# Dog Anti-bark Collar review anybody?



## Earthling (Apr 13, 2008)

My neighbor has a little chiahahua that barks pretty well non stop...well maybe not non stop but for say a good 4 to 7 hours per day...or the whole time their out. 
They want to get an antibark collar and Im wondering if any APS members have used one for their yappy pooch? If you did how did it go? Thoughts?
I was thinking the high pitch noise ones would be good.
The only negative I can see is that it goes off every time they bark. I feel a dog needs to vocalise occasionally with a good woof..or yap......which these collars dont allow...unless Im looking at the wrong ones. Enlighten me.

I also suggested a safe zone for the dog...which at the moment is the far back corner of their wardrobe... So a very small kennel with roof, sides, etc should assist the dog. I think its all fear based barking, so a hide should help and second call is the anti bark device. Their dicipline rating is about 2.5 out of 10..so thats where most of the problem lies.


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## mines bigger (Apr 13, 2008)

we have one of the electric ones... it works wonders, now when we put the anti-bark collar on she wont even bark even if the collar is turned off


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## alex_c (Apr 13, 2008)

ive used citronella ones in the past quite effective. their is models that operate with a remote control available in electric shock and citronella ones.


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## Jen (Apr 13, 2008)

The don't always deter the dog from barking, our dog just ignores the noise


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## arbok (Apr 13, 2008)

there pretty good, but quite expensive aswell.....
its all about getting the right one... if u want i can ask my mum what she would recomend (she owns a pet shop) but shes out at the moment.

if they dont wanna spend the money they can do what i did which was, everytime the dog barked we would spray him with a bottle of vinegar/water mix, it has to be directly after they bark though so they know what there doing wrong...

edit: the noise ones arent that great, get the spray ones.
we also hads an electric remote one once... but we'd always loose the dam remote or not have it handy when he barked... lol


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## wood_nymph (Apr 13, 2008)

from he people i see that but them from us, both the ones that get the citronella spray and the vibrating or noise emmitting type it works long term for about 6 out of 10 dogs. my farthers in laws dog for example worked out the canister of his spray collar runs out eventually as much as he hated the spray he would bark untill it ran out so he would go through the canister in one day.

i'm more a fan of training myself, fix the reason why the dog is actually barking which commonly is dominance issues, yes it takes longer and more effort on behalf of the owners but it works long term and fixs the problem at the source. here in NSW bark busters is a popular one, not sure if they operate upi your way though. they cost a bit but they garentee the dog for life so u only pay once.

P.S. my father in laws dog got signed up to this and 8 weeks later is all fixed


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## inthegrass (Apr 13, 2008)

some local councils have them for hire.
cheers


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## Lukey47 (Apr 13, 2008)

theres always the use of a crossbow/gun or something alike


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## Hetty (Apr 13, 2008)

We got the citronella one. Works wonderfully. As soon as the collar is taken off, my dog Henry starts barking. Put it back on and he's good again  We used to just leave it on turned off, but he learnt to test it...


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## SlothHead (Apr 13, 2008)

Dogs dont just bark for no reason, so the best thing to do is to work out why it is barking and sort that out. 

I personally think that electric collars are completely "inhumane", i am really not a fan of using deterant devices for stopping animals from barking or carrying out natural behaviour.

As wood nymph says, the best way is to train them. 

We breed Chihuahuas and yeah they bark but it is just a matter of working out what they bark at, and then breaking it down from there. Usually it is because the neighbours cat is out and running rampant.


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## Miss B (Apr 13, 2008)

If there's one thing I can't stand it's people who do not train/discipline their pets :evil:

If I had to live next door to an incessant yapping rat-dog I would go bonkers.


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## jessb (Apr 13, 2008)

inthegrass said:


> some local councils have them for hire.
> cheers


 
Yeah, that's what I was going to suggest - much cheaper than buying them and the owners can test it out to see how effective it is.

It's good that the owners are open to solving the problem! Could be a lot worse...


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## Brigsy (Apr 13, 2008)

I have one more a correctional collar, it has a noise and also a shock that you operate by remote, have found with some dogs though that they know too behave while the thing is on and back to old habbits as soon as collar is off. Most are only short term fixes and the problem should be looked at why is it barkin all the time. Hope you get some help there is nothin worst than a constantly barkin dog!!!


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## Brigsy (Apr 13, 2008)

Feed it to a large python LOL!!!!!


