I can't get a collar on my dog.

Good news, the collar is on!

No, we didn't have to hold her down. However, my husband tricked her, and she doesn't look very trusting right now.

She came over to greet me this morning and he quickly put it on while I was petting her. She yelped but he got it on and she ran right in her crate. I feel terrible.

I got her to come out once to take her outside, but then she ran right back in the crate. Usually she is out around the house with me, laying by my feet and trying to steal food (bad dog). Now she's laying with her head down, giving me sad puppy eyes. []

It isn't like it hurt her. She's just so frightened.

I called and left a message for a behaviorist my vet recommended. She left a message back and I just did not like her tone of voice. Is that terrible? She sounded cranky and not very personable. I know it's just a voicemail but I want someone upbeat. So I found a woman online that has recommendations I read. I think I will call her. I liked what she wrote on her site. My vet recommended one more but he's a man, and she is really much better with women (as am I!).

Wish us luck. Maybe I should wait a few days before bringing her over and traumatizing Trixie even more??

While you wait, why not start building a relationship with her now? Use one word (if you don't have a definitive noise maker, like the clicker) and get her thinking and working with you differently.
 
Say "Yes!" and give her a treat, even while she's in her crate. It will start to make her happier and before too long, she'll come out. Say "Yes!" as you walk toward the door (or if she does) and toss her a treat.
 
Things like that.
 
Good the collar is on. It's not the e-collar, though, right?

I don't balme you for wanting to go with a different behavorlist based on the tone of voice.  You want to be confortable along with your dog.  Your feelings toward certain situtation can be detected by your dog and make her feel unconfortable as well.  I know you want this problem solved right away but it's just as important to find the right person to help you get there.

nfowler - no, it's not the e collar - thank God! We haven't put that on her since the first shock when she wouldn't go outside for anything.

Thanks so much everyone for your kind words. She did finally come out of the crate, at least for a bit of time, but she is still hanging her head down low and looks mopey.

Let her mope but don't try and comfort her when you think she is mopping. If she perks up for a second that is when you want to give affection. Leave a leash on her in the house when you are together and if you don't like the way she is acting lead her away. Just take the leash turn and walk so she has to follow, it sends a message and changes her thought process.

If she growls when you try to take a bone away why do you keep giving her bones? You are setting her up to fail.

If you didn't like the persons voice I don't blame you for looking for someone else. I hate when I don't trust my instincts and usually regret it later. Seeking proffesional help is what you should be doing, it's too bad you didn't get someone to introduce the dog to the e-fence but that's water under the bridge.

Good luck.

One of the problems might be that you didn't condition your dog to the collar before she was corrected with it.  Conditioning your dog to any collar is very important.  To condition your dog to a collar, put it on and take it off her several times a day for two weeks. Do this with any other collars you have as well.  Take them off, put them on, put them both on at the same time.  Mark putting the collar on with a treat and taking the collar off with a treat.  During the two weeks, don't correct her with the collar at all.  The idea is that after all the taking off and putting on of the different collars you use, after the two weeks your dog will think nothing of you putting on the fence collar and she won't think it's the collar that is giving the correction.   Hope this makes sense.  This conditioning works with any type of collar.   Also, be careful with invisible fences.  Remember that they don't keep other dogs out of your yard.   Nothing beats a REAL fence for your yard!!
  

IMO, you should trash the idea of an e-fence with this dog.  You are way behind the 8-ball trying to train her, which, incidentally, you should have done while she was small, since now she is afraid of you and doesn't trust you.  How desperately sad for her.  I doubt she is trying to be your boss.  I think she simply has no idea what you want of her, and is afraid you will either hurt her or take her stuff.  Go to class for gosh sakes!!!!
www.clickertraining.com

Just a quick question - was she ever corrected on a collar or hit the end of a lead hard while wearing a collar? I'm wondering if this may not be all psychological, but rather have a basis in true pain given her yelp even when "tricked" into wearing it and her extreme reactions. Infected ears can also result in sensitivity w/ movement and touch around the neck/head.

