Tips for reducing the excessive barking of your favorite pet, facilitating your life and your neighbors, allowing everyone to live together in harmony, without tensions and stressful situations.
Undoubtedly, barking is the most common characteristic feature of all canine breeds. Undeniably it's an instinctive reaction but it can often develop into a serious problem for the guardian and its surrounding. Usually, guardians try to handle the situation in ways that achieve temporary fixes, such as voices, rewarding bad habits and inconsistent discipline, failing to produce the desired long-term result.
In order to train a dog for less barking and to stop when you ask it, will take time, practice and consistency. It won't happen in a day, nor in a week but with the right techniques and a little patience, you will soon see progress which will encourage you to continue. First, you need to understand what is causing the excessive barking and then troubleshoot the problem depending on the case but always by rewarding it with treats.
Voices stimulate your dog to bark more, because it thinks that you also are participating in the bark. Talk to him calmly and steady, without yelling and excessive reactions.
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In order to solve the excessive barking problem, you must first identify its cause. Some breeds are much "louder" than others, so training them can be more challenging. After all, barking is the dog's normal way of communicating. A dog that has adequate physical and mental stimulation, is less likely to bark excessively. Do not allow the problem to continue, since the more it happens, it becomes a habit.
Without training, it doesn't know what you want when you shout random words at it. Train it to understand the words that you say, by the method of rewarding (treats).
- Separation anxiety/Compulsive: When dogs are left alone they usually have other symptoms as well, like incessant pacing, destructive tendencies, depression and some times even make repetitive movements, such as running in circles or along a fence.
- Seeking attention: When it wants something, like going out to play or food.
- Boredom/Loneliness: Dog is an herd animal. When left alone for long periods, either at home or in the yard, is affected by loneliness and barks because its unhappy.
- Territorial/Protective: When a person or an animal enters an area that it considers as its territory, most of the times, that causes excessive barking. As the threat approaches, the barking often gets louder and the dog is alert and often aggressive.
- Frustration/Desperation: When it can't access the place it wants, when it is restricted or chained.
- Alarm/Fear: Reaction to any noise or object that draws its attention, or startles it. This can happen anywhere, not just at home. When its in a state of fear, it's ears are back and it's tail down.
- Greeting/Play: Often barks to greet people or other animals. It's usually in a happy mood and is accompanied by wagging tail and leaps.
Barking gives a dose of adrenaline, which makes it pleasant, therefore, allowing a dog to bark in certain situations, such as when a delivery arrives, may result in an aggressive behavior. Other reasons that can cause excessive barking are insect bites, various body or brain diseases and constant severe pain. Elder dogs can develop a form of cynical dementia that causes excessive vocal expressions. Itis always a good idea to visit your vet to make sure there is no medical reason for it. Once you find out why your dog is barking, then you can start training it.
Don't encourage it to bark at sounds, such as pedestrians, dogs, cats, birds and children playing outside on the street. Just ask, "Who is it?" and look out of the windows.
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- Teach it, the word quiet. Say quiet in a calm, firm voice and wait until it stops barking, even if it's just to take a breath and then reward it with a treat. Just be careful not to reward it while its barking. After a while, it will realize that stopping on quiet, will get itself a treat.
- Environmental management. When you leave, leave it with familiar sounds, such as a radio or tv and close all the doors and windows, limiting the chances to see things, such as cats or the mailman, that will cause it to bark.
- Socialization. Having many positive experiences with all ages of people or animals, bicycles, wheelchairs, etc., will make it less likely to bark at them. Letting your dog meet the delivery man or your neighbor and asking him to give your dog a treat can help a lot.
- Exercise and playtime. Make sure to take it long walks, let it run and play or visit a dog's park. Get some of the many interactive puzzle-games for dogs that will keep it busy for a while. If it's tired, it's more likely to rest or sleep during your absence. If you can't spare the time and it's possible, use a dogwalker or a petsitter.
- Ignore It. Some times dogs bark just to get your attention, to ask for food or to tell you to open the door. Don't pay any attention as it barks but wait until it's done to give it what it wants. Don't forget that the right way for training is to reward the kind of behavior that you want, which is, being quiet.
Never use a muzzle to keep your dog quiet. It can't eat, drink, or cool itself while wearing it.
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- Separation anxiety/Compulsive:The separation anxiety and compulsive barking is difficult to be address and you should seek help from a veterinarian or a dog behaviorist. Often, it needs medication to help it deal with it, along with the training.
- Seeking attention:You should never reward barking. If your dog barks whenever it wants something and you keep offering to it, you are teaching it to bark for getting anything it wants. If it barks to go out, train it to ring a bell that you will tie on the door handle, by hitting it every time you take it out for a walk. Tap the container of its food and water before you fill it and soon it will start doing the same when it wants food. Find ways for your dog to communicate without barking. If it barks because its plate is empty, wait a few minutes, hit the bottom and then fill it, so it will understand that barking was not effective. Remember not to yell at it, since it's still considered attention, the key is to ignore it until it stops barking.
Giving your dog something to do instead of barking, like a toy, will help keep its mind busy.
You must never use violence on a pet to make it obey you, apart than being a crime and you will be criminally prosecuted, it never generates the desired long term results.
- Boredom/Loneliness:If your dog is barking too much while you're gone, you need to provide some activities or companionship so it won't be alone and bored. Bringing a dog which up to now, was solely in the yard inside the house, will reduce the barking outbursts in the neighborhood. It won't only will stop shouting all night but it will also be protected from hazards (weather events, getaways/theft, poisoning) and will provide extra security for your house. If your dog barks while you're at work, use a dogwalker to take it for a walk or play with it for at least an hour a day. Use toys for food distribution, which come in different shapes and sizes and can keep it busy for several hours.
- Territorial/Protective/Alarm/Fear:This type of barking is often driven by territorial, fear or threat reasons and it can be reduced by restricting the dog's visual field. If it is fenced in a yard, use durable opaque materials while indoors, you can restrict access to windows and doors, or cover them with opaque membrane. Also in this case, is it to wise to ask help from a dog behaviorist.
- Frustration/Despair/Greeting/Play: A dogs will often bark when it's excited about something. If it barks everytime you come in the house, everytime the doorbell rings, everytime it wants to go outside and play with children that hears outside, evertime that wants to go for a walk or that it wants to chase a cat that passed outside... then the only thing you can do is training. You'll have to teach it a different behavior, training it to sit and stay there quietly, always with the method of reward (treats). Never reward it, if it barks when it asks for something, don't pet it and don't have visual contact until it stops barking and sits quietly. Then, compliment and reward it, for calming down. Continue with persistence and consistency and you will soon see progress in its behavior.
Sometimes, the simplest solutions work, especially if your dog has related barking to energy release and fun. However, it is likely to need the help of a dog trainer to help you, since training is not an easy process but it is definitely worth the effort.
