My neighbors have 2 dogs that bark a lot for no apparent reason. Day and night. Not all of the time, not 24/7, but pretty frequently. The couple are really nice folks. I have spoken to them but they seem unable to do anything about them. One dog is a large Akita mix and I think they are somewhat afraid of them.

I am reluctant to call animal control on them. The neighbors are extremely nice folks and the a.c. people here do little but issue the ocasional citation sometimes, which I doubt will solve the problem. I'd like to try some other options first.

There are electical devices sold that broadcast a sound like a dog whistle, at a frequency above that which humans can hear. The devices are triggered by the sound of the dogs' barking. The claim is that the 'dog whistle' sound is unpleasant to the dogs and being made in reaction to the barking, the dogs are conditioned to not bark to avoid the whistle's discomfort.

One such brand of device is an advertiser here on the site, "Bark Off."

Does anyone have any experience, good or bad, with such devices?

I have the same trouble with my deceased wife's 2 Maltese Terriers. They bark all the time at nothing. So I borrowed a little devise called "Pet Life". Runs on one 9 volt battery. Sure calms the 2 dogs down. Got online to get one.

An ex-girlfriend of mine got a lab once that wouldn't stop barking. They tried one of those no bark shock collar things and it worked.

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- The Federalist #46 -

If you try it on yourself you won't put it on another dog. The police are the ones to call. There's a jerk down the street that leaves his dog out in any kind of weather. Half the time he's drunk and forgets the dog. Local ordinance says as long as the dog has shelter he can be out 7X24. Barking is a noise ordinance issue. So I call the police when the dog barks wanting in, and the guy gets a $100 ticket. Pretty soon no more barking.

Here is large collection of bark collar tests.


YouTube - Bark Collar... Test...Test!

If it's not his dog he's unlikely to be able to use a collar solution. Another thing to consider is how far is the range from his house to the barking dogs.

I just went through this and Thank goodness the people moved and its peace and quite finally after 6 months.
I had looked at something to stop them barking and asked around and everyone I talked to said they worked great ...They make a collar and they make a device you can mount on your house and point it towards the dog....Good luck ...I know what else makes um quit barking...22 stinger

Those ultrasonic bark deterrents are hit or miss. I have a couple of rat dogs next door that always bark whenever I go into my back yard. I have tried pepper spray on their yard so they will avoid that area, no go. I have tried the ultrasonic deterrent, no go. At least when they bark she lets them inside, so they now have been trained to bark to to go inside.

I have now moved up to the local code enforcement officer, I figure fines staring at 84 dollars and then moving up will at least train the humans and then they can deal with the dogs.

I say forget all the gadgets and find out what it takes in your community to get the owners a fine. Nothing says we need to do something like taking their money away.

bob

Dogs aren't the problem--owners are. Since I live in the equivalent of a third world culture they aren't about to do anything (they have "rights" and I don't). I'm outside of the city and the county has no ordinances about it. I brought it up to the county commissioners about 18 months ago and they have done NOTHING.

Jeff Foxworthy is funny unless you live around his idiot relatives.

Maybe I should hire an illegal alien to shoot a few of these mutts around here.

There is a collar which sprays citronella, or something they don't like, it worked for a friend of mine.
TB

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frontsightnsqueaz

Any reptuable seller of these devices will tell you upfront that they don't work on all dogs. My neighbor (who is the real problem) has two dogs that bark all the time. The high frequency device I bought did not work on one of the dogs from day one.

......moon

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NRA Life Member

While I don't necessarily recommend it if you want to remain friends, I found that waking my neighbors every single time their dog awakens me is amazingly effective.

As mentioned, the dogs are not mine and the collars are not an option.

The dogs do most of their barking along our common fenceline, so I can place a device on my property that will still be fairly close to where the dogs' barking is most bothersome.

Does anyone have personal experience with any particular brand of these things? I have read the ads of most of the makers and their customer's 'testimonials" in those ads, but like anything in an advertisement, the reports are always glowing.

I am truly amazed that the constant barking doesn't annoy the neighbors who own the dogs. I guess it is like some parents and their children's yelling and screeching; after a while it is just background noise that is pretty much tuned out.

Make sure you buy one with a 30 day money back guarantee. Keep you reciept and if it doesn't have any effect in about 3 weeks, send it back and get your money refunded. Like was said earlier, a reputable company will tell you their machine does not always work and will have a return option.

