Bark collars

[candiee]

we are thinking about getting our two very noisey Labs bark collars, ever since we moved a few months ago our dogs have been barking a lot, when they hear DH come home, when we are cooking dinner etc, i know it erks me and the neighbors would have had enough by now.
we try get out and play with them every day and can't understand their need to sit at the back step barking.

has anyone used the bark collars before?
how much are they?
what ones worked the best?
where did you get them?

there seems to be so many varieties online its confusing me

any help appreciated.

[CazHazKidz]

THIS is the best bark collar.

Some people will tell you they are cruel, but in most cases they are wrong.

I have a German Shepherd X Rottweiler, who wears one of these collars when necessary, and it works a treat. As soon as he has it on, he knows it is not an appropriate time to bark. He knows if he does bark, it will bite him, so he doesn't do it. In which case it never hurts him, so there's no way it can be considered cruel for him.

HOWEVER

I also have a chocolate labrador, and for her it is most certainly NOT suitable and is infact cruel. She does not understand it. She barks, and when it bites, she barks again, and then she screams and carries on like an idiot and it continues to bite.

Different things work for different dogs. You will find that some pet shops will rent them out, which is often a good plan to do first, so that you know if it suits your dog or not. Give Innotek a call and they may be able to tell you your nearest store that will rent you one.

If I was to bother persuing bark control for my little chocolate girl, I would probably try one of the innotek spray collars But for my big boy, I know it would be absolutely useless.

Also of course there is plenty of training you can do that will reduce a dogs barking, as well as keeping them occupied to relieve boredom barking - which I think is all an important part of owning a dog.

BUT I do think bark collars certainly do have a place in bark control, and I know that for one of my dogs, they are perfect.

Hope that helps!

[Mum2Tyla]

i hate electric shock collars I think they are horrible things, citronella collars ar eokay if you ahve no other option but you really need to find out why your dogs hav estarted barknig and try and resolve it, I would suggest talkig to a behaviouralist about it, not bark busters but i dont really like some of their mothods and I ahve had clients that ahve had bad results with them

[Lukeysmummy]

I would never recommend anyone use an anti-bark collar to "teach" their dog not to bark. Shock collars are cruel and do nothing but make the dogs afraid to bark....they don't know why they are being shocked, and they certainly don't understand what you actually want them to do, all they know is that it hurts if they bark. Even the citronella collars do nothing to adjust the dogs understanding of what the appropriate behaviour is.

Barking is a normal dog behaviour and only becomes problematic when they live with humans! Generally speaking, dogs do what is rewarding for them, and in most problem barking cases I have dealt with the barking is either related to boredom, or has in some way been reinforced, so the dog has learned that barking pays off for them. A good behaviourist could definately help, as could a good basic obedience course if you haven't already tried this.

Good Luck

[candiee]

it is defiantly not boredom, we spend as much time with them as we possibly can, they have plenty of toys and interaction.

they mainly bark when DH comes home from work and they don't stop until they are fed, then they start again, we have tried a lot of things and nothing seems to be working.

they have only started to this since we moved a few months ago and no sure why.

our dogs are not pups they are 5 and 3,so i find it strange that they have started this now.

[Lukeysmummy]

Hi Candiee

It's good that you can tick boredom off the list of possible causes of this behaviour. In that case I would look closely at how anyone/everyone is responding to the dogs when they bark when DH gets home. Does he/anyone go out and greet them while they are in a barking frenzy? Do they get acknowledged in anyway for the barking, this can include being told to be quiet, playing with them to stop the barking, even eye contact at them through the window? Do they get fed when they are barking? All of these interactions with a barking dog can serve to reinforce and potentially increase the behaviour. The dog is learning that barking gets them attention, even if it is negative attention......yes much like a toddler.

If the dogs are not being reinforced for barking in anyway then you really need a professional to come out and take a look.....it is hard to make an assessment from the other side of a computer screen! You may be surprised at just what a dog considers reinforcement for its behaviour.

If the dogs are inadvertently being reinforced for the barking there are ways of helping to change the behaviour.

Let me know if you think this is the case and I can suggest some things to try if you like?

[Pax]

just dont let me see it, or i might rip it off your puppy and throw it ...

*its been known to happen before*

i think they are cruel.