Sunday, March 15, 2015

The Kennel Barkathalon

Allahu Mickbar!  When I make the claim that "our neighborhoods sound like kennels", that is no minor claim.   A neighborhood that sounds like a kennel is a BIG problem.  Oh, and those kennel noises are primarily related to squeaky hamster wheels (/sarc).

Anyways, how to answer the Barking Question?   Now, NOBODY gives a crap about the effects of dog noise on people, so that angle is a dead end.  Who cares if you can't sleep in your own house?  Remember, the dog owner next door gets to set the noise level in your home, NOT you!   Praise Dog!

Moving along, the above does not mean that nothing can be done.  Has anyone considered the effect of dog noise on OTHER DOGS?   See, nobody cared about dog attacks UNTIL pit bulls started attacking other dogs, so NOW that problem gets some attention.

If you can prove that dog noise is toxic to DOGS, that is an angle that may gain some traction.

Consider this excellent article containing an analysis of the effects of dog noise in kennels.  Note that only the effects on other dogs is considered, as no one cares about the effects of noxious barking on ANY other species.

Some excerpts with a few comments of mine added in for emphasis.

Sound levels in animal shelters regularly exceed 100 dB. Noise is a physical stressor on animals that can lead to behavioral, physiological, and anatomical responses.  [try not to forget about us 2 legged animals... we are "people" too!] There are currently no policies regulating noise levels in dog kennels [of course not, who are WE to quiet the Voice of Dog?]. The objective of this study was to evaluate the noise levels dogs [the hell with the other animals] are exposed to in an animal shelter on a continuous basis and to determine the need, if any, for noise regulations [how about a sensible noise regulation OUTSIDE the kennel?]. Noise levels at a newly constructed animal shelter were measured using a noise dosimeter in all indoor dog-holding areas. These holding areas included large dog adoptable, large dog stray, small dog adoptable, small dog stray, and front intake. The noise level was highest in the large adoptable area. Sound from the large adoptable area affected some of the noise measurements for the other rooms. Peak noise levels regularly exceeded the measuring capability of the dosimeter (118.9 dBA). [well, I'll be dipped in sh!t] Often, in new facility design, there is little attention paid to noise abatement, [obviously, because the noise level has everything to do with the building and NOTHING to do with the dogs] despite the evidence that noise causes physical and psychological stress on dogs  [pay dirt!]. To meet their behavioral and physical needs, kennel design should also address optimal sound range. 

Noise in an animal shelter has previously been discussed (Key, 2000; Milligan, Sales,& Khirnykh, 1993; Sales, Hubrecht, Peyvandi, Milligan, & Shield, 1997). Sales et al. reported that sound levels regularly exceeded 100 dB. Sound is measured in decibels (dB) and the scale is logarithmic, meaning that 90 dB is 10 times the intensity of 80 dB and is 100 times the intensity of 70 dB. A noise level over 70 dB(A) is considered "loud" (Baker, 1998). To put this into context, 95 dB(A) is comparable to a subway train, 110 dB(A) is a jackhammer, and 120 dB(A) is a propeller aircraft; any sound in the 90 to 120 dB(A) range is considered to be in the critical zone and can be felt as well as heard (Key, 2000). No single method or process exists for measuring occupational noise. A noise dosimeter is preferred for measuring noise levels when the noise levels are varying or intermittent and when they contain impulsive components such as barking. One consideration when using a noise dosimeter is that the microphone is within the hearing zone of individuals being monitored. 

It has long been documented that audible sound has profound physiological and psychological effects on nonhuman animals and disturbs the healthy equilibrium of the body (Wei, 1969). Noise has been found to be a physical stressor on animals that can lead to behavioral, physiological, and anatomical responses. Noise-induced cortisol increases can cause immunosuppression, insulin resistance, cardiovascular diseases, catabolism (molecular decomposition), and intestinal problems (Spreng, 2000).   [Indeed, but lets just keep the barkathon going, shall we?] The hearing of animals differs from that of humans; dogs (Canis familiaris) have much better hearing and can hear sounds up to four times quieter than can the human ear. Recent research shows that noise in dog kennels may be a welfare concern for the animals (Sales et al., 1997), but currently no policies regulate noise levels in dog kennels.  [Again, HOW ABOUT THE NOISE LEVEL EVERYWHERE ELSE?]

The objective of this observational case study was to evaluate the levels of noise to which dogs are exposed on a continuous basis and to determine the need for noise regulations. Regulations may emphasize the necessity to control levels through building design and materials instead of trying to reduce the noise produced by the animals. The facility where this study was conducted was designed and built in the last 7 years. However, as is often typical, there were no obvious preventative measures in the design to reduce noise and, in fact, design may have had the opposite effect due to animal arrangement, the use of concrete block, and exposed metal roofing. 

So, in closing, the best way to counter the barking scourge is to present evidence that barking is bad FOR DOGS and that should solve the problem. 

21 comments:

  1. As far as I'm concerned all PET dogs should be spayed, neutered, defanged and debarked. It would solve so many problems.

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    1. I am considering the "debarking" topic. It is VERY controversial.

      Thanks for writing.

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    2. I read a comment from a vet saying dogs don't seem to notice. They keep barking their stupid heads off, just at 10 decibels instead of 100.

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    3. http://www.naiaonline.org/articles/article/debarking-bark-softening-myths-and-facts

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    4. KaD: You must say 100 "Hail Fido's" or you will face the wrath of the Dogish Inquisition!

