Wednesday, July 27, 2011

WHAT TO DO.. WHAT TO DO....

TEDDY BARKS.... something shocking.  But only when we arrive home after being out, or if someone knocks on the door, or walks past the house, or gets up in the night for a piddle... you get the drift.

He is dreadful!  He barks and yaps so loudly he drives us nuts... and will NOT stop unless we yell at him heaps... yesterday I got so mad with him I literally locked him in the laundry the moment I got home just to shut him up.

I am no 'dog whisperer' so don't know how to stop him.  Steve has made him worse by encouraging him to bark even more!

So... I'm thinking of getting something like this:

ABOVE:  this one works by emitting a high pitched noise only the dog can hear when he barks...

ABOVE:  this one gives an electric shock when the dog barks... but is controlled by the owner who uses a remote control to 'zap' the dog when he barks....

ABOVE:  and this one works automatically when the dog barks and shocks the dog with 5 increasing intensities until the dog stops barking.

so... ALL and ANY advice would be appreciated!
Have you used any of these? Do they work?  Do they hurt the dog? 

Yep, and talking of Teddy... I'm taking him to Pukekohe this morning bright and early to be groomed.  Coco will be coming with us of course... can't leave her home alone right now.

ABOVE:  Kelly bought me these two gorgeous blue boxes in Hamilton the other day, and Stew bought me the wee doll as I loved her and want to try making some similar for Christmas presents.

ABOVE: these are the boxes I got yesterday...  I probably have quite enough boxes now... *sigh*.   lol

Teddy is at the groomers in Pukekohe... and we are home again.  Coco is giving me the shits... she's getting so big in the belly!  And constantly moving around... stretching out.. tossing and turning...  can't be long now!  I'm scared to tell you the truth!  What if I do something wrong???

ABOVE:  I'm slowly comprising the Whelping Kit.... I bought some stretchy lace (in foreground) which I am going to make little puppy collars with... way, way cheaper than buying collars!

ABOVE:  I got a collar for Teddy.  It emits an electric shock when he barks... in 6 increasing intensities.  Hopefully he will learn REALLY FAST not to bark!  
Sorry but I don't have the patience or tolerance right now to go through any sort of long drawn out 'training' programme with him.  We are all OVER his barking and want it to stop RIGHT NOW.

Teddy looks wonderful after his grooming.... maybe I'll post a photo of him tomorrow.  Right now I have to sit down and read up on this collar...

MAGPIE:  clearly you have never heard Teddy go beserk and bark/yap/scream EVERY TIME someone comes to the door, or when we get home, etc, etc.  If you had to you would be looking for something to shut him up too.

TINA:  I got the milk and bottle JUST IN CASE we have a runt who needs a bit of help to keep up.  I have NO INTENTION of doing any interventions unless it is absolutely necessary.

End of Day:  Well... the Stop Barking Collar has been put to the test twice this afternoon.... and twice he's started to bark and stopped almost immediately!  Is it too early to say: SUCCESS?
nite nite.

22 comments:

  1. Don't know what to say about the doggie but I love the dollie

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  2. Leigh6:26 AM

    I saw an ad on TV yesterday and the dog whisperer is touring here shortly, maybe you should look into that. I'm sure he has a book too check out your Library

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  3. no clue on the barking dog... wish i could help...
    love the boxes but can see where you are gaining quite the collection...
    the dolly is cute too and something i could never even think of making...
    hoping for the best and someone with answers.
    love ya

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  4. good advice bout the dog whisperer or you could try a dog trainer anne said hers is real good

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  5. My brother bought a shock collar for his dog, mostly so she wouldn't run off and chase cars. Only took one time of zapping her on the lowest setting and then after that he just had to hit the warning button. Rusty barks a lot too and it's freaking annoying! Although I like him to bark when weird people are hanging around.

