History of Electronic Dog Collars

Human cooperative relationships with dogs began over 12,000 years ago. Exactly how this occurred, we will probably never be certain. We can guess, however, that humans and dogs had their first mutually beneficial interactions by accident; or at the very least on the whim of either opportunistic species. The most plausible explanation is that canine scavengers began following nomadic humans, living off discarded scraps of food, bones, and other waste. Early humans would be quick to see the benefits of this, as the lingering dogs would aid in keeping other predators and scavengers away. It has also been postulated that humans began interacting with dogs by studying and mimicking their collaborative hunting methods.

However it happened, early exchanges between humans and dogs were probably guarded and uncertain, until the invention of the dog collar. This provided safe and humane control over the animal for training and socialization purposes, and allowed the expression of ownership and identification. As time passed, dog collars also allowed for the expression of fashion.

Modernization of dog collars began with the innovations of primarily two ancient societies: the Egyptians, and the Romans. Egyptians were quite artistic in their manufacture of dog collars. For the average peasant-owned dog, this consisted of a leather belt and buckle, possibly with inscriptions or other simple adornments. For the social elite however, dog collars were made from gold and silver, with ornate messages and pictures engraved upon them. Going forward several thousand years, we would see that the Romans loved their dogs nearly as much as the Egyptians. However, Rome's period in history was a period of war, and this is reflected in dog collars of the time. Collars were most often made of thick metal, and had vicious spikes radiating out of it. The purpose in this was so that the dog could not be controlled by an enemy, or attacked at the neck by another dog.

Hundreds of years after the cataclysmic fall of the Roman Empire, the use of dogs of sport gave rise to a myriad of dog collars. In the middle ages, people essentially applied the principles of equine equipment to dogs. Therefore, during this time there was a rapid proliferation of new dog collar types, including slip collars, chokers, harnesses, martingales, and halters. Collars and harnesses were even outfitted so that a dog might serve as a draught animal, a messenger, and a provider of first aid.

Dog collars changed very little until the creation of plastics. With this new
medium, it was the composition and style of the collar that changed, not its functionality. It was not until the practical use of small electronic devices occurred that dog collars really saw significant change.

In the early 1980's, trainers began experimenting with electronic training collars. These collars contained a power pack and protruding metal nubs that delivered a slight electrical charge to the neck of the dog. A trainer could trigger the charge remotely. Although somewhat rudimentary in its initial development years, the electric training collar significantly advanced in design and application over the next quarter century, and spawned two other collar-type products: the electric or invisible fence system, and the electronic anti-bark collar. In the containment/fence system, dogs are made to wear collars that will issue a series of increasingly more uncomfortable shocks as the animal strays from the designated area, resulting in very fast and efficient training. The bark collar operates on the same principles as the aforementioned collars, though it issues a slight correctional charge only when the animal barks.

Although a collar is not absolutely necessary to train a dog, utilizing one will ensure rapid, effective training, with excellent retention. A collar can also help identify your dog if lost or stolen, alert others of needed medications, provide a means of control over the animal, and in general aid in keeping your dog and those around him safe. Not to mention, what dog doesn't look great in a suave collar with a couple of bright, shiny identification tags?