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## kittyg (Apr 13, 2008)

Sadly some dogs seem to bark for 'no reason' but dogs such as chihuhua's/foxys/jackrussells etc can sometimes bark at almost anything and everything. A butterfly to a dog this big is quite an interesting thing to bark at. Unless your neighbour is willing to try an electric collar himself, then he should go with the citronella one. They're so effective on all sorts of pooches! I'm a dog groomer and have a bullterrier that comes for his bath. He barked pretty much non stop, the citronella collar has honestly cured him. Bullies are pretty determined dogs so it was awesome it worked  By the sounds of it, your friends just need to keep him inside with some distractions like treat ball toys, etc while they're out. Slothhead, I'm with you with all your comments!


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## kittyg (Apr 13, 2008)

my above message should read "unless your neighbour wants to try an electric collar on 'himself'"


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## Krystal (Apr 13, 2008)

We had to get the zappy collar for hire from the council when we had our dog. The people next door had a rottweiller that growled at us and our dog when we were out the back so my dog barked at it. Anyway, she was an old dog and it worked on her pretty well. Once the people next door left we stopped using it as they were the ones who complained. After awhile she started to bark again but it wasn't very often - only when we got home or were playing


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## mines bigger (Apr 13, 2008)

the electric ones are not a strong shock at all... there is a test function to tell if the battery is flat... it is a full powered jolt and it only compares to licking a 9 volt battery...


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## vinspa (Apr 13, 2008)

We have used the citronella collars and our dog barked it dry.We then used an electonic one which he barked flat,so it was then a trip to the vets to be de-barked (voice box removed).So now he can bark to his hearts content without making any noise!!


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## Brigsy (Apr 13, 2008)

Yea got myself a few times lol


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## vinspa (Apr 13, 2008)

mines bigger said:


> the electric ones are not a strong shock at all... there is a test function to tell if the battery is flat... it is a full powered jolt and it only compares to licking a 9 volt battery...




Depends on where you get the collars from!


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## Colhunter (Apr 13, 2008)

My neighbours dogs bark constantly! A jackrussel and a bitsa. When they first moved in, i warned them people would complain if they didnt do something about the barking, and sure enough after a few weeks of hi pitched yappy constant noise they had there first complaint. And now they have had 4 other complaints since then and still has done nothing about the barking.
They arnt well trained dogs and they have no time spent with them at all. I know this because its came straight from the horses mouth.
So a friend suggested letting the dogs out of the yard, ringing the council and telling them there are dogs wondering about, and then if the owners want their dog back they have to pay money to get them back.
Kinda cruel i know, but so is having untrained yapping dogs constantly barking while your trying to sleep. Especially when you have young children.


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## Earthling (Apr 13, 2008)

Thanks for all the replies guys. Looks like they work well, just depends on how persistent the dog is as to which one to use. This little fella next door tends to bark on the other side of the house and its not very loud, so doesnt bother me. Bothers the owners of the dog though, hence the fix time.

Regarding training, Im hearing you, however their not the best of trainers, hence the problem. I think fear is the dogs biggest problem so should be interesting to see what a little kennel does for it to hide in.

Colhunter, for around $100-$150 you can buy this large heavyduty sonic noise antibark device (ebay/oztion) which you setup on your boundary to do next doors dogs. their only good for around 10m, but if you have an electronics mate im sure it wouldnt be hard to juice her up a bit.

Has anyone come across an anti bark device that doesnt come on at the first bark? Perhaps set it for 4 barks or something then zaps/puffs/beeps?


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## wood_nymph (Apr 13, 2008)

http://www.barkbusters.com.au/qld.htm
they do service QLD if they're interested


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## spilota_variegata (Apr 13, 2008)

mines bigger said:


> the electric ones are not a strong shock at all... there is a test function to tell if the battery is flat... it is a full powered jolt and it only compares to licking a 9 volt battery...



I'd like to dispute this statement. I've zapped my dog with an electric collar and it made her yelp and drop to the ground. Once I saw the effect it had on her, I put it on my neck and zapped myself - it hurt like hell. I took it to work and told my colleagues about it and one daring young guy offered to put it on his testicles to see what sort of pain it would inflict (fully clothed). I have never seen a grown man howl like a dog before 

A 9 volt battery on the tongue tingles, an electric collar hurts - about a 6 on the pain scale.


