I don't think I really understand the meaning of Dog Whistle Politics, even though it is an Australian expression. However, I do have my own meaning for it. On the left is a photo of the park which lies over my back fence. Of course it is dry and not very green compared to other parts of the world - but "red sand, green gum trees and blue skies" is my preferred view of the world. In the foreground of the photo is a path which is a regular route which dogs and their owners take for exercise. I managed to capture an Early Morning Walker and his two dogs on that path. The photo quality is not all that I would like but I've put it on the right.
The connection between that path and my version of dog whistle politics will become apparent later on.
About two years ago my neighbour on the northern side told me that both of her dogs had died within weeks of each other. I had not noticed their passing as they rarely made a noise. She was obviously distressed but told me that she would soon acquire another pair of dogs from the pound and that, being younger, they would be "more outside" dogs. I heard that omniously but made no comment.
About mid-2010 the new dogs were bothering me with early morning barking. They were bothering me so much that I phoned my neighbour and said that I was being woken at dawn each morning, and often through the night by her new dogs. I mentioned that collars were available - either the ultrasonic variety, or ones that puffed out citronella - which discouraged dogs barking. She said whe would look into it.
Little changed.
Just prior to Christmas 2010 my neighbour went away and left her dogs in the backyard to be fed and watered by a friend who would drop in. Both dogs howled at the moon for two nights running. At my wits end, I phoned the Town Council Rangers who asked the friend to remove the dogs to another property until their owner returned.
I'll have to admit I made a diplomatic and political mistake when my neighbour returned and came to my front door, all apologetic and bottle of wine in hand. I was in no mood to be placated and suggested that a laryngectomy would be a good idea for both dogs. We haven't spoken since.
And the dogs continued to bark. One problem is that the eastside fence which my neighbour has is not solid but is made of vertical metal bars spaced about 10 centimetres apart. Her dogs can see through it to the park. If children are playing or dogs are being walked the dogs next door decide that it is time to let the people in the park know who is boss. I am often woken by the sounds of a dog fight early in the morning as the good burghers of Alice Springs continue to walk their dogs right where they know there will be a dog yelling match.
I contacted the Rangers several times; but the Rangers came and the Rangers went. They visited me and snooped around. "Nothing we can do mate, we can't validate a problem." This despite my recording 15 minutes of dog barking in one half hour period, and delivering that to them on a CD.
In frustration, I adopeted my own form of Dog Whistle Politics. My dog whistle is a small Piezo speaker which emits an ear splitting sound. Dogs certainly don't like it even though it does not operate in the ultrasonic range which causes them pain. It hangs under cover near the north east corner of my backyard - near where the dog fights happen.
On the left is a photo of some gear I have rigged up to to fight my Dog Whistle battle. My main aim is to get the humans to change, so that they might get their dogs to change.
While the electronic gear on the left might look a bit scrappy, to me it is a work of art! On the left is a simple power supply. It brings electricity from the wall and puts out 12 volts DC into the circuit board in the middle of the picture. It also supplies current to the Piezo screamer via a long run of bell-wire from the lounge room to the backyard. Just to the right of the red and black alligator clips in the middle of the photo is a small electret microphone. When everything is turned on and powered up - just talking softly into that microphone makes the Screamer go off in the back yard. The electronic circuitry is called a VOX switch - or voice activated switch. When a noise is heard in the microphone the white relay box at the back of the circuit board connects the Screamer to the 12 volt supply. The Screamer then does its thing for a seconds before turning off. However continuous noise into the microphone keeps the Screamer going.
Just to the right of the microphone is a walkie-talkie radio. I have two of those. The second one is presently on my bedside table, waiting. In the morning, when I hear the first dog bark of the day, I get up, if I am not already up, and turn on the VOX switch and the walkie-talkie. I then go back to bed. And I wait.
Simply pressing the Talk button of the walkie-talkie beside my bed makes the walkie-talkie in the lounge room make a noise and the Screamer goes off. I can repeat that trick as often as I like; but I try to do it only when I hear a bark.
My hope is that the early morning dog walkers will decide it is not worth coming near my back fence and take a different route in future. My other hope is that my neighbour will realize what is happening and do something about her dogs. I secretly hope that she thinks the whole setup is automatic and designed to go off whenever her dogs bark! I'm working on a version of that.
Believe it or not, I think my Dog Whistle Politics are working. I haven't heard a dog fight at my back fence for some weeks and my neighbours dogs rarely bark now during the day. That might be because whenever they do bark I whisper into the microphone and they get a high pitiched whistle in return.
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