Thursday, July 30, 2009

Anti-Barking Collars do they hurt the dogs?

I got a Anti-Barking collar for mothers day. Do they work??? They dont hurt the dogs do they? The dogs are shetland sheepdogs.
Answers:
Although this type of collar is available, veterinarians do not recommend it to dog owners, even if they use it only for training. With the shock collar, the dog gets a shock each time it barks. This causes the dog pain and is not very effective because many dogs ignore it and continue to bark.
They can hurt the dogs... depending on how they work and how they are set. Put the collar on your arm and activate it. See how it feels...
It obviously has to be uncomfortable to work. Imagine if everytime you went to speak, that is what you felt. There are some serious emotional side effects to these collars to consider as well. Some dogs resort to other ways to express themsleves. I know someone who had a dog that suddenly began to seriously chew on furnature to relieve the tension.
Seriously, try out the collar yourself.
I have used electric collars on many diff breeds from 8lb MinPins to 100lb Gsds and have never had a problem. I would only use a reputable name brand. I own Innotek and have heard Tri-Tronics is good as well. Shelties are often noisy so I'm sure the neighbors will enjoy some peace. A friend of my debarks her problem barkers with excellent results. They still bark but at such a low volume no neighbor hears. Her vet goes thru the mouth, it takes just a few minutes and the dog is up and running around.
they work...but im not sure...i'd think they hurt..
They catch on really quickly... it gives them a mild shock. Mine wears one.our community sues ya big time for barking dogs. Mine is made by petcare. great idea...

willodrg is an idiot. And melissa doesn't know what she is talking about. The collar delivers an extremely low tingle... try it. The citronella ones fail to sork after awhile. And our Humane Society recommends them for constant barkers. My dog is fine... he now knows that when he is wearing the collar, he may get a tingle... so I rarely even have to turn on the mechanism..
If it is a shocking collar YES it will hurt the dog!
I would take it back and get one that uses a spray (citronella) that distracts the dog to get it to stop barking.

... or ...

Did someone give YOU the collar for your own personal use? :)
Maybe you could return it for a harmless one. I have seen one where if the dogs bark the collar emits a spray which is completely harmless to dogs but they do not like the smell so they associate barking with a bad small/experience. Much more humane than shocking hope this helps!
Don't put the collar on your arm, put it around your neck, then you'll really know what your dog is going to feel.
Yes, it is the shock that makes them not bark. Have you been shocked? Doesn't feel good.
I hate anti bark collars. Great mothers day gift huh? Do they hurt. Well, most of them use a 6.5 volt battery and some use 9 volts. and if the dog is wet, then it get even more of a jolt. They shock the dog. They do not train or communicate with the dog not to bark. They scrare the hell out of them and hurt them. All the dog learns is that if I bark, I am going to get shocked. How is that going to hurt if someone is trying to break into your house. Instead, take the collar back and buy a book. There are several books on the market, from "Ceasars Way" by Ceasar Mallin, to "The Dog Listener" by Jan Fennell, to "The Art of Raising a Puppy" by the Monks of New Skete. All of them will teach you a better way to deal with barking then to shock the crap out of them.
If they didn't hurt the dog, do you really think the dog would pay attention to it?

They're a training tool for some breeds - but a breed like shelties, where the average dog is pretty timid, if you set the collar so it gives enough of a shock to deter the dog, you're going to end up with a neurotic dog.

They're a quick fix for people who can't be bothered or don't know how to or don't have the time to actually train their dogs not to bark.
omg,, im just as puzzled as you are lol,,

ive never even heard of these collars lol!!
They don't work. the best way to control a doga barking is to gently sqeeze their nose everythime they bark and say NO.
Shock collars usually work well. Unless it malfunctions it won't damage your dog. If you're worried about damaging your dog call a few vet clinics and see how often that happens and weigh it against the number of dogs that get poisoned or shot by neighbors who can't stand the barking anymore. You might think about the citations you can get for it also. I would only use it when the dog is outside where I cannot correct it by jerking on the short cord my puppies drag around until they are trained.
Bark collars work well to an extent. I have a german shepherd who gets very bad seperation anxiety and hates it if I ever have to take my other shepherd for an appointment and leave her home. The entire time she will howl while we are gone. I bought her a bark collar and after one bark she no longer howls. I don't even need to put it on her anymore, I can just leave it out where she can see it and the power of suggestion is enough to keep her quiet.

Some dogs though will continue to bark even though are being shocked. Some collars work and shock the dog lightly the first time they bark and continue in intentisy if the dog continues to bark. These collars have worked best in my experience and it is what my sister uses for her jack russel.

Make sure when you do put it on them that they don't have on a metal choke collar or anything like that as well or they will get even more of a shock through that and you could seriously hurt them. You also cannot leave it on for to long of an extended period or they will develop sores where the prongs of the collar are in contact with their skin.

Used properly these tools are very effective.

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