273 Riverbend Road, Altavista, Virginia 24517, United States
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Tools for Dog Training
The K-9 Academy, LLC is an authorized dealer for both Dogtra and Herm Sprenger.
The K-9 Academy is a member of the International Association of Canine Professionals (IACP). We agree with their position statement on training tools, which includes, "It is our conviction that limiting the humane use of training tools would result in a higher incidence of nuisance and dangerous dog behavior, and more dogs being surrendered to already over-burdened public shelters" (IACP, 2021). We take pride in being lifelong learners of dog training best practices and introduce our trainees to their training tools in a safe and humane way. We are passionate about teaching dog owners how to quickly and effectively communicate with their dog to allow them to live a happy, peaceful life, as well as to avoid rehoming or dropping the dog at a shelter.
Electronic Collar
We strive to train all of our dogs to working-dog standards. Our training is designed for owners who have high expectations for their dog, and who are committed to continuing to train their dog at home for the duration of his or her life.
The electronic collar (e-collar) is a pivotal tool in basic obedience and off-leash training in order to obtain consistent, high-level results. We use classical conditioning to acclimate your pup to the different functions of the e-collar, which include vibrations and electronic stimulations (e-stim).
This highly effective training tool is used by police and military K-9 units around the world, as well as by hunting and farm dogs. The e-stim is localized pain that is the same technology as TENS units, which humans use to relieve muscle pain.
There is no tool more reliable for a consistent and immediate recall in a high-stimulation environment than an e-collar. If you wish to take your dog off-leash in populated areas, you are putting your dog at risk if he or she is not e-collar trained.
Modern-day e-collars are different than older "shock collars." The goal of proper e-collar training is never to hurt your dog. After your dog is properly introduced to its e-collar through classical conditioning, the e-collar serves as a means to reinforce commands at a distance. As you continue to work with your dog and his or her obedience becomes strengthened, the e-collar is often worn as an "insurance policy," or as a backup just to be prepared for unknown events or eternal stimulation sources.
Not all e-collars are created equally. Dogtra is one of the most reputable e-collar brands on the market and is incredibly high quality. As a Dogtra Authorized Dealer, The K-9 Academy purchases e-collars from Dogtra, and we stand behind their quality.
Prong Collar
All private lessons and Board & Train pups will be trained using a prong collar.
Don’t be fooled by the look… a prong collar is a safe and effective training tool. Unlike a slip lead, martingale collar, or "choke chain,” all designed to put pressure on your dog's trachea, a prong collar gives soft, evenly distributed pinches to the sides of the neck when pulled against. This was designed to emulate the mother biting him or her on the neck. When used properly in a "pinch and release" method, the dog only receives correction briefly in order to put them back into the heel position for a loose-leash walk.
We only use Herm Sprenger prong collars on all dogs we train. We never use a flat collar, slip lead, harness, martingale collar, or any other means to clip the leash to. Slip leads and martingale collars are designed to put pressure on your dog's trachea which can cause long-term damage. Harnesses are designed to pull (you know, think about sled dogs!). To avoid damaging your dog's throat or encouraging pulling, we strictly use Herm Sprenger prong collars to train leash work.
Part of the owner training is learning how to properly size, put on, and utilize the prong collar. The K-9 Academy purchases Herm Sprenger prong collars, and we stand behind their quality.