The answer
Not until the dog knows the word. That is the trainers' answer in more than a dozen households, and they explain it with two stages they name on film: escape and avoidance. The analogy recurs almost word for word at Baxter's, Lucy's, Thor's and Max's lessons: if I pinch you, you move away - you escape it - but you don't take out a restraining order. If I punch you in the face, you avoid me for good. A dog who does not yet know what a command means should only ever meet the pinch, with the leash showing him the way out, because he cannot avoid something he does not know how to turn off. Pressure he cannot understand or escape, Stormy's trainer says, just sends him into a panic.
So the order on film is: teach the word first with lighter help - a lure, a flat-collar tug, leash guidance - then let the collar join at a low level while he learns that complying turns it off, and only once he knows the answer raise it to a level he is motivated to avoid. Akira's trainer will not use the collar on her recall until she is 'fluent' in it; Neo's trainer catches himself going too early on the down and goes back to luring 'and then I can actually start using the e-collar to reinforce it'; Baxter's owner is told to use it on come only once she is confident he knows exactly what come means - and not at all if he answers the word. A new 'middle' for Roofus is guided on the flat collar with no e-collar because 'he doesn't know it'.
The second half matters as much as the first. Once a dog knows a command, the trainers say you must move from escape to avoidance or you end up nagging: the dog stops pulling for a second and goes straight back to it, because he was only escaping. Callie's pulling survived for exactly that reason. A nag is defined by what it does, not by the number on the dial. The same two levels are applied to behaviour at home - Kalypso's growling at people, explained with a child told to put an iPad away: pressure that makes the dog stop now is not the pressure that makes him stop choosing it.
One trainer on film takes a different line on the first step: at Madam's session a senior trainer layers the collar at a low level over the down 'almost immediately', because layering early gets to off-leash control faster. Both approaches keep the level low while the dog is learning; they differ on how soon the collar joins.
Said on film: the two stages, the pinch and punch analogy, the rule to withhold the collar until the word is known, the move to avoidance on known commands, and the nagging diagnosis. Inferred here: that the 'layer early' preference and the 'wait until fluent' rule are reconcilable because both keep the collar at an escape level during teaching; no trainer says so.
What to do
Use the collar only on a command your dog already knows - one he does when you help him lightly (watch 06:18; watch 10:18). While he is still learning, keep it at the level where he just notices, and let the leash show him where to go (watch 00:11; watch 12:05). If he answers the word, leave the button alone (watch 15:36). Once he knows the command, correct at a level that makes him avoid the mistake next time, not one that just stops him for a second - judge it by what he does afterwards, not by the number (watch 27:15, 27:50).
What the trainers say
Escape, I come up and I pinch you a little bit
We want escape, where he's motivated to escape that feeling, but he can't avoid it yet because he doesn't know how.
right now he felt that one but it didn't move him to any kind of action it doesn't mean anything so you have to attach action to the word first
Yep. If he responds without the button, then you're good.
reinforcement once a dog already knows a thing you move you have to move from escape to avoidance
the same thing what happens is we end up nagging them nag nag nag nag nag nag nag and unfortunately
You want him to just not do it at that second, you do escape level pressure.
But if you want him to avoid it in the future, you have to raise the level of the punishment.
that you're motivated to escape and pressure that you are motivated to avoid there's a big
Because he's motivated to escape that amount of pressure, but he'll go back to pulling he's not motivated to avoid that
as long as it's enough to get them to escape the pressure they want to escape it but then we want to teach them to avoid it
that's a problem if they don't know why it's happening and they don't know how to escape it that just sends them into a panic
different if they don't know a thing you can't teach them that way at avoidance levels but you
to escape well then it'll be like oh ow big pressure she wants to avoid right so we move from escape to avoidance
fluent enough in the command for me to start doing reinforcement with the e-collar so it was
he probably just doesn't know the word yet so jumped the gun a little bit on that
escape to avoidance and put a little bit more pressure on it so that he knows he
It's more about avoidance now instead of escape.
away and you don't put pressure on them without giving them a chance first yeah because when you reinforce it you're reinforcing it for the next round
Yeah, because it's better for me to layer the e-collar over early than it is late.
