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Bark Control Collars
My eight-week-old German shepherd/collie barks a lot, and I recently purchased a bark control collar that releases a low shock. I’m curious to know if I can use it on her now, or is she too young? Could it cause permanent damage?
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Electronic collars can be effective when used in appropriate circumstances, but we would never recommend their use without guidance from a behaviorist or CCPDT-certified dog trainer experienced with electronic training products. Any form of punishment can induce trauma in sensitive dogs.
Your eight-week-old puppy is just joining your family, and she needs to learn to love and trust you. That’s why it’s especially important to rely on positive reinforcement methods with youngsters.
If you have an eight-week-old puppy who barks excessively, we must first ask why. Excessive barking can be caused by many things, and it’s critical to determine why the puppy is barking before the problem can be resolved:
- Is the puppy barking in her crate? If so, you may be leaving her in her crate for too long. You’ll want to make sure she has enough chew toys to keep her busy while she’s crated.
- Is the puppy barking when left alone? If that’s the case, she may be anxious about being separated from you. It may be necessary to accustom her to short, frequent absences, rather than lengthy ones.
- Is the puppy barking for your attention? A great solution would be to enroll in training class so she can learn better ways to interact with you.
- Is the puppy barking to come in from the yard? Try not to leave her out so long by herself, and teach her to sit by the door to let you know she wants to come in.
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