Is it cruel to use pop its or snaps on dog walks?

[Anonymous]

My generally compliant 80 pound dog will occasionally get very stubborn on walks. Sometimes he'll lay down in the middle of the street (usually because he sees another dog) and refuse every command. I can quickly lift him up by his harness but I cant drag him when he gets that way. Recently one of the left over snap fireworks "accidently" fell out of my bag. The noise scared him and like magic he got up amd quickly continued the walk. It was great! (at least for me). But then I heard about someone getting prosecuted for scaring a dog with real fireworks. But snaps arent dangerous- and it was for his own safety. I really dont want to use treats to encourage disobediance when he refuses commands. So could snaps be a possible solution for stubborn dogs when they become stubborn in the middle of the road or is it cruel?

[Anonymous]

Here’s the rule: use the minimum amount of aversive tactics that gives you a desired result.

Owners of compliant dogs sometimes don’t get this, but some large stubborn dogs just cannot be trained without some aversive tactics.

If your dog has short hair, I recommend an electric collar. Adjust it to the lowest setting that elicits a reaction and test it on yourself first, starting on the lowest setting and ramping up in small increments. Dogs with a thick ruff of hair in the neck area might not reliably feel the shock. Collars used knowledgeably are the safest and most consistent way of training large non-compliant dogs.

[Anonymous]

I've got an 80lb dog that gets like that sometimes. sometimes he sees another dog, sometimes we aren't taking the route he wants. I think poppers and electric collars are cruel in this situation. sometimes when we go behind the dog and give him a gentle push or two he'll move on. other times we need to use treats. I don't need to scare or hurt him into compliance, but to each their own

[Anonymous]

Maybe a vibration collar? This worked for our rescue to get him to stop lunging at cars. We also occasionally squirt him with our water bottle, both of these methods have worked well for us. We try to use as many positive reinforcement training methods that we can, but the vehicle lunging was a safety concern and nothing was working. He hated the vibrations and he stopped lunging after two cars.

[Anonymous]

Treat for moving

[Anonymous]

No, you cannot use poppers. You can put some coins in a small glass or metal container and shake it. It is a loud obnoxious noise that is an acceptable aversive. It is frowned upon, like all aversives, but won't get you in trouble.

Rethink your training. Is he hot? Choose cooler times in the day. Lazy and uninterested? A more energetic or interesting walk might be in order. Or a shorter walk.

[Anonymous]

Totally abusive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here’s the rule: use the minimum amount of aversive tactics that gives you a desired result.

Owners of compliant dogs sometimes don’t get this, but some large stubborn dogs just cannot be trained without some aversive tactics.

If your dog has short hair, I recommend an electric collar. Adjust it to the lowest setting that elicits a reaction and test it on yourself first, starting on the lowest setting and ramping up in small increments. Dogs with a thick ruff of hair in the neck area might not reliably feel the shock. Collars used knowledgeably are the safest and most consistent way of training large non-compliant dogs.

Cruel and inhumane.

Let’s put an electric shock collar on you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s the rule: use the minimum amount of aversive tactics that gives you a desired result.

Owners of compliant dogs sometimes don’t get this, but some large stubborn dogs just cannot be trained without some aversive tactics.

If your dog has short hair, I recommend an electric collar. Adjust it to the lowest setting that elicits a reaction and test it on yourself first, starting on the lowest setting and ramping up in small increments. Dogs with a thick ruff of hair in the neck area might not reliably feel the shock. Collars used knowledgeably are the safest and most consistent way of training large non-compliant dogs.

Cruel and inhumane.

Let’s put an electric shock collar on you.

They literally said to put it on the human to test how strong it is before putting it on the dog......

[Anonymous]

Yes that is cruel.

Use treats. If that doesn’t work get a trainer.

[Anonymous]

Yes! We have the same situation-although ours is around 30lbs. it is frustrating, however, i figured out throwing treats a little further helps to motivate her to walk again!