I have not personally debarked any of my dogs, but have purchased dogs who already were. They were not unhappy. or having any problems because of it. I do think it is only a last resort. You have to take into consideration where you live, how your neighbors will feel if your dogs bark and how much of a nuisance your dog truly is as well as noise ordinances where you live. The dogs I have had that were debarked did not give up barking with training, or bark collars so there was little choice except to debark them. I raise shelties, my trick to control barking is to train the dog to bark on command. They then learn only to bark on command or when there is an intruder or they receive no treat, Works most of the time.