I am writing to urge you to completely ban the sale and use of electric shock collars in the Animal Welfare Bill regulations.

Electric shock collars worn around the neck of a dog have essentially one function, which is to deliver a painful shock to a dog. This trains a dog to respond out of fear of further punishment - having received a shock when it does not perform what is asked of it rather than through a natural willingness to obey.

Shock collars are readily available by mail order, via retail outlets and on the Internet. There is no restriction on them being sold to unscrupulous people, or people with little or no experience in training. Anyone can place it on a dog and administer 'correctional' treatment. I do not view this as acceptable.
Pain and fear are not humane methods by which to educate or train any creature, especially since other, positive, training tools and methods produce dogs that are trained quickly, easily and reliably, with absolutely no fear, pain, or potential damage to the relationship between dog and handler. These include recall training, clicker training and using retractable leads. With these alternatives available, there is no justification for using electric shock collars, which are designed to cause a dog pain in order to alter behavior .

Peer reviewed research conducted by independent institutions and dating back for decades, has proved that using electric stimulus on animals has a long-term negative effect.

Please completely ban the sale and use of these products, as I do not see how they have any place in a civilized society.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely
ANIMAL LOVERS
ALL OVER THE WORLD!