[minnie19]

I have a 14 month old Jack Russell in the last few months she will not go to bed without sitting at the backdoor and bark for two hours. I have tried everything including squirting her with water and using an ultrasonic stop dog from barking. There is nothing different we do with her at night than during the day. Also she has started waking up around 430am and sits at the back door. I try and play with her as much as possible during the day but nothing seems to work. Please help I need sleep

[labman]

Have you talked to the vet about the problem? Try taking her out on leash and see if something outside is distracting her. If you can identify why she wants to go outside, it might help solve the problem.

Giving her better leadership might also help convince her to forget what is outside and go to sleep. The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts. Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog. Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones. You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at Raising Your Dog with the Monks of New Skete For more on being top dog, see Establishing and Keeping Alpha Position, Letting your dog know you are the boss