What's your experience with a 'BARK COLLAR'?

Question

What do you think about getting a bark collar for your dog? What's been your experience. I'm hesitant to get one, and feel it's on the cruel side. Your opinion . . . please!

My dog barks at people who walk behind our back fence. There is a walking path maintained by the city. He only barks when people walk, especially if they are walking a dog. He is a German Shepard Schutzhund, a protection dog, so this is bred into him. He is smart, and I think I had a dumb dog trainer to suggest this. I am opposed to these collars, but just wanted to see what my Yahoo! Answer community had to say.

I don't want him to stop barking altogether. I don't want him to equate barking with pain, discomfort. He will know I put the collar on him. He will associate me with this as well.

Thanks to all who answered.

Answer 1

my experience is ochey! ochey! lol. when i was little my mom had one for our dog. i was like like 5-6 and i strapped it on my neck then barked! it shocked the living hell outtaa me!!!! the worst part was i started crying and it kept shocking me untill my mom found me outside lying on the ground screaming and getting the crap shocked out of me. i would never never never put one on any of my dogs! in fact that particular collar got thrown out that day and i have never seen one agian, not at my moms and not ever with my dogs. if u want to test how bad it hurts touch it to ur throat and Make noise, caution do not stap the damn thing on first because it is almost impossible to get it off when ur in that much pain. try it and then see if u want to do that to ur dog. might i add barking is very natural for dogs to do, just as talking is natural for us people

Answer 2

I don't have any experience with it, but I think it would be cruel whether it deals a small shock to the throat or a stinging citrus mist in the eyes. Barking is not always negative, useless noise.. dogs bark to scare, to protect you, or when they're excited, or happy, or in pain. Pretty soon you figure the dog would be fearful to make even the slightest sound for any reason. It shouldn't be stopped, just controlled. If your dogs barking is truely bad, maybe you could try a pet disipline class or training class before you turn to a collar.

Answer 3

I have a couple of clients that have tried the ultra sonic ones that make a noise that only the dog hears.
They did not have good luck with them. One lady ended up haveing the dog de-barked. It was horrible.
The citronella spray ones owrk with most dogs. They can get expensive if you have to refill the spray all the time. They are a great deterant and if your dog does not have any allergy problems they are pretty effective.
The shock type work well and I have used them on many different breeds of dogs. You have to be sure the prongs are touching the skin. If the dog has long hair you need to use the longer prongs that come with the collar.
The shock is light and does not really hurt but it will get their attention and change the dogs focus and that is really what you are trying to do.
In my experience the shock ones are great easy to use and only cost for a battery and most only need one every six months or so. They are cost effective and work great.

Answer 4

Some breeds are more known for barking, so there may not be much you can do about it. It is a training tool. Not meant to be permanent. Plus I would caution that if you do decide to get one check the dog's neck daily. I had a dog come into our salon with one on and it had caused a hot spot that got infected and she ended up with holes in her neck from where the prongs were. That could have just been that dog but with it tight against the throat like all I've seen are it is just asking for skin problems unless you are ver aware of it.

Answer 5

Bark control collars rarely work on extremely vocal dogs or dogs with thick fur.
They are only meant to be used occasionally as a training device; not a permanent collar.
The shock they put out is not torturous, it merely gets the dogs attention enough to get it to stop barking. If the collar is left on all the time, the dog will eventually become desensitized to it.
Constant barking is a sign of boredom as opposed to necessary communication (hunger, danger, etc.)
The best way to get your dog to stop barking is to exercise it more often, keep it busy with toys and keep it safety crated or indoors at night so it cannot upset neighbors if it does insist on barking.

Answer 6

We have a client who had a dog the former owner used an electronic bark collar on. The dog doesn't bark, won't make a sound, poor thing.

Plus, they worked for years to be able to reach for this dog. She's scared of everything, especially people reaching for her. Must have been what she was looking at when she used to bark and got zapped.

After a couple of years of work, I can slowly reach for her with one hand and pet her. If I reach with two hands, she falls to the ground screaming as if she is being murdered. All before she is even touched.

So you be the judge. I believe they are cruel and unnecessary.

Answer 7

It depends on what type you get. You could get one that shocks your dog when it barks, one that sprays citranella on you dogs when it barks, or one that beaps in a high pitch when your dog barks. I personally haven't used a shock collar on my dog, I feel it would hurt the dog too much if I did. I have used a sound and citranella bark collar. The high pitched one makes a high pitched sound when your dog barks, and it usually made my dog ( A beagle) stop barking, but when she got used to it she just ignored it.
Then we got the citranella bark collar and it sprayed citranella on her when she barked. The citranella doesn't harm my dog, and it just makes her quiet down. The citranella bark collar worked better for us, and now that she is older she doesn't bark as much, so we don't use the collar any more. You can find them at places like Pet Smart.
Thank you for you time. I hope I helped.

Answer 8

Oh my God. Please listen carefully. If you have a real dog, meaning one that has solid nerves, there is nothing wrong with a bark collar. People amaze me with their answers. I have used them on my dogs for years and HAVE NEVER had a problem with a dog getting anything negative as a result. They all stopped barking and they never exhibited any nervous problems, any anxiety, any behavioral problems or whatever. I am talking about the electric collars, the only ones that work. By the way, if I had a dog that lay on the floor screaming every time I went to touch it, I would have put it to sleep. A bark collar is the least of its problems.

Answer 9

We used a bark collar with our puppy, and we liked it. We used one of the ones that sprays a mist of lemon or citronella in the dogs face when he barked, and it stopped him barking after a while. I think the ones that shock the dog are mean, but the lemon spray ones work wonders, and our vet recommended it to us in the first place...
Ask at your local pet store to check out the ones that SPRAY, NOT SHOCK. Look at your options before you let people tell you which ones to get. :)

Answer 10

I used a shock collar on my dogs to stop them from running off. It worked the first day. I actually shocked my hand with every level of voltage before I put it on them so I would know what I was doing to them. The most important thing before you use one is to learn how to use it properly. Watch the instructional video that comes with it and make sure you know when to use it and when not to.