Force Free Bullsh*t

In the dog training community their are trainers who call themselves force free but here’s the catch force free doesn’t exist so what exactly do they mean. Force Free is to train a dog without a conquense for unwanted behavior. Also called positive reinforcement (purely) and reward training. The dog is praised for wanted behavior and nothing happens when the dog does something wrong. Sounds good but in reality it’s not. Force Free is a death sentence for a lot of dogs because it’s very limited. If a dog bites someone there is no consequenses. Runs off, chews up furniture etc you can not correct or yell at your dog because in the force free community that’s cruel. But that’s what you have to do  because every living thing learns by punishmen.  an example of punishment is  A child is about to touch a hot stove. The  parent yells at child to not touch stove it’s hot, kid doesn’t listen and touches the stove kid gets burned. Punishment happens in every day life. Were you ever told no. Oh of course you were.

Management is force 
You may hear you need to Manage your dogs surroundings so he doesn’t get in trouble. Well yes this is correct, but this is force. A leash, a fence, a crate is all force. You are forcing the dog to be in a confined space. 

Operate conditioning 
Is made up of 4 parts 
positive reinforcement-Dog is rewarded
Negative reinforcement-Dog is ignored
Positive punishment- Dog is punished with leash pop, tightening of harness or head collar. 
Negative punishment- pressure is lifted from Dog 

Force free trainers only use the first 2 and in extreme cases number 3 however they make the tools they use seem to be very gentle and harmless, that is far from the truth. 

Tools force free people hate and bash out against

Choke collar - a length of chain or other material with rings at either end such that the collar can be formed into a loop that slips over the dogs head and rests around the top of the dog's neck, just behind the ears. Tightens if the dog pulls but releases when dog is at heel. Must be put on like a p with the tail facing downwards. 


Prong collar-are a series of metal or plastic links that fit together by connecting through blunt prongs that point inward toward the dog's neck. The design of the prong collar incorporates a chain loop connecting the ends of the prong series, the collar sits high on the dogs neck just behind the ears. Applies pressure to dogs neck.  

Shock collars- are electronic training aids developed to deliver a low intensity electrical signal, vibration, tone, or light signal to the dog via the collar. Used primarily as a means of remote communication and widely accepted as a primary tool for the training of deaf and working dogs. applies low electric signal to dog to discourage bad behavior.


Now let’s look at what the force free trainers use for dogs that need punishment 

Head halter-This device fastens around the back of the neck and over the top of the muzzle, giving more control over a dog's direction and the intensity of pulling on a leash than most collars that fit strictly around the neck. Pressure on this type of collar pulls the dog's nose and consequently their head towards the handler.  

No pull harness- rely on a level of discomfort, force and avoidance to alter the dogs behavior. When the dog pulls, a strap within the harness tightens around the torso or in the shoulders applying an uncomfortable pressure on the dog's body which the dog must actively alter the pulling behavior to avoid. 

Martingale collar - similar to a choke collar but is made of two loops and the one loop tightens applying force to the neck of the dog. Can be made of all leather and nylon or leather and nylon with a chain.


I’m not against these tools I use them but I’m sick of people sugar coating them  and saying they are better than the above tools but in reality they do the same thing apply force. 
All dog trainers use positive reinforcement because that’s how you train a dog to do a desired behavior.

(Some) Balanced trainers are the best since they use both reinforcement and punishment but do your research before choosing a dog trainer