Top 5 Systems of Stopping Barking Dogs

Lets start by stating that the aims of this website was to find the best method of stopping my dogs from barking . Thats it! – However in the process we have come across a number of problem areas for some dog owners .

Areas such as 

• Time to train the dogs
• Location to train the dogs
• Cost of training the dogs
• Training Methods to use
• Training Equipment to use
• How to train two dogs

None of these are easy to answer  and neither is the fact that we also wanted to stop the local dogs from barking and setting off ours in chorus, as if they were part of the choir.

So Lets Look at what we found out and what equipment we need to achieve our aims of “stopping the dogs barking” and how to keep it affordable ( with $250 USD)

In addition to the above we also wanted to make the dog training system suitable for the kids and grandkids to complete or participate in as well.

Lets start and deal withTraining Equipment 

We are talking here about training the dogs to shut up – stop barking and driving us all mad along with the neighbours, visitors to our home, kids that come along to play in our yard.

Equipment to Shut the Dogs up 

I am not getting into the argument with anyone that wants to discuss the fact that their dogs are barking for safety of them. You I hope will see the  why and what as we go along .

We are going to discuss 5 pieces of equipment and explain why they are all important to the system that we use.

Item One  – A Bark Collar  (no bark collar, anti bark collar call it what you like)

Item Two  – Handheld no bark devices for use at or away from home to keep the barking down and to assist in training.

Items Three – A household and Yard (front or back yard, property ) deterrent that could be used for both my dogs and others if need be.

items Four – A remote method of triggering the home devices if the system does not trigger correctly or the dogs are outside of the systems hearing /reception area.

Item Five – Extensions cord for power sources, Battery powered system and backups of the remote systems for inside and outside the home etc.

Note: We have included in this website more than 10 additional items similar to those we have for the final selection, the reasons for this are simple , you may not like my choices or the costs may be inhibitive, and you may like to make your own decision.

Item One – Barkwise No Shock Collar 

We have tried to use the Shock collars, Vibration Based Collars, Ultra Sound Collars, Spray based collars (citronella) and the bottom line is

1. Shock Collars are not humane and they should be banned , we had one of our friends try the shock collar on during an argument over this item and he realised after one heavy jolt that they are garbage. So we abandoned them completely
2. Spray Based Collars – They work only due to the smell of the citronella , however some smart dogs turn their head sideways and tend to avoid the spray plus the continual cost for spray and batteries is painful on the pocket
3. Ultra Sonic Collars – providing a variety of levels of sound, (high pitched) that we as humans can not hear and we spent a lot of time wondering if they were working and based on the dogs reactions sometimes it didn’t , no doubt that we had to ramp up the levels to stop all of the barking , so for some dogs they will not work, some they will.
4. Vibration based collars produce exactly that a vibration to the throat area whenever the system detects that the dog is barking , again these can be adjusted to suit the size of the dog and its tolerance .

Choice 1 – BarkWise Collar 

So why choose the BarkWise collar –  It combines the best of the four options plus it has an added benefit in that it allows the dog owners to hear an audible signal when the system is working. ( Which can be turned on and off when you need too)

It has both a UltraSonic high pitched sound (adjustable) also a vibration to the dogs throat area (that reminds me of the handphone vibration), and yes you can feel it of your hands are on the collar when the dog barks. Plus as we stated it has an audible sound for us to check its working.

The BarkWise collars work. However when you are out and about you may or may not have that collar (on your anima)l if you are walking the dog, running a teaching session on hand signals you will need an alternative.

 

Choice 2 – The ON Guard Hand Held Training Tool

We did not try any other hand helds , we didn’t find any that suited and to be fair once we grabbed this On Guard we did not even bother to try.

What is does is easily described as brilliant. It makes the same type of high pitched noise that the collar does and similar to that of a dog whistle. This can be used to stop other dogs annoying you , stop the barking if they and your dog start.

