If you are a dog owner,like myself, hen I am sure you have no problem with your lovable pet barking.  It is what they are supposed to do.  Getting mad at the fact that your dog barks is like getting mad at your newborn baby for crying.

What can get extremely annoying, however, is incessant barking that never seems to end.

The individual living next to school, busy street or anyone with neighbors might find himself getting a daily headache from the daily barks his dogs make whenever they see any sign of life on the outside.

What is the solution?  As you might have guessed from the title: an anti bark collar.

When I started this blog two years I had a pug that I loved dearly.  He was the cutest dog you have ever seen.  But I could not get him to shut up.  It got to the point where it was going to be me or him.  And, since Woodstock (my dog) could not make the house payment it would be him.

I broke down and got him a shock collar.  It cost me a little more than $118.  It had various settings so you could adjust it as needed.  Within a day I started to see its affects.  It took a couple hard “zaps” and I did feel sorry for the little guy, but it did what it was designed to do.  The loud barks went from crazy earth shattering noises to nothing.  He learned quickly that he was not going to be able to bark at everything.

Eventually, he did adjust.  He learned that the device only went off after three barks and that it did not activate if he barked soft.  I can live with that.  Again, it was never the fact that he did bark but what drove me crazy was the fact that he barked loudly at everything and at all times of the day.

When using these anti bark collars, though, here is what I have learned from experience:

Take Them Off At Night

So your dog does not get a rash it is a good idea to take them off before going to bed.  Just make sure you put the collar back on him or her as soon as you wake up.

Check the Battery

As long as the battery is good then a green light will be blinking.  When it is not then the battery is dead.  Its good to have some spare ones available just in case this happens.

Adjust Settings Over Time

As your dog learns you can lower the settings.  I am a firm believer of putting it on full blast for the first two days and then lowering the settings over the next week or so as your dog learns to adjust.

There are three types of collars on the market.  They are shock, sonic and citronella dog collars.  Each one has its own pros and cons and are all discussed in depth on this blog.  Read on to find out more about them.

Here are the choices you have: shock collars, citronella collars, and ultrasonic collars.

Shock Collars

These dog training devices shock your dogs into submission.  They are not made to hurt your dog but they do give them a clear message.

Every time your dog barks with one of these things on he or she will get shocked.  The bark has to be more than three times and over a certain level for it to kick in.  This type of anti bark collar is by far the most popular.

They work very quickly, usually within a day, but many dog owners find this type of anti bark collar inhumane.

Citronella Collar

Dog’s hate citronella spray.  It is a substance that is also used to repel mosquitoes and quite  non-toxic.

Nevertheless, dogs cannot stand the smell and are annoyed to death by it.

There is just something about it that bothers their sensitive noses and when they get sprayed by this anti bark collar the barking ceases immediately.

A citronella bark collar is worn around a dog’s neck and once they get over a certain tone it shoots a quick burst of this spray (very little amount) into their face.

Ultrasonic Collar

A dog’s hearing is more advanced than a human.  He or she can hear sounds we could never hear.  This anti bark collar works off that premise.

It starts to emit a high pitched sound when your dog starts to bark.  Like the citronella dog’s find this very annoying.  Their acute sense of hearing just cannot take it.

They will shut up immediately. You will not be able to hear any sound but they will.  You can by this as a collar or as a stand alone device.  Many people feel that the ultrasonic bark collar is the most humane training tool out of the three.

Here is an alternative.  You can use the anti bark spray collars instead.  These collars do not shock your dog when he or she starts barking out of control.

Rather, it sprays a scent in its face.  This scent is called citronella.  Dogs hate this.  A dogs nose is extremely sensitive.  There are varying arguments about exactly how much greater their smelling ability is than humans be it is generally understood a dog can smell 100,000 times better than humans can.

I am sure you can appreciate how sensitive their nose is with all those sensors and nerve endings.  Ever try to touch your dog’s nose.  They hate it.

Now dog’s hate the scent of citronella.  They literally cannot stand it.  Spray a burst of this stuff in their face and they stop dead in their tracks.

That is exactly how an anti bark spray collar works.  Much like the shock collars it has a sensor on it that can tell when your dog is barking loud.  When that happens this device is triggered and its shoots some citronella odor in your dog’s face.  I think it overloads his or her nose for a couple seconds.

They stop barking immediately. Many have found that these collars work great and are better than the various other dog training collars used.  From the reviews I have heard they are equally effective and a great alternative to the ones that shock.

The only complaint I have heard about these anti bark spray collars is that citronella gets all over the place.  I have only hear that from a few people and I think its exaggerated.

These collars do not spray tons of citronella in the air.  Its just a quick little burst.  Enough to do the trick.  If you are not looking for it then you can barely see it.  I doubt it “gets all over the place.”

Give this collars a try.  I have not heard a single story where the people who bought said it did not work.