Debarking

[leskris]

I have two Jack Russell Terriers and have been getting complaints from my neighbours for months about their barking. I have tried muzzles, bark collars and everything else that has been suggested to me.
I am now looking for a vet that will surgically debark them as my only other choice is saying goodbye to them.
Can anybody help me with the name of a vet anywhere in Canada that will perform this procedure? One is five years old and the other is three years old and I have had them both since they were six weeks.

[mollywog]

I'm sorry but I don't think you will find much advice here....
you need to get to the root of the problem- why are your dogs barking so much?

How much exercise do they get each day? Do you take them for walks or off leash hikes or dog parks?
Are they neutered?
How long do they stay outside unattended? What do they have to do outside when alone?
Are they mentally stimulated with obedience, chew toys, and attention from you and other humans?

Rather than an inhumane "band aid solution" you need to figure out what is imbalanced in your dog's lives and work towards fixing it.

[clm]

Originally Posted by mollywog

I'm sorry but I don't think you will find much advice here....
you need to get to the root of the problem- why are your dogs barking so much?

How much exercise do they get each day? Do you take them for walks or off leash hikes or dog parks?
Are they neutered?
How long do they stay outside unattended? What do they have to do outside when alone?
Are they mentally stimulated with obedience, chew toys, and attention from you and other humans?

Rather than an inhumane "band aid solution" you need to figure out what is imbalanced in your dog's lives and work towards fixing it.

What she said.

My Bentley wears a bark collar when I'm outside with him before 7:00am in the morning and 9:00am in the mornings on weekends so he doesn't disturb the neighbours every time he sees a squirrel, other than that if they start barking (and I stress, one of us is always outside with them anyway), then we stop the barking as soon as we can. We don't allow them to bark constantly out there.

clm

[lUvMyLaB<3]

i agree! Jrts need axercise and stimulation. You cannot expect them tn entetain themselves without barking. 6 weeks is way too young to take a pup from its mom and sibs and perhaps that is at the root of your problem. If you walk them and play with them and take them to classes then leave them inside you should not have any problems. If you cannot meet their needs and think u must do this barbaric procedure then perhaps giving them up is the right thing todo. There is a reason it is not easy to find a vet to do this, it is inhumane

[leskris]

Originally Posted by mollywog

I'm sorry but I don't think you will find much advice here....
you need to get to the root of the problem- why are your dogs barking so much?
Now that they live in the city they bark at anybody or thing passing by

How much exercise do they get each day? Do you take them for walks or off leash hikes or dog parks?
They are used to living on 5+ acres and now have to live in a city.

Are they neutered?
Yes, they are

How long do they stay outside unattended? What do they have to do outside when alone?
Most of the problem is when they are left inside when we go out.

Are they mentally stimulated with obedience, chew toys, and attention from you and other humans?
They have lots of attention, toys, etc. and are never left alone for more than a few hours at a time.

I really am at my wits end

[mollywog]

ok, so you have moved to the city. But you didn't answer my question about exercise. To me it sounds as if these dogs are bored stiff- plain and simple.

Do they get ANY exercise outside of your home now that you have moved to the city???

Maybe you should look into JRT Rescues and rehoming these 2 if you cannot properly meet their needs.

[clm]

I would try crating them or putting them in a room where they can't see out a window to bark at whoever is passing by.
You could try to get a trainer to come to your house to see if they can help.

You didn't answer the exercise question either. Are you or are you not taking them for some good exercise every day?

clm

[SnowDancer]

Do you live in a house or an appartment? My Eskimo, the barking fool, is barking as I type at the kids standing in front of our house bouncing on their skate boards.

[babymomma]

Rehome them..

Dogs BARK... If you didnt want to deal with these kinds of issues in a humane way. Get a stuffed dog next time after you rehome these two..

Have you ever heard a debarked dog bark?
I have, and the poor thing seemed so frustrated cuz he was barking and barely any noise was coming out:sad:

Dogs bark for a reason. To communicate, to tell YOU when somebody is coming.

