So goes most of the training advice of the last century. Human beings are amazingly creative when it comes to punishment (just look at medieval torture devices), and dog training is no exception. From devices that intentionally cause pain and discomfort, to innocent-seeming products like "The Pet Corrector," which is a can of compressed air, and ultrasonic "bark control" boxes.
Here are two problems with this line of thinking and the consumer industry that supports it:
1) It only occurs after the dog has ALREADY barked, jumped, run off, snapped, etc., and
2) Dogs don't misbehave just because they haven't been told not to.
Unwanted behavior is caused by a variety of factors that vary with each individual dog.
DOGS DO WHAT WORKS. Dogs bark for a variety of reasons. It scares off the mailman (or at least that's how it appears to your dog). When a dog jumps on visitors, it gets people to pay attention to her. By allowing dogs to practice unwanted behavior, there's a better than even chance that the behavior will work for them BEFORE you can administer the punishment. Also, if your timing is off, the punishment won't be associated with the unwanted behavior, but with YOUR behavior. This is how dogs end up learning to avoid owners who reach for their collars, or worse, start to use aggression as self-defense, or quickly eat something after hearing "leave it."
So, what are you supposed to do? Outsmart your dog, that's what. Read the entire article
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