nail gun scares dog. is there quieter

[justin sherriff]

One of my dogs get very scared when I use a nail gun. The air compressor is ok just the gun scares her. Wife does not what me to use nail guns any more.
I have the porter cable guns that came with my pancake compressor and they are loud. So are there any brad nailers out there that are quieter then what I have now?
I am looking for a 18 gauge
Fireworks and most other loud noises do not scare her.

[james glenn]

I have the Ridgid nailers and they are not too loud. At least my dog is not bothered by them. The compressor is another story!! She hates that thing.

[Wade Lippman]

Just wait; they go deaf eventually.

My dog turned 15 yesterday. She stopped being bothered by thunder about a year ago.

[Dave Lehnert]

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.aspx?p=32052&cat=1,53193&ap=1

[John K Jordan]

I can't know which nail gun will not scare the dog but you might consider a different approach. Dogs are smart and very trainable. I can imagine it would not take much effort, if directed properly, to desensitize her to your existing nail gun.

I have almost 50 animals on the farm here, from dogs to llamas to horses and most are handled regularly. We often have to work with the animals so they will not be afraid of certain things. Horses are the worst since they are flighty by nature and huge and very strong - a horse scared of something can be quite dangerous! Other animals also need regular attention and some are challenging. I find cats hard to train - it took me four months of daily work to turn a feral male cat I caught from a cautious and fearful wild animal (who tried to take my hand off) into a sweet, fat lap cat! Dogs are usually easy.

I suspect the dog was traumatized by some sound at one time. If you can find a good trainer in your area (or a good book) it might be a pleasant surprise how quickly the dog can become accustomed and immune to that sound. Just an idea.

JKJ

[Matt Day]

Are the battery powers guns quieter? I watched a couple videos and they seemed less of a bang.

[justin sherriff]

A warrington hammer is what I bet I end up going with.
LV only has the 3 1/2 oz but that sounds a bit lightweight

[keith micinski]

Sounds like more of a wife problem then a dog or sound problem. Unfortunately wives are the opposite of highly trainable so good luck with that.

[Tom Ewell]

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335041

[Martin Wasner]

Sounds like more of a wife problem then a dog or sound problem. Unfortunately wives are the opposite of highly trainable so good luck with that.


Ding ding ding! Winner.

[Bob Grier]

What Wade says is true, at least that is what happened to my girl friend's dog. Dog is no longer scared of loud noises. She doesn't hear them.

What John says is my experience. I trained a lab scared of loud noises to like the sound of gun firing. Took about a week. I just followed a trainer's advice, and what I read in a field trial training book, which was to make loud noises with cap gun while dog was eating or getting special snacks and then play with dog while using cap gun. In my case it involved retrieving a dummy. Dog decided loud noises were very good so be careful to not over do it. Dog may start drooling when you use nail gun. Makes big mess if the dog is very large or has lots of drool like some of those big bull dogs. I think they call that pavalof reaction or something like that.

[Ken Kortge]

It'll be best to train the dog and spend your money on different new tools!!

I'd suggest you work with your dog to have it associate the nailer fire with a treat. Maybe at first start with the dog not real close and have your wife give the treats. Nail - Treat ... Nail - Treat ... Nail - Treat ... over time ... Nail - Nail - Treat ... then continue to increase the nailing and reduce the treating.

We feed our dogs dry food, but once in a while add warm water with a bit of chicken bouillon and let it soak as a treat (they love it). Maybe give the dog such a treat and then try nailing to see if it helps it associate nailing with a good thing.

Google "gun shy dog" for more help, but many of the articles talk prevention rather than correction.

[Chris Fournier]

At first I thought that you had trained your dog to use your nail gun! Having a shop pooch myself I have to say that this thread is likely one of the most informed I have ever read. I don't think that there'd be an appreciable difference in the decibels of the pneumatic guns. An electric unit is an interesting idea, I've never heard one. With a little bit of work and food treats I would agree that you may well be able to train this sensitivity right out of your best friend.

[Myk Rian]

Tell your Wife to take the dog for a walk. Then get the air gun working.

[johnny means]

I'm not a dog owner, but did raise two kids in my shop. I think maybe you should have the dog somewhere else when you're using nail guns. My first impulse would be to wonder if the dogs fear is based in some sort of discomfort. Not being able to ask the dog what's wrong, my instinct would be to err on the side of caution and not expose her to the noise, rather than persuade her to deal with it.

[Sam Murdoch]

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335041

A serious contender as a solution :D

[Paul Wunder]

Ryobi makes a battery operated 18g nailer for about $139 (naked tool). I too have PC in addition to the Ryobi. The Ryobi (Home Depot) is quieter and has a different sound upon firing. It does a good job nailing under most circumstances.

Might be worth a try and if you are not successful, HD will take it back. Just tell HD that your dog didn't like it.

[Jon Endres]

Wife does not what me to use nail guns any more.

This ^^^^^ is your problem. The dog is trainable. The other one isn't. Tell her to keep the dog away from you when you're using a nail gun.

[Chris Padilla]

It'll be best to train the dog and spend your money on different new tools!!

I'd suggest you work with your dog to have it associate the nailer fire with a treat. Maybe at first start with the dog not real close and have your wife give the treats. Nail - Treat ... Nail - Treat ... Nail - Treat ... over time ... Nail - Nail - Treat ... then continue to increase the nailing and reduce the treating.

We feed our dogs dry food, but once in a while add warm water with a bit of chicken bouillon and let it soak as a treat (they love it). Maybe give the dog such a treat and then try nailing to see if it helps it associate nailing with a good thing.

Google "gun shy dog" for more help, but many of the articles talk prevention rather than correction.There you go! It'll take some work but a dog can be trained to handle such things.

[Cody Colston]

Toss the dog a biscuit every time you shoot a nail. :D

[John Lankers]

It is not only a matter of training the dog IMHO, some dogs are very sensitive to noise. Our little Chihuahua/Yorkie cross loves to be with me in the shop but as soon as I start making any noise it is over. I believe she is not afraid of noise but that it actually hurts her physically.

[Chris Padilla]

I think if she has issues with her ears in general (mites or discharge or any other ailment), then it might hurt her but if they are healthy, I doubt it physically hurts them. It frightens them, makes them nervous, etc. is likely the case.

[Ed Aumiller]

Remember that dogs have different hearing ranges than humans and can hear much higher frequency sounds than us..
Different tools make sounds that only they can hear... My shop dog will want to go out anytime I turn on the cyclone dust collector and I think it is because of the higher pitched noise I cannot hear...