Hello everyone! Does anyone have a protocol they can suggest for using an ecollar to stop a dog from barking? Here's the situation - My sister's 8 month old boxer barks up a storm when she wants to come inside or wants them to come outside to play with her. I've already tried to explain to them that leaving the dog outside on her own is setting her up to fail. I think they understood and have been successfully using the crate but apparently still want to let her run loose sometimes. I've used Lou Castle's protocol for the recall, sit, etc. with my dog but not quite sure if that same protocol would work in this situation since their goal is to extinguish a behavior. It's almost like crittering but without a critter to provoke the behavior. There's no way I'm going to give her my ecollar without a sound protocol to follow. Since the dog hasn't begun obedience training yet I think they should just manage the issue while starting OB but I thought I'd ask the question because I figure I'd either get an answer back about how to solve the problem successfully or a bunch of facts that I could use to help convince her to not go the correction route yet <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Jeff how about a bark collar? They give a stim when the dog barks. They're activated by the vibrations of the bark so if there are two dogs one is not stimmed if the other one barks.

They're less expensive than all but the cheapest of Ecollars and they work consistently, unlike an Ecollar which would require the owner to have the transmitter handy all the time and to press the button right after EVERY bark.

Lou, is there a bark collar the dog cannot outsmart?

I have a petsafe which adjusts the stim as the barking gets more intense.

My dog has learned to both raise the pitch of her bark and decrease the frequency so as not to set it off. I know it works (ow)
Grrr.

Hi Lou,
I thought about that but I was trying to come up with an "active" solution that her and her husband would have to participate in. I think the bark collar would probably be effective but my concern is that the dog would end up spending more time outside by herself with the bark collar on instead of getting the structured environment that she needs....although maybe I have to accept the fact that I can't get everyone to raise their dogs they way I think they should be raised <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> I guess I should at least present her with the option. Thanks for the response.

Nancy one of my dogs has learned to make a moaning noise that raises the hair on the back of your neck. "Hound of the Baskervilles" kinda thing. I've used both the Dogtra and the TriTronics and neither one stops this noise. Barking causes a sharp vibration that activates the collar but some dogs will find a way around it.

I think I know that sound -- I had a dobe bitch that learned to make a sound like a circular saw going through sheet metal. It wouldn't set off any of the bark collars either.