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Hi Mike!
Thank you for your reminders. Since the initial problems it’s been going really smoothly. My dog responds really well with most distractions even from long distances. I rarely need to use the remote – ‘no’ will do most of the times. However, there are certain things which need clarification. Under heaviest distractions when his adrenaline level goes really high I need to use higher levels of stimulation for him to even notice that he’s being corrected. Today, for example, a big homeless male dog kept following us on our walk. ‘Piorun’ tried to chase him away and I didn’t want a fight to start. So I called him back and I had to use as high as level 50 at times. With levels around 30-40 he came towards me a few meters (with me praising him all way long) and then turned back to look at the other dog so I had to give him a few impulses, then he continued on his way back to me, then stopped, I corrected, and so on, until he finally came.
My questions are as follows:
1. I know that when adrenaline is high, pain resistance is higher also but I tried level 50 on my own neck (my wife pushed the button :-)) and it really didn’t feel nice. It’s not very painful but the muscle contraction is extremely ‘inconvenient’. My dog didn’t show any signs of panic or fear but still I would like to use as mild correction as possible. I guess that most ‘positive’ trainers here in Poland would already like to impale me. So in your practice do you ever need to use levels around 50 or is there anything I could do to use milder corrections under heaviest distractions?
2. How do I go about situations like the one described above? I mean, when my dog is about to get in a fight or is already fighting with another dog, how do I use the remote? Should I use it at all? I know that using a pinch collar when the dog starts showing aggression can make the problem worse; is it similar when we use the remote?
3. How do you coordinate looking at the LCD display on your remote when turning the level up with looking at the dog to see whether he’s reacting? And when the dog starts coming back towards you and then stops on the way do you use the same level which you did to get the initial response or turn it down?
4. The ultimate goal is to control the dog off-leash without the remote under heaviest distractions. The question is when and how do I withdraw the use of the remote?
