Get an Idea of the Different Types of Anti-Bark Dog Collars

If there’s one thing that every dog owner knows is that dogs love to bark.

In fact, they don’t just love to bark: they have to bark. It’s their most common, and most nuanced means of vocal communication; and whether it’s from joy, excitement, or a warning, it’s part of their nature.

No one wants their dog to resort to excessive or persistent barking, though. It’s called nuisance barking, and it happens when your dog’s inclined to impulsively sound off every time you turn on the TV, the instant they’re left alone, or in the middle of the night when a car passes by.

There are a variety of methods used to address nuisance barking, and technology has increasingly become a part of that remediation process. Of course, identifying the underlying cause of your pet’s compulsive behaviour is your most urgent concern, but technology can be integral to helping you identify the triggers that are causing the excessive barking and hopefully putting them to rest, once and for all.

Meet Modern Anti-Bark Technology

Let’s be honest: there’s a wide range of strong opinions and even legal positions when it comes to technology and nuisance barking. Again, dogs bark, and there’s nothing that can be done to prevent it; however, there is a general consensus that managed training with the use of a stop barking dog device is an effective approach for discouraging nuisance barking.

Modern stationery and wearable anti-bark devices for dogs are the most effective tools available for correcting your pet’s undesirable behaviour. Unlike previous generations of anti-bark devices, the advancements built into today’s systems aren’t engineered strictly for results. They’re safer and more humane than they’ve ever been, and they’re designed to give you the opportunity to identify what’s encouraging the behaviour in the first place.

Remember, even though the excessive barking may be bothering you, there’s still something going on that’s bothering your pet. The real benefit of modern anti-bark technology is that once they’ve quieted down, you can set about pinpointing precisely where the problem is. 

The Ultrasonic Devices that Stop Barking 

Free-standing ultrasonic anti-barking devices are designed to detect when your dog’s barking and then produce a harmless, high-pitched tone in response to it. And as your dog learns to associate the resultant tone with their behaviour, they’ll quickly realize that by not barking, they won’t hear it.

These stationary devices emphasize passive correction over active correction and feature:

·   An 8-meter effective range;

·   An internal microphone sensor; and,

·   Lithium coin battery operation.

Ultrasonic bark control systems are sold in pairs and are intended for indoor use. When used as standalone devices, they can be positioned individually in front of multiple doors and windows where anything from passersby to errant squirrels is prone to eliciting a vocal response from your dog. When used in pairs though, their line of sight signal propagation creates an ultrasonic pocket that can transform an entire room into a bark-free zone.

Citronella Collars for Calm and Quiet

Spray collars are wearable bark control devices that emit an instant burst of safe, but sense-triggering citronella whenever your dog barks. The sound and smell of the citronella being released is a huge sensory distraction from whatever’s causing the nuisance barking; and ordinarily, this abrupt interruption is significant enough to produce a lasting behavioural correction within 2 weeks.

Spray collars come in either vibration, or combined vibration and microphone activation models, and their water-resistant collar modules feature:

·   Twin RFA-188 battery, or USB rechargeable operation;

·   Direct refillable, or recyclable spray refill cartridges; and,

·   Low battery/low spray indicator lights.

Citronella spray barking control devices are sized according to your dog, and are a preferred option for most dog owners because of their light weight and lack of intrusiveness. Your pet can safely wear a spray collar at home or outdoors without the module itself becoming a nuisance, or the risk of it accidentally spraying your dog because another dog is barking.

Next-Generation Vibration and Static Collars

Modern vibration and static collars are greatly improved versions of the classic dog anti-barking devices that were originally designed to interrupt nuisance barking. By sensing either the vibration, or the combined vibration and sound of your dog barking, these collars deliver either a staged or timed counter vibration, or static stimulation to produce a behavioural correction.

These water-resistant collars host all the charging and indicator functions that you’d expect, but they critically boast a range of intelligent customizable features that include:

·   Bark sensitivity. Going from high to low, these collars can be adjusted to distinguish between your dog’s various barking, howling, and whining vocal ranges and to activate only within the unique nuisance range.

·   Operating modes. These collars can be set to activate automatically at either their lowest, or a predetermined stimulation level, or manually at a consistently set level.

·   Bark counters. This feature allows you to measure the progress of the behavioural correction by tracking the number of times the collar’s been activated – an especially nice metric for studying your pet’s activity when you’re not around.

Vibration and static collars are intuitively capable of learning your dog’s temperament, how it barks, and at what strength the corrective stimulation needs to be applied. Depending on the model, up to 15 different levels of correction are available to control nuisance barking; and because of the active nature of those corrections, they’re also packed with safety features such as:

·   Automatic safety delay to regulate the intervals between stimulations;

·   Automatic safety cut-off to prevent over stimulation within a factory-set timeframe; and,

·   Special sensors that prevent them from reacting to loud noises or other dogs barking.

These no-barking devices are made for any size of the dog, but their weight tends to increase with the number of features. Invariably, while some vibration and static collars are better suited for larger, hardier breeds of dogs than others, you can still confidently order one to suit smaller breeds as well.

Understanding the Reasons for Barking 

Even with an understanding of how these advanced types of anti-barking devices for dogs work, you still have to bear in mind that correcting your dog’s compulsive behaviour is as much about its nature as it is about the devices themselves.

With consistent but careful use, an anti-barking device can put an end to excessive barking. You don’t want to ignore the fact, however, that the underlying reasons for the excessive barking could still exist, including:

·   A persistent feeling of being threatened, or that their territory is being intruded upon;

·   A feeling of boredom, loneliness, or isolation; or,

·   An underlying health problem that hasn’t been diagnosed.

More than anything else, isolating that root cause is what’s going to help you make a lasting difference in your pet’s behaviour, and if an anti-bark device doesn’t help you to accomplish that, then you’ll want to speak with your vet regarding any additional steps that should be taken.

The Final Word

At the end of the day, finding a way to putting an end to nuisance barking is one of the most worthwhile things you can do for yourself and for your dog. The real trick, however, is ensuring that you’re putting an end to it for good. 

There’s no getting around the fact that you’ll have to go hands-on at some point, which is why combining managed training with the use of a stop-barking dog device is the approach that’ll yield the best results. You want your pet to be happy and calm, and these devices can help you to achieve both.