Dogs are natural predators, so when they see something move their urge is to chase it. When it comes to chasing, this instinctual urge can be harmful or even fatal if the dog should become lost or dart into traffic. In this post, you’ll learn how to use an e-collar with low-level stimulation and the “tapping method” to stop dog chasing.
There are other training methods to solve this type of behavior, however, using an e collar is a proven, sure-fire way to stop dog chasing quickly and safely from a distance.
Using an e-collar to stop unwanted behavior such as chasing relies on a technique called positive aversion training. Essentially this means when your dog is engaged in unwanted behavior, such as chasing a squirrel, you use the e-collar to introduce an unpleasant association. With consistency, your dog will begin to relate chasing with the unpleasant feeling, taking the joy out of the chase.
Educator e collars are unlike many others on the market. Lower quality Asian brands use only 10-15 levels of stimulation and outdated “sharp pulse” technology, which can be painful and cause head jerking. Educator e collars are manufactured in the USA and use the latest technologies including vibration, tone, and 100 levels of gradual medical grade “wide pulse” stimulation. This stimulation is similar to a TENS machine and feels like someone flicking the side of your neck with a finger – annoying, but not painful.
Safety Tips
Before you begin using your e collar to eliminate chasing behavior, take the time to review these safety tips:
- Always train your dog in a safe area. This may mean keeping your dog on a long leash line well away from traffic or training in a fenced area.
- Use the lowest stimulation level that gets your dog’s attention. Your goal is never to hurt your dog, but rather to pull their attention away from the unwanted behavior. With chasing, you may need to use a stronger stimulation than for other behaviors if your dog has a strong prey drive.
Stop Your Dog Chasing Cats & Other Animals
If your dog can’t resist chasing a passing cat or squirrel, you can quickly stop this chasing behavior with the e collar following these steps.
- Locate a safe area where there will be many opportunities for your dog to chase.
- Fit the e-collar on the dog and set it to the predetermined lowest level your dog responds to.
- Keeping the dog on a long lead or in a fenced area, allow your dog to begin to chase.
- As soon as the chase begins start tapping on the stimulation control repeatedly until your dog stops chasing. For dogs with higher prey drives you may need to gradually turn up the stimulation dial while tapping until your dog stops chasing.
During this process, do not give any verbal commands. Your dog should associate the chase with the stimulation, not with you. By repeating this process every time your dog begins to chase, he will soon learn that chasing results in an unpleasant sensation and stop chasing.
Using the vibration or tone modes on the e collar as a warning will quickly teach him to stop chasing with just the vibration or tone, without any stimulation.
Stop Your Dog Chasing Cars
Vehicle chasing is extremely dangerous for dogs. The training is very similar to eliminating animal chasing. Enlist a partner who can ride a bicycle or drive very carefully past your dog and follow the above steps. Because of the importance of stopping this behavior, make sure you are careful with the timing and strength of the correction.
By following these simple steps you can quickly and safely stop dog chasing, keeping your pet and other animals safe.
Hi, I have a belgian Malinois. I took over him when he was 1.5 year. He was used to act on a very limited set of rules and to low “brain” activities”. The previous owner came to the conclusion that she couldn´t give him what he needed and searched for a new owner. I got a tips from a women that has my dogs sister. I talked also with the breeder to learn about parents, sibblings and so fort. I have had Belgian Mallinois before but made the research to find out more about the dog I was considering. I got a lot of info and decided so visit them and “borrow” Lucas=the dogs name during the days of a weekend, I got a very good connection with Lucas fast. When we returned after the first day of borrowing him he listened both to me and the actual owner:) We both laughed. I went home to “sleep” on it. The short story: I went back two weeks later and brought him home. We have built a strong bond and trained quite a lot. WE have passed several courses. One challenge that remains is that he “loves” to run after deers ands so on. We have tried a lot but it is hard to exxed/surpass the “self-reward” he gets when running after a deer as example. We practice positive-balanced training. Proper used will an ecollor be useful tool. The reason I writing is that I need advice on sutible model. I have looked at tactical K9 800 both with 2 receivers to one dog and one receiver to one dog. I see good contact to dog skin as important. I saw your extra “electrodes” that i my eyes should give very goog contact with one receiver.
I also want a flexicord in the collar.
Malinois has prettey much fur around the neck but I know other breeds has both more and less fur.
I need advice to find the right configuration for us. Money is as always important, we had som bad luck that led to 12000USD in veterinary costs. Never the less must the configuraton do the right jobb. Can you advice me about the right product/configuration?
Hi Niklas,
Thanks for contacting us and we apologize for the delayed reply.
So, yes, Belgian Malinois tend to be higher-drive dogs and most customers opt for the 1-mile, low-high output ET-800 “The Boss” e-collar. The K9 Tactical version is the same but comes with the nicer Bungee strap/higher price. Personally, I prefer the Bungee Quick Snap strap as opposed to just the Bungee strap ..so I would recommend going with the ET-800 “The Boss”, the Bungee Quick Snap strap and the “Long/Thick” option Comfort Pad.
When you add these accessories to your Cart with the ET-800 “The Boss” our system will automatically discount them 15% each 😉
After you make your purchase, jump on our live chat button in the bottom right corner of the website and we’ll send you a link/password to our e-collar training website where you can watch a pro train to dogs perfect Recall using the e collar.
I adopted a lab who is almost a year old. He’s a sweet boy but will not stop chasing the cats. I’ve tried redirecting his attention and positive reinforcement but he goes crazy every time he sees the cats and they are terrified! Would an e collar be a good choice for my dog?
Hi M Lauer,
Well, that’s his job. Chasing cats 😉
Absolutely. E-Collars are designed to solve exactly these types of dangerous behavioral issues. I also have a lab and I use our best-seller, ET-300 Mini Educator.
How do I use the e-collar to get my puppy to stop barking excessively? I want him bark obviously when necessary, but he will go outside and immediately begin barking when nothing or noone is there. Or inside the house he’ll bark for no reason. My roommates are getting frustrated and getting woken up during the night because of his barking. I don’t want them to take it out on the puppy because he just needs to be trained, but I don’t know how to correct his behavior. I’m hoping this will collar help!
Also, what’s a good way to describe to my roommates how to use this collar with my puppy for when I’m not home? I’m a student and work some overnights, so they’ll also be using this with my puppy and I want to make sure it’s being done properly with him.
Hi Mia,
It sounds like maybe a bark collar would be better for the barking issue than a remote training collar. The bark collar has a vibration sensor on it that picks up the vibration from the dogs vocal cords when it bark and applies instant feedback so the dog knows why its getting the correct rather than rummaging around for the remote and trying to get your timing right so that the dog doesn’t get confused. I also would not want to trust anyone else with the remote either!
The bark collar has 8 levels and level 1 is just a warning tone/beep when the dog starts barking and if it continues the collar automatically increases in intensity until the dog stops bark for a few seconds and resets back to the level 1 tone only and repeats. This allows the dog to bark a little but knocks out the nuisance barking if it continues and nobody needs to do anything but put the collar on the dog and the collar does the rest 😉