[justine78]

I have a 5 month old puppy, and he barks at everything, he hears paper move and he barks. I am moving in to basement suite and can't have him barking at everything, I don't know how to stop him from barking.

[chsracowgirl182]

Shock coaller that is set off by the vocal cords vibrating, works really well and is only strong enough to tell them NO but doesn't hurt to bad... Yes I've shocked myself, and we use one on a almost year old Maltipoo and he;s had it for 6 months? So it should be okay for your puppy

[shazamataz]

Shock collars are effective but for a less shocking (hehe) method there are collars available that spray a tiny amount of citronella up towards the dogs nose... they hate the smell of it and it's just as effective in a lot of cases.

Once he is trained not to bark you can just switch to a normal collar so he still thinks he is wearing the citronella one.

And finally... remove the normal collar and you should have a bark-free dog.

It's a slow process but it can be remedied.

[Wondergirl]

There are much less cruel and much more effective methods than what others suggest. One of our dog members will soon be along to give you some help.

[chsracowgirl182]

Shaz, from experience any type of collar dogs can tell the differnce if it's the "good" or "bad" collar.

[shazamataz]

Not always, I have used the citronella ones before and I always did the normal collar up so the buckle was at the front... it felt heavier where the little box was on the other one...

[chsracowgirl182]

Hmm, never had that happen, what kind of dogs? And how big was the collar?

[Sariss]

There are a lot of ways to stop a dog from barking. My suggestion would be this:

When he is barking, get a treat. Chances are, he will stop barking when he sees it, because he will be more interested in smelling the treat. Tell him "quiet". After a few seconds of no barking, give him the treat.
Increase the time that he needs to stay quiet. If he barks at you, say quiet again, a bit louder. Praise him again after a few seconds of silence.

It may take time. If this doesn't work, let me know.

[shazamataz]

There are a lot of ways to stop a dog from barking. My suggestion would be this:

When he is barking, get a treat. Chances are, he will stop barking when he sees it, because he will be more interested in smelling the treat. Tell him "quiet". After a few seconds of no barking, give him the treat.
Increase the time that he needs to stay quiet. If he barks at you, say quiet again, a bit louder. Praise him again after a few seconds of silence.

It may take time. If this doesn't work, let me know.

I wouldn't recommend this method but if it has worked for you, when done properly it is an option.

The dog may condition itself to bark because it knows that if it does you are going to come running with a treat for it. Dogs aren't silly :)

[Sariss]

I wouldn't recommend this method but if it has worked for you, when done properly it is an option.

The dog may condition itself to bark because it knows that if it does you are going to come running with a treat for it. Dogs aren't silly :)

It's easy to remove the treat and replace it with something as simple as attention, it just takes patience. Eventually they will learn the command "quiet".

[Sunflowers]

There are a lot of ways to stop a dog from barking. My suggestion would be this:

When he is barking, get a treat. Chances are, he will stop barking when he sees it, because he will be more interested in smelling the treat. Tell him "quiet". After a few seconds of no barking, give him the treat.
Increase the time that he needs to stay quiet. If he barks at you, say quiet again, a bit louder. Praise him again after a few seconds of silence.

It may take time. If this doesn't work, let me know.

My dog has a lot of 'false alarm' barking when I am working with her with treats. She barks a lot more at little noises when she knows I have treats nearby too. One thing I've found that helps is to have the stereo on low with surround sound speakers and some soft music.

[Sariss]

my dog has a lot of 'false alarm' barking when I am working with her with treats

Yeah it does take time with that method, and doesn't work for all dogs. Sadly there are very few methods that don't involve the use of citronella or shock collars.

[shazamataz]

I can see how over time it would work, but it would be harder while the training is happening.

[Just Dahlia]

If your dog is small or jumps a lot, the collar MAY not work. It worked great on our large dog (we called him the 'one bark wonder') it just made a sound he didn't like. But I tried it on my bouncy poodle and I took it off and threw it in the drawer, because every time he was having a good time running around, it would go off. And that wasn't right. It was because of his tags making noise and his huffing. I have just done the verbal at this point.

[MsCanFix]

There are much less cruel and much more effective methods than what others suggest. One of our dog members will soon be along to give you some help.

I totally agree!


What's the history of this animal, was the animal taken in as a rescue, was the dog given to you because the dog couldn't be cared for, did you get this dog as a pup fresh from his mother? What I am getting at is, dog's behavior is predicated on some of the past that the animal might have gone through. There are reasons dogs bark and it's getting to the bottom first to figure out why the animal is acting this way. Sometimes it's the action of being scared, having separation anxiety, lack of attention or even feeling insecure so the outcome is barking. If the dog has any form of anxiety or insecurities using a shock collar will scar this animal bringing out other issues. I am not a believer in shock collars and do feel they are cruel. Barking is a productive behavior, it's about finding the reasons they are barking obsessively and then treating the personality of the animal first. Sometimes all it takes is changing the routine of the animal and making him/her feel safe and secure. You never want your dog to be scared of barking for reasons as obvious, you do want your dog to warn you if need be. Also for the animals own sake that is their defense if another animal is to threaten them. More info would be great to go further in my advice, at this point I do feel the back ground is important. Also, what type of dog is this?

[shazamataz]

That is true MsCanFix. It does depend on the history of the dog and the temperament.

I don't see how citronella collars are cruel though?
Shock collars yes, I don't like using those...

[AuntSwee]

I trained my cockapoo to quit barking by very gently holding her nose and telling her no shouting in the house. If she didn't bark after I let go. I gave her lots of praise and hugs telling her good girl. The trick is to be gentle. Also if you lay the dog on its back and say no firmly it will help. Just remember gentle and lots of praise when they do good works. Just like with kids, because lets face facts our four footed friends end up a part of the family too.

[MsCanFix]

That is true MsCanFix. It does depend on the history of the dog and the temperament.

I don't see how citronella collars are cruel though?
Shock collars yes, I don't like using those...

Now as far as what I said these were my exact words Quote myself "I am not a believer in shock collars and do feel they are cruel."

I never mentioned citronella collars, didn't feel the need to even go there until the OP responds with some history of the animal. It's so important to get into what the posters are saying, not twisting the words or sentences, keeping the responses true and accurate to what is actually being written, not doing this can cause confusion to the original poster that needs answers.

Training and punishment sort of speak is made so much easier if the personality of the animal is addressed first. Once the owner appeases the personality conflict most of the time, in time, with routine and consistency the behavior of barking subsides.

[shazamataz]

Now as far as what I said these were my exact words Quote myself "I am not a believer in shock collars and do feel they are cruel."
. It's so important to get into what the posters are saying, not twisting the words or sentences

I wasn't referring to you, I was referring to Wondergirl.
Please don't get snitty with me, I was only asking a simple question and it was separated from my answer to you (which I agreed with you by the way... )
I know you are very experienced with shelter dogs which I respect a lot but not all dogs have been abused or ar even from a shelter so we can't assume that until the OP posts a reply. And no I'm not "twisting your words" I've just noticed that you always mention shelters.

:)

[justine78]

I got my dog as a puppy, he was 12 weeks when I got him. He is a poodle,lab,malamute,and a boardercollie mix. He is very smart, but he barks when people come into the house, I am just thinking mabey he is doing this to protect me. I donno.