by Kathy Weaver

Created on: August 24, 2008

Having seen first hand what these types of training collars do to a dog, I naturally have very strong opinions on this subject. I have been an owner, breeder and trainer of dogs for many years. Not once have I ever had to resort to a choke or prong collar to control one of my dogs!

Choke and prong collars for training dogs are outdated and cruel. It is as simple as that. Animal Behaviorists have learned so much about dogs and virtually all of what they tell us is that inflicting pain on a dog will definitely affect the behavior of the animal but in a negative way. Once a dog is trained on a choke or prong collar, they are never able to wear a regular collar. Specialists and trainers have proved this repeatedly.

I am always amused by those who call themselves professional trainers and say that these instruments of torture do not inflict pain when used correctly. That just isn't true. If these choke and prong collars are used correctly, they will inflict pain. That is what they are designed to do. If there are any so-called professional trainers reading this, you might disagree. My solution to this argument is for you to allow me to place a choke or prong collar around your neck, give it a good tug and see if it hurts you. End of argument.

There was a study done on this subject involving 100 dogs who wore choke or prong collars. Autopsies were done upon their deaths and of the 100 dogs examined, 78 of them had trauma and injuries of the neck and trachea. That is a huge percentage! These injuries were usually multiple fractures of the trachea.

Many people argue that these collars are a tried and true training method and are useful when in the hands of a responsible or trained professional. The problem with this argument is that these torturous collars are readily available for purchase by any idiot or sadistic person who owns a dog. These collars should be banned for sale to the general public, at least. Banning them from use completely would be the best solution.

There are so many studies and so much proof that show positive reinforcement training methods to be the most successful. Why would anyone want to use pain and negative reinforcement training when the positive methods work? I can't answer that but I have to wonder about a person who would inflict pain when it isn't necessary. It makes me wonder which end of the leash the "animal" is occupying.

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