I bought a refurb from one of those companies and saved a few dollars.

bob

I used one of those anti-barking devices to keep my own dog quiet while she was out on the deck. It had two settings for sensitivity, but if on the high setting wind would sometimes set it off. When activated, it gave off a high pitched whine which worked with my dog. I considered using it along the fence when some people moved in with a yapping dachshund, but its range was limited to just a few feet so didn't even bother with it. A couple of calls to the cops seemed to work the best, since the owners were in violation of the local noise ordinance. Maybe they didn't like it, but (sorry about that) they were in the wrong.

I feel for you brother, good luck.

WOW!!!! I thought a dogs bark was just part of life. They bark and you ignore,, kind of like dealing with a yappy wife.

Long story made short. The sonic devices sometimes work, sometimes don't.

Sometimes they work for awhile then quit. I put a motion activated one under my carport to keep niebors kittys from sleeping on top of my car, under a light where it was warm. I really wouldn't mind kitty staying warm, except my car was a convertible. And kittys like to exersise their claws on the top.

Worked great for about 2 weeks. Then the kittys (not being stupid) learned the noise wouldn't really hurt them and would stop as soon as they quit moving. Eventualy I got a new car.

A collar that shocks the owner every time the dog barks is sure to work. Peanut butter works pretty good too.

If your houses are close together, put up motion activated security lights and aim the detector where the dogs go on the fence line, then aim the lights into the neighbor's bedroom, hopefully it is on the side of their house nearest your light.

Go to sleep early and get up about 2:30-3AM to "take care of business" then go to the back door and open it... A soft Woof is usually enough to get the barkers going and as they run to the fence, they set off the lights. By then you are back in your house and have gone back to bed.

In application, the whacko GSD next door to me was gone in 10 days.

Of course my house already had the lights up.

Lights are also a relatively cheap security investment. You might consider them just on general principles.

And if they call, I think I would say "must have been a prowler or wild animal. Guess it was scared off" ...

Good luck..

Wow.I'm going through this as we speak. My neighbors are .or were really nice people when when they first moved in. They had 2 big dogs that were old and I put up with all the barking for 2 years because they were dying due to their age. They have a doggy door which let them go out when ever at all hours. Well that got real old and finally one of the dogs died and then it was just the one. Well the sister which lives next door to them has pomeranian dogs had pups and gave them 2 of them and the sister kept all of the pups which means she has 5 dogs and now my neighbor had 3. I was losing my mind. I felt I was living next to a kennel. To make a long story short. I complained to them, and sent a few stern emails and they had the dogs voice boxes cut. Sucks for the dogs as the owners were not willing to put the time in to train them. Only to find out later my neighbor closest to me had her dogs done partially. Well enough is enough. I called the city and had them sent the rules involving barking dogs laws here in Phoenix which is a misdermeanor. And for now things have taken a 180 and it's pretty quiet for now. I'm prepared to go all the way on this. I have 2 dogs of my own and don't allow them to wander outside and bark at the wind or anything else out of respect for my neighbors. Why cant people do the same

Just the thread for me, as a Realtor in West Virginia, I deal with this every day and have a strong opinion about it, and I'm glad to see some folks standing up for their rights. I just called the dog warden yet again yesterday about our idiot Hooterville neighbors. I've been making a commotion with the councilmen, and animal control, for several years, and making progress slowly.....and I think that is the best route, over electronic dog whistles that YOU have to buy. I live on a beautiful street where the houses are cute but close (30 x 100ft. lots), and only one problem - lots of irresponsible pet owners leaving pet waste on others' property, and causing noise pollution day and night.

Wrong!! That attitude is the problem. You don't ignore them, you train them. No offense personally to that poster, but if I want to leave my screens open and take a nap on the couch in my own home, I dont want to hear your yappy dogs or wife, that's one reason I choose to be single.

As a local Realtor, I sell lots of homes in my own neighborhood and surrounding towns, and it affects my business, and it's been ignored for too long. Noisy and potentially unsafe animals make neighboring properties hard to sell, and then I get complaints because I sold a home to irresponsible pet owners. Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to discriminate. If you have financing, I have to sell you the property even if you are an idiot.

