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DEBARKING
SURGERY WON'T TAKE AWAY DOG'S MOTIVATION TO BARK
MANHATTAN
-- It's 3 a.m. Your neighbors have awakened to the sound of your
dog barking incessantly for the umpteenth night in a row. They're
angry and tired. You want to fix the problem -- and fast. So you
turn to a surgery that is becoming popular but controversial around
the globe: debarking the animal.
Most
would agree the endless barking of a dog could fray even the calmest
nerves. But is this canine vocal chord surgery the best way to restore
the peace?
Kansas
State University veterinarians say although this procedure will
probably keep your pooch at least a little quieter, it doesn't address
the main problem -- why the dog is incessantly barking in the first
place. The surgery doesn't take away the motivation to bark, nor
does it fix the underlying problem.
Dogs
may bark incessantly when they do not receive appropriate physical
activity, when they are in a boring environment or when they are
anxious or frustrated. If owners want a dog, they need to be able
to take care of all the dog's physical and social needs.
Usually
when people come to K-State's Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital
with a nuisance-barking dog, they are looking for a "quick
fix." Many who debark their dogs live in an apartment, are
breeders with many dogs or have dogs whose barking has become a
problem with neighbors.
There
are two ways to perform this procedure, which essentially removes
the dog's vocal chords. One method goes through the animal's mouth.
This approach is simpler and quicker -- the other method goes through
the dog's larynx, or voice box.
This
way is more expensive and a little more difficult, but is better,
because surgeons can suture the lining of the airway back together,
as it should be. Suturing keeps scar tissue from appearing and blocking
the dog's airway. If the surgery is done through the mouth, it causes
scar formation and the dog's bark may return in a very strange way;
air passing through the dog's larynx when it attempts to bark will
resonate against the scars.
Such
a bark can then be more annoying and sound like a harsh, "smoker's
bark."
The
Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital at K-State doesn't perform
many of these debarking procedures. Sometimes a surgery is performed
to correct a previous procedure that did not work.
If
a dog owner comes in wanting this procedure performed, veterinarians
won't refuse to do it, but they will explore alternatives. If they
do perform the surgery, the veterinarians will make sure the owner
understands the need to address their pet's physical and social
requirements.
Recently,
some animal advocates have asserted this surgery is cruel to the
animal; some countries have even outlawed the procedure.
On
the other hand, it can be considered cruel if owners haven't addressed
the underlying problems. The surgery stops the barking, but it doesn't
fix why the dog was barking to begin with.
Updated
July 2005
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