Dear List-
Not usually one to beat a dead horse, however.....
As one who has been on both sides of the fence...
A Golden breeder of 25 years, I could never understand folks who had noisy dogs
they couldn't control/train. When people would ask, "how do you keep them so
quiet?", my short and snotty answer was that you simply trained them not to
bark...As a person who has trained dogs to their UD, TD and SH (field stuff) levels,
I firmly believed that no behavioral problems was insurmountable...
My second generation into Cavaliers. I ended up with one who is an irascible
(thank you Sharone, for that word) talker. She would bark at a bug, the sun, the
moon, if you were walking away ot walking towards, an open door, a closed door,
anything. She would bark during obedience training, doing agility obstacles, riding
in the car. She barked at night while dreaming.
Her mother and grandmother are fairly quiet-yips at food time, excited chattering
when home from a long trip-otherwise silent. Dad was, well, I don't know-you tell
me, Jeannie, is Robert a nuisance? Is that why you sent him to the USA?
We tried it all...training...crates...spray water bottles...citronella
collars...shock collars...positive reinforcement...negative
reienforcement...clickers....more attention...less attention...all that was gained
was a teary eyed (from all the citronella), neck burned (from the E collar that
would had downed an elephant) always wet (from the spray bottle) rather confused,
barking dog. With very pissy neighbors.
A year ago, for the first time in my 27 years plus in dogs, I had a dog debarked.
A vet, 2 hours away, that specialized in the surgery, with recommendations from top
Basinji and Sheltie breeders. I was conflicted, ashamed, mortified. I had a drink
with a friend at 10 am in the morning after dropping her off, I was so upset at
myself.
It was the best $250.00 US$ I had EVER spent in my life.
Miss Viva is smart, agile, happy, the first in any empty lap and still "barks"
continually. No more various collar tortures, no more crates at night (she sleeps
on the bed now), no more "5 minute only" outsides, no more water bathes, yelling (me
or the neighbors), earplugs or muzzles. She has had to date 14 puppies ( a very
fertile little girl!), none of whom seem to have that excessive talking gene. She's
glad, I'm glad, my husband is glad, the neighbors are ecstatic.
A year ago, I drove to the vet with a physical pain in my chest-I couldn't believe
that I was reduced to a surgical intervention on a "trainable" problem. When asked
today, I announce that it was easily the most valuable investment I have ever made
and frankly, knowing what I know now, if I didn't have the money for the trick, I
would "trick" a few night until I did!!!
Not every talkative dog needs to be debarked. Individualism is certainly the key
in training, breeding, caring for, and living with dogs and other beings. But
please take my experience into account before you re-home, collar torture or destroy
the psyche of a dog due to this issue-I now feel that surgical intervention is just
one more path to consider.
Best Regards from a peaceful hovel-
Kim Johnson
Allegria Cavaliers and Gold-Rush Goldens
--
Kim Johnson
http://www.leftcoastfarm.com
100% Kona Coffee
"a cup a day keeps you jammin'"
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