De Bark is worse than De Bite
I was watching the news tonight and they reported that the House had voted for an anti-debarking bill. It would make debarking a dog illegal except for when it was medically necessary. The issue reminds me of anti-abortion legislation. "Each dog barks in his own yard." Kipling.
I've been the victim of an incessant barking dog. I'm sure I've written about it. After a few years of listening to hour upon hour of barking, day after day, year after year, the neighbors finally either got enough death threats, or got a suite from the town, and did something about it. They muzzled the dog. Now, for the most part, it doesn't go outside unless it's muzzled. And it still barks. And barks. And barks. But it's muffled. It doesn't carry like the other sound did. And in the summer, when it's hot, I wonder how it affects the dog's ability to pant or drink. Is it cruel?
I've gone to various sites looking for information about debarking. You go from one extreme to another. Either it's the most cruel thing on the planet, making dogs unable to vocalize and eat and drink, to a simple procedure done under anesthesia that heals quickly so a dog can get back to it's normal life, barking it's head off with no one hearing much at all.
One thing I have noticed is that it seems like what is really at issue is bad breeders. Breeders who debark dogs so they can either have a lot of them without bothering people,or breeders who are doing illegal vet work on their own, or paying a chop shop vet to do it for them. Most of the people who are in the clips who have had bad experiences with the procedure got their dogs from breeders who were apparently quite disreputable. One woman claimed she bought a dog, then called the next day when she heard it bark and thought something was wrong. Now, seriously, what honest breeder would not disclose that the dog you are buying was debarked? Another dog had bad hips, and was promptly debarked and put in a cage, then sold as a pet. Again, a bad breeder, not interested in the dog, or the next owner it seems who might not want a debarked dog.
I certainly wouldn't want to have to debark my dog (if I had one) nor would I want to declaw my cat. But if the situation warranted it, and I couldn't find another alternative, I would rather have the option than be given the only other option of killing the dog or cat.
Very much like the abortion debate. Unless you are the person dealing with the situation, you really don't know if it's the right decision, so MYOB.
But it really seems to me like dog breeders and even veterinarians are what needs to be looked into, because like bad doctors, there should be reports of vets who are doing bad work if that is the case, and if it's breeders doing vet work, well, that's illegal too.
I've been the victim of an incessant barking dog. I'm sure I've written about it. After a few years of listening to hour upon hour of barking, day after day, year after year, the neighbors finally either got enough death threats, or got a suite from the town, and did something about it. They muzzled the dog. Now, for the most part, it doesn't go outside unless it's muzzled. And it still barks. And barks. And barks. But it's muffled. It doesn't carry like the other sound did. And in the summer, when it's hot, I wonder how it affects the dog's ability to pant or drink. Is it cruel?
I've gone to various sites looking for information about debarking. You go from one extreme to another. Either it's the most cruel thing on the planet, making dogs unable to vocalize and eat and drink, to a simple procedure done under anesthesia that heals quickly so a dog can get back to it's normal life, barking it's head off with no one hearing much at all.
One thing I have noticed is that it seems like what is really at issue is bad breeders. Breeders who debark dogs so they can either have a lot of them without bothering people,or breeders who are doing illegal vet work on their own, or paying a chop shop vet to do it for them. Most of the people who are in the clips who have had bad experiences with the procedure got their dogs from breeders who were apparently quite disreputable. One woman claimed she bought a dog, then called the next day when she heard it bark and thought something was wrong. Now, seriously, what honest breeder would not disclose that the dog you are buying was debarked? Another dog had bad hips, and was promptly debarked and put in a cage, then sold as a pet. Again, a bad breeder, not interested in the dog, or the next owner it seems who might not want a debarked dog.
I certainly wouldn't want to have to debark my dog (if I had one) nor would I want to declaw my cat. But if the situation warranted it, and I couldn't find another alternative, I would rather have the option than be given the only other option of killing the dog or cat.
Very much like the abortion debate. Unless you are the person dealing with the situation, you really don't know if it's the right decision, so MYOB.
But it really seems to me like dog breeders and even veterinarians are what needs to be looked into, because like bad doctors, there should be reports of vets who are doing bad work if that is the case, and if it's breeders doing vet work, well, that's illegal too.