Howling Dogs In Moo Baan

[Nongwahyay]

My wife and I just got back from a 3-week trip to Thailand, 5 days of which we spent with her family in Nongwahyay, near Nongbualamphu, in Isaan. This was my 4th trip there.........and I must admit I was appalled by the dog situation in the village. On my first trip I hardly noticed the dogs.....on the second I was more aware of them (i.e. at night...); on my third trip I found it atrocious at night............. as many of you will have experienced, one dog starts barking, followed by a 2nd..then a 3rd.... and very quickly they are all barking the full length of the Moo Baan. This time, however, when we arrived I immediately noticed that there were far many more dogs than last time. There even seemed to be 2 distinct packs of them.....one at each end of the village. During the day they would repeatedly size each other up and then suddenly a few of them from one pack would attack the others...and a furious battle involving 6 to 8 dogs would ensue...and would end only when one or two were injured and howled with pain. The worst time was, as ever, at night........most of them having slept away most of the day, they this time began to bark..... but the barking soon turned into howling...exactly like coyotes.... and there would be around 20 dogs howling their heads off for a good 10 minutes, before the noise gradually died down. This was repeated 3 or 4 times each night, ending probably around 2 or 3 am. I was then able to sleep until 4 am, when the roosters then started up!!!!!! I must admit, I found it hard going this time, getting sufficient sleep and keeping a smile on my face!!!!!! It amazes me that the barking and howling doesn´t appear to bother the locals..... when I ask them why they put up with it, they just laugh it off. Someone suggested that the males were howling, because the females were in heat............... if this is true, I´ll choose another month to go in next time!!!!

Has anyone else experienced anything similar??????

[Grover]

This nightly collective howling and barking and fighting seems to release their primal aggressions. The dogs love doing it, showing off, its fun and exciting for them. The night time increases the excitiement. I experienced something similar. I moved a bit further away from the nightly show and wore earplugs. It helped a lot.

[sezzo]

I think everyone who lives in a village in Thailand would experience the same problem. I got rid of that sort of problem by having the oppurtunity to build my house on the family farmland which is in the lucky position to have the closest village about 1km away.

The thing that gets up my nose is the fact that most thais dont bother feeding their dogs and dont bother with desexing them. I know that most are just poor farmers but if you are going to have a dog they should at least provide food for it. I have 3 dogs at my house which are well fed and I am continually having to chase of other dogs who will come from at least 1 km away just to get a chance at scrounging some food. My dogs are only about 8 months old and one is a very big German Shepherd. They are now responding to me when I tell them to go Kill the other dogs. Well at least scare them away.

I can sympathise with you but at least the other dogs stay away at night and therfore I get a good nights sleep. Not even a rooster crowing around my place.

[Nongwahyay]

Whenever we are on a visit to the Moo Baan from Germany I always say that when we finally move into the Moo Baan permanently, then I´ll killl off all the dogs one by one.........(ok...not really serious...). They laugh at this......and say that the dogs are just a part of nature. That is very true...I agree totally..... bit I do see a difference between living alongside geckos crawling up the wall and ants everywhere....and packs of lawless, howling dogs, left to do as they wish!! As sezzo wrote, they get a new dog....and that was it!!! No feeding, no training...... the dog is just there......and is left to do what it fxxxxing likes......... Anyhow, if I may extend this thread slightly........ I decided after 4 visits to the parents´ house, that I´d had enough of entering the hole, which serves as a washing area.....you all know what I mean...... a water reservoir with a plastic dish floating on top, which you use to toss cold water over your head....clean your teeth with.... wash your arse with...... and sitting on top of the 2 walls, which form the reservoir, are years-worth of remnants of old soap and toothpaste....the black and green mould crawling all over the walls and down into the water...........and we won´t mention the toilet........... so.....to cut this long story short....I decided to tear down the whole cow-shed (i.e. house...) and build a new house, which will include a noise-free, air-conditioned bedroom for us as well as a separate air-conditioned, bomb-proof, private room for myself downstairs. Don´t get me wrong, the family is great.... the people are fantastic.... but having sat on the floor for hours on end, as one does in Isaan, surrounded by babbling neighbours and greedy dogs, I´ve decided I want just a little bit of privacy every now and again!!!!!!! Work will commence in January!!!

