This product has been nothing short of magic. I set the collar to give the tone before giving a shock, and took our independent 7 year old Akita mix to a large fenced enclosure. In fifteen minutes training he came reliably and immediately when called. I don't believe he received a shock from my short button presses, only the tone. That was two months ago. Since then our off-leash walks in the woods have been a delight. No more embarassing shouting and I rarely use the button. It's easy to switch the collar on and off by touching it with the remote. With my level of use, less than an hour a day, I don't expect battery life to be a problem.