5 Tips for Barking in the Home

Spring Fever?

Have you noticed that with the warmer weather this weekend the dogs have been barking more than during the deep freeze of winter?  I sure have!

With more smells in the air, more people and dogs out walking, and longer hours of daylight, there is more stimulation and excitement.

So what can you do about it?

1. First and foremost, be proactive.  
• What does that mean?  Keep your dog busy before he starts focusing on the neighbourhood kids walking home from school.  Before that bell rings fill a Kong, a Kong wobbler, or any other interactive food toy and keep your dog's focus on the ground rather than the window.  
• Rather than waiting for the behaviour to happen and then calling your dog away from the trigger, get your dog's attention before it happens.  Ask for a "watch me", a "touch", a "go to your bed", a "go get your ball", anything your dog knows on cue that prevents him from focusing on that dog about to walk past your back lane.  
• Put on some nice, calming music or talk radio to help drown out the sounds of the neighbour's dog barking in his yard, or the kids squealing in excitement as they run past. 
• Put up a baby gate so that your dog has access to most of the house, but not the areas with the major triggers (i.e. the front window where all the action is).  The more he gets excited by all the activity, the more likely he is to bark.  The more he barks, the more excited he gets, and well you see how this can be a self-reinforcing behaviour. 
2. Avoid escalation.
• When you yell "hush!", "quiet!", and eventually "shaddup!!" (trust me, we've all been there), although it may feel satisfying for a moment and your dog may stop to look at you, two things happen:
1. Your dog is interrupted for a moment then goes right back to barking.
2. He says "hey, cool, my person is barking too, let's all bark together!"
• Creating more noise in the environment can serve to increase the excitement or arousal levels and only increase the nuisance barking.
3. Exercise!
• We've all been watching the weather forecast, looking at our dog and saying "sorry, boy, way too cold today."  Finally, the milder weather is here and we can get out and enjoy it! A tired dog is more likely to relax and sleep than to bark, so get out there and have some fun with your pooch :) 
4. Patience and Understanding.
• Remember that barking is a 100% natural behaviour for dogs.  Some dogs enjoy barking more than others, and dogs bark for all kinds of reasons.  Although it can be a frustrating behaviour (especially when you just got your baby to bed and then Mr. Rover decides it's a good time to alert you to the neighbours pulling into your driveway...  hypothetically speaking, of course...) - remember that your dog doesn't know you have a migraine or that you have a report due in the morning and need to focus. 
5. Most importantly, catch your dog being good! 
• You've been laying on the couch reading a book while Rover lays nearby snoozing.  Suddenly something grabs his attention and he's up and barking and you get up and clap your hands, tell him SHUSH, and then go back to reading.  Now Rover has been ignored for laying quietly and potentially reinforced (he got your attention, didn't he?) for being loud.  
• Instead, keep some treats stashed out of reach around the house.  When Rover is laying calmly and quietly, walk by and drop a treat under his nose.  Catch him doing what you want, reward the desired behaviours, and you'll get more of them. 

Visit our website at https://PawsitiveCare.ca

Visit us on Facebook at Facebook.com/PawsPooch

2017 Edit:  See our expanded post on managing barking! 
http://pawsitivepooch.blogspot.ca/2016/06/barking-talkative-dog.html