Bonniebank Posted October 29, 2011 Share Posted October 29, 2011 Not sure if I'm in the right sub-forum so WILL MOVE IF ADVISED. I know that some places in the USA use live snakes and shock collars to train dogs to avoid snakes. We had 3 of our dogs bitten last year and thankfully, they survived with anti-venom. We ALWAYS put the dogs in the house if both OH and I have to go out so that if they are bitten, we know and can get them to the vet. Just wondering if anyone knows of any snake avoidance training methods or anyone who teaches it in NSW????? Also, any hints or ideas are most gratefully accepted. Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted October 29, 2011 Share Posted October 29, 2011 K9pro do this I think. www.k9pro.com.au Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheena Posted October 29, 2011 Share Posted October 29, 2011 (edited) Not sure if I'm in the right sub-forum so WILL MOVE IF ADVISED. I know that some places in the USA use live snakes and shock collars to train dogs to avoid snakes. We had 3 of our dogs bitten last year and thankfully, they survived with anti-venom. We ALWAYS put the dogs in the house if both OH and I have to go out so that if they are bitten, we know and can get them to the vet. Just wondering if anyone knows of any snake avoidance training methods or anyone who teaches it in NSW????? Also, any hints or ideas are most gratefully accepted. Thanks in advance. Don't know of any trainers, but you could get hold of some realistic rubber snakes & teach your dogs to "leave it"...might be a start. What would be good, would be someone invent a realistic looking rubber snake & have it battery operated/remote controlled, so it moves & when touched it gives an electric shock. Any good inventers out there, I reckon it would be a good seller ETA Charley gets snake trained Edited October 29, 2011 by sheena Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weasels Posted October 30, 2011 Share Posted October 30, 2011 Don't know of any trainers, but you could get hold of some realistic rubber snakes & teach your dogs to "leave it"...might be a start. What would be good, would be someone invent a realistic looking rubber snake & have it battery operated/remote controlled, so it moves & when touched it gives an electric shock. Any good inventers out there, I reckon it would be a good seller ETA Charley gets snake trained I love this idea, I would definitely buy this. I'm generally a bit wary about using shocks on dogs but avoiding the dangers of a snakebite are definitely worth a quick shock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheena Posted October 30, 2011 Share Posted October 30, 2011 (edited) Don't know of any trainers, but you could get hold of some realistic rubber snakes & teach your dogs to "leave it"...might be a start. What would be good, would be someone invent a realistic looking rubber snake & have it battery operated/remote controlled, so it moves & when touched it gives an electric shock. Any good inventers out there, I reckon it would be a good seller ETA Charley gets snake trained I love this idea, I would definitely buy this. I'm generally a bit wary about using shocks on dogs but avoiding the dangers of a snakebite are definitely worth a quick shock. I have put it in the hands of my very clever genius of a sister who is always looking for a challenge...but I wouldn't hold my breath. I was also thinking, why not use one of those static mats & put the rubber snake on it...dog goes towards snake & puts foot on mat gets a static shock. Problem is, I guess the rubber snake would trigger the static shock, being on top of it. ETA.... I just got a reply from her to say she is already working on the idea....if anybody could do it, she can...she is a very clever sister in the fields of electronics & sensors Edited October 30, 2011 by sheena Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weasels Posted October 30, 2011 Share Posted October 30, 2011 Keen to hear how she goes with it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
di_dee1 Posted October 30, 2011 Share Posted October 30, 2011 VERY interested in this idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erinonthefarm Posted October 30, 2011 Share Posted October 30, 2011 Great Idea Sheena, tell your sister to put me down for one when she makes one :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flame ryder Posted October 30, 2011 Share Posted October 30, 2011 Weird I had this exact same thought today while walking the dogs. Was wondering if one could use a real live (non venomous) snake? My daughter has a Darwin Python who is young and can be quite snappy...it got me thinking. And yes I've thought about the rubber snake idea too. Eager to see others thoughts on this idea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 (edited) Steve Austin does with his detection dogs at Pet Resorts Australia, and the only way to truly proof them is with an e-collar. Difference between rubber snake and a real one. Considering a dog goes on movement they may still investigate a basking/hidden snake as they have not learned to avoid the smell too. Edited October 31, 2011 by Nekhbet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzy82 Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 I'd like to have my dogs snake trained, if anyone knows anyone on Brisbane who does it I'd love to know. Does anyone ever cane toad train their dogs? Because that seems just as useful to me, and around here we have loads more cane toads than