Since we do our fair share of hiking here in Sandy Eggo, Mom is super concerned about the dangers of rattlesnakes. In order to keep me safe, Mom decided last year to put me through Rattlesnake Avoidance Training. This year I did a refresher course. Boy oh boy, did I remember those snakes!
Check out the video Mom shot during the training.
Note from Mom:
Both last year and this year, I was torn about using a shock collar on Murphy. I have very mixed feelings about shock collars. On one hand, I have seen a number of very well adjusted dogs who have been trained beautifully with them...on the other had, I have read stories about the trauma they can do to a dog. Not necessary physical, but emotionally.
After much internal debate last year, and after seeing Murphy pick a California King snake up in his mouth (fortunately a harmless snake, and neither Murphy nor the snake were injured), I decided the risk of using an experienced professional in doing this sort of training was worth the benefit of having a dog that was aware of the dangers a snake could pose.
A fellow blogger over at Champion of My Heart had a really well written blog post just on this subject. I do wish I had read it before taking Murphy through the training, at least to have had another option to shock collar training. However, Murphy seems to have had no ill lasting effects from the training and I believe that is because he is a pretty well balanced, confident dog. If he were shy or timid, or even sensitive to corrections of any type I would not have taken him through this training.
Erick at Natural Solutions K9 Rattlesnake Avoidance (the company who provided this training) does recommend taking a dog through 3 consecutive years of Rattlesnake Aversion Training, however now that I have the additional information provided by Champion of My Heart, I plan on contacting Jamie Bozzi at SMRTDOG here in San Diego before any type of training next year.
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5 comments:
OK... so many thoughts... I did this to Mabel as a pup after watching her try to pick up a rattler before my screeching scared her and the snake in opposite directions.
I had a friend who had done this to her dog as a pup. 10 YEARS later, he performed his rattlesnake behavior in front of their home. No way, no how was he going in the front door! After securing him in the back door, my friend went back into the street and found... a dead rattler! This is after ONE session as a puppy.
So I took Mabel. I've seen her perform her snake behavior when I could see a snake and times when I could not. I always followed her lead on the trail! But this year... she tried to play with a big one and was in striking distance before he rattled at her.
But she's nine... my heart aches at the thought of shocking her. Much research to do...
If you can find a vet to give you the rattlesnake vaccine... get it! Many vets won't because they fear the liability from stupid owners who think that if their dog gets bit, they don't have to take the dog to the vet...because they have the vaccine. I look at the vaccine as an insurance policy that buys me a little time to safely get my pup to the vet in time to save her life!
Great post!
Im not a huge fan of shock collars, but I do think they have their place. We have some friends at the dog park who sometimes can be naughty, but as soon as their shock collar is on, even when it's not turned on, they behave themselves a lot better.
You know in this case, a little bit discomfort is better than a dead dog. Living in Arizona, I believe all dogs should go through this training, especially if they lead healthy, active lives. Kudos to you for being a good Mom and protecting Murphy!
Sam
well murphy is totally not dummy at least with that rattle snake and me i was totally on the couch XD i'm scare to death of any kind of snakes lol
Well that's a huge topic isn't it! We think that all training tools have their pro's and con's, and as long as they are used properly and never have anger or frustration behind them - people should od their research and use what they feeling comfortable and confident with! :)
Laura found watching the video very intersting - Here in NZ we have a very special bird the kiwi (its flightless) and there are dogs that work in it's habitat (as pest control of stoats and rats that kill the kiwi). Those dogs have to go through kiwi aversion training using shock collars. What Laura found very interesting is that the training is done quite differently and its much shorter and the dogs aren't anywhere near as stressed! They re assess yearly and majority of the dogs don't need another round with the collar!
Laura and Us think is a good idea you are going to try the other trainer - you need to do what you feel comfortable with :)
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