Hi, I just adopted a 1 and half year old female shih tzu and she is great except for a few problems. One is she will not stop barking when we leave the house. We keep her in our kitchen when we are gone with the radio on. Any ideas?
Thanks.

You could always try an electronic bark collar. There are different ones to choose from.

The citronella collar is a pain-free collar that will shoot citronella into the dogs face. Dogs hate the smell of citronella. It works pretty good and, for us humans it smells pretty good.

The electric shock collar is a little bit more harsh than the citronella collar. I would probably use this one if the citronella collar doesn't work for you...

There is also a collar that vibrates. I've seen it at select petsmart stores. It would be pain-free and no odor. I've never used one, so I don't know how effective they are.. I would assume it would surprise the dog.

There is also a DAP collar available that is a phermone scented collar. It is suppose to resemble the smell of the nest when puppies are born. Dogs with separation anxiety, which a symptom is excessive barking while owners are away, this collar helps them settle down and feel comfortable. There is also a plug in for DAP.

Unfortunately there is really no other solutions besides the collars when a dog barks when you're not home. And all these solutions, minus the DAP Collar, are pretty pricey.

If she is a barker while you are home, some successful treatments have been teaching her the command to bark. If she barks out of command, then you can punish her and your punishment will actually mean something. If she barks and there is no enforcement for a command to bark, punishment means nothing and you yelling at her is like barking right a long with her.

Also, fulfill her day. If she is tired when you leave, her barking should quite. If she is bored when you leave, then she will bark. Any type of exercise or training will help fulfill her day. Your breed is not a very energetic breed, but she should still get out a couple times a week... A tired dog is a happy dog :) And a happy owner.