Sonic Anti-Bark collars?

Question

I have a four year old Jack Russell that I've had for 7 months. He's a great dog but he barks incessantly at (seemingly) nothing.

I would never use a shock collar on him, but I'm considering the sonic sound wave collars and possibly citronella collar.

Are these cruel? Are they in any way dangerous? Are they effective? Would a vet or experienced trainer condone these things?

Thanks

Answer 1

I generally don't recommend any type of electronic collar.

For dogs that bark constantly there's a few things you can do. Exercise, more exercise, and then some more exercise. Dogs will bark to get rid of excess energy when they have no other outlet to do so. You have a breed of dog that is high energy, so a lot of exercise is a must. A tired dog is a good dog.

Also provide your dog with interactive toys. These include Buster Cubes and Kongs. You put treats in the Buster Cube and your dog has to roll it around certian ways to get them out. As he gets better at it you can make it more challenging. My dogs play with theirs for hours. Kongs can be filled with treats, the dog then has to work to get them out. These will keep him occupied and stimulate is mind.

You can also teach your dog to speak. I know sounds strange, Why would I want to teach my dog to do something when I don't want him to do it? is what you're thinking. Well, if you teach him to speak on command you can teach him to be quiet on command as well. Once both commands are learned, you teach him the appropriate number of barks for something, like someone at the door.

As far as the collars, your dog is very likely to return to his normal barky self once the collar is off. Trust me he will know the difference between the collars.

Answer 2

sonic collar is cruek and quite probably jepordizing your dog's mental and physical health. As others mentioned training is the answer - you need to get to the root of why he's barking.

As you know - JRs are highly energetic dogs - perhaps he is in need of more stimulation... also - consider how you react when he barks - even negative attention is good attention to dogs - he may be looking for your reaction (good or bad) - remember, Jack Russel's are EXTREMELY intense little dogs

A professional trainer is probably the best way to go for you.

Answer 3

i worked with a verry xperienced trainer 4 about 3 mnths and she insisted that if your showing the dog that you can NOT use discipline collars, otherwise house dogs are usually not harmed by sonic collars, although if the dog has a long life expectancy it may lose some hearing. The best thing to do is take the dog to a kennel and have them train it. Also- if u need a good training book check out amazon/follow this link
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/102-6432997-0958555?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=all+dogs+need+a+little+training&Go.x=9&Go.y=11

Answer 4

JACK RUSSELS RULE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i have one the exact age and he bark at nothing too like at telephone chargers. but one day you will need him to bark because once someone tried to break in my house and my jrt alerted me with his barks and me and him chased out the burglar.

Answer 5

yes they r dangerous

and i feel sorry 4 ur dog

cant believe u gonna shock ur own dog

u have to know why he barks

and then u can try to fix the problem

u can buy a bok that has simple tips about dogs barking prob

Answer 6

Ask your vet!!!