Don't Zap Them

Shiloh the only "Old Man" at our house!

It seems that God uses my dogs, of all things, to make a point with me. I have five dogs in all...4 girls and 1 boy. The one boy, Shiloh, is the old man of the collection. He has never been a dog that minds. In fact, if you ask some of my dearest friends they would tell you stories about all the shenanigans he would pull on the nights we had Bible study. He doesn't hangout with the other dogs and you rarely see him playing with them. I guess you could say he is kind of a grumpy, old man. That is not Shiloh's only problem however. You see Shiloh likes to runaway from home. In fact a few years ago we put a fence around our entire 2.5 acre piece of property in an effort to keep him contained. Well, it worked for about a week until he realized he could just dig under it. The other dogs learned quickly that there were consequences if they went off the property...Shiloh, however, is a wanderer at heart. We have yet to master the level of obedience that would convince him to stay home just because we say so. We tried putting wood in places where he most often dug. That didn't work. We tried putting stuff we bought from the pet store that was guaranteed to stop dogs from digging. That didn't work. We tried spanking him whenever we found him out. That didn't work. Stan and I were at our wits end. Then I had an idea. My dad has always had hunting dogs. He would often use a collar that when a button was pushed the collar would make a slight beeping sound. This sound signaled the dogs to return. If they did not return then there was a second button you would push and it relayed a slight shock. I know some of you disagree with this method of training, but we were desperate. I didn't want to find him dead on the side of the road! Or worse yet...what if he chased and killed one of my neighbors cats. Now that's cruel. Anyway, we decided to give it a try. We put the collar on Shiloh and waited for him to make his escape. Oh it wasn't long before we realized that once again he was on the run. We had just returned home from an evening out and the happy trio that usually met us at the gate had become a duo. Shiloh was gone. We quickly came inside grabbed the control went outside and quickly pressed the button that delivered the shock. I hit it so quick I wasn't even sure if it would register. I didn't want to kill him I just wanted to zap him back home. The minute I hit it I heard a yelp and was sure he was on his way back home. I waited and waited. What was he doing? I hit it again, this time leaving my finger on the button just slightly longer. Again I heard him yelp but this time he sounded further away than the first time. While I waited for him to return, I called his name hoping he would come to me instead of hiding out in his condo built for one. Again no response. I looked at Stan and asked, "What do you think he is doing out there in the dark?" So I hit the button again this time I held my finger on it for longer. At first I heard a yelp, even further away than the first two. In fact he yelped a couple of times and then nothing. I pressed the button again....no yelp...no Shiloh. All I could think was, "Oh my goodness, I think I've killed him. NO I'm sure I have."
I couldn't sleep that night imagining his fate that was orchestrated by my hand. The next morning I woke up hoping to find him safely back home. I went outside with his favorite treat...no Shiloh. He was still gone. So I did what every God fearing dog owner does...I started praying for my dog.
I learned something that day. First of all, dogs are much smarter than we think. I don't know how he did it but I believe he figured out it was me who was causing his discomfort. His natural response was to run.

Galatians 6:1 says...
"Brothers, if someone is causing a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently." (emphasis mine)


I think sometimes we have a tendency to try to "enlighten" people regarding their straying from home (Jesus) in a not so gentle way. We try to shock them into a submitted life in Christ. I learned from Shiloh that it doesn't work so well. Most often they will run from the thing that brings them pain.
I think of the words Christ said about himself, "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." Matthew 11:29
I want to be the kind of person who is a safe haven for those who don't live perfect lives. Don't get me wrong - this is not the same as allowing hypocrisy to grow in our midst. We are told to rebuke and restore, we just shouldn't do it using the shock method. We can show a person the truth of Scripture without beating them up with the Bible. Remember Christ gave us all free will. If they choose to play out in the dark there is a good possibility that they might get hit by a car. So I want them to stay at home with the Master, however I cannot force them.
Oh by the way...Shiloh no longer wears a shock collar. Yes he is still leaving home at times. My prayer for him is much like my prayer for us. "Lord, give us the desire to never want to leave our Master's side. Teach us that our waywardness will eventually lead us into a path of something that has the potential of running us over." Let's agree to give way to gentleness.
Blessed to be His,
Kim
ps...Click the link below to see what is happening just outside the frame of Shiloh's picture.  Guaranteed to make you smile!
http://feastingoncrumbs.blogspot.com/2011/01/tongue-taunts.html