# Binaca spray for barking?



## Shiningsummer (May 24, 2010)

Ok, once again I need some advice from my fellow DF members. Merlin is leash reactive. We are working on it, but in the meantime we are taking agility classes. For the most part he is doing really well, but sometimes during class he has outbursts, particularly when he sees other dogs running and jumping over obstacles. Also there is one dog in particular there who stares other dogs down and Merlin tends to react to that dog a lot more than the others. We try to keep our distance from him, but the owner is oblivious and it's not always easy. 

Anyway, when Merlin starts barking it's sometimes hard to get him to stop. The instructor suggested spraying him on the nose with Binaca spray to get him to stop barking. She said after the first couple times he will only need to see the spray and that will stop him from barking. She said if we want to compete in agility, he can't start barking or won't be allowed to compete. I am interested in competing at some point. My concern is that if he gets sprayed with it in the presence of other dogs, he'll develop a negative association with other dogs and it'll make his reactivity worse. He plays well with other dogs off leash at doggy daycare and I don't want to make him dislike dogs in general. On the other hand, Merlin is the complete opposite of my other dog Molly; he's not fearful at all and for the most part seems to be a pretty bombproof dog, so maybe I'm overreacting. What do you guys think, would it be bad to use the binaca spray? Has anyone here ever used it and what was your experience?


----------



## Marsh Muppet (Nov 29, 2008)

Shiningsummer said:


> My concern is that if he gets sprayed with it in the presence of other dogs, he'll develop a negative association with other dogs and it'll make his reactivity worse.


More likely he'll develop a negative association with the spray can. Possible, though somewhat less likely, he'll develop a negative association with your hand.

The biggest problem I have with such remedies is that many dogs quickly figure out that you are powerless when you are weaponless.


----------



## JulieK1967 (May 29, 2011)

Spraying anything in a dog's face just doesn't seem like a good idea to me.


----------



## ThoseWordsAtBest (Mar 18, 2009)

Binaca is a breath spray isn't it? I would not spray a dog with it. It more than likely contains alcohol and will burn like crazy if it gets into his eyes. It burns just spraying it in my mouth.


----------



## Shiningsummer (May 24, 2010)

Marsh Muppet said:


> More likely he'll develop a negative association with the spray can. *Possible, though somewhat less likely, he'll develop a negative association with your hand.*
> 
> The biggest problem I have with such remedies is that many dogs quickly figure out that you are powerless when you are weaponless.


Yeah, that was another concern of mine. I definitely don't want him to be afraid of human hands.



ThoseWordsAtBest said:


> Binaca is a breath spray isn't it? I would not spray a dog with it. It more than likely contains alcohol and will burn like crazy if it gets into his eyes. It burns just spraying it in my mouth.


Yeah, I think it's a peppermint breath spray. 

Thanks for the replies, sometimes I need some perspective on this dog training stuff. For instance, the place we go to for our classes is the best facility in our area and the training here is positive reinforcement for the most part, but I still hear things about how you have to let the dog know who's boss and they recommend air horns and spraying water for dogs that bark and jump on people. I just try to take the good advice and ignore the rest. 

I think for his barking, I'll try having some really smelly treats put aside for that. We tried some tuna fudge the other day and Merlin went nuts for it! If I stick it right in front of that beagle nose of his, hopefully it should break his focus on barking. Thanks again!


----------



## Cracker (May 25, 2009)

Two words: Control Unleashed.

The exercises in the book or dvd were created specifically for reactivity/overexcitement in dogs in agility situations. Since then this book has become a very popular resource for any dog owners with dogs that are reactive, have no stop button or who are quite simply over the top all the time. If you start working on Look at That, It's Yer Choice and mat work you will make some great progress without having to use aversives at all.


----------



## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

Aside from the potential for hurting or harming the eyes, I think it's a terrible idea and could backfire -- a la "Hey, other dogs = peppermint in my eye! Now I love them EVEN MORE!" :/


----------



## Pawzk9 (Jan 3, 2011)

What if you miss and hit him in the eye with it? I'd strongly suggest Leslie McDevitt's book "Control Unleashed" It has a brilliant procedure called "Look At That" which is perfect for this sort of situation. I used it for my over-exhuberant Aussie when she couldn't watch other dogs work without screaming and spinning. It took about 10 minutes until she was laying quietly watching. I'm surprised your agility instructor doesn't know about it.


----------