How it looks, dog by dog
Baxter
Baxter's file has the fullest version, taught to the owner at home over two private lessons (27 May and 24 June 2026). At the first, with Baxter amped on ball play, the trainer tests the collar and explains why he wants only a small reaction: escape, not avoidance, because Baxter does not yet know how to turn it off; the pinch and the punch. A month later, walking the family's other dog Tyson, he adds the kitchen analogy - a shock you don't understand in your own kitchen, and someone showing you the door - to explain why the leash guides while the collar presses, and says a collar tap that moves the dog to nothing means nothing until action is attached to the word. The owner is then told to use the collar on Baxter's come only once she is confident he knows it, and not to use it when he answers the word.
On film
If I hold off and punch you as hard as I can in the face, you call the police, you file a restraining order.
So we teach him how to escape it first, and then he learns, oh, that's how you escape it, and then you teach him how to avoid it.
that just like in the example I gave of you in your kitchen you don't know what
will run to me yeah as long as he knows as long as you're confident that he knows exactly that
Yep. If he responds without the button, then you're good.
Akira
On Akira's day-two hike (April 2026) Kelton finds the level she can feel and then says it will not be used on her recall until she is fluent in the command; flat-collar tugs carry the teaching. The down is the exception that shows the rule's edge: after a long run of alternatives, a low collar level is added to stop her other strategies working, and the release to freedom comes the instant she lies down.
On film
fluent enough in the command for me to start doing reinforcement with the e-collar so it was
so again no e collar no nothing there just a couple little doot doot doot doot on the flat
bit of pressure with the e-collar on a low level see if that helps down just to stop some of the
Neo
Neo's trainer diagnoses his own mistake on camera in a busy public place: he went too early with the down cue, Neo probably does not know the word yet, so he will keep luring him into it until he does, and only then use the collar to reinforce it.
On film
he probably just doesn't know the word yet so jumped the gun a little bit on that
and then I can actually start using the e-collar to reinforce it.
Roofus
On day three the trainer layers the collar at a very low level onto the down he already does, so it can be reinforced off leash. On day five he introduces a new 'middle' position guided only on the flat collar, and says the collar is not being used on it because Roofus does not know it yet.
On film
the e-collar there on a very low level so that we can reliably reinforce the down off leash
rufus good middle oh good job so this is just for pressure on the flat car i'm not using the
Callie
Callie's file names the two stages from both sides. Her early days use markers and praise only; 'nope' and 'ah-ah' come once she knows the commands, with an exception for reacting to a dog in public. On a two-dog walk the lead trainer diagnoses why her pulling persisted: she had been taught to escape the correction, but it was never strong enough to make her avoid it. On the down, by contrast, escape is the goal: after a long run of cues she downs on the collar alone, 'she's learned how to escape it', and later downs with no reinforcement at all.
On film
okay or nope nope was usually introduced later on when she knows the commands and
You she was only being taught to escape it
But it wasn't strong enough for her to want to avoid it
it looks very good much better and she's learned how to escape it so she's able to do the down now
Stormy
At Stormy's third private lesson (March 2026) the trainer sets out the two stages as the logic of the whole leash curriculum: at first just enough pressure that she wants to escape it and learns how; once she knows, the grace goes down and the consequence goes up so she avoids the mistake altogether. Pressure she cannot understand or escape sends a dog into a panic, which is also why he does not say 'down' while teaching it with pressure. Owners who stay soft get repeat pulling, because the escape is too easy to bother avoiding.
On film
as long as it's enough to get them to escape the pressure they want to escape it but then we want to teach them to avoid it
is that higher level of punishment will teach them now to avoid doing that ever entirely
well what happens is then they will always go back to it because they know that they can just escape it pretty easily
the grace that you're giving to them goes down and then the pressure goes higher if they do the thing because they know about it
Lucy
At Lucy's in-home evaluation the trainer gives the owner the pinch and the punch, then the rule: once a dog knows a thing you have to move from escape to avoidance, or you end up nagging - and a nag is defined by its effect, not by the setting on the dial. He stresses that one or two clear events only suit something the dog already knows and has been blowing off, and sets the recall homework on that basis: because Lucy knows 'here', a sharp correction will be clear to her rather than panicking her.
