[aigel]

You should never have your dog off leash in public. You can have the best trained dog that is super reliable etc. - the wrong unpredictable thing happens, maybe something that never happened before (squirrel, cat, kid jumping in its face, loud noise, scateboard, electric bicycle, guy with a helmet and sunglasses etc. etc.) and the dog can go open loop such as in giving chase (then run over) or biting someone. The only place you should have your dog off leash is in wide open spaces where there is at least some run time to turn it around, fenced dog parks etc. - That said, what you do want is a dog that heels and does never put force on the lead.

I have had several dogs, including hunting dogs and I do think that training collars are a good training tool but they are NOT what should be the center of training. It can't be a crutch. You do not want to be the guy that has a training collar on their dog every time they go out. Dogs also get wise to the collar and will act differently with it on / off.

The key to dog training in my book is establishing the proper relationship between the dog and you and your family. The dog is inferior and needs to know it and be reminded of it constantly by your actions: Only eats when given the command, does not get fed human food or off the table, does not get on furniture, does not ride on the passengers seat, is kenneled when unattended, does move through doors and narrow spaces after the handler, does not jump on people, paw people etc. etc.

Only being consistent will get a hard headed dog to fall in place. You cannot let your guard down and everyone in the family has to be on board.

Hope this helps.

G