Dogs - surgical stop of bark?

[syrenn]

My neighbors have two dogs that bark at cars, clouds, leaves and everything else. I talked to them about it but the guys response was typical of most dog lovers:

"That's just what dogs do!"

I just received my electronic Bark Stopper last week and put in close to where he keeps his dogs most of the time.

They hardly made a peep yesterday!

Neighbors are upset though; "What the f*ck is that?" Oh it's a bark stopper! "Well that's f*cked up!"

Well, that's what Humans do!

I am amazed the dog show allowed it. Any "altering" in any way usually is a automatic disqualification.

The debarking has been around for a while..... some apartments require it as a term of rental if you have a dog.

Did you quote the wrong post?

My bad... i sure did. Sorry MS.


It was supposed to be in response to the OP.

 

[Katzndogz]

I have always had my cats declawed.

That's pretty fucked up. Conflicted birdwatcher?



Then again - a good percentage of the human race has no trouble cutting off part of a man's penis at birth

It made for a happier cat and a happier me. Cats that never go outside have no need of claws anyway. To my kitten, one day I was hollering at him and squirting him with a water pistol, the next day I wasn't.

When I closed my office and opened the shop, I got a cat and kept his claws because he was a working cat and I depended on his ability as a hunter.

 

[Claudette]

One of the first things I teach my dogs is the word Quiet.

It works. My dogs can be barking like crazy. I open the door and yell QUIET. Guess what. They all shut up.

My dogs aren't out when I'm not home so they aren't disturbing anyone.

 

[Katzndogz]

My dog very seldom barks. She vocalizes a lot but only barks for emphasis on what she's already said, or to tell me something very important. When I'm not home, she doesn't bark at all. There's no one to talk to.

 

[Wry Catcher]

Dogs 'talk', owners need to listen. There was an Animal Planet episode of Dogs 101 which 'proved' dogs talk. Our dog has a warning bark (rapid, sharp, loud); a "I want a walk, bark" (it's a single bark at the front door with a ?); a bark at play, three high pitched barks (throw the damn ball, hurry); and an excited bark (whenever I picked up her leash, a single bark + eye contact).

That said, I would never use a surgical procedure to silence a dog; it's all about training. There are shock collars but only necessary if one does not properly train their pet. Sadly, many dog owners are too lazy or purchase breeds not easy to train/control.

 

[Katzndogz]

Dogs 'talk', owners need to listen. There was an Animal Planet episode of Dogs 101 which 'proved' dogs talk. Our dog has a warning bark (rapid, sharp, loud); a "I want a walk, bark" (it's a single bark at the front door with a ?); a bark at play, three high pitched barks (throw the damn ball, hurry); and an excited bark (whenever I picked up her leash, a single bark + eye contact).

That said, I would never use a surgical procedure to silence a dog; it's all about training. There are shock collars but only necessary if one does not properly train their pet. Sadly, many dog owners are too lazy or purchase breeds not easy to train/control.

How wise of you! Your dog no doubt finds you highly intelligent and easily trainable. Yes, dogs do talk. They have different tones to barks and growls, they have different reptitive barks, such as three high pitched barks, to communicate different needs.

There are dogs that just bark, constantly, I knew a Husky like that, just constant barking with no rhyme or reason behind it. The owner said that this kind of barking was more like Tourettes in a human. The dog could not stop barking unless it was asleep. It had to fed carefully and watched because it might choke as it tried to swallow and bark at the same time. They loved the dog and had it debarked rather than put it down. It worked out well for everyone including the dog. Except for the uncontrollable barking, it was a good and loving dog, very smart too. I'm sure it did not choose to bark like that, it simply could not help it.

 

[BDBoop]

Time for a commercial.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ntDYjS0Y3w]The Bark Side: 2012 Volkswagen Game Day Commercial Teaser - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Si modo]

Dogs 'talk', owners need to listen. There was an Animal Planet episode of Dogs 101 which 'proved' dogs talk. Our dog has a warning bark (rapid, sharp, loud); a "I want a walk, bark" (it's a single bark at the front door with a ?); a bark at play, three high pitched barks (throw the damn ball, hurry); and an excited bark (whenever I picked up her leash, a single bark + eye contact).

That said, I would never use a surgical procedure to silence a dog; it's all about training. There are shock collars but only necessary if one does not properly train their pet. Sadly, many dog owners are too lazy or purchase breeds not easy to train/control.