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    5. The best way to debark a dog is to remove everything from the neck up. This is one of the best blogs around. Keep hammering away. End the dog mania now.

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    6. "The best way to debark a dog is to remove everything from the neck up"

      ROFL!

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  2. Surgical spay and neuter used to be considered horrific as well-consider the GOOD these have done by preventing the births of tens of millions of excess dogs and cats: mistakes which were behind two of the most catastrophic humane movement failures of earlier eras, each of which caused even more millions of animals to suffer and die, and die suffering. Each of these ancient mistakes has ongoing repercussions.

    The first monster mistake came in 1923, when the American Humane Association rejected surgical sterilization of dogs and cats, endorsed for the first time by the American Veterinary Medical Association, as "vivisection"--even though the AHA did not actually oppose vivisection. The AHA, then the only national humane organization, did not accept dog and cat sterilization for more than 50 years. By then Friends of Animals, the ASPCA, and HSUS had long since reversed majority opinion within the humane movement... rejecting dog and cat sterilization forced the humane community to kill ever larger numbers of unwanted puppies and kittens. This led to the AHA vigorously promoting decompression killing from 1950 until it was abandoned by the last agencies using it in 1985, having been recognized as inhumane many years earlier by the AVMA and by almost every other humane society in the world.
    http://cravendesires.blogspot.com/2011/10/animal-people-more-adoptions-will-not.html

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  3. I've read that part of the dog kennel barking problem originates in the practice of keeping dogs caged and near each other. If they're allowed to be out and mingling with each other -- like they are in a doggie day care -- there's a lot less barking.

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    1. I don't see an answer to that. It's not like these agencies can afford to spread the shelter over an acre so the dogs can't see each other. Even then they'd be able to HEAR each other and that sets them off too. Like in my doggiehood.

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    2. Then whats the excuse for the suburban neighborhood with a dog basically running the house, 1-5 loose in every yard, yet STILL barking like mad? Its not just cages.
      Dogs BARK. That is the problem. They are irritating and ought to be debarked.

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  4. The root problem? Too many dogs! And I fail to understand why S/N isn't enforced. Also, why dog owners aren't licensed.

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    1. Agreed. http://dogtime.com/advocacy-column-we-cant-save-them-all-and-we-shouldnt.html

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  5. PIT DISPATCHER, aka DOGGY DEXTERMarch 17, 2015 at 12:03 AM

    I suffered many years due to an asshole neighbors dogs, about 10' from my bedroom (their back yard was up against my room), there wasn't one room free of the noise. EVERY neighbor had 1-4 dogs, and my back yard sounded like the local shelter. It was horrible. I never got to use my really nice yard; if I had people over, we couldn't even hear each other talk! NOTHING I DID HELPED- not the law, not anything.

    Now I understand why people poison or shoot neighbors dogs- in most cases, it is the ONLY way to get any quiet. This sucks, who want to do this? (only those tortured by non stop barking, or menaced by dangerous mutts) Add in all the maulers (aka pit bulls) and it makes you want to walk around with a .45 and a bag full of xylitol laced cookies (because xylitol won't harm humans or wildlife- just dogs!!)
    AND USE THEM.

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  6. And here we have RESEARCH that's going to prove how healthful dog ownership is! https://news.azpm.org/p/news-spots/2015/3/18/59255-ua-researchers-explore-health-benefits-of-mans-best-friend/

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    1. That will just prove how stupid society is! They'll eat shit from ANYBODY'S hands. It's just more dog propaganda. Guess what? People will believe it.

      Dogs once had a place in society: to do man's bidding. That was their ONLY purpose. We have machines that do a far better job nowadays, or other animals that excel where a dog fails, and have a higher IQ! I doubt debarking and defanging a dog would help curb the filth they make (granted it just softens all the yapping and the mauling): the waste they produce kills life-giving plants and contaminates the ground, making it unusable by anything, sending pathogens into the ground water when it gets deep enough. Have a garden? It's going to be a toilet in a dog-infested neighborhood. Ick. Nobody grew that beautiful garden only to have the asshole neighbor come over, watch his dog sniff around and take a massive coiled SHIT on the flowers, then walk away like it was no big deal.

      Dogs: Get them out of our neighborhoods. They're ruining everything for everyone. Lives, liberty, and love don't mean a damn thing to a dog and it's owner.

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    2. Dog owners are lonely people (and dupes): http://www.american-partisan.com/cols/2009/wade/qtr1/0119.htm

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  7. Hey AU; thought you should see this. What amazes me isn't the inconsiderate, entitled attitude of dog owners but the fact that AC won't do anything to enforce the leash and pick up laws. If they sat there undercover and wrote tickets all day they'd probably make ten thousand dollars in one day. But they just won't do it, as if they don't want the poor poor dog owners inconvenienced. http://llascc.weebly.com/off-leash-dog-reports.html

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    1. If animal control was serious about its law enforcement function, it wouldn't be crying poor over lack of funding. To the contrary. It would be swimming in revenue.

      Think parking tickets. Cops write those like there's no tomorrow.

      What about barking tickets? ACOs could write those like nobody's business.

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  8. There are currently no policies regulating noise levels in dog kennels [of course not, who are WE to quiet the Voice of Dog?]. The objective of ... ddogkennels.blogspot.com

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