Last Updated on December, 2024

Is your dog aggressive towards other dogs or people? Perhaps they’ve acted aggressively in the past, making you hesitant to allow them out. 

As a first step, it’s crucial to figure out what’s causing your dog to behave aggressively. Fear, frustration, prey drive, or pain can all cause dogs to express aggressive behavior when they’re guarding territory, resources, or a family member.

A dog may be pushed too far in any of these scenarios and can swiftly switch from reactive, fearful, or guarding behaviors to aggressive.

But how exactly do you keep your dog from developing aggressive behavior? 

Sometimes it takes a little bit of extra help from equipment to training aggressive dogs to keep them from harming people, other animals, and themselves.

The shock collar is the most powerful and effective dog training equipment to stop bad behaviors in dogs and trigger them to react appropriately. 

Dog behavior is a response to internal and external stimuli. Shock collars, also known as remote collars, are specially designed to get your dog’s attention using external stimuli.

An electric current passes through the metal leash inside the collar that shocks an electric impulse, giving the dog a command signal. Here are 10 hacks on how to train an aggressive dog using a shock collar.

How Can We Use a Shock Collar to Train Aggressive Dogs?

1. Know Your Collar Training Techniques

First, familiarize yourself with all of the shock collar’s intensity levels, modes, and techniques. You can test the shock collar by putting it on your arm and checking the vibration, electric shock, and intensity settings before using it on the dog.

These will allow you to quickly determine which types of vibrations or intensity are the most comfortable for your dog. 

2. Begin With Boundary Training

Introducing the dog to the shock collar is our first goal. To accomplish this, you must first conduct boundary training. Use the long leash and direct your dog to reach the end of the line with the least amount of distraction. 

Remember not to use the vibration of the shock collar as a punishment when delivering boundary training. Remember that the shock collar vibration mode should only trigger the dog’s behavior.

3. Combine Positive Reinforcement With The E-Collar

It is critical to provide instant feedback when you see a gradual improvement. If your aggressive dog follows your commands, reward it for keeping it happy and consistent.

Yet, you don’t need to discontinue boundary training; you can continue to provide boundary training using a shock collar. 

After completing the basic training, you’ll need to provide additional training with other commands, such as sitting and stopping. 

Remember that the shock collar can only stimulate the dog’s behavior, not punish him. 

Check out this video to know about the e-collar used as positive reinforcement:

4. Analyze Your Dog’s Body Language to Recognize Aggressive Behavior

When the dog’s head goes down, and you hear a growl, please don’t run from it. It’s natural for it to feel threatened because of the collar, so make a quick analysis on how the dog reacts to the E-collar.

If it becomes more aggressive when using an e-collar, it’s essential to start at the lowest intensity available until the dog complies, do not overuse it. 

5. Interrupt Aggressive Behavior With The Vibrate Function

While many of you wonder how to train an aggressive dog with a shock collar, to accomplish this, you must use the shock collar’s vibrating mode when your dog displays aggressive behavior by biting the leash or collar for barking. 

Use the vibrating feature only when your dog is biting or barks at other dogs, family members, and others.

To achieve desired behavior, you must do this training consistently, daily. 

6. Reintroduce Treats As Soon As the Behavior Improves

Your dog will realize aggressive responses such as growling, ears back, gazing, and so on aren’t acceptable after a few rounds of vibration training.

Reward your dog with a treat and praise as soon as they exhibit positive behavior, such as not snarling when confronted by other dogs or people. 

7. Continue With Obedience Training

So right about now, you can take your dog to a dog park or public park and let it interact with new things, keep the collar on it, so it knows it’s not supposed to be aggressive towards other dogs or people. 

8. Continue to Learn

What’s the best way to calm an aggressive dog? It’s challenging to train an aggressive dog with a shock collar, constantly learning new tactics and commands to rectify your dog’s aggressive behavior. 