To the bolded: You couldn't be more right (or, sorry, I bet you prefer I say "correct" ). This topic epitomizes either an ineptitude of the previous owners, or simply laziness - at such a cost to the beast.

Disgusting, IMO.

 

[Katzndogz]

My dog has a sitter for when I'm at school. She has successfully trained her sitter to recognize her vocalizations so that he knows when she needs to go out, wants a treat, some water, play ball. Humans can be trained with proper motivation.

 

[koshergrl]

Sooo..

exactly how does the dog suffer when it has a reduced bark?

Oh, not at all. Ok, then I'm okay with it. The result is a dog who is less likely to be passed from person to person, or be put down.

I have a little dog with a mighty bark...Parson Russell hellhound. She barks loud, sharp, incessant, and obsessively.

She barks to be let in, she barks if someone walks by outside (across the street, down the hill, for blocks coming and going. She doesn't have to see them, she can hear them, through the walls. True story.)

I dream of scholarships for larnyx surgery. If I ever become realllly wealthy, I will set up a foundation that funds them for other beleagured dog owners. I think the surgery is ultimately much less abusive than a shock collar because I don't think she'd give a shit if she barks loud or quiet, and she can continue to bark, quietly, after the surgery, it just won't result in a well aimed kick ending her life. It's the practice she enjoys, not the sound.

Do you really think dogs are depressed after surgery because they aren't as LOUD? Seriously? Dogs don't give a shit if they don't have balls...but you're concerned they'll be bummed because they can no longer split atoms with the force of their barking?

Seriously. People put waaayyyy too much on their animals. No wonder the pets of animal rights wackos are nuts.

 

[Si modo]

 

[koshergrl]

Dogs 'talk', owners need to listen. There was an Animal Planet episode of Dogs 101 which 'proved' dogs talk. Our dog has a warning bark (rapid, sharp, loud); a "I want a walk, bark" (it's a single bark at the front door with a ?); a bark at play, three high pitched barks (throw the damn ball, hurry); and an excited bark (whenever I picked up her leash, a single bark + eye contact).

That said, I would never use a surgical procedure to silence a dog; it's all about training. There are shock collars but only necessary if one does not properly train their pet. Sadly, many dog owners are too lazy or purchase breeds not easy to train/control.

The kind of *talking* that consists of continual sharp barks at 1-second intervals, aimed up at the sky, the window, and the door while the dog races madly in circles...

That sort of talking doesn't need to be heard at 40 decibels. It's only conveying psychosis.

 

[strollingbones]

i am against it...but i have to wonder....how much emotion can we attribute to dogs? mine are wonderful mutts...but they are easy...and none of them are what one would consider barkers....but before i would debark i would use an anti bark collar...but really what do dogs want? food, water, warm place to sleep....they are good to go...they live in the moment...buddy will be with us a year next month...he seems happy...well adjusted...but ever now and then...a voice will be raised and he will run back to the house in fear.....we have never hurt him or raise a hand to him

 

[strollingbones]

with that said...i know thor and jake would kill and/or die for me....buddy would be on his way to the house lol

 

[Synthaholic]

My neighbors adopted a beagle. It used to be a show dog. The original owners had elective surgery done on the adorable beagle's vocal cords to stop it from barking.

It still "barks" but it sounds like it hurts the poor little thing to try to bark - sounds like it has laryngitis.

I think that is beyond cruel. Makes me sad and mad at the same time.

And, I think any dog show that allows such a dog to continue competing is a shame to the dog-loving world. If the showing community immediately DQs any dog from competition, maybe fewer dogs would have their voices taken away by owners who are too inconvenienced to have a dog who acts like a dog.

If it hasn't already been mentioned, they have those anti-bark collars that do work - my neighbor's Boston Terrier wears one and now doesn't bark incessantly.

Barking can become an OCD for some dogs - just look at mal!

 

[koshergrl]

i am against it...but i have to wonder....how much emotion can we attribute to dogs? mine are wonderful mutts...but they are easy...and none of them are what one would consider barkers....but before i would debark i would use an anti bark collar...but really what do dogs want? food, water, warm place to sleep....they are good to go...they live in the moment...buddy will be with us a year next month...he seems happy...well adjusted...but ever now and then...a voice will be raised and he will run back to the house in fear.....we have never hurt him or raise a hand to him

I think they are emotional...but they aren't the same as ours.

