In post #7 I posted the link to an article from the Pet Professionals Guild:
It is Pet Professional Guild’s (PPG) view that electric shock in the guise of training constitutes a form of abuse towards pets, and, given that there are highly effective, positive training alternatives, should no longer be a part of the current pet industry culture of accepted practices, tools or philosophies. In this position statement, PPG will combine decades of research with the opinions of certified animal behaviorists, and highlight the question of ethics to explain why using electric shock in the name of training and care is both ineffective and harmful.
But if that's not good enough, here's what the American Veterinary Medical Association has to say in their position statement:
Veterinary behavior society announces position on punishment
Veterinary behavior society announces position on punishment
| | In response to the popularity of television shows such as "The Dog Whisperer," the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior has issued a position statement and guidelines on the use of punishment for dealing with behavior problems in animals.
The guidelines clarify that while punishment can be effective in specific contexts, it also has an association with many adverse effects.
"A major problem with using punishment is that it suppresses behavior temporarily but does not necessarily modify the underlying cause of the behavior," said Dr. John Ciribassi, AVSAB president.
Also, punishment may interfere with the human-animal bond. Owners tend to punish pets inconsistently and as a consequence of anger, so punishment may occur long after the bad behavior and may be intense. Dr. Ciribassi said, "We can have a problem with the pet not trusting the owner because it is unable to consistently anticipate what the owner is going to do in any given situation."
The pitfalls and possible adverse effects of punishment include the following:
- Timing punishment correctly is difficult
- Punishment can strengthen the undesirable behavior.
- The punishment must be strong enough to be effective, but intense punishment can lead to physical harm.
- Regardless of the strength, punishment can cause some animals to become extremely fearful, and this fear can generalize to other contexts.
- Punishment can facilitate or even cause aggressive behavior.
- Punishment can suppress behaviors, including those behaviors that warn of aggression.
- Punishment can teach the animal to associate the owners, other animals, specific contexts, or environments with bad experiences.
- Punishment often does not address the underlying cause of behaviors or teach alternate behaviors.
The AVSAB's position is that punishment is not appropriate as a first-line or early-use treatment for behavior problems. Modification should focus on reinforcing desirable behaviors, removing reinforcement for inappropriate behaviors, and addressing the emotional state and environmental conditions driving undesirable behavior.
The AVSAB position statement and guidelines are available at www.avsabonline.org.
It's pretty telling when the OP is more concerned with the COST of the SHOCK COLLAR on her VERY LITTLE DOG than she is over whether it is a humane or effective thing for her tiny pet.
Very sage advice was given in the SECOND POST on this thread and that was seemingly ignored. I also gave MY experience with a dog becoming unstable from a SHOCK COLLAR, and that was ignored too.
Luvsjack has said on other thread that her family uses SHOCK COLLARS, so naturally she endorses them and wishes to engage in arguments here about them and try to find other ways to put me down over my opinion on this matter.
Look, people, do what you want. And as I said, when your dog turns unstable from being PUNISHED WITH SHOCK, you can just get rid of the dog and go get another. That seems to be the popular way today.
And God help these creatures that have to endure such ABUSE. |
|
|