One barking dog can invade the privacy of 15 to 20, or more homes. My neighbors have 3 dogs inside a small fence, and a cat which runs loose, tears our garbage out every week, and provokes the mutts even more.... not to mention around 6 other households with dogs in earshot of my lovely new deck. If I'd wire up my Marshall stereo electric guitar amp rig on the porch, and my quite powerful PA system, and blast loud guitar riffs at all hours of the day & night (which I've threatened to do at a council meeting), I'd likely get a disturbing the peace complaint, but a dog barking all nite gets ignored? I got some attention and it turns out that our town has a no barking ordinance which is now being enforced. If you dont have an ordinance in your town, push your officials for one.

And the litter from pet waste and roaming cats is a problem here too. A child who drops a candy wrapper gets a $500 fine, but leaving a big pile of dog **** between our garages is ok? Not anymore. There are good signs available online telling that dog waste is a danger to the water supply, and to our children. Our park is littered with dog feces and urine, and small children rolling in the grass when bands play on weekends. Communities need to be made aware. Our town now has the signs and the leash law is starting to be enforced and pet owners are starting to carry their little doodle bags.

I've seen home owners' well water which they've been drinking for years test positive for bacteria from their own dog's waste. We spend millions for sewage systems to treat and keep our own waste from flowing into the city streets, streams, and rivers, because we figured out a couple hundred yrs ago that it's not sanitary, yet in 2010 we let millions of dogs and cats dump it all over the streets, parks, and yards, and let our children lay in it..... hello? Is it just me? I see women with hand sanitizers, and sanitary wipes for everything in life.....but then they'll kiss their dog on the mouth after he just licked himself for 5 minutes. Eck! Wipe the baby down with Clorox for eating a cookie off the floor, but let him lay in dog whizz! I don't get it.

I wondered about the electronic devices too, but doubted they'd work, and hate to spend my own money on that. I did however invest in an animal trap, since there is no leash law for cats. I grow a beautiful vegetable garden and prefer it to be free of cat feces, which is not easy around here. I'm not legally allowed to fullfil my dream of sitting on the back deck with various Smith & Wessons, Remington pumps, flame throwers, grenades, etc., and rid the neighborhood......no, not of the pets, I'm not that cruel - The owners!... but I am allowed to trap anything on my property. So I'm getting great results and have hauled some 30 or more cats and umteen raccoons outta here to the shelter over the last few yrs., and in a humane way. Many of the cats were wild looking, possibly diseased strays. You would be surprised what roams your neighborhood at night. And if they happen to be wearing a collar and bell, they too are pound bound. Again, I don't discriminate.

Make noise through your elected officials folks, until they're tired of hearing it. They are getting paid out of your hard earned tax money, and they are supposed to work for you. You have rights. Stress the unsanitary aspects of many pets in small communities, and the health risks to children, and how the noise pollution lowers your property value - because it really does. Just as non-smokers are finally getting the rights they deserve, to work in their office or eat in a restaurant without breathing others' filth, homeowners deserve and have the right to enjoy their yard, gardens, porches, and water supply without aggrivating pet noise or smelly & unsanitary pet waste. (yes, I've embarrassed my girlfriend many times in restaurants by standing up and fanning a smoker's smoke back at them, or blowing it with my own breath - they get the hint - but thats another issue)

Please know this isn't about hating animals, and I do know responsible folks with well trained animals. I'd like nothing better than to live on a farm and have 2 German Shepards and a few barn cats, but tying or fencing a dog in too small of an area in town should be against the law. It's animal cruelty. Why doesn't PETA look at the big picture?

Okay, I'm done ranting. Do that for me and I'll keep the guitar amp volumes below 6...and I won't shoot my 29-2 in the yard, that's fair!

Josh P ... Lets keep this thread going, I'd like to hear if anyone brings this to light in their own community.

I know the pet waste signs are a little off the noise topic, but it goes along with it, and is a good avenue toward making owners confine waste and noise to their own environment.



I kinda like this one... and it still works for dog owners who are too stupid to read.

That guitar amp sounds like it has potential. How about some sort of oscillator that generates a high pitched sound (say, 20k or higher?) that would blast the dogs when they bark. It could be connected to the amp somehow, maybe thru an aux input.

I mean real loud. So the dogs hurt real bad.

MGO, I dont want to hurt the dog's ears, it's the owners' fault. You have to go to the source of the problem. I thought more of finding one of those death metal songs where you can barely understand the lyrics because the vocalist is trying to sound like the devil, and just play the same tune over and over for 24 or 48 hours so it gets extra annoying......and believe me, I have some wattage.

JP