Citronella Spray Collar

Will this work for your dog?

The citronella spray collar is becoming more popular, due to their being a much more humane approach to training your dog not to bark. Another plus in their favour is that they are environment friendly–safe for animals, people and the environment.

How a citronella spray collar works

There are different types of spray collars. Some are activated by sound or vibration. There are also remote controlled spray collars. When the dog barks, a spray of liquid shoots out in front of the dog’s nose.  Naturally, this surprises the dog and usually distracts him from barking.  The dog hears the spray, feels it, sees it and depending on the liquid, smells it. It won’t take too long before your dog understands that every time he barks the collar sprays.  After being sprayed a few times, the dog will stop barking so as not to get sprayed again.

Remote controlled citronella spray collar

An alternative to the regular spray dog collar, the remotely controlled collar can be used for correcting many different types of behaviour, not just excessive barking.  The spray is released from the collar whenever you  press the button on the remote control unit.  Again, the dog is immediately distracted from whatever it was doing.

Using this type of collar, you could also correct other problematic behaviour such as chasing cars, lunging when on a leash,  jumping up on people, chasing cats etc.  The possibilities are limitless for what you could do to train your dog via this method.

What to look for when choosing a collar:

• Do you want a remote controlled collar, or a regular spray collar? Remember, you would have to be there to use the remote collar.

• Check that the collar itself is strong enough to support the spray attachment, and that the clips hold fast.

• Look into the cost of replenishing the liquid, and replacing the batteries.

• Decide if you need a scented spray or unscented.  More stubborn dogs may respond more often to a scented spray.

As with any type of collar, it only needs to be used for a certain period of time. After training the dog to respond correctly and modify its behaviour you should be able to transition the dog to not have to wear the collar. Collars range from a little over 30 to over 100$, spray refills cost around $5-10 depending if you buy in bulk. Batteries often need to be replaced fairly often (depending on how much use the collar receives.)

One word of caution: The citronella spray collar is generally not recommended for puppies under eight months old, or for nervous type dogs.

A citronella spray collar is effective for about 85% of dogs.