Remote Training Systems

Teaching Recall with an E-Collar

Fitting the Collar

Fit the E-Collar snugly so you can just slip one finger between the strap and your dog’s neck. Always attach your long line or retractable lead to your dog’s regular collar or harness — never to the E-Collar itself.

Step 1 – Introducing the Vibrate/Pager

1. Allow your dog to move a short distance away while on the long line.
2. Give your recall command or blow your whistle.
3. At the same time, press and hold the pager/vibrate button.
4. While holding the pager button, gently guide your dog back using the long line.
5. As soon as your dog reaches you, touch your dog and release the pager button.
6. Repeat over the next couple of days.

The dog learns:

• Recall command/whistle → collar vibrates → return to handler → touch stops vibration

Step 2 – Introducing Stimulation as Backup

1. Move to an environment with mild distractions where your dog may ignore the vibration.
2. If the dog doesn’t respond to the pager:
   
• Switch from vibrate to continuous stimulation (stim) until you see a reaction.
• Then return to vibrate.
  
3. Continue guiding the dog back using the long line and stop the vibration when they reach you.

Over time, your dog will associate the vibration with the possibility of stimulation and respond quickly to avoid it.

Step 3 – Reinforcement and Consistency

• Continue using the long line for at least 10 days to ensure the dog fully understands that returning to you turns off the vibration.
• Some dogs may become temporarily “clingy” during early training — this is normal and short-lived.

Why This Works

This method makes it clear that the sensation (vibrate or stim) is coming from you, not from whatever the dog is chasing or interacting with. Without this association, some dogs may think the sensation is caused by the distraction itself — which can increase chasing or aggression.

Additional Uses

Once your dog is conditioned to the E-Collar, you can use it to reinforce corrections for other unwanted behaviours — but always seek professional advice before doing so.