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Old January 26th, 2009, 11:30 PM
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Electronic Bark Collars.

On another forum that i belong to someone was complaining about a dog that had gone after them very aggressively, many people were defending the owners and said dogs are dogs get over it. It has also come up that they can use the shock collars, that they work. I cringed.. But I was just wondering what you guys thought about someone using these devices to control a dogs barking... thanks.
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Old January 27th, 2009, 06:23 AM
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I have the bark control collars for my guys. The type that gives them an progressively sharper shock if they continue to bark.
Bentley especially doesn't know when to stop barking after a squirrel or rabbit has been spotted and long since gone, where as Baxter will stop once it's out of sight. I also have my dogs out at 4am in the morning and need them to be quiet for the neighbours sakes. Once the collars go on, they know that they need to be quiet. I didn't want to have to use the collars but nothing else worked with these guys and the hours that they're outside in the morning, I couldn't have them waking up the neighbourhood at 4.
I don't put the collars on them all the time. Only when I want them to be sure to be quiet, so early in the morning and late at night or before 9:00am on Saturday and Sunday mornings.

Cindy
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Old January 27th, 2009, 07:07 AM
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if they can't be trained not to bark, then I prefer to use the citronella collar, my lab/dane/rotti didn't like men....refused to allow them in the yard or house, I'd put the collar on her, rarely had to use the spray, and she was a different dog
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Old January 27th, 2009, 07:25 AM
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I had to get the shock ones. Can't use citronella around the pond, it'll kill the fish. I couldn't take the chance.

Cindy
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Old January 27th, 2009, 10:44 AM
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I have never used them, and have had no experience, so I was curious what some pet lovers thought about them...
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Old January 27th, 2009, 04:18 PM
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OK well not sure how this is going to sound but....

The one clinic I worked at would on occasion use the citronella collars. Let me explain.

At the clinic we had a dog ward that had 8 large runs, a cat ward at the other end of the building and the treatment area where surgeries recovered, sick pets etc... it was in the middle and near the dog ward. Also large dogs sick/or recovering from surgery would be in the dog ward(non contagious ones of course). So if we happend to have a dog that would bark a lot and after trying everything to get him/her to stop or at least cut down on the barking. We'd go out for a bathroom break(how esle do they tell us they needed to go, we did regularly take them out three times a day but sometimes you gotta go), we'd go for walk or two around the block, try to jog most of it to burn a little energy, give toys/chew toys. Then if they continued and it was a disruptive bark, we'd use the citronella collar and they worked pretty well. 5-10min of barking wasn't an issue but constant hour's of barking didn't fly. It stressed out the other dogs and patients. We had one little lasa that boarded all the time and her bark was brain piercing, we did what we could, letting her out to run around the office but she just liked to bark I guess. So eventualy due to her regular boarding learned to know that if we hung the collar on the run door it meant that she need to be quiet. Her owner knew and for a time even used it at home a few times.

My mom tried it on her dog as he needed to be quiet at 4am also but he seemed to liked the smell and sound of the spsst. So she got him a loose fitting nylon muzzle to wear for his early morning/late night romp/bathroom breaks. He quickly learned that the sight of the muzzle meant he needed to be quiet and she just had to show it to him before he went out and no longer neede to wear. His mouth is an alarm and defense so really didn't want to use a muzzle.

Never used the shock kind and a little wary of them only becasue there are people who would abuse them or use them incorrectly. If you have no other choice though and use it properly then I guess they're ok. I would just research the different brands to find the best one, so you don't get one that's faulty. I have heard of some that go a little haywire.

There is also a new kind that vibrates(not a shock) and has many different setting low to high. You clip a remote control to your belt so if they are barking or doing something they know they're not suppose to, you have to press the button, it's not automatic, it's more of a training aid than a bark collar. Friends of ours use them on their yorkies. Have been through lots of traing but they're little stinkers and adding it to their training has really helped. I guess it's more of a weird feeling than anything. Kind of like what one of those hand held massagers feel like.
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Old January 27th, 2009, 05:38 PM
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Old January 27th, 2009, 05:43 PM
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Never used them and I don't think I ever would. I have known people who had the vocal cords cut - which is far more pathetic in my opinion.
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Old January 27th, 2009, 06:45 PM
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me neither! not for me...
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Old January 27th, 2009, 10:44 PM
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Not for me either, Honestly, Dogs bark, if Keely (god forbid) becomes a barker, or any of my future dogs, I will definatly not use them. Its a natural thing.

HOWEVER, I could handle one of the undergorund fence things that give a little shock if the step outside of the boundaries. It would probably onllly have to shock a dog once or twice before it realized NOT to go outside of the thing. Of course i would only use it as a last resort. But i am not totally against them..I think they are different then the bark control collars, no?..