Crate them.. But tire them out first. Get a Bike, Run them along side of it.. Terriers want to run. Especially JRTS. They are one of the only small breed terrier left that are actually being used to do what they were originally bred to do.. That is to HUNT. Which means they have an even higher energy level and a higher preydrive. Its still being bred into them.

Find a trainer to help you.. This could EASILY be fixed. With a little work..

If you for some reason are unable to or just to lazy to do any training.. REHOME THESE TWO PLEASE.. It would be in THEIR best interest. Dont be selfish when making this decision..

Have respect for them. If I respect something I sure as heck Do NOT take its voice away.

[Bailey_]

Are you keeping your dogs outside for the majority of the day? Generally people are fairly understanding with barking dogs and won't complain unless things are REALLY out of hand.

We actually have a bloodhound a few doors down, and he naturally goes into the backyard and HOWLS and howls and howls while he's outside. Of course his owners never leave him outside for any lengthy period of time, but everyone can hear it. As I have a baby, it can be a tad annoying, but unless the owners were to constantly be leaving their animal outside to his own devices to howl for a considerably lengthy period of time, I wouldn't even think to call them.

My concern is that because you came from five plus acres, you have been keeping your dogs outside for longer periods of time in the day - which maybe isn't odd for you or your dogs, but it is when you live in town and your dogs suddenly have less territory to explore.

Just because a dog is outside does not mean that they will be entertained. Barking dogs are BORED dogs. If there isn't anything causing them to bark (people passing, other animals) - they're barking because they have nothing to do. It's a natural reaction to have you come and seek them out, and JRT's, are normally a vocal breed.

I agree with everything that has been said above. If you can't transition your life to keep them in the house more, and if you are seriously considering debarking them - PLEASE REHOME them. No one knows what their future may hold - what if you were to go through with this surgery, and then something happened to you? Your dogs would need to be placed in new homes regardless, but this time with a serious disadvantage in their new homes.

It's just cruel to debark them, regardless of whether or not you are at your wits end. Please do not go through with that step.

If anything, could you look at finding some doggy day cares near you, or a reputable dog walker? This will help ensure that your dogs are getting enough stimulation and excercise, and keep them out of home and away from your upset neighborhood.

Good luck, and keep us posted.

[Gail P]

What kind of muzzle did you try? I read some good information about a muzzle called "The Husher" that was designed specifically to deal with barking. The people who designed it were ordered to get rid of their dogs (GSD's) or stop them barking and they came up with this idea out of desperation. Apparently their prototype worked so well that they ended up manufacturing them and they are considered to be a humane muzzle that is supposed to be endorsed by vets or spca or somebody (can't remember who, but I do recall reading on their site that some ACO's were even carrying a variety of sizes in their vehicles to recommend to people when they had to investigate barking complaints). The muzzle has elastic side panels which are intended not to hold the dogs mouth closed, but to tire the dogs muscles if they try to keep barking. Since it allows the dog to still open it's mouth it can still drink or pant, and it can bark but becomes tired of doing so. Maybe something to look into?

[Bina]

Originally Posted by leskris

I have two Jack Russell Terriers and have been getting complaints from my neighbours for months about their barking. I have tried muzzles, bark collars and everything else that has been suggested to me.
I am now looking for a vet that will surgically debark them as my only other choice is saying goodbye to them.
Can anybody help me with the name of a vet anywhere in Canada that will perform this procedure? One is five years old and the other is three years old and I have had them both since they were six weeks.

I understand your frustration....my own barky, happy Airedale caused me some problems with a previous neighbour.
He was not permitted to bark early in the morning, or late evening, but he did enjoy a good squirrel chase in his fenced yard during the daytime. Well, didn't the police show up at my door. My dogs were already back in and laying down after a few minutes of chase the squirrel.
Anyway, we were desperate to get out of there and have a hobby farm, so it was just the push I needed to buy 5 acres with a house and barn.
My darling, crazy, vocal Airedale had many fun years here until he passed away.

