Is there any way to mute my dog?

[UnderTheSkyInsideTheSea]

She’s always been very a very vocal dog - she needs to tell you exactly how she’s feeling at all times, which is basically unsettled/annoyed if you’e doing anything other than sitting still, all together, and only moving to fuss her or get her more food. Now that she’s elderly, a bit senile, and completely deaf, the barking has gone off the scale. It really affects our quality of life.

I was wonit possible to paralyse vocal cords with botox injections?

Hadn’t finished typing post

I was wondering if it’s possible to get botox or similar to paralyse her vocal cords. Or is that just wishful thinking?

That's a horrible thing to even consider, yet alone openly suggest.

Why is it horrible? I’m not hoping to stop her barking/whining, just the actual sound.

I’d imagine you’d be considering it too if you had to live with a constantly barking or whinging dog and misophonia.

Why would you even consider something like that?

Barking is a form of communication - it's totally wrong to silence that. If she's deaf and struggling with dementia, the barking will most likely be because she's frightened and confused, bless her.

Reassure her instead, look after her - she's old and she needs you.

No decent vet is going to do a medical procedure on an elderly dog for no good reason.

Have you trained her to settle? Is she going through dementia?

@UnderTheSkyInsideTheSea

I’d imagine you’d be considering it too if you had to live with a constantly barking or whinging dog and misophonia.

No I wouldn't. I'd comfort her and make sure she knows she's safe.

No. That is an awful suggestion. She's losing some of her senses and you want to take away her communication too?
If she's barking through anxiety, imagine how frightening she'd find it knowing that she's suddenly physically unable to communicate that.
Animals shouldn't be modified for our convenience

What an awful thing to consider! Would you think about things like this if you had very noisy loud children? Put her to a more understanding caring home if you can't be bothered with her noises now! I have two dogs one who is very vocal and barks whenever something passes the window or someone comes to the door and another dog who is silent and doesn't make a peep unless she's needing something. It's just part of having dogs their either vocal or not 🤦🏻‍♀️

She’d still bark, just (in my fantasy botox scenario) not make any sound. How would she know the difference?

Why would I consider it? Because the high pitched whining and barking has always done my head in, and the ramping up hugely of the barking in very hard to tolerate (for the neighbours too, I’d imagine).

12 years of training her to settle has not worked at all. She settles when she has everything she wants, nothing we’ve ever done has made any difference to that.

She’s not barking because she’s scared and confused, she’s barking because she’s demanding, disinhibited and deaf.

@GillianB2990

What an awful thing to consider! Would you think about things like this if you had very noisy loud children? Put her to a more understanding caring home if you can't be bothered with her noises now! I have two dogs one who is very vocal and barks whenever something passes the window or someone comes to the door and another dog who is silent and doesn't make a peep unless she's needing something. It's just part of having dogs their either vocal or not 🤦🏻‍♀️

You think that rehoming a 12 year old dog who only wants to be with us is more humane than removing the sound-making ability of a deaf dog? Good grief. 🙄

@cheeseislife8 how would it be removing her ability to communicate?

She’s not barking because she’s scared and confused, she’s barking because she’s demanding, disinhibited and deaf.

As opposed to being demanding, disinhibited and tone deaf like her owner?

Please give her to someone who wouldn't have taken 12 years to help a dog feel safe.

@girlmom tone deaf because you don’t like the idea of something? You can’t think of an actual argument so insult me instead.

She’s not barking because she’s scared and confused, she’s barking because she’s demanding, disinhibited and deaf.

Yes - and she's scared because of those things! I imagine if you were unwell like she is, you'd be scared too.

A vet simply wouldn't be able to do this kind of procedure as it is unethical. One of our dogs is very vocal and I understand it can be frustrating.

Let's just pretend your idea is in any way logical - you want to give a dog who can't understand an injection that will have side effects like swelling regularly (because Botox wears off) that won't improve her quality of life in any way.

How would you feel if your husband insisted you regularly got injections in your throat so your voice sounded nicer, for his benefit? Each time you'd have to deal with pain and discomfort and the possibility of life threatening reactions. Would you do it? After all, you could still talk (hopefully) in your head.

Like I’m going to give her away after 12 years - you lot are funny.

She feels safe the majority of the time. Where did I say the barking is because she feels unsafe?

And where is this fantasy rehoming place where a deaf, senile dog with separation anxiety who is never left alone, would suddenly be happier?

Fucking hell, some people are in cloud cuckoo land.

And nobody’s explained why having a silent bark would be traumatising to a DEAF dog?? Do enlighten me.

Where did I say the barking is because she feels unsafe?

Other people have said that.

Imagine being old, losing your senses and going senile. That's scary for us and it's scary for dogs too. I would have thought you'd have a bit more compassion for your 12yo dog, tbh.

And nobody’s explained why having a silent bark would be traumatising to a DEAF dog?? Do enlighten me.

Nobody has said it would be traumatising, I don't think? But no decent vet would ever agree to something like that anyway.

@fairylightsandwaxmelts

And nobody’s explained why having a silent bark would be traumatising to a DEAF dog?? Do enlighten me.

Nobody has said it would be traumatising, I don't think? But no decent vet would ever agree to something like that anyway.

It's not the lack of bark - it's the whole 'stabbing them in the throat with toxins' thing...

I completely get your frustration, our old girl had dementia and constantly licked a wart on her foot. That noise drove me mad, I suffer from misophonia too.

@fairylightsandwaxmelts she’s 12 - as I said in my op, she has always been very vocal - if she’s not asleep, she’s making some sort of noise. We know exactly what all the various noises mean, and don’t need the actual sounds to interpret them. They are mostly her telling us she wants something or is annoyed about something, not because she is scared of anything. The difference the dementia has made is the disinhibition, so everything is ramped up. The difference the deafness has made is that she doesn’t get auditory feedback because she can’t hear herself or us.

[quote UnderTheSkyInsideTheSea]@fairylightsandwaxmelts she’s 12 - as I said in my op, she has always been very vocal - if she’s not asleep, she’s making some sort of noise. We know exactly what all the various noises mean, and don’t need the actual sounds to interpret them. They are mostly her telling us she wants something or is annoyed about something, not because she is scared of anything. The difference the dementia has made is the disinhibition, so everything is ramped up. The difference the deafness has made is that she doesn’t get auditory feedback because she can’t hear herself or us.[/quote]
I understand all that, but injecting an elderly dog in the throat with botox isn't the answer - all it will do is make you feel better, it won't solve the problem which is the dementia/senility and the deafness. And as I said, I don't think many vets are going to agree to perform such a procedure on an old dog, anyway.

If she's always been vocal and you've never managed to train it out of her in twelve years, can you really not cope with it for the short amount of time she has left?