On film
but you won't like take a restraining order however if i cocked back and punched you as hard
reinforcement once a dog already knows a thing you move you have to move from escape to avoidance
they already know right because like that's not a good way to teach a dog right if i'm starting with
is that she if she doesn't if she's not clear on what the word here means then she'll just panic
Max (Goldendoodle)
At Max's go-home walk Kelton gives the owner the same analogy and applies it to pulling: at an escape level Max stops for a second and goes back to it; at an avoidance level he stops and is less likely to pull next time. Because every command has already been taught, the owner should use avoidance levels and judge them by Max's reaction, not the number.
On film
difference between the two and they matter so very often people will they'll go uh-uh and it works
so it's very important that for all the commands that we've taught him that you use avoidance
way you know the number doesn't mean much of anything right it's only the reaction if their
Thor
Thor's record uses the vocabulary twice. In an evening session at the facility the trainer marks the phase change: the commands are known, so 'it's more about avoidance now instead of escape'. At the go-home, Kelton gives the family the pinch and punch for the home: escape-level pressure stops a behaviour at that second; if you want him to avoid it in the future you have to raise the level.
On film
to get into the avoidance phase for these commands.
Right. So the level of discomfort that makes you escape something might not be
But if you want him to avoid it in the future, you have to raise the level of the punishment.
Kalypso
Kalypso's file names the progression three times. At her third private lesson (March 2026) Kelton wants only a small 'what was that' reaction while the collar is being layered - the jump belongs later, when she knows everything - and says proofing moves her from escape to avoidance. In a board-and-train session the trainer states the dilemma: known commands need some avoidance level for reliability, but she vocalises, so the level comes down when needed. At a follow-up after she went home, the same distinction is applied to growling at people, through the iPad analogy: a child who puts it away to escape the moment takes it down again; a week without it changes the next choice.
On film
yeah that was it she was like the hell was that okay um and that's because see like when you're first kind of like layering it on that's all you want to see you don't want to see oh right you want to see the jumping you only want to see that later in the process when she knows everything
to escape well then it'll be like oh ow big pressure she wants to avoid right so we move from escape to avoidance
I do have to start using some kind of avoidance level for known commands like
It's the difference between escaping
Bane
At a home follow-up for Bane, a protection-trained mastiff, the trainer tells the owner to proof the down-stay at an avoidance level, judged by effect rather than number, and draws the line plainly: you can't teach a dog something at avoidance levels, but you can proof it there. Stimming a dog hard for something he does not understand is the mistake he names.
On film
different if they don't know a thing you can't teach them that way at avoidance levels but you
can proof it at avoidance levels okay um so i want you to work on that like with like him in a down
if you're like if they don't know they don't understand yeah and you stem them like that
Brody
On Brody's second walk the trainer judges that Brody now knows the down and says aloud that it is time to change from escape to avoidance - a little more pressure so he knows he has to down - expecting that very soon no pressure will be needed. He layers the collar into the down and notes Brody learns to turn collar pressure off the same way he turns off leash pressure.
On film
down good boy so since he I think he knows it now I just need to change from
escape to avoidance and put a little bit more pressure on it so that he knows he
good boy oh he learns that he turns the ecog pressure off the same way he turns off any other
Lucia
On Lucia's first day a staff member coaches her handler on the leash version of the rule: with a dog who knows nothing yet, do not arbitrarily lock the leash and pressure her; give the cue ('let's go') and a chance first, because whatever you reinforce, you reinforce for the next round.
On film
To make sure that you don't like artificially like arbitrarily just lock the leash and
away and you don't put pressure on them without giving them a chance first yeah because when you reinforce it you're reinforcing it for the next round
Madam
Madam's file carries the counter-position. A senior trainer coaching her handler at a park layers the collar at a low level over the down in the same session the down first comes off physical help, saying it can be layered almost immediately and that layering early rather than late gets closer to off-leash control faster.
On film
because you can layer it over almost immediately
Because if you get the e-collar layered over early, that gets you to where you're closer to off-leash control faster.
