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Sharon Klein remembers the pitiful, raspy noises that Eddie Vecchione's dog made years ago when the animal had its vocal cords removed. The goal was to appease Mr. Vecchione's barking-weary neighbors on the 14th floor of the Regency East Apartments, a co-op on East 64th Street near Second bark control collars Avenue.

Ms. Klein petsafe bark control collar knew she would never do that to her Maltese, Max. So with her 14th-floor neighbors calling the front desk to complain that Max barked incessantly, she took action. She bought him anti-barking devices, from a citronella-spraying collar to Bark Free, a device that emits a piercing ultrasonic tone. She got him a trainer, and sometimes left him at a pet boarding center during the day. ''I did everything to cure the problem,'' she said.

Nothing helped, the neighbors say. ''When she's out, the dog will do a bark-athon waiting for her to come back,'' said Richard Negosian, who lives across the hall and whose bedroom shares a wall with her living room. ''It ranges from being an annoyance to waking you up at night.''

Ms. Klein claims that dog bark control collar now Max ''almost never'' barks, and she said Mr. Negosian should have come to her about the problem before complaining to the building management. The co-op board eventually sided with Mr. Negosian and other complaining neighbors and began eviction proceedings against Ms. Klein (and Max).

But in Manhattan Civil Court this month, Ms. Klein's lawyer, Errol Brett, introduced documents from Sutton Dog Parlor, the animal boarding care center; the documents, he argued, proved that complaints were lodged even when the dog wasn't around. The culprit, he said, was a barker in the apartment directly above. ''The dog had an alibi,'' Mr. Brett said.

Recounting the testimony, Mr. Negosian said: ''I'm not an opera buff, but that dog on the 15th floor barks in a baritone, and Sharon's anti bark collar dog is somewhere between a mezzo-soprano and a falsetto.'' After six days of testimony, Judge Peter Wendt ruled that the dog and owner, could stay.

On a recent afternoon, the exonerated Max lay quietly on Ms. Klein's couch. Attempts to goad him by barking, stomping and growling caused barely a blink. His relieved owner said she had been the victim of vindictive neighbors.

The neighbors say the barking continues. But they do see eye to eye on one issue.''I view it as a story of good versus evil,'' Mr. Negosian said. Ms. Klein agreed.

SETH KUGEL