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  6. Anonymous11:35 AM

    Think I would talk to the vet about the dog barking aids. Dog training school giving him treats for good behaviour etc sounds an option. Get Steve to take him if he is so good at the training!!!
    Coco will be fine she's nearly full term almost so will be uncomfortable. Nature will take care of all matters it is quite amazing to watch & have your vets number handy just in case.
    Mary H

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  7. A friend used a shock collar on his dog until a friend suggested he try it on himself so he could tell how severe the shocks were. Well, he did it and the shock collar was them beaten to smitherines with a hammer. Three years later he still feels horrible about that collar.

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  8. Don't stress about the puppies, you will be fine & won't do anything wrong. In fact Coco will do it all herself pretty much.

    No wonder the poor thing is tossing & turning - remember what it is like being pregnant - and she has 6 of the little buggers in there.

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  9. the collars are a good idea - a barking dog i knew had one, he learnt pretty quickly and he wasn't exactly smart!

    citrus spray collars are quite good too...

    good luck!!!
    x

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  10. Please dont put the shock collar on Teddy. It is cruel, you love those dogs.

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  11. Anonymous2:48 PM

    Do they have citronella collars in New Zealand? They let out a burst of citronella scent when the dog barks. They don't like the smell of it. WOMBAT

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  12. good luck with the collar. Hope it doesn't have to be used too often. It sounds terrible I know but apparently they work.

    Oooh! Puppies! Can't wait!

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  13. Anonymous4:19 PM

    Chris those collars are awful, awful things. If Steve has been encouraging Teddy then it really does seem unfair - could you not put it on him? (said only half facetiously)
    Emily

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  14. Anonymous4:59 PM

    Aww, be a bit patient with Coco! You were the one that wanted her knocked up! :)

    Crankybee

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  15. Anonymous5:03 PM

    We have electric shock collars for our dogs, I was worried first so used them on myself and wasn't much worse than 9 volt battery. They can be ramped up but usually no need. Make a huge difference to dogs behaviour, only have to get warning tone and behaviour improves greatly.

    Good luck with puppies, cant wait to see them


    Margaret

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  16. I've heard good things about the citronella collars.

    You must be excited about Coco...I'm excited for you and I'm on thus other side of the world! I can't wait to hear how everything goes!

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  17. Chris, have a look at u tube for videos of people who tried the collars out on themselves. One girl put the collar around her leg and she was screaming in agony and her leg felt burnt.

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  18. I think you shouldn’t worry about Coco so much. She is an animal who follows nature's lead and can cope by herself. Why the bottles and other nursing stuff? Let animal deal with the nature!

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  19. "Ok heres my TCW after working for a dog kennel place where max numbers was 30 ALL owners were told IF and only IF their pooch barked uncontrollably then and ONLY then would a bark collar be introduced LET me tell you after 1 or 2 days 5 MAX the dogs learn and THE dogs that came to my friends kennels IF they saw the collar coming to them THEY SOON SHUT UP!

    Now some of the owners used bark collars at home and all the owners agreed to the terms I know for a fact after the 3rd visit these dogs didn't need the collars, and she had dogs in range from collies, labradors, pig dogs, doberman rotti, bulldog, terriers, jack russels, greyhounds etc etc. She had this business for over 12 years AND a very very loyal customer base. AND if she went away I was the dog sitter at least 4 times a year 2 week stays and then on the odd nights weekends.

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  20. Anonymous10:26 PM

    Oh and people might criticize you for the collar but I bet your neighbors are grateful! :D

    Crankybee x

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  21. In the village where I lived when I was a kid, my home was after my uncle's home. He had this huge dog which barked the living daylights everytime I walked past. It was so scary even tho' it was chained up. Sometimes to be funny, my cousin would "forget" to chain it and it would chase me while barking furiously. I still have nightmares from those barks. If only I had bark control collars then.

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  22. Anonymous1:09 AM

    The barking collar will be fine. After a few little zips, he won't be barking. As for why he is barking...perhaps he knows Coco is going to have babies and is being the Great Protector. He's the man of the house after all, and he's just doing his duty. Hopefully the birth of the puppies will go just fine! You'll wake up to a bunch of little pups!! ...debbie

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