The Last Bark

If there was a gold medal in barking at the Pawlimpics - you could be sure that my wire fox terrier Axel would beat out all the competition. Ever since he was a wee pup, he's responded to any outside noise with a high pitched bark. When we are home, we stop his barking with a sharp, "Enough!" or step in front of him.

One day, we found a note in our mailbox from our disgruntled neighbor to our right (we'll call him DN) asking us to do something about Axel's barking. DN works nights and is home all day. Being considerate neighbors we took immediate action. We rearranged our furniture so Axel would not be able to sit a-top our couch and look out the window to bark at anything that moved outside. We sequestered him behind a puppy-gate. We tried crating. We tried Comfort Zone diffusers comforters assuming he was suffering from separation anxiety.

A while later, we got a letter from Animal Control politely informing us there had been a complaint, and would we be more considerate. I was furious and upset at DN for reporting us! Thus began our search for a product out there to help curb Axel's barking. We tried a citronella collar for a while - it worked when we tested it but we really did not enjoy having a pooch who reeked of citronella. But along came another warning from Animal Control. I was getting frantic! Next we purchased sonic and ultrasonic silencers that emit a high pitched sound when a dog barks, stopping him in his tracks because it is uncomfortable to his hearing. We thought that too was working, until believe it or not, a Philadelphia policeman arrived at our front door. DN had called the cops! The cop was very kind and did nothing more than discuss the issue with us. We explained all the steps we had taken to curb the barking, and he seemed entirely satisfied that we were doing all we could. The cop wished us well and left - no warning or fine.

But I was overwrought. I was anxious everytime I left Axel alone and terrified of what would come next. We'd tried every product on the market, and they'd all failed. So I started looking at bark shock collars. Up until this point, I had not been willing to consider shock collars. However, none of the other products seemed to work, and we were desperate. I spoke to the knowlegeable people at Gun Dog Supply. After hearing our situation, they recommended the Tri-tronics Bark Limiter XS. The collar has 5 correction levels from vibration to shock. It also has a very useful bark odometer which allows you to see how many times your dog was corrected since you put the collar on. This was vital for us as we would now have proof of whether or not Axel had been barking during the day and could keep a log.

When we put the lightweight Bark Limiter on Axel for the first time, I was worried sick. We put it on the lowest level to start and waited nervously for him to bark. When he did, he let out a yelp and ran to me to be comforted. It was horrible, but after the initial shock, he recovered quickly and went about his business. Best of all, Axel has never been shocked since - he is smart enough to know that when that collar goes on every morning before we leave the house, he cannot bark. It amazed me how fast he picked this up. He growls, he "talks" but he never barks with it on. And he never shows any fear towards the collar. All complaints stopped when we started using the collar - that was over a year ago.

The Tri-tronics Bark Limiter XS was a godsend, and I have recommended it to friends with the same problem over and over again, especially to dog friends in the UK where their Animal Control can actually remove a dog from a home for excessive barking.

A shock collar should not be your first solution to a barking problem - always check to see if there is an underlying issue causing your dog to bark excessively, and it doesn't hurt to try other products on the market. Just because they were Axel-proof, doesn't mean they won't work for your dog.

But it's great to know that if all else fails, you can rely on the Tri-tronics Bark Limiter XS. You can purchase it online at Gun Dog Supply for $99. Shipping is free.