Citronella Bark Collars Use Your Dog's Nose As A Training Tool

Citronella Bark Collars Use Your Dog's Sensitive Nose As A Training Tool

Citronella bark collars release the attention-getting smell of citronella

as a response to your dog's bark.

It works to alert your dog that it's engaged in unwanted behavior.

We all know that some smells are hard to ignore. And a dog bark collar that utilities a simple smell as a training device is really very clever.

These days aroma therapy is all the rave. Certain smells affect us in different ways. Some good... some not so good.

Well, it seems they're now using it as a harmless aroma-aversion therapy to help train your dog to refrain from barking.

Not sure if dog training collars are right for your dog? Get expert help from our recommended professional dog trainers.

Citronella Bark Collars: A Clever Training Device

These bark collars contain a reservoir of citronella that is sprayed toward a dog's snout every time he barks. Each time a correction is triggered by your dog barking, he'll hear the spray and smell the citronella.

And when training your dog with a citronella bark collar, or any type of dog bark collar, keep in mind that individual dogs react differently. Each dog has its own unique temperament... so what works for one dog may not necessarily work for another.

If your dog has a fairly soft temperament chances are a citronella bark collar will work great. She'll probably learn very quickly that when she barks she'll experience an unpleasant and distracting spray.

For some dogs it only takes one or two sprays for them to get the message. They stop barking even if they aren't wearing the dog bark collar.

But other dogs become �collar smart� and as long as they are wearing the collar they don't bark. But once the dog bark collar is removed� they know that the correction comes from the collar... so they start barking again.

I know a dog owner with a �collar smart� dog who figured out a way to stay ahead of her clever dog. She keeps her dog's citronella collar on him all the time... but she removed the citronella canister over a year ago! Her pooch, Jessie, never caught on� so it's still working like a charm.

Citronella Bark Collars And Stubborn Dogs

But if your pooch is strong-willed you may find that a misting of citronella just isn't a strong enough deterrent to stop him from barking.

For some dogs a sudden spray in the snout from a sharp smelling bark collar is perceived as a minor distraction... curiosity... or annoyance... and just slows them down a bit.

It may not provide enough of an aversive to make them think twice about barking again. It's easy for these types of strong-willed dogs to quickly go through a whole canister of citronella spray.

And once the collar cannister is empty and is no longer dispensing the surprising and smelly spray... the dog will no longer be distracted... and the nuisance barking will continue as before.

Most dog trainers advise you that merely putting a dog bark collar on a dog is not enough in itself. A training collar is only an aid in altering your dog�s unwanted behavior.

Like any dog bark collar, citronella bark collars should always be used with other training and socialization techniques. It�s the best way to direct and modify your dog�s behavior toward the required goal.

Many people consider citronella bark collars to be the safest and most humane of all dog bark collars. But if your dog doesn't respond to the citronella you're probably better off with an electronic dog bark collar which, when used properly, can be safe and very effective.