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Home > Training Tips > Barking
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Barking is one of many ways dogs communicate with other dogs, animals, and humans. Wolf pups and adolescents would bark at times, but adult wolves very rarely barked. During domestication, barking grew more common, either because it was selected for or it just appeared along with the traits that were chosen. It is not fair to the dog to punish him for what humans bred him to do. What is fair is explaining to your dog when barking is in his best interest, and when it is not. To control the barking, you first have to identify what type of barking your dog is doing.
Alert Barking
Alert barking is used to inform you and the rest of the pack that an intruder is present. It also informs the intruder that he has been detected.
The Fix: Put the barking on cue. Teach your dog what “Speak” or “Bark” means, as well as teach your dog what “Quiet” means. This way you can turn barking on and off.
- Give your bark cue: “Speak!”.
- Immediately ring the doorbell, knock, or whatever gets the dog to bark.
- Once he is barking, praise him.
- Within a few seconds, pull out a treat or toy and say, “Quiet” (using a hand cue may help too)
- Once he is quiet, reward him and prevent him from continuing to bark by either giving more treats and/or taking him away from the door. If he doesn’t stop barking on command, put treats in his mouth immediately after saying “Quiet”. A dog with a mouth full of treats can’t bark. You can also put more distance between the door and the dog, as that will lessen his excitability.
- Work towards getting your dog to bark on cue without the doorbell. Now you can practice anywhere.
- Continue to practice until you can say “Quiet” without showing the treat at first. Still give your dog a treat once he stops.
- Practice this with guests, which will be much harder for your dog, so be prepared with a lot of treats. You may need to leash your dog and back away from the door in order to calm him and keep his attention.
- Putting barking on cue may take considerable time, but it is very possible. Praise and reward a lot, and your dog will learn much faster. The more frustrated you get, the more energized your dog gets.
Attention Barking
Dogs will use attention barking to get things they want, such as attention. This barking is reinforced by giving into the barking. Dogs will learn that if they bark when they’re in their kennel they get let out, if they bark at the dinner table they get food, and if they bark at you while you’re not paying attention to them, you look at them and talk to them.
The Fix: Barking for what he wants has worked for him in the past. Now you’re going to teach him that it no longer works. This can be a long and frustrating behavior to break. Your dog has been reinforced for barking, and now he must be reinforced for not barking.
- If your dog barks at you for attention and you don’t want him to, then ignore it. Do not scold him, look at him, motion towards him, throw something at him—NO ATTENTION SHOULD BE GIVEN DURING BARKING. Negative attention and positive attention will reinforce barking.
- Give attention when your dog is quiet. If your dog has been barking continuously for a considerable amount of time, you will have to wait and reinforce the first 2-second break he takes. Make it very reinforcing! Lots of treats, toys, praise, and attention.
- Eventually, if your timing is right and everyone is consistent, your dog will learn that quiet behavior gets him attention. Make sure to notice those quiet moments! Don’t let them go un-noticed.
Boredom Barking
This type of barking is done when the dog has nothing else to do. This is more of a compulsive activity the dog engages in. He may have been left alone for an extended period of time, and/or he has an excess of energy built up and this is a way to relieve it.
The Fix: If your dog is boredom barking, then he needs more stimulation in his life. Spend time with him, exercise him, play with him, train him, and give him things to do. If he is outside in the yard or tied to a tree, of course he’s barking! Your dog is a social animal and if his daily needs are not being met, either engage in more activities with him, or find someone else who can meet his needs.
Fearful Barking
Fear barking appears when the dog hears a sound he is unfamiliar with, or sees something or someone that he is un-socialized to. The bark is informing the stimulus to back off. If the dog is in a fearful state, and the stimulus he is afraid of continues to approach him, the dog may bite.
The Fix: This type of barking is usually due to under-socialization and lack of confidence. Pair the things he fears with the things he likes. If he is scared of the blow dryer, show him the blow dryer and give him a treat. After numerous sessions touch the blow dryer to him and give him a treat. Eventually you can turn on the blow dryer for a second and give him lots of treats. After a while, you should be able to turn the blow dryer on for many seconds and give him treats. Keep increasing the intensity of the stimulus, at the dogs own pace, and pair it with many many happy rewards. If your dog is fearful of people and/or dogs, he needs to be socialized and desensitized to them. Protocols for this depend on the dog and the severity.
This training tip provided by:
Odie's Obedience
Sara Bartlett, ABCDT, CPDT
St. Cloud, Minneapolis, and
St. Paul, Minnesota areas
320-259-ODIE
Cell: 320-250-3001
Email: sara@odiesobedience.com
Website: www.odiesobedience.com
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