barking PLEASE HELP - Page 1

I have been battling my dogs barking for too long. I have had constant neighbor complaints...who could blame them. I have bark collars that work, but one of the dogs in particular is very high drive, very whiney (which stimulates the collar) and then she goes into aggression and spins and fights with the collar. This goes on and on and on.

I have tried turning the level down low, and she is unphased and it does not curb her barking.

I have tried putting a remote collar on her and using it when she barks. This works, but I always have to be here to correct her. She knows the word "quiet" but this is not helpful when I am not here.

She is in an area that is back off the street and not near neighbor fences, but she is SO LOUD. It sounds like she is in a constant dog fight. If I put it on her when she's quiet, and drive away, when she hears me come home she whines and starts lighting herself up. I feel like I have to run out there and rescue her from herself.

Will she eventually figure it out and stop whining? I have let her try to figure it out for a couple of days in a row, but we seem no closer. I don't want to have to crate her all day and all night, but that is what it's coming to.

Any suggestions would help.

Thanks

Candy

You can have her de-barked.

obediance training is a MUST!

teach the dog to bark on command and then tell it to stop.

every time it sSTARTS to bark give it the same command "BARK" and a treat. Once it barks on command, tell it "NO BARK" and when it stops give it a treat. You can use any word you want.

if the dog is bothering your neighbor, keep it in your house, or garage - crate train it

most dogs bark because they just want to be with the rest of their pack (you).

mostly respect your neighbors

de-barking is the lazy way out.

not only that, its just wrong!

train your dog, love your dog, give it the time it deserves

don't isolate if from its pack

if you dont have the time or care to do the right thing, sell it.

Let me clarify. This dog is actively worked in schutzhund, she is allowed in the house on a daily basis, she has very good obedience, and she know's a bark command and a quiet command. I am not interested in selling this dog. Reality is that I work during the day and I do not have a job I can take her to. She is currently kenneled next to another dog, who wears a collar, so she is not isolated.

I am willing to crate this dog during the day, but I was looking for alternatives. Thanks for the responses though.

Candy

Your dog sounds like a bit of a bark addict--she just needs to bark under certain circumstances. The happiest solution for everyone--the dog, the neighbors, and you--is to have her debarked. This will simply turn down the volume knob on her barking. She will still bark but it won't disturb anyone. The surgery is extremely minor (a small nick in the vocal cords). This is not lazy. It is a humane solution that respects this dog's needs. You can find an intelligent discussion of barking at

http://www.naiaonline.org/body/articles/archives/debark_qna.htm

To find out which vets in your area do the debarking procedure well, contact some local Sheltie breeders.

So can a de-barked dog do the bark and hold in SchH? Crating the dog in the house might be a better solution when she has to be left to her own devices.

A debarked dog barks, so the dog can physically do a bark and hold in SchH. The bark just won't be very loud. Are there any SchH rules that prohibit entering a debarked dog?

It sounds like this dog would be much happier debarked and uncrated than crated all day.

I don’t believe a debarked dog could be happier than it was before. I have seen two de barked dogs, one was a dachshund the other was a gsd. Both sounded like they had laryngitis, and both noises were disturbing. It is an unpleasant sound, as if they are trying to bark but just cant. They sound like they are on their deathbed every time they try to say something.

There is evidence of dogs enjoying their crate time, enjoying the safety of their own small space. There is no evidence of dog's enjoying a de-barking procedure, or the effects it has on them.   the link you posted about debarking has a wonderfully laid out Myths and Facts section, which does not support any of the information on there with facts.

Im sorry, but debarking IS the lazy way out because you rely on a minor surgery to cure the same problem that some separation anxiety training could cure.

How can it be that cutting into the dog’s voice box and "nicking" the vocal cords, causing permanent damage both psychologically and physically, can be considered humane?

Find out which vets perform debarkings in your area and send them nasty letters... please.

Chazz

as far as a reply to the op goes.... have you tried looking into trainers who work with seperation anxiety in dogs?

 your dog may just want to be with you, and there are some great techniques out there to help your dog realize it is not the end of the world when you leave to go to work.