Shelties

Hello there! I'm a Sheltie owner too. Our Sheltie is just a puppy, about 5 months old, and his barking is terrible. We're lucky to have understanding neighbors. We've tried a citronella bark collar, but it's too big for him, so it doesn't sense when he barks. I don't know much about de-barking dogs, but I don't think I'd do that to him. His bark is a part of his personality, not to mention part of his self-defense mechanism. Our next step is going to be to attempt to shorten the bark collar so that it fits better. Maybe that will help. If not, we'll be spending some time in the backyard with a spray water-bottle and spraying him when he starts barking at the neighbors.

how would you de-bark a dog? i've never heard of this before. can someone explain?

I am against debarking a dog. I think teaching your sheltie a proper behavour is more appropriate.

I don't own a Sheltie, but my Aunt raised them for many years. Her's were show dogs. And breeding stock. She treated them like children, though. As to the practice of de-barking...It should be illegal! What a horrible thing to do! Should people who talk to loud or too much have their vocal cords cut? I can't imagine doing such a horrible thing. Any dog can be trained not to bark constantly. Some dog breeds are yappier than others, but people should know about the dogs they are getting beforehand. I definitely do not approve of such a horrible practice!

I own a 4 yr old Sable male sheltie. He hasn't and won't be debarked. Is he loud? Does he bark? He sure does, and sometimes it's annoying but I also tend to think he is just excited and that is his personality. And I would never get him debarked as it is only natural for him to bark. What would happen if someone devoiced us because certain people spoke to much? :)

My Sheltie, Cassie, was debarked. Please understand that 1. I was 16 when this was done. 2. I was asked by my parents about having it done, to which I emphatically said "NO. We will work with her behaviorally. I think that's just mean." They then asked about getting her fixed. I said "Yes, I do not plan on breeding. We should definitely get her fixed." 3. I went to school, and she went to the vet. The morning they took her to get fixed they ALSO had her debarked. I was FURIOUS. They gave me some crap about it being safer to just put her under anesthesia once... well, YES, of course it is, but you didn't need to DO it twice for JUST FIXING as was AGREED UPON. I didn't speak to them for months and cried every time Cassie "whisper barked" What happened, though was sort of ironic because she worked so hard at it that she grew enough scar tissue to bark pretty LOUD, which I felt was pretty good justice... except THEN t started causing her breathing issues and had to be repaired. BASICALLY she had to be debarked twice. Even though I eventually forgave my parents (they just aren't animal people like I am, didn't realize what a big deal it was medically, and they were afraid our neighbors would get Cassie taken from me), I would strongly recommend training... even professional training before considering this action.

We too have a Sheltie, KC, who has just turned 1 year old. She has literally taken over our home! Our children are grown and moved out and we decided to get a house dog a year ago. Thus, KC became part of our family. We knew we wanted a Sheltie because we had seen one at a Bed and Breakfast that we stayed at and just fell in love with it! Also, everything we read about them led us to believe that this was the dog for us. I cannot tell you how correct we were! She is the best thing we have done in a long time! I travel all the time for work and she is my husbands best friend while I'm gone! When I arrive home, it is the greatest feeling when she comes running to the car to greet me like I'm the best thing since sliced bread! As for the barking, we did not allow it to become an issue from the beginning. Our breeder thought that KC would be a barker.. but she and the trainer that we took KC to for a few weeks told us to just keep working with her when she started barking to let her know that it was not something we wanted her to do ALL the time. She is extremely smart and learned that along with many other things VERY quickly! Now, at a year old, she only barks when she senses something or someone outside or sees something that concerns her outside, OR, of course, when my husband is tormenting her! lol I would recommend to anyone looking for a GREAT pet, get a Sheltie! They are AWESOME! As for de-barking, I would never do that to a dog. To me, it is like cutting out a humans tongue. It is just wrong on so many levels in my mind!