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Has anyone tried leash-free training collars to correct unwanted chasing?

I live in the country and have a highly active 10-month old cattle dog/german shepherd mix. She's a great dog in every way except of course naturally she thinks cows and horses are for chasing. I would like for her to be able to run around the property and get some exercise with the other dogs but I need to be able to trust her around the livestock first and I've tried using a long line to train her but she knows when she is and isn't attatched to a leash (good on leash, does what she wants off-leash). When she goes into prey drive of course she does not listen to commands and treats and toys are nowhere near as interesting as a moving horse or cow. SO, I recently came across collars online that are not shock collars, but similar. Instead of a shock they use sound or vibration. I need something powerful enough to snap her out of prey drive but would like to avoid a shock collar if possible. Just looking at options, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Public Comments

1. nope
2. I admit I have no experience with electric training collars. The one you describe sounds more humane than the shock collars. However, I wonder if you could achieve similar results by continuing to use the long lead for a while longer. Most of us tend to want to 'hurry' training to meet some pre-determined goal of ours. Dogs, of course, tend to train at their own pace (it's not volitional - it's just how they are). You could continue to use the long lead and reinforce EVERY appropriate response around the livestock (a high rate of reinforcement tends to solidify responses better). And then test the learning (briefly and with the lead handy) on animals that are not moving much or not going far (say, in a more confined area than the field - perhaps the barn?). Again, reinforcing every appropriate response. Gradually increasing the level of difficulty, but going back to a more successful level if she fails too often at the new level. Whatever method you choose to use, just keep in mind that there are no guarantees - she may well learn the same thing with the collar that she learned with the lead: when it's on, she's ok; when it's off, the animals are fair game. Another reason gradually transitioning to training and reinforcing appropriate responses without tools is critical.