as a turtleneck sweater. To get a good fit, measure the circumference of your dog’s neck directly behind his ears.
The following table presents some advantages and disadvantages to a snap-around collar.
Pros and Cons of Nylon Snap-Around Collars
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fairly inexpensive
A puppy will grow out of it quickly, and you may have to
purchase others
Can be fitted exactly to your dog’s neck
Not as easy to put on as a slip-on collar
Very effective
Quite safe
Take the training collar off your dog when he isn’t being trained and whenever he isn’t under your direct supervision so he doesn’t accidentally get it caught on something and choke himself. Also, don’t attach any tags to the training collar. When you’re not training your dog, use a buckle collar to which you’ve attached his tags.
The names pinchcollar and prong collar describe the same piece of equipment. “Pinch” refers to the effect it has on the dog, and “prong” refers to its appearance. A pinch collar, shown in the following figure, certainly is an effective and efficient training tool.
A pinch collar is an effective piece of training equipment.
The pinch collar is generally the safest training collar. It’s also an effective training collar for strong, rambunctious dogs. The following table offers some of the highlights and lowlights of using the pinch collar.
Pros and Cons of Pinch Collars
Advantages
Disadvantages
Readily available in pet stores and through catalogs
Looks like a medieval instrument of torture
Very effective
Twice as expensive as a snap-on collar
Can be fit to the exact size of the dog’s neck
Very safe — it’s self-limiting in that it
constricts very little and not to the point where the dog’s
air can be cut off
Pinch collars come in four sizes: large, medium, small, and micro. The large size appears to have been made for elephants. For a large, strong, and rambunctious dog, the medium size is more than adequate. For golden retriever–sized or smaller dogs, the small size is sufficient. For toy dogs, use the micro version.
When using a pinch collar, put it on your dog about two hours before training him and leave it on him for about two hours afterwards. If you put it on immediately before training and then take it off immediately after you finish, he’ll quickly become “collar wise,” meaning he’ll only respond to commands when the collar is on. The same applies to any other collar that’s used to train a dog.
Dogs Glossary
A-B-C assessment
Checking a dog’s airway, breathing, and circulation.
Dogs Glossary
animal shelter
1. An animal control agency run by local government to protect people from animals, take in strays, and manage animal issues and problems within the community. 2. A privately run shelter managed by individuals who want to protect, advocate for, and find homes for animals.
Dogs Glossary
BARF diet
A method of feeding dogs as closely as possible what they would eat in the wild: raw flesh and bones, along with vegetable matter from the stomachs of their prey. The acronym stands for either Bones and Raw Food or Biologically Appropriate Raw Food.
Dogs Glossary
blow out
A twice-yearly shedding of a dog’s undercoat.
Dogs Glossary
blue slip
An application to register a purebred puppy.
Dogs Glossary
breeder
A person who raises, sells, and often shows dogs of a specific breed. Reputable breeders screen parent dogs in an effort to produce healthy dogs that conform to breed standards.
Dogs Glossary
castrate
The removal of a male dog’s testicles to render him infertile.
Dogs Glossary
clicker
A small hand-held device that makes a sharp cracking sound when pressed. Paired with a food reward, an effective dog-training tool.
Dogs Glossary
cohesive bandage
A stretchy wrap that clings to itself used to cover and secure gauze bandages without tape.
Dogs Glossary
come into season
The advent of a female dog’s term of fertility.
Dogs Glossary
dead ring
The stationary ring on a training collar that pulls on the collar, not the dog’s neck.
Dogs Glossary
double coat
Two layers of fur — a top coat of stiff guard hairs and an undercoat that serves as insulation.
Dogs Glossary
droppedears
The term for hanging or drooping dog ears.
Dogs Glossary
Elizabethan collar
A wide, cone-shaped plastic or cardboard collar that prevents a dog from being able to scratch her head. Used to prevent further injury or hasten healing.
Dogs Glossary
euthanize; put to sleep
To kill an animal to relieve suffering.