9. Collaborate With Other Dog Owners

Dealing with an aggressive dog can be exhausting. Get a few of your friend’s dogs or neighbor’s dogs to interact with yours. Learn new techniques from others in the community. 

Be lucid towards the ideas and reasonings of others on shock collars, and you can let your dog go off the collar so it could now learn to be less aggressive without the collar.

10. Kudos to You!

Happy trails. Enjoy your time with your dog while it runs free without any hassle and while you sit back and relax or as you go for those morning jogs. 

Dog training can be a very frustrating process. However, it is highly rewarding for your dog once you complete it. By following the above few steps, you will accomplish your goal. 

Will the Shock Collar Help Train Aggressive Dogs?

Fortunately, YES! The aggressive behaviors can be fixed, but as mentioned, only if it’s used properly under the steps mentioned above. 

Don’t be aggressive towards your dog, and it will only worsen. It takes patience and time to get an aggressive dog to be calmer. But it is still the only humane way to train an untrainable dog. 

Remember that each dog is unique. Sometimes an aggressive dog complies only if a big shock is given. Sometimes a mild vibrate would be enough to make it stop. Therefore, know your training method, the capacities of the collar, and your dog. 

Recommended to read: Training shock collar for large dogs

How Effective Is An E-Collar In Treating Dog Aggression?

Are you looking for an “easy fix” for your dog’s aggressive behavior? E-collar is the most effective training tool for training aggressive dogs. Shock collars are useful for dog training when the voice commands are no longer effective.

Some may disagree with me because it’s widely debated whether E-collars cause unnecessary pain and suffering to dogs when used with aversive stimulation and whether using an E-collar by a poorly trained or inexperienced dog owner can cause anxiety in dogs.

After all, shock administration is unpredictable and alters stress responses. 

And that’s why using e-collars in conjunction with a positive reward system promotes desired dog behavior.

That’s not all. E-collar training differs from conventional dog training methods, which do not allow a trainer to observe and control a dog’s behavior if they aren’t present. As a consequence, dog aggression can be controlled from a distance given off-leash. 

E-collars promote a dog’s confidence, well-being, safety off-leash, and in various circumstances when used correctly by professional trainers. 

Seek help for highly rewarding obedience training!

Do Shock Collar Causes Aggression?

Collars cause aggression – no matter what kind of collar it may be, a choke collar, a prong collar, or a shock collar. 

And the apparent reason for this kind of counter-reaction of aggression over the collar is because the dog starts to feel anxious, fearful, nervous, rage, or even due to trauma.

Your dog’s aggression may not reside at all. The unpredictable application of shock influences may influence stress responses and lead to aggression issues. 

Why do you think following a set training and rewarding your dog after every “Good behavior” moment is essential?

Whenever a dog feels mentally cornered with all the emotions mentioned above, it results in an aggressive moment between you and your dog, which may break the bond between the two of you and eliminate even the slightest chances for you to control your dog to get back on track. 

Worth reading: Will a Shock Collar Stop a Dog Fight?

Pros and Cons Of E-Collars

Get the best shock collars specifically made for aggressive dogs.

FAQs

How Long Does Your Dog Need a Shock Collar?

Leading dog trainers say that with consistent, day-to-day training, you’ll get there in time. But always be patient with your dog. 

You’ll come across things you never knew or heard of, like simple prods that will help you control your dog while using the shock collar, but we’d give it a month for a dog to receive proper training to maintain its aggressive behavior.

But at the end of the day, it’s going to be just you and your dog. So if you ever decide to use a shock collar, whichever way you want to use it, try using it at a mild shock.

If the dog is overly stubborn, give it a little surprise but keep it to a minimum, you don’t want your dog to go against you. 

Give a treat every time you see your dog is improving in controlling its aggression. Ask for expert opinions, and follow a set training path so you won’t hurt your dog or yourself while training. 

As a final note, make sure your dog wears the shock collar properly, so it knows the consequences of being aggressive.