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A dog being ecollar smart means the dog knows:
When the ecollar is on, they must do the thing. When the ecollar is not on, doing the thing is optional.
Ideally, we do not train our dogs to learn that doing things we ask of them is optional. So how do we prevent this from happening? There are a few things.
-Put the ecollar on BEFORE you think you will need it. Not once your guests have pulled into your driveway, not once your dog hasn’t recalled back to your once, or after they successfully stole a loaf of bread off the counter. Be proactive. Better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.
-Do not show your dog the remote every time before you press the button. Do not threaten them with ‘don’t make me use the ecollar!” while wiggling the remote. If you need it, use it. You don’t want them to have a negative association with the visual of the ecollar or the remote - that is not the point of using an ecollar. You only want them to know that that specific pressure may be applied to get them to do a thing.
Ok, so say you haven’t used the ecollar for a while for whatever reason and you go to use it and your dog acts confused. To remind them the meaning of the ecollar you will need to recondition it again at the lowest level that gets your dogs attention (most dogs are about a level 5-15 for this level). You may recondition it paired with leash pressure. Or you may recondition it for recall. Ideally, you just keep using it so fully reconditioning the tool is not necessary. If it is, reach out to me so we can schedule a session.