[phibunmike]

At this time of year a lot of Thais go out at night, sometimes as late as 2am, wearing head torches and looking for frogs and field rats. Any dogs (mine included) that see the lights start barking in a defensive manner.

[phibunmike]

It amazes me that the barking and howling doesn´t appear to bother the locals..... when I ask them why they put up with it, they just laugh it off.

My wife has told me that if I see or hear any animals at night (owl flying, dogs howling, etc) I should not mention it. This is because the dogs saw a pee, or the owl is one, or something like that, and it will bring bad luck to anyone you mention it to.

[khon kaen boy]

Regarding the soi dogs, where I live the nearest house to me is say 100 metres away, he has about 6 mange flea ridden dogs which are constantly coming near my house as I have three cocker spaniels, my dogs are kept very clean but keep getting fleas (I think the thai word is maat & hep) from these, does any one know if I can get my dogs injected to prevent this ?

My unfortunate mate who lives quite close by, his neighbour has 8 dogs of all shapes and sizes kept in a small area all day & night, barking, whining, etc.......unfortunate ? yes as neighbour is police man !!

KK boy

[Totster]

Here in the village it seems that when the humans go to sleep it then becomes the dogs village, it's their time to run around in their packs asserting their territory within the village..

It's something you get used to, the howling/barking at night, just the same as the roosters making a racket, or the poo yai baan treating us to his selection of music at 5/6am..

All part of the magic..

totster

[bina]

bitches in heat will cause that howling.... and most pariah dogs (the type that most village dogs are categorized as) come in season twice a year.for the most part...

we also sleep thru the jackals howling, foxes wailing/yipping, and dogs running loose at night barking at them (not in thailand) and the mezzuin from the village down below; also crowing roosters from 3:00 am. on (why is it that they do it before the crack of dawn? jet lag?), and farm machinery starting up at about 5:00 a.m.

i saw that most 'mangy nondescript' thai village dogs actually belonged to people and when u make that uniquely thai clicking your tongue noise, the dogs walk away.... most of the dogs are fed more or less from the scraps thrown out of the houses, and i was always amazed to see that not one dog touched the chickens ( all the 'yard dogs' here are a major threat to chickens goats cows etc) so they are trained to what thai village people deem is neccessary training... they are also used in hunting the frogs etc from what husband has told me.... pretty good training there. village people see no use in a dog that can roll over on its back, or sit up and beg, or heel, as its not neccessary to them.

i think u are just a city person because all of what u listed are things that really really never bothered me or my daughter in the least... the morning crowing etc are what we also are used to... frankly i dont know how people can sleep in cities ....

the dogs are not a problem since they only bother you and not most of the village... its a matter of what u are used to... from beds on floors and cold showers (my husband still showers by splashing cold water even though we have heat and free hot water) to eating with a spoon

get earplugs

move to a sterile environment

i've spent enough time in bombshelters to appreciate that i wouldnt stay one more minute in one due to its soundproofness and stuffiness.

i've not had my coffee yet

bina

israel

[blue eyes]

Gosh how I love my moo ban!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!They really all do seem to be the same.Just the people are known to me or you but the life does not seem that much different.Gosh how I love my moo ban!!!!!!!

[Martin]

I am lucky that I can get used to any night-time noises that happen regularly and sleep through them.

(When I was a power-station engineer, I could even doze off in the turbine hall with half-a-million horsepower of generators blasting away!)

Which is fortunate for me, since we live on the edge of an Amphoe. That is three villages side-by-side, so we have a lot more dogs than the average moo baan.

A bunch of dogs will do their howl in the far distance, then another a bit nearer and so on, until it is the turn of our own dogs to do their performance for their two minutes. That is taken up by the next group in the chain, until it dies away in the opposite distance.

I only notice it when it occurs just before I fall asleep.

As to the roosters, I got used to them in the first two or three nights that I lived here, and only notice them if I get up in the night, as one does.

My theory is that they are the result of selective breeding, as any that started crowing too early (say 2 am) and any that started too late (say at dawn) would have had their necks wrung sharpish. So their genes are no longer in the pool.

A farmer wants his 'alarm clock' to operate just sufficiently before dawn that he is up and ready to go to the fields as soon as it is light enough.

I regret that I cannot bottle my sleeping ability, as it would clearly be in high demand.

