Debarking - the Surgical Option

What It Is

Debarking is a surgical procedure that reduces (but doesn’t remove)
tissue in the vocal chords. The surgeon, in effect, nips the muscles
on each side of the voice box, which reduces the volume of the dog’s bark.

Your dog will still bark but the sound will be a low, raspy one that
you will be able to hear if you’re in the same room with your dog. It’s
very unlikely his ‘bark’ would be heard by your neighbors.

Is It Cruel?

I’m sure you’ll hear from hysterical people claiming that this is a cruel procedure or asking how would you like it if someone nipped your larynx.

The answer to the second question is that I wouldn’t like it because I have ognitive abilities that exceed those of a canine. Dogs are not furry human beings. They are dogs. If you have your dog debarked, he will never know! He will be just as happy as he was before you had him debarked.

This surgery takes about 20-minutes to perform if the surgeon is experienced. It’s less invasive and has less after-effect than having a dog spayed or neutered. There’s nothing ‘cruel’ about this surgery.

It amazes me that the animal rights cultists become hysterical about this procedure but constantly advocate neutering. Removing a dog’s sex organs and permanently changing his hormone production has far more lasting (some positive, some negative) effects on a dog than debarking surgery will.

It's Not My First Choice

I don’t recommend debarking as a first choice because it is a surgery and especially if you have a small dog, the risks of surgery and anesthetic remain.

You should make an effort to train your dog to stop barking on a
command. You might use "Stop" or "Quiet." Teach it as you do
any command. Example - reward him with praise and/or treat
when he stops barking, turn your back on him if he keeps barking
or spray him in the face with a water spray. Reward him as soon
as he is quiet.

Most Common Reasons Dogs Bark Incessantly

Boredom is number one. If you leave your dog home alone with
nothing to keep him occupied or put him outside in your back
yard, he's going to bark his head off. That's the only way
he can communicate to you. (He can't write you a poison pen
note for leaving alone!).

Give him things, such as Kong toy stuffed with peanut butter,
to keep him occupied and leave a radio or TV on at a low
volume while you're gone.

Right after boredom is Mother Nature. She spent generations
instilling the barking action in dogs. Some dogs, such as
Yorkshire Terriers, are always going to bark no matter what
type of training you use.

Don't beat yoursefl up if you can't stop chronic barking.
You're fighting against your dog's innate nature.

If your training hasn't worked, barking collars haven't worked
and your neighbors/landlord/police are about to insist you
give up your dog, look at debarking.

Summary

You can try all the training techniques, collars and
electronic corrections that you want but some breeds will always
bark. This surgery is an option when other things fail.