Solving the Barking Dog Problem

A barking dog can be tedious and overwhelming for any owner, especially one that barks only when owners are away. Even worse is when neighbors begin to complain. Working with your dog may take patience and strength.

Make sure to alert your neighbors that you are working with your canine companion to fix the problem. This will assure them that you are trying and hopefully they can drone out the bark for a little while. Then you may want to attempt to identify in your dog fits into one of three typical barking categories.

Jacque Schultz from the ASPCA Companion Animal Programs says that these three categories include the separation anxiety prone, the typical “barking” breed, and those who bark to call their families back home.

Separation anxiety prone dogs believe that when their owners leave home, they are never coming back, and they grow fearful and uneasy. They bark to try and ease the fear and worry.

“Barking” breeds bark because they have it in their blood to bark; typically terriers fall into this category.

Lastly, the barker calls to their family because they don't understand why there is nobody left to play with, so he barks to them to try and get them to come back and give him attention. If you do not believe your dog fits into one of these, the following tips can still help you.

One way to break the habit is to leave home, but not walk far from the front door once you are outside. If your pup can stay calm and collected for a predetermined amount of time, go back inside and reward him. Keep practicing this and increase the amount of time you can walk away without him growing upset as often as you can.

Schultz recommends starting at ten to thirty seconds, and if your dog barks, start the timer again until he can remain quiet for that long. Though, she does not recommend shouting as an effective way to let your dog know he has done wrong. Instead knock on the door with a loud object to make him quieter- this could speed up the learning process.

Also, whenever you do come home or leave, act like it is not a big deal and go about with your typical routine. This will teach your dog that when you come and go, life does go on, and you will return to take care of him and not leave him to fend for himself.

Never use an electric shock collar as these harm your dog. If you are looking for an aid, talk to your vet about a citronella-dispensing collar. Not everybody recommends it, and your best bet is to get your veterinarians’ opinion.

Hopefully, these ideas will help put an idea to this disruptive behavior and your dog will feel calmer and less worried in no time.