'Nongwahyay' mentions sitting on the floor for hours on end. I don't do 'sitting on the floor'. There is always a folding canvas armchair in the boot of my car. And, at temples, I have always been invited by the monks to sit on a plasic chair, or a sofa, at the side.

Also, I do not do 'standing around in airports'. For about 299 baht, in Lotus-Tesco, I bought a simple little fold up chair and it now travels with me everywhere. Nil illigitores caborundum.

[pumpuiman]

Regarding the soi dogs, where I live the nearest house to me is say 100 metres away, he has about 6 mange flea ridden dogs which are constantly coming near my house as I have three cocker spaniels, my dogs are kept very clean but keep getting fleas (I think the thai word is maat & hep) from these, does any one know if I can get my dogs injected to prevent this ?

My unfortunate mate who lives quite close by, his neighbour has 8 dogs of all shapes and sizes kept in a small area all day & night, barking, whining, etc.......unfortunate ? yes as neighbour is police man !!

KK boy

There is a popular flea repellant available that is in gel form. It is applied to the back of the dog's (or cat's) neck. The repellant is absorbed into the bloodstream of the animal and any fleas that bite....die. Very effective, and safe for the animal. It is sold everywhere (supermarkets etc.)in the U.S. Try asking the local vet if you cant find it.

[Mai Krap]

Get ear plugs and forget about it or trade the dogs for some buckets and send them on A one way trip to Vietnam via Sakhon Nakhon!

[Mai Krap]

Regarding the soi dogs, where I live the nearest house to me is say 100 metres away, he has about 6 mange flea ridden dogs which are constantly coming near my house as I have three cocker spaniels, my dogs are kept very clean but keep getting fleas (I think the thai word is maat & hep) from these, does any one know if I can get my dogs injected to prevent this ?

My unfortunate mate who lives quite close by, his neighbour has 8 dogs of all shapes and sizes kept in a small area all day & night, barking, whining, etc.......unfortunate ? yes as neighbour is police man !!

KK boy

There are some stores that sell Ivermecton in bulk for cattle in KK. You should be giving your dogs A shot every month for worms and heartworms and stuff here. You can get the vet to do it cheep enough but if you buy the stuff bulk and give the shots yourself you may be able to shoot up the Policemans dogs A few times A year to help give your dogs better health and it may keep them A little quieter. The biggest and worst deals here are VD and mange, Ivomec with help keep the mange back.

The other poster was correct about the gel, It absorbs into the fat and is stored there.

[bina]

frontline... and i think it goes to the lymph system not sure.. and it works well

and ivomac bulk for cattle is way too much for most dogs... need only a few cc's oral dose per dog, easier than giving a shot to each one...

bina

(there's a thread in pet vet section dedicated to ivomac_)

Edited December 19, 2006 by bina

[Mai Krap]

frontline... and i think it goes to the lymph system not sure.. and it works well

and ivomac bulk for cattle is way too much for most dogs... need only a few cc's oral dose per dog, easier than giving a shot to each one...

bina

(there's a thread in pet vet section dedicated to ivomac_)

As far as Ivomec it depends on how many dogs your dosing, My present house does not have dog problems but before I had some loose soi dogs hanging around. I had the owners catch them every couple months so I could dose them and everybody was happy. They got some free shots for their dogs and all the dogs looked much healthier. I think it helped keep my dogs healthier too but maybe thats wishful thinking on my part. At least their dogs had hair after I gave them shots

[The Skipper]

I live at the Baan Chao Praya = Baan Chao Phraya and the dogs barking is terrible.

3 Temples nearby and a slum with hundreds of dogs barking all nite long.

Dog fighting, barking, howling, yapping ALL NITE LONG!!

Packs of sick willd dogs congregaet all around the area, Dangerous to even take a walk.

[Chang_paarp]

Regarding the soi dogs, where I live the nearest house to me is say 100 metres away, he has about 6 mange flea ridden dogs which are constantly coming near my house as I have three cocker spaniels, my dogs are kept very clean but keep getting fleas (I think the thai word is maat & hep) from these, does any one know if I can get my dogs injected to prevent this ?

My unfortunate mate who lives quite close by, his neighbour has 8 dogs of all shapes and sizes kept in a small area all day & night, barking, whining, etc.......unfortunate ? yes as neighbour is police man !!

KK boy

If you want information about flea treatment check the pet section or post there ant TV's resident vet (Bambina) will be able to give you local information with product names in thai for the shop if you ask.