If you have read the news article written about this product, then you already know that I am very nervous about this. I see my little dog, a Bichon Frise, through “rose coloured glasses” I’m told, but I do need to stop her welcoming people by jumping up at their cars. The experts at www.dogmaster.com.au who are only a phone call away and have supplied the Petsafe Deluxe remote trainer to me for a “hands on” review, have absolutely assured me that if I follow their instructions religiously, all will be well.
So here goes!
What they say
Features:
• Up to 100 yards range
• 10 levels of continuous correction, easily adjusted from a thumbwheel on the transmitter
• Standard collar is suitable for small to medium size of dogs
• High Output collar is suitable for medium to large size of dogs
• Waterproof collar
• Water-resistant transmitter
• Warning tone or correction options
• Button guards on transmitter to eliminate accidental corrections
• Low Battery Indicator
• Warning Tone
• Static Correction
What we found
Firstly, it’s called the Petsafe Little Dog Training System for a good reason. You get pretty much, no, you seem to get everything except the dog – remote, collar, all batteries and plenty of instructions so you don’t “jump the gun” and start the training incorrectly.
The small and relatively light apparatus that’s on the collar shouldn’t cause a problem for a dog weighing more than 3.6 kgs (8 lbs). It really is small with the dimensions being: length 55mm, depth 28mm, width 23mm and weighs only 72 grams with the collar.
I put it on our little Bichon (Mishca) and she didn’t seem to notice it at all, maybe she thought is was her Christmas pressi. So far so good. I did notice that the braided nylon collar is a bit long and tends to look a bit messy for a really small dog. But hey, we just cut a bit off to shorten it and that fixed the problem. It has a nylon snap connection to make it easy to put on and take off. Don’t think that you have an uncontrolled dog when it goes in the water as the whole dog collar and receiver are waterproof. You only have a problem if you fall in as well as the remote transmitter is weatherproof only. But with a transmission range of 91.4metres (100 yards) you should be able to keep well back.
Speaking of the remote transmitter, that too, is an easy carry weight at 80 grams and is small enough to put on your belt with the supplied clip or carry in a shirt or jeans pocket. The remote has 10 levels of stimulation and both receiver and transmitter are capable of being turned off. Both have low battery warning indicators. You don’t always have to stimulate the dog as there are separate buttons to send tone only to the dog, or send the stimulation. So the designers seem to have it all covered.
We followed instructions and put the “switched off collar” on Mishca for about 5 days only and removed it at night. Then we started in a fenced yard where we could observe her and started the stimulation at the lowest level, very slowly increasing until we could see that she had felt something when we pressed the stimulation button. After that we increased the level by two levels and waited until a poor unsuspecting visitor to arrive in their car and when she jumped up, we said nothing but sent her a message via the collar. She seemed to blame the car for the unpleasant feeling and within 4-5 tests she stopped the annoying trait of jumping up on their car and now waits until they get out and then welcomes them.
Conclusion
Well dubious at first, I am now converted. It was a simple and efficient procedure to eradicate a behavioral trait in our little friend that clearly annoyed us and our visitors. The product is efficient and robust and does everything it is supposed to. At a RRP of $279 Aud, it is a cheap solution to dog pandemonium and the human stress levels that accompany it.
