Getting a dog to stop barking

[KalamazooMom]

We've had our dog for less than a year. She never used to bark. In the last few weeks she's started barking mostly when there's a lot going on-- i.e. when we're all getting ready to go out, or when the kids are being particularly rambunctious, etc. I'm pretty sure it's because she's anxious or wants attention. I've tried turning my back on her / ignoring her. I've also tried putting her outside. A couple times when she did this when other people were around I gave her a rawhide just to shut her up. I know that was a bad idea since it just rewarded her for the barking, right? She's about 55 pounds and has a really loud bark, so when she's barking the kids and I can't hear each other.

And if it matters-- she's a mutt of some sort. She was a stray when we got her from the animal rescue. Best guess is some kind of retriever, corgi, beagle mix.

She isn't crate trained at this point.

So how do I stop this behavior?

[Nicole915]

Giving her an opportunity to succeed is generally the first step. This means when she's barking at the window, calling her over and putting her through her 'routine' of commands... each one ending in an above average reward. I teach the command "watch me" which means that the dog must stop what they're doing and look up at me. It was really helpful with obedience training.

I've had some clients who had great results with the citronella bark collar, but they seem to be hit or miss. If you decide to go that route, let me know. I'm a vet in Ann Arbor and can probably order it for you at cost if you want to meet me in Jackson/Albion or something. =)

[Ola_]

As an owner of a somewhat barky dog, I sympathize. One of the things that made a difference for us is increasing the amount of exercise - by the time I'm worn out Chaos is just getting warmed up! Make sure that your pup is getting enough exercise (try increasing it to see if it helps).

I also second Nicole's advice to call her and do some commands. A popular one is "puppy pushups" which is just a series of sit, down, sit, down, etc. done in quick succession. Another trick that I like (and may work well with the retriever background) is telling Chaos to get me a toy. It's harder to bark when she has something in her mouth and I can reward her by playing tug or fetch with the toy.

In case this is a bit of separation anxiety, are you giving her something to occupy her when you leave? Kong toys work well, but there are a bunch of other rubber-type toys that you can put food or treats into. It's gotten to the point that both dogs will come and wait for their cookies and Chaos will even go search for her treat toy as soon as she sees me getting ready to leave.

[KalamazooMom]

Never heard of a citronella bark collar. Will look into that.

I've tried making her sit, which she will do, but then she gets up and barks. I'll try some more extensive commands.

Yes, we do use kongs and other similar toys when we leave. In fact I have quite a few.

I do think she would benefit from more exercise. We were walking a lot in recent weeks, and I just cut it down because it's gotten cold. And now she's barking a lot. Hmmm. I am just now putting those 2 recent developments together. Guess I need to get out the hats and gloves and get out there and walk her more. Couldn't hurt for either of us.

[Epiphany]

I've had success stopping unwanted barking by teaching my dog to speak. Sounds counter-intuitive I know. lol It works though! I taught him to speak on command with clicker training, and I think that he also learned to be quiet as a side effect. To train him to speak we would hold a treat just out of reach and when he would make a noise or bark in frustration he would get clicked and treated. Then we added the command "speak". We would also use the command "sh" or "shush" while he is quiet and treat him. He quickly learned to speak on command, but he also learned to be quiet when we said "sh".

Now when he barks at a noise or someone at the door I say "sh" and it usually works to quiet him. I make sure that no one in the family rewards him by giving him lots of attention, positive or negative, when he barks. Just a firm "sh" or the sound we use for no which is a sharp "eh" sound.

Works for us. Good luck!

[Oubliette8]

I know some people don't particularly like the citronella collars- mostly because the dog barks, it spray citronella under his nose, he stops barking, but the smell lingers. Stopping the behavior doesn't make the unwanted stimulus go away, see? I've heard you can get collars that just spray a burst of air when they bark, which startles the dog, but doesn't leave the lingering scent. I've also known people to use a spray bottle full of water and spritz the dog when it barks. The difficulty is you need to do it immediately, if there's a delay, they don't catch the cause and effect. Some people will also shake a can of pennies, the noise may make the dog stop, and then you praise for being quiet.

You could also try a more neutral approach. If the kids are being rambunctious, could you put the dog in a quiet place? Sometimes the excitement is threatening or too stimulating to them.

You could also try treating when he is quiet. At first it might be a treat as soon as he stops barking, with the command "quiet". Then gradually increase the time he must be bark-free to get the reward. Say quiet, and reward after a few second, then a longer, etc.