The acts listed below are not part of any humane dog training program, due to their potential to cause lasting harm or severe distress. While these acts by no means represent the mainstream of dog training, they do occur on occasion, with regrettable consequences. It would be a serious omission if this book failed to make some mention of them. The list is not all-inclusive. These acts should never be used in training:
Pain or injury:
Biting a dog; throwing a dog against a solid object, including the floor; sharpening prongs on a prong collar; repeatedly or forcefully hitting a dog with any object to a point of inflicting pain or injury; repeatedly pinching or squeezing sensitive parts of the dog's body using devices, hands or fingers; use of shock on sensitive parts of a dog's body such as the genitals; simultaneous use of multiple electronic collars; using an electronic jacket with shock probes; using a cattle prod.
Asphyxiation:
"Hanging" a dog (lifting dog by leash or collar so that dog's body weight is off the floor and airway is significantly constricted); "helicoptering" a dog (swinging dog through the air at the end of a leash); drowning or near-drowning; choking with hands or arm; pinning a dog on the ground in a manner that causes trouble breathing or any other form of severe distress; forcing or holding anything down a dog's throat that interferes with breathing.
Inappropriate restraint:
Intentional, prolonged social isolation before training, to a point of severe distress; intentionally jerking a dog off his or her feet by allowing the dog to run hard and unknowingly hit the end of the line; food or water deprivation that endangers the dog's well-being; rubbing dog's face in urine or feces.