Dogs Glossary
fall
Hair that extends over a dog’s eyes.
Dogs Glossary
feathering
Long hair that runs from armpit to paw on the backs of a dog’s legs.
Dogs Glossary
free-feeding
Keeping a constant supply of dog food available so that the dog can decide when and how much to eat. It works best in single-dog households where there’s no competition for food.
Dogs Glossary
heartworms
Parasites that live in dogs’ hearts and cause heart failure. They’re transferred through mosquito bites.
Dogs Glossary
heat
The period when a female dog is fertile.
Dogs Glossary
heel
A command and position in which a dog walks at your left side staying with you as you change direction or pace.
Dogs Glossary
hip dysplasia
A painful malformation of a dog’s hip socket. Some breeds are genetically predisposed to the condition.
Dogs Glossary
hot spot
A localized area of skin infection. It’s usually round, red, and warm to the touch.
Dogs Glossary
live ring
The floating ring of a training collar. Attach a leash to this ring for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
neuter
A general term to describe either spaying or castrating a dog to render it infertile. Neutering and castrating are often used interchangeably.
Dogs Glossary
pantaloons
The tufts of hair on the backs of a long-haired dogs legs that make him look like he’s wearing bloomers.
Dogs Glossary
pedigree
A diagram of a dog’s ancestors for three or more generations that lists the registered names of the dogs and the titles they earned.
Dogs Glossary
pinch collar
A training collar with interlocking prongs that pinch a dog’s neck when tugged on. Some veterinarians recommend them above all other collars for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
praise
A verbal reward for a dog , such as an enthusiastic “good dog!”
Dogs Glossary
prong collar
A training collar with interlocking prongs that pinch a dog’s neck when tugged on. Some veterinarians recommend them above all other collars for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
pulse
Normal dog pulse is between 70 and 120 beats per minute. The pulse of a puppy ranges from 120 to 160 beats per minute.
Dogs Glossary
puppy mill
A place that supplies puppies to pet stores, usually without screening for possible genetic defects or properly socializing the puppies.
Dogs Glossary
registration certificate
The paper certifying a dog’s registration with an accredited organization.
Dogs Glossary
registration slip
An application to register a purebred puppy.
Dogs Glossary
release word
A word that lets a dog know that she is free to move.
Dogs Glossary
rescue group
A network of animal lovers who rescue and find new homes for their favorite breeds or animals.
Dogs Glossary
reward
To give a dog a treat for a correct response while he’s still in the desired position.
Dogs Glossary
ruff
The long, thick fur around a dog’s chest, shoulders, and neck.
Dogs Glossary
separation anxiety
A condition in which your dog becomes anxious and stressed when you leave him.
Dogs Glossary
shed
A twice-yearly process of casting off the undercoat in a double-coated dog.
Dogs Glossary
single coat
A single layer of hairs that comprises a dog’s fur.
Dogs Glossary
spay
To remove of both the uterus and the ovaries of a dog to render her infertile.
Dogs Glossary
stripping
Plucking the dead hairs from a dog’s coat.
Dogs Glossary
titer tests
Tests that check a dog’s immunity levels to determine exactly which vaccinations are needed.
Dogs Glossary
top coat
The top layer of a double-coated dog composed of stiff guard hairs that tend to be naturally water-repellant. The top coat protects the dog’s skin and undercoat.
Dogs Glossary
training collar
A collar that enables you to guide your dog and to check her as necessary — a brief, sharp tug tightens the collar around the dog’s neck.
Dogs Glossary
transfer of ownership form
The form filled out when transferring the ownership of a registered purebred dog. It’s located on the back of the registration certificate.
Dogs Glossary
treat cup
A plastic container filled with small treats or dog food. Shake it and give treats from it as a reward as you train a dog.
Dogs Glossary
undercoat
Fleecy or downy fur shorter than the top layer of a double-coated dog. The undercoat serves as insulation.
Companion Content from the E-Book Canine Good Citizen Test In A Day For Dummies
Dogs Glossary
