Should I use a bark collar?

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Should I use a bark collar?

Dogs bark when they are distressed or when they are hungry. Other times they’ll bark for no apparent reason which makes it annoying at times. Some breeds are more prone to barking as compared to others. Whatever the case, the million dollar question is whether you should use a dog collar on your dog. However, before you get a dog collar, you should get to know why your dog is barking. The dog might be genuine sometimes but when it is just whining, a bark collar will come in handy. This site has nice bark collar reviews http://thepalacedog.com/bark-collar-reviews

How does a dog shock collar work?

For starters, shock collars are not a form of punishment; they serve to correct a certain bad behavior and in this case barking. With the time, the dog will learn to associate the uncomfortable stimuli with the unwanted behavior and stop. You need to make sure the collar is approved to make sure the shock does not harm your dog. Most shock collars will have several levels of enforcement such that the unwanted behavior can be dealt with accordingly. Many shock collars produce a beeping sound before the dog starts barking to serve as a warning. If the dog barks anyway, shock will be administered. The beep will also allow you to give a verbal warning to your dog. With the both warnings in place, the dog will refrain from barking.

The dog collar responds to the movement/vibration of your dog’s vocal cords, the collar will produce a beep sound and then go ahead and administer a shock stimulus if and when the dog barks.

Pros and cons of using shock collars

Pros

  • You can adjust the settings of your dog’s shock collar to whatever you think is tolerable for your dog. This is music to the ears of those who are still having mixed feelings about the shock collars. Other collars like spray collars are not adjustable making a shock collar your best bet.
  • Shock collars give fast results especially for dogs willing to learn and change. As for stubborn dogs, it might take some time but you’ll still get there.
  • With shock collars, you don’t need to be there to control your dog’s unnecessary barking. Shock collars can also be used as boundary controls as part of a dog wireless fence http://thepalacedog.com/best-wireless-dog-fence/ although you’ll need to train your dog first. If the dog goes beyond the recommended boundary, the shock stimuli will be administered and the dog will go back. However, shock collar or no shock collar, dog should not be left alone for long periods.

Cons

  • The shock is not very pleasant as much as it is harmless. Dog trainers recommend using positive reinforcement method of modifying your dog’s behavior in place of negative feedback.
  • Shock collars might instill fear in your dog and instead of progressing, they’ll start retrogressing. For example when using the shock collar as boundary training, the dog might refuse to go out of the house. The dog will fear anything associated with the shock and become withdrawn thus stressing him.
  • Some automatic and electric bark collars might go off intentionally especially those that detect sounds from the outside. This will lead to the dog being punished for other dog’s barks. In such a case, where the dog gets punished for other dog’s barks, the dog might get confused because they don’t understand why they are being punished.

In conclusion, using a dog bark shock collar is not supposed to make you a bad dog parent. Shared training sessions might see you and your dog improving on your relationship. Therefore, get a bark collar for your dog. It keeps your pet disciplined and out of the harm’s way

 

6 responses »

  1. Very good post. Personally I against them as it just natural for a dog to bark – the same way a baby would cry. When a dog bark it just them communicating and telling you something. The trick is us human have to interpret what they are saying. xx

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