I use a small bit of bamboo in a similar way to the tennis racket. If she goes too far forward she gets a tap on the nose and moves back. Trained both my dogs to walk to heel using this method.
I have thought about this particular comment a lot today - trying to work out WHY it is so opposed to the way I feel, and I think I have finally sussed it out
I enjoy training my dogs as an activity on it's own merits - it is not something that I see as a necessary requirement with a specific purpose or outcome
Training itself is a leisure activity for me, and so the challenge for me is training using positive methods, that do not discomfort or stress my dog, because I don't have any ambition to achieve an "end product". I am also aware that as I am an amateur dog trainer, then using only positive training methods is less risky - the use of aversives needs far more skill and experience than I have and if I were to use them, I run the risk of harming or distressing my dog
I understand that working dogs - be they guide dogs, police dogs, gundogs - are trained to serve a purpose by experienced trainers; even those dogs which are primarily pets but are worked part-time are trained in order to
do something else. Those trainers are more experienced in the use of aversives and their aim is to create a dog with a specific range of trained behaviour in the shortest possible time in order to allow the dog to become useful, in terms of work, as soon as possible
But for me, there is no goal in mind - I might decide to try and teach a specific behaviour, or trick - but there is no ultimate purpose to that, or time scale, it is fun and enjoyable, and if it doesn't work, then I can always move onto something else