Why it works
As the trainers explain it: a dog cannot avoid what he does not know how to turn off. The first stage teaches the answer - a low level he is motivated to escape, with the leash giving direction, since the collar itself says nothing about where to go (Baxter, Bane). Once he knows the answer, a level he is motivated to avoid makes him answer the word before anything arrives; stay at the escape level and he keeps making the mistake, because escaping is cheap (Stormy, Max, Lucy). Pressure without a known escape produces panic, not learning (Stormy; Lucy's 'she'll just panic' if the word is unclear). The collar, in Baxter's trainer's words, means nothing until an action is attached to a word. Inferred, not stated: that the rule also protects the word itself - a command corrected before the dog knows it comes to predict pressure - which is the argument in command-marker-collar rather than here.
On film
kind of snap him out of it because the e-collar it doesn't provide direction on where or what to do
well what happens is then they will always go back to it because they know that they can just escape it pretty easily
right now he felt that one but it didn't move him to any kind of action it doesn't mean anything so you have to attach action to the word first
Where the trainers differ
Avoidance level against a vocal dog
One view
Known commands need avoidance-level pressure
On film
I do have to start using some kind of avoidance level for known commands like
Another view
Lower it when this dog vocalises
On film
change in between I didn't change it I'm gonna turn it down …
How to read it
Kalypso's trainer says known commands need an avoidance level for reliability, and in the same breath turns the level down because she vocalises. The file does not say how the two were balanced later.
Common owner mistakes
- Staying at the escape level on a known command: the dog stops for a second and goes straight back to it, and the owner ends up nagging.
On film
difference between the two and they matter so very often people will they'll go uh-uh and it works
Watch at 25:17 ↗ the same thing what happens is we end up nagging them nag nag nag nag nag nag nag and unfortunately
Watch at 11:35 ↗ - Soft handling that keeps the escape easy, so the pulling always comes back.
On film
well what happens is then they will always go back to it because they know that they can just escape it pretty easily
Watch at 13:20 ↗ - Using the collar before the dog knows the word - including a trainer's own admitted mistake of going too early.
On film
happening there i think uh tried to go a little too early with him on the down i think frankly he probably just doesn't know the word yet so jumped the gun a little bit on that
Watch at 5:40 ↗ - Locking the leash and pressuring a dog who has not been taught anything yet, instead of giving the cue and a chance.
On film
To make sure that you don't like artificially like arbitrarily just lock the leash and
Watch at 0:17 ↗
Questions owners ask
Can I use the e-collar to teach a new command?
The trainers say no. A new command is taught with lighter help - a lure, a flat-collar tug, the leash showing the way - and the collar joins only when the dog knows the word. Bane's trainer puts it most plainly: you can't teach a dog something at avoidance levels, but you can proof it there.
On film
different if they don't know a thing you can't teach them that way at avoidance levels but you
and then I can actually start using the e-collar to reinforce it.
What is the difference between escape and avoidance?
The trainers' analogy: if I pinch you, you move away - you escape it - but you don't file a restraining order. If I punch you in the face, you avoid me for good. Escape-level pressure stops the behaviour for the moment; avoidance-level pressure changes what the dog chooses next time.
On film
Escape, I come up and I pinch you a little bit
You want him to just not do it at that second, you do escape level pressure.
My dog stops when I correct him but goes straight back to it. Why?
Kelton's answer to Max's owner: he was motivated to escape that amount of pressure, not to avoid it. On a command he already knows, use a level that makes him avoid it, and judge it by his reaction rather than the number.
On film
Because he's motivated to escape that amount of pressure, but he'll go back to pulling he's not motivated to avoid that
way you know the number doesn't mean much of anything right it's only the reaction if their
If my dog comes when I call, do I still use the collar?
No. Baxter's owner is told to use it on come only once she is sure he knows it, and that if he responds without the button, she is good.
On film
Yep. If he responds without the button, then you're good.
The lesson
The goal
The handler can tell whether a command is known, keeps the collar at an escape level (with leash guidance) while it is being learned, and moves to an avoidance level, judged by the dog's reaction, once it is known.
Learn first
The drill
[object Object]
Watch out for
- Using the collar to teach a word the dog does not know yet.
- Never moving from escape to avoidance on a known command, and nagging.
- Judging the level by the number instead of the dog's reaction.
- Using the collar when the dog has already answered the word.
Check yourself
Your dog has known 'come' for weeks. You tap the collar when he ignores it, he turns for a second, then goes back to sniffing. What does that tell you, and what changes?