Stop bad habits at home and outside the property if the dog plays up and the system kicks into gear the noise will eventually along with your loud command of No stop the dog in its track, Its the association of the command and the signal that does the trick over time.

Before the PC crowd get on my back, there is room for reward training systems for all dogs, however what do you do when they do not behave ? reward them ?

Lets look at this – You are out walking , throwing ball , no Collar on and your dog starts barking, or another dog close to yours does and it sets him off. A push of the button stops yours and the other dog will follow. (it works)

Your dog is in the back yard and it starts up what do you do? command is NO and the system kicks into gear – your dog starts to associate NO with the annoying noise and we have dog training taking place.

Plus – The Bonuses for the On Guard System

You can become the centre of attention when you click the very  loud, pulsating panic alarm in the event of an emergency ( my wife carries it every time she leaves home now)

Plus its a torch to light your way home, and its easy to carry in most ladies bags, bum packs or backpacks. Use the wrist band to help keep it close to you

To Sum Up – The On Guard is a handy

1. Dog training device
2. Dog Deterrent for other annoying dogs
3. Emergency noise sounding system
4. Torch for non moonlight nights

Choice 3 – The Dog Silencer – Home the Neighbourhood

Given that our dog training Started with the Barkwise No Shock Collar  and then progressed to using the On Guard system we decided that it would be beneficial to continue to use the same type of noise system to maintain the behaviour patterns for our dogs. The Only method we had of doing that was to use a system that provided coverage both inside and outside of the home .

To do this we looked at and chose the Dog Silencer

At first we simply placed this in the home and when we moved the dogs outside we would move the system outside with it. To do this we used an extension cord and simply placed it on the shed in the back yard.

To be fair by this time our dogs were reasonably under control and behaved well with each other and with little or no barking . It was the next doors dog that was becoming a pain in the backside.  It would start due to the fact that our pair  were in the yard and playing, so from time to time ours would join the choir. To stop this we decided to add another Dog Silencer system and have one in the home and one in the yard at a height (in a tree) that would help us to cover our neighbours dog as well.

This is where the remote unit became helpful as we could initiate the system whether our dogs were in the yard or not , and give the neighbours dog a whack and yes this started to work.  (It also works when your dogs are away from home with another member of the family and you are at home and the neighbours dog kicks off )

This ensures that we are covered whenever we are :

1. In the Home  (Dog Silencer)
2. In the car ( Collars or the On Guard)
3. Walking the dogs ( Collars or the On Guard)
4. Out for a training Run with the dogs ( Collars or the On Guard)
5.  At a recognised training session with the dogs (Collars or the On Guard)

Added Training Benefit

By now you will have realised that we use two methods of training. One is off course the reward system, that allows us to encourage our dogs when they are working hard at training and complete the activity or request correctly. The other is the use of the On Guard  when they are not in control and perform badly in areas such as jumping up at members of the family or public.

Using the On Guard for this type of situation relies on your personal preferences and we are not stating that it is the only answer. However to be fair it is the fastest, and when you have two dogs that is often the best method.

Total Package for Barking Dogs.

Start with the Barkwise Collar, progress to carrying the On Guard and combining both  with a reward system during training. Add in the Dog Silencer for the home and the remote for training other dogs . A point to remember is that whenever a barking dog is too far away too activate the dog silencer you can do so by using the remote. Test it , we found that it works in our situation.

      

Final Questions –

Did we answer the questions that we listed above

• Time to train the dogs –    We are actively training all day when using the combinations of the Barkwise collars, the On Guard and the dPG sILENCER
• Location to train the dogs – Home and Away is covered
• Cost of training the dogs – We have kept the cost to under $250
• Training Methods to use – We use the combination of training and reward training
• Training Equipment to use – Its all listed
• How to train two dogs – Two collars , One Guard , One Dog Silencer , One Extension cord  ( We now use two Dog Silencers – One inside and one outside

When do we turn them off – at night !  ( except the On Guard is always handy).

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