Please reconsider having your dogs de-barked, it seems to me that there must be another option.
Can you keep them in a basement area away from windows (terriers are visually stimulated) and have a dog walker come while you are out?
Of course they would need to be really tired out first, and if that isn't possible, just maybe you can try to search out a country home for them.
I don't envy your decision. :sad: Mine was easy since we needed a farm anyway. Best wishes with this.

[kitona]

Leskris. I have two dogs that were bred to be hunters and to bark, allot! In Finland, there are even competitions to determine the dog that barks the most in one minuet. The only way to keep them and me sane is if I walk them out on a ''hunt'' every morning for at least one hour. They are on 20 foot ropes as they have zero recall (another breed feature!) and we hike from one fertile hunting area to another. This way, they get loads of physical and mental stimulation and sleep the rest of the day, well, till dinner and usually another hunt in the evening. If they were kept from doing this, I'm sure I'd have a couple of total basket cases on my hands. Their preferred prey is mice, so I do let them catch and kill, but not eat.
Give it a try. I'm sure they must be missing their 5 acre private hunting reserve!

[MyBirdIsEvil]

Are they outside the majority of the time? Just about ANY dog that is left outside most of the time is going to bark. JRTs are highstrung and are going to bark at absolutely everything if they're left outside to their own devices.

Why not bring them inside and crate them while you're not there and give them some kind of toys to occupy themselves? These are young dogs and it's a shame you're considering debarking them because it sounds like their only problem is that you're not putting the time and effort into controlling their behavior and giving them proper housing
I have a minpin which is a breed known for barking and I have no complaints from my neighbors because he's mostly an indoor dog and is trained not to bark constantly while in the house or bark out back while I'm out there with him. My neighbor also has a minpin and I rarely hear him. In fact I didn't know she even had a dog at first. Most of my neighbors have dogs and this is one of the quietest neighborhoods in town.
If you start working with your dogs and interacting with them and training them you should be able to stop this behavior. Please don't debark. That's cruel and I would suggest rehoming before you take that route...

[lUvMyLaB<3]

i understand the problem, but the thing is any dog can be managed, it is very possible to correct this with time and effort. I really think debarking is cruel. Jrt7 are high needs, smart and stubborn, but this is the package you signed up for the dogs do n6t know it is wrong so it would not be fair to punish them. If you can be honest about your lifestyle there are people here that can help you, but you have to commit to it. Please try, for the dogs sake. Good luck.

[Melinda]

debarking is a cruel punishment for the two little dogs being frustrated, imagine having all the land you want to run and play and then being confined to an apartment or house, they need a good 2 mile walk twice a day, a tired dog is a good dog, tire them out, give them each a frozen treat filled kong when you leave the house and odds are they'll be too tired and content to bark much. Most vets will not debark a dog, to them its also cruel.

[Little Leah]

Why do that over barking? I got a dog who is still trying to bark over a shock collar and am living in an apartment right now. Why do that? Um anyway yeah make sure your dogs get lots of exercise that may just be it, take them for hour long walks, even run them if you have energy. If by chance you feel it is too much then go to the SPCA and say you want to put them up for adaption. But don't euthanize them because they bark, euthanize them if they have major problems like they have a disease that you need to do that. It's horrible that your thinking of that. I could never ever think of that in a million years, I'd think of giving them up to another family first.

[ancientgirl]

I agree with the others. debarking is as bad as declawing. Find another option or solution, but debarking is cruel.

[catlover2]

Here's my If you haven't the time to take long walks to tire out your JRTs do you have an exercise treadmill? There are lots of videos on YouTube.com showing how to teach dogs to use a treadmill. Cheap treadmills can often be found second hand. Hope something works out for you. Let us know ---this can be big problem for people with the more "yappier" breeds.