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## selina2106 (Apr 14, 2008)

I just wanted to add since no one else has, that a dog wearing a citronella collar must be monitored 100% of time it is on, as if the dog doesn't stop barking and keeps getting sprayed, it can cause very serious respitary problems. So this is no good at night when owners are asleep or when they are out of the house. My kelpie used to bark pretty bad at night (and he was properly trained but still barked) but a bigger kennel with a big blanket and some toys solved the problem the first night. Also giving him a good bone kept him amused (and quiet) for ages.


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## redbellybite (Apr 14, 2008)

put the dog in the freezer ..that will stop it barking slow its heart rate waaaaaaaay down and thaw out when you get home .......we all know some dogs bark because of emotional reasons little dogs were bred for companionship so if its being left on its own NO WONDER ITS BARKING tell your neighbour to get another mate for it or stay at home there is also doggy day care but the cit collar works too but you will have a miserable dog......


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## Leigh (Apr 14, 2008)

i'd electrocute a chihuahua just for a giggle, personally  

but for anti-barking purposes, i don't like the idea of electrocuting the dog. mind you its better than having your ignorant neighbor bait it instead.


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## 888lowndes888 (Apr 14, 2008)

Try a super sonic one. I work in a pet supply store and we have some for $22 that customers say work well. Citronella ones are hundreds of dollars.


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## Auzlizardking (Apr 14, 2008)

We tried this - super sonic one - dog just barked it flat - *if anyone has an electric collar for sale or hire PM me*
Tried to hire one of the council, RSPCA, etc no one does it anymore.


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## Mrs I (Apr 14, 2008)

We also have a yap yap living next door, the owners now lock it inside from 8 pm to 8 am to give us our sleep time, i can put up with it to some degree during the day.

Our council does still hire out the citronella collars, but for our neighbours that cant clean up their backyard, i doubt they would spend the money on a collar...

My 20 month old daughter even goes to the door and yells out Shut Up... funny but not good...

Mrs I

xxx


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## FredBear (Apr 15, 2008)

But a really big scrubbie and feed the yapping rat to it ..............................problem solved and no evidence left.


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## koubee (Apr 16, 2008)

I use an anti bark collar on my Blue Heeler. I was a little hesitant to use it at first. 
It has 2 probes on it and a sensor probe in the middle, this sits on the dog throat, whenever she barks it gives her a zap. It has 6 levels of correction. It is the best thing i have ever brought.
I got mine from the petshop, it is a Petsafe anti bark collar. It cost me $120, and it is well worth the money. She won't bark now if she has the collar on, which is great.


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## Kathryn_ (Apr 16, 2008)

As others have, I would very strongly emplore you to encourage them to train their dog properly, as an anti-bark collar is just going to upset and confuse it. Of course it's much harder work but it's far better for the animal psychologically in the long run, chihuauas, much as i'm personally not a fan of the breed, are very smart dogs, and will respond very well to correct training, particularly if he's still young, but even if he isn't it. Beating an animal out of a natural habit that annoys the owner through aversion training really isn't ok, and positive reward for good behavior will always, always work far more effectively than negative inforcement. If they aren't willing to properly train and care for this dog, they simply shouldn't have it, and should re-home it with someone willing to put in the time and effort to train it properly.


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## snakecharma (Apr 16, 2008)

i have tryed a few differant things with my dogs to good success 

firstly anyone that puts one of those electro shock units on there dog should have it strapped to there throat for a few hours and see how they like. Honestly they are inhumane and thus why they are actually illegal (i have put one on a mate whist pastout, it was his dogs, he didnt like it much when i woke him up) 

the citronella jobbies are great i have one on my female at night all the time and have not had a complaint from the neighbours in about a year, yes they can be expencive but i blame this on some greedy pet shop owners how can they honestly charge $200+ per unit when i know for a fact you can get them on ebay for $69.95 per unit brand new. 

You will also find there are the ultrasonic ones for sale on ebay for very cheap ($15 i got mine for) i will be testing this against the citronella ones very soon and will get back to you all about the effectiveness of them but i have heard that they work well and you only need to replace the battery's no need to keep buying the spray.

the third type i have come across is the pulse/vibration type, these are commonly mistakin for the electro shock units but instead of sending a shock to the throat they have 2 studs type things sticking out and when the dog barks they will vibrate and this would be quiet uncomfortable for the dog thus stopping it barking. I have not used this type befor but have heard they work ok but if your dogs are like mine and are good at loosing there collars then good luck lol 

hope that helps 

cheerz


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