Anyways, that last bit was a bit off topic...
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Old January 28th, 2009, 06:21 AM
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I use a shock collar on my dog. I've tried training and everything and nothing works. I almost lost her because my neighbours complained. However, I don't use the citronella because it burns their nasal passages for some time after each spray. It only takes one or two shocks to keep her quiet; now she knows that the collar means be quiet. Yeah dogs bark but neighbours complain. I still try to train her though.
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Old January 28th, 2009, 07:24 AM
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how does the spray reach so close to their nose?? the sprayer is under their jaw (collar around the neck) with my dog it was a good 12 inches from her nose
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Old January 28th, 2009, 07:57 PM
MindysMom MindysMom is offline
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The trainer that is giving my puppy classes said she has used a shock collar once on her Golden Retriever (and it only took once). She stated that she first used it on her own leg and the ultrasound she went through for knee physio was far more unpleasant. I'm not sure I'd use it (and I'm not sure I like this trainer anyway) but I can see how "regular" training doesn't work sometimes. I don't think they should be used to replace normal training though. We had a neighbour who kept a shock collar on his dogs all the time and shocked them for barking. They got used to the feel and eventually it didn't work at all for them.
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Old January 28th, 2009, 10:50 PM
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well thanks for letting me know, personally I would never consider it, but then again I don't need to. My dogs don't go outside for extended periods of time alone. And if they are out and they bark, I go tell them to "quiet" which they learned really easily. If that doesn't work I bring them inside. I just don't like the idea of causing pain to teach them myself..
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Old January 28th, 2009, 10:52 PM
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Oh and Babymomma, no I don't think different. The bark collars i amtalking about have 2 probes that are on a collar, you put the collar on tight so that the points touch the skin, then when the sensor feels the vibration in the dogs throat of a bark ( or a yawn i hear..) if gives a shock, then the dog yelps, and then I guess they learn not to bark, when wearing the collar. They figure out soon that if the collar is not on, they can bark all they want.. smart doggies!
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Old January 29th, 2009, 06:54 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lUvMyLaB<3 View Post
Oh and Babymomma, no I don't think different. The bark collars i amtalking about have 2 probes that are on a collar, you put the collar on tight so that the points touch the skin, then when the sensor feels the vibration in the dogs throat of a bark ( or a yawn i hear..) if gives a shock, then the dog yelps, and then I guess they learn not to bark, when wearing the collar. They figure out soon that if the collar is not on, they can bark all they want.. smart doggies!
Yes, that's the type my dogs have. There's a sensor for vibration and noise. If the dogs continues to bark, the shock gets progressivly stronger. If the dog is in a barking frenzy, the collar will shut off for 5 minutes to give the dog a chance to calm down, it doesn't zap the heck out of them.

I never thought I would consider these things either, that is until Bentley came along. Baxter isn't as bad, but still cannot allow them to wake up the neighbours at 4:00 in the morning. Sure dogs bark, it's natural, but you have to be considerate of your neighbours too, not just because of city by-laws, just because they are your neighbours.

Cindy
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Old August 9th, 2010, 09:24 AM
zoohotel zoohotel is offline
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Im thinking of buying one as my St Bernard is hell on the lead... she has to bark at everyone whilst on the lead ( only wanting to say hello and be fiendly) As shes so large it is scaring people as she passes...if they have a dog too its bedlam .. the more she barks it sets the other persons dog off, on one occasion the other dog thought she was having a go and wanted to fight. Off lead over the forest she has the odd bark but nothing like leadwork. She is just over 1 now and i really want to nip it in the bud, ive tried treats, toys and clicker distraction but it not worked, I too think the shock ones look a bit harsh but i know she is so slow thinking the citronella one wouldnt work!!! any recommendations on anti bark collar manufacturers appricated. thanks
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Old August 9th, 2010, 09:58 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by babymomma View Post
Not for me either, Honestly, Dogs bark, if Keely (god forbid) becomes a barker, or any of my future dogs, I will definatly not use them. Its a natural thing.

HOWEVER, I could handle one of the undergorund fence things that give a little shock if the step outside of the boundaries. It would probably onllly have to shock a dog once or twice before it realized NOT to go outside of the thing. Of course i would only use it as a last resort. But i am not totally against them..I think they are different then the bark control collars, no?..

Anyways, that last bit was a bit off topic...
Have never used a shock bark collar on my dogs, although I have used the citronella on my little guy before, it seemed to work well... besides making the house smell very citronella-y.

Diesel has seperation anxiety and barks a bit when we are gone, but I live in a house on a farm, so no real worry there about disturbing anyone

I can appreciate how someone who lives in an apartment/condo/townhome or in the city out of respect for their neighbours, may need to resort to one. I would rather see someone use that then have to take their dog to a shelter, get kicked out, be at war with their neighbours etc.

I won't even comment on people that have their dog's voice chords cut...

I don't mind barking though to be honest... they bark when they play and when someone comes to the door. I like that they alert me to people walking around in the yard etc. and don't want to discourage them from that behaviour one bit.

As for the underground fences, I am weary of these... while I have heard they work well for some dogs, I have heard of many dogs, especially ones with a high prey drive that they do not work well for. One of my bosses GSHP pups ran through one chasing a bird (their natural instincit) and ended up being killed. The boxers have a high prey drive also, so I would be concerned that a shock would not stop them if they were chasing something, and they could end up seriously injured... or worse.
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