My wife bought a "voice softened" sheltie

Welcome to the forum, I am sorry for the loss of your first Sheltie I know how painful that is. Congratulations on having a new Sheltie girl join your home. I currently have my 4th Sheltie 8 mos old. None of mine have been debarked but as others have said, it is very common in the show ring. Wishing you many years of love and happiness with your new girl.

What is her name?
 
I went to a show a couple weeks back and it was the first time I heard a sheltie bark that was debarked. I have to say I was quite taken aback as I never heard it before. I personally wouldn't do it I don't think but then I was watching the whisker clipping and I have to say I was startled by that as well as I never seen one without whiskers before. I heard of these things on this board but never seen them in person. I don't know if I would have the heart to even clip the whiskers.
 
Petrocelli said:
I would love to show you some, but I don't know how to post them. Also, given that I am a new user, I can't have an avatar.

But take my word for it, she was pick of the litter and was gorgeous! (Don't all parents think their kids are the best?):wink2:
Click to expand...

Welcome:smile2:
My first sheltie was a rescue and was debarked- she made hup hup sounds. never bothered her and it did take a while before she was comfortable enough to bark.

we do love pix:yes:

you have to be a premium member to have an avatar.
you can post links to pix on photo sites like Flikr, Photobucket, Shutterfly, etc.

my current shelties: http://cranberrycallie.shutterfly.com/1321
 
Welcome, I have one of my 6 here that is bark softened. Shes 8 now I had her done at 2..it has come back slightly louder than original, however its still no where near the shrill mile carrying bark she had. :rolleyes2:

I would do it again in a heartbeat if I had one as distributive as she was to the neighborhood.

We love pics..and as Calliesmom posted you can upload them via , shutterfly, photobucket..etc...or via premium membership as well.
 
She is a beauty!

I just got a new baby, and he too is voice-softened. The breeder I got him from had quite a few shelties, and I can understand why she did it. They go crazy and are hard to quiet with their barks removed... But I have another sheltie and a papillon, and I've got to say, Prize is the quietest of the group, and makes him much much easier to live with, to the point that I actually think that it was part of why my husband allowed me to keep him.

It's not cruel and doesn't hurt them (as far as I can tell). I think it's a bit like declawing a cat. If it's the difference between a cat you can live with, or one that you have to remove from your home, I think it's better for the cat (or in this case, sheltie) to have a loving home than have to be homeless. I know there are alot of people who say there are bad side effects, but I haven't experienced this.

The one complaint you hear over and over is that shelties are 'vocal' and 'bark too much'. Look at it this way: You have the perfect dog! ;)

and it sounds like you do, too. So what's it matter if she doesn't have a great singing voice? I love Prize and you love Sarah! Best of luck for a long and happy life! :)
 
Welcome to the forum !! Sara is adorable especially in the nap taking picture !! I would never debark a dog but I would not hesitate to adopt one that was already debarked either. And yes, I have a loud barky dog. :biggrin2:
 
My first dog Abigail was debarked. She was owned by a breeder for the first three years of her life and she was a show dog.

Her voice never changed. It's funny, because she barked at the breeder but she wasn't really very barky once she was an only dog in the suburbs. I think she just didn't need to bark so much. It seems like shelties egg each other on in groups as far as barking.

Abby was a lovely dog. I have to say though, that now that I have a dog that isn't debarked I realize what I was missing! My current dog makes sounds all across the spectrum that I never heard from Abby. I think it's cute how Buffy "talks" to me.

Your dog is beautiful! She really does look like a show dog. You might run into a few show-specific training quirks though. Abby didn't know her name, sit, or come when we got her, but she learned fast. Enjoy her!
 
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