Surgery barking up the wrong tree, says vet

Dogs are having their barks surgically silenced for no reason, a vet warns.

Christchurch vet Ian Ross said more Christchurch dog owners were opting to have their dogs "debarked".

Here's an article "Study Reveals What Dog Barks Really Mean" (I must admit that I don't agree with it all though :) )

If your dog is barking when you are not at home, look for the cause, and fix it with behaviour modification, dog walker, doggie day care, etc etc Don't go for the quick fix.

"I've been a vet for 11 years. The first debarked dog I ever met was here in Christchurch and I've met more since," he said. "It's easy in Christchurch to have a vet surgically alter the larynx of a dog to make its bark quieter. It's a real shame ..."

Some dogs were debarked because constant barking angered owners and neighbours.

I totally agree. I hate a constant barking dog too. It's probably the most annoying thing there is apart from Boy Racers waking me up at 2 in the morning...

"It's much simpler to drop the dog off at the vet for surgery than it is to increase his exercise and train him not to bark. But why does this dog bark all day and all night?

"Dogs inside with their owners tend to sleep. Dogs chained to a tree by themselves for long periods tend to tell the world they are unhappy. Muting them just seems lazy to me."

Not lazy... cruel ! If you tie your dog in the backyard all day, why did you get a dog in the first place?

During surgery tissue was removed from a dog's vocal cords. However, the procedure did not stop barking, Ross said.

The howl of those dogs that had undergone surgery sounded like a whisper or a light cough.

It's the sound of a human not understanding their animal companion. Obviously, they aren't an companion, but a nuisance... shame on them for taking on a dog that they don't have time for!

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