Dogs are accepting. That's what defines them. A dog that loses an eye or a leg...they will lead perfectly happy lives if given the opportunity. They don't miss their leg, or their eye, or a tail..they don't care if they're scarred, or if they're bald, or if they have bad breath.

The society of dogs isn't determined by their physical appearance, or the loudness of their voices. In a pack, a dog that barks incessantly just might be ostracized or killed. That crazy barking is something that is unnatural and is caused by their confinement. A dog that is loose doesn't run in circles and bark..they run to whatever has captured their attention.

We modify them to adapt to our lifestyles. I feel much worse about confining animals than I do about physiical alternations we make to make their co-existence with humans more hygienic and less antagonistic. We neuter animals because we find them annoying when they aren't neuterred, and we don't like to be subjected to multitudes of feral animals...but in NATURE they have way more babies than can survive for a reason...it protects their population. So we neuter them because we just don't like to be faced with the unsettling fact of the matter.

And the animal rights yahoos promote the shit out of that (and I'm all for it).

But they balk at snipping vocal chords?

Puh leeze.

 

[manifold]

IMO debarking surgery is wrong, but not nearly as selfish and cruel as declawing a cat. And don't give me the bullshit 'indoor' cat excuse either. Even indoor cats sometimes get out, and you've taken away the cats one and only ability to defend itself or even climb a tree to get out of harm's way. If you have your cat declawed, you're not a cat lover, you're a fucking asshole.

 

[koshergrl]

Speaking of attributing our emotional lives to them...

This weekend, my saint managed to open the back sliding glass door, and he and the terrier both escaped some time in the night. This is bad..the terrier likes to hunt and is fairly aggressive towards other dogs. My concern is that she and the saint will knock some old codger walking his Mitzy poodle over and I'll be liable for a horrific lawsuit (what dogs? I've never seen those dogs before in my life!)...or my terrier will start a fight that my saint will finish, or will start a fight that will be the end of her (the saint isn't much for fighting but he does love his terrier).

Or they'll get hit by a car.

Anyway, they escaped, and the saint returned, exhausted, wet, stressed, panting...and the terrier didn't.

Throughout the day, my big boy acted depressed. He laid around, he panted, he whined, he looked soulful. I was sure he'd witnessed something traumatic, or he was just distressed over the absence of his pet. We pampered him as we frantically looked for the terrier, called the cops, visited the pound, went around to neighbors and just random people walking in the streets with our tale of woe.

As if it would make any difference...nobody can lay a hand on her but me, save one little boy I knew who was determined and would just chase her cross country and jump on her, and take the bites he got as a matter of course...but I don't expect my neighbors to do that...

Anyway, we all felt so sorry for my saint, my heart broke for him!

Then the terrier came back! Joy!

Except...he didn't even get up off the floor. His behavior remained exactly the same. I don't think he cared at all, I think he was just tired! All that anxious empathy on my part...for nothing.

Or maybe he was mad at her for whatever happened...out there....

Anyway, the point is, we have no idea. They're dogs. We're human. We're motivated by different things.

 

[Emma]

My neighbors adopted a beagle. It used to be a show dog. The original owners had elective surgery done on the adorable beagle's vocal cords to stop it from barking.

It still "barks" but it sounds like it hurts the poor little thing to try to bark - sounds like it has laryngitis.

I think that is beyond cruel. Makes me sad and mad at the same time.

And, I think any dog show that allows such a dog to continue competing is a shame to the dog-loving world. If the showing community immediately DQs any dog from competition, maybe fewer dogs would have their voices taken away by owners who are too inconvenienced to have a dog who acts like a dog.

I'm even more pissed that a vet would even consider performing such a procedure.

 

[manifold]

My neighbors adopted a beagle. It used to be a show dog. The original owners had elective surgery done on the adorable beagle's vocal cords to stop it from barking.

It still "barks" but it sounds like it hurts the poor little thing to try to bark - sounds like it has laryngitis.

I think that is beyond cruel. Makes me sad and mad at the same time.

And, I think any dog show that allows such a dog to continue competing is a shame to the dog-loving world. If the showing community immediately DQs any dog from competition, maybe fewer dogs would have their voices taken away by owners who are too inconvenienced to have a dog who acts like a dog.

I'm even more pissed that a vet would even consider performing such a procedure.

Every vet I've ever known save one is a money grubbing douchebag. They always try to make you feel like a bad owner if you don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on unnecessary tests.