If this were my dog, I'd have a full vet check of her neck and ears, possibly even visit a doggie chiropractor.

ORIGINAL: richard_dragin
If she growls when you try to take a bone away why do you keep giving her bones? You are setting her up to fail.

Why would you take away her toys? What the dog needs is a clear concise leader, which obviously she isn't getting right now. The dog is currently unhappy and fearful and taking more things away from her isn't going to solve any problems. This dog needs a behavorist NOW. Find one you feel comfortable with and stick with him/her. At this point I don't think I would care if it was male or female as long as the dog is getting some interaction.

You definitely have some trust issues with your dog.  This dog does not see you as a leader, or as a provider of resources.  The first thing you should add to your training repertoire is NILIF: Nothing in Life is Free.  If your dog wants anything at all (attention, outside, playtime, treat, dinner, etc) she has to sit, down or perform another behavior that you ask for. 

This is a great first step towards becoming trusted by your dog. 

Desensitizing to the collar is another issue.  Expose the collar to your dog without forcing it on her.  As she's getting brushed have it nearby.  Don't restrain her or make her feel trapped.  Have a treat in one hand and the collar in the other.  Sit, Treat, good .  Move on.  If she won't sit because she sees the collar, try upping the ante with a higher value treat.  Keep everything as positive as you can.  Allow your dog to come up to the collar, resist the temptation to take the collar to her.

I think that's alot of work, just in those two areas.  It's not going to happen overnight.  In the meantime try the harness to walk her with. 

Hope this helps.

ORIGINAL: stardog85

Just a quick question - was she ever corrected on a collar or hit the end of a lead hard while wearing a collar? I'm wondering if this may not be all psychological, but rather have a basis in true pain given her yelp even when "tricked" into wearing it and her extreme reactions. Infected ears can also result in sensitivity w/ movement and touch around the neck/head.

If this were my dog, I'd have a full vet check of her neck and ears, possibly even visit a doggie chiropractor.

Try re-reading the first sentence of the original post of this thread.

ORIGINAL: skeletor

ORIGINAL: richard_dragin
If she growls when you try to take a bone away why do you keep giving her bones? You are setting her up to fail.

Why would you take away her toys? ..........

Did you think this question through? Why would you even ask it?

ORIGINAL: richard_dragin

ORIGINAL: skeletor

ORIGINAL: richard_dragin
If she growls when you try to take a bone away why do you keep giving her bones? You are setting her up to fail.

Why would you take away her toys? ..........

Did you think this question through? Why would you even ask it?

Actually it's a good question.  If you make a habit of taking toys and treats away, it can make a distrustful dog even more distrustful.  So why add that type of negative experience to your dog's life.  When you read the original post you didn't see that there are trust issues here?

In an ideal world you should be able to take away toys, bones, birds, rabbits, squirrels, filet mignons and bicycles from your dog.  In my world I use the word "drop" and let my dog determine that the reward he'll get for dropping is better than whatever reward he has already.

If I had said "take away the bone" it would be a good question but it was in response to me asking "why do you keep giving her bones" which makes it as out of left field as your response.

Since you brought it up you can make the dog decide to give something up with your attitude, body language and an audible sound. It let's the dog know you are the dominate one, it doesn't require you to take something or even touch the dog, and it doesn't create mistrust. The top dog owns everything and dogs understand that and are fine with it. It's impossible to describe over the Internet but a behaviorist I know showed me how to do it. I am not nearly as effective at it as he is but, I am learning.

Richard, if you'd read my post a bit more carefully you might notice that I'm talking about skeletal/muscle damage, not psychological damage - thus the first sentence of the original post would not matter; I know the dog recieved an ecollar shock, but what I was concerned about was physical correction, etc. that caused an undetected injury to the dog's neck in addition to the problems caused by the shock.