We have sinced notated our original article for a hopeful, better explanation.
When "jerking" you must ensure the collar is not overly loose and not
around the trachea. Ensure the motion is a sideways motion and not directly back. It is true that overly excessive jerking with an ill
positioned collar could bruise the dog, but as always keep in mind that in
their world, the alpha would simply bite them around the neck to correct
them.
This is why the jerking motion, when done correctly and at the time of the
undesired occurence is what teaches them.
The issue with rewarding is that in many cases it also is done
incorrectly. For basic commands such as heel, sit, and come they are
crucial as trying to train anything else requires more effort and these
commands will be needed to refocus them.
The heel, if not abided to, is corrected very quickly. Instataneously
rewarding at this time will make the correction obsolete, it simply is too
quick for the dog to understand what was wrong and what was right.
Not every command done well requires reward. Once again, remember that in
the pack there reward is justing getting to eat and remain in the pack.
You will find that once your dog respects you for your leadership, they
will be visibly happy.
With my personal dogs it was difficult to get past some of the basics. I
am in no way a drill sargeant, but these "jerks" keep the dog focused
during time of training. There is plenty of time for rewarding with
treats and such when they are generally behaving at other times.
For instance, my dogs know when my wife or I come home from work that they
need to control their excitement for a bit. They can come and sniff and
show their excitement, but not overly. By the time I have put my keys
away and said heelo to my wife they are at the pantry door sitting knowing
the reward is coming for being good and allowing me to go through my
routine as well.
Please continue this dialogue if you have more questions. I will be
posting this info on the website as well. I will also commit to explaing
the "jerk" and correcting some of the misunderstood verbiage in the heel
snippet.
Above all, we appreciate the feedback. In no way do we want anyone
accidentally harming a dog in correcting their misbehaving actions.
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