snakes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonniebank Posted October 31, 2011 Author Share Posted October 31, 2011 Thanks everyone for all your advice and support. Hopefully, this is a topic that interests other dog owners too. Thank you Aussielover. I think I read something about K9Pro when I was researching snake avoidance on the net. Will check them out. Hiya Sheena. Bought a rubber “red bellied black” some time ago but unfortunately, my dogs aren’t easily fooled. I clicked on “Charlie Gets Snake Trained” but it doesn’t open?? If your sister ever develops and markets something, I think I may be her first customer so please PM me if she does. What’s a static mat? Hey Weasels, I would invest in this too. Better the dog get a small shock than a deadly snake bite! I’m thinking of maybe trying one of the collars like Innotek. We also get a lot of brown Shinglebacks here so I could maybe train the dogs on them (not allowing the dogs to hurt them of course) and then hopefully, they will associate the same training if they come across ANY reptile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonniebank Posted October 31, 2011 Author Share Posted October 31, 2011 I found some training clips on UTube. I guess some are good and some are bad but worth having a look. Wow, just the sound of those rattlesnakes gives me goosebumps. I hate this time of the year. Every stick and piece of bark I see I expect it to move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonniebank Posted October 31, 2011 Author Share Posted October 31, 2011 This one seems pretty good and appears to be serious training. All I need now is someone to tape up a snakes mouth for me to stop anyone being bitten. :rolleyes: I guess you could get the same results using a freshly killed snake (if one was to find a freshly killed one) or a snake that isn't venomous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzy82 Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 (edited) Her timing is awful though. The dog at 2:50 was all over the snake, and it was only when it was already pulling away that she stimmed it and the dog started yelping. But yea, that's pretty much how the video further up shows it as well, let them wander up to the snake on their own, then stim them and let them think the snake did it to them. Edited October 31, 2011 by fuzzy82 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 if you're going to do something like this consult a professional. It can be easy to get wrong, NEVER DIY something at this level. Call up Steve he may be able to put you onto someone closer or give you some pointers on how to do it properly. You cannot use a mechanical snake like I said. Also lizards smell different and also move differently. I have pet snakes that my dogs know are off limits, if you can at the very least get a hold of some snake poo for the beginning. Don't use anyones pet snake it's not fair on the snake they can be very easily stressed or damaged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonniebank Posted November 1, 2011 Author Share Posted November 1, 2011 if you're going to do something like this consult a professional. It can be easy to get wrong, NEVER DIY something at this level. Call up Steve he may be able to put you onto someone closer or give you some pointers on how to do it properly. You cannot use a mechanical snake like I said. Also lizards smell different and also move differently. I have pet snakes that my dogs know are off limits, if you can at the very least get a hold of some snake poo for the beginning. Don't use anyones pet snake it's not fair on the snake they can be very easily stressed or damaged. Thanks again for the help. Have emailed Steve. I haven't seen him since we moved from Sydney but have known him for years and used to work with him so I trust his judgement. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandgrubber Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 There's a VIC guy who goes under Snake Catcher who regularly contributes to the General Forum. He likes both dogs and snakes and seems to know a lot about them. He has expressed some interest in aversion / avoidance training . . . and might be able to work with a trainer in setting up aversion training with live reptiles. YOu might also want to contact him. btw., in his opinion, training on a blue tongue lizard will go a long way toward teaching dogs that snakes are something to avoid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussielover Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 Don't use a non venomous snake- they can still bite and it bloody well hurts and can cause some damage! Their mouths are full of nasties as well so best avoid a bite if you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trojka Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 if you're going to do something like this consult a professional. It can be easy to get wrong, NEVER DIY something at this level. Call up Steve he may be able to put you onto someone closer or give you some pointers on how to do it properly. You cannot use a mechanical snake like I said. Also lizards smell different and also move differently. I have pet snakes that my dogs know are off limits, if you can at the very least get a hold of some snake poo for the beginning. Don't use anyones pet snake it's not fair on the snake they can be very easily stressed or damaged. did you get my fb message? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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