stop barking
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stop barking
I have seen a few episodes of its me or the dog, the problem i have is my labrador puppy (20weeks) has started barking at me,alot. i have tried walking away and saying thank you to him or enough but he still continues. Any ideas on how i can get him to stop? it is usually first thing in a morning after he has been outside to the toilet or when i have finished playing with him
Re: stop barking
why your dog is barking at you will direct how to respond.
I have had success with saying "thank you" and some comforting reactions to my dogs barking because he was barking at things happening outside while in the house and not at me. it was a fear/hyper alert driven barking.
But if your dog is barking at you, the above probably isn't the most constructive approach.
When your dog is barking at you, while not the only reason, a couple of fairly common ones are. You did/are doing something scary/uncomfortable to your dog and probably didn't realize it. Or your dog has learned that barking at you gets a response and now your paying attention to him.
Which is it? To help figure that out, can you give a better picture of a typical day for your dog.
how often and long are your walks
how regularly does he get fed
do you do any kind of training activities to work his brain
how often left alone and for how long
What are you doing (or possibly not doing) when your dog barks at you.
Things like that. basically anything you can think of that might help give a better picture of what might be going on.
I have had success with saying "thank you" and some comforting reactions to my dogs barking because he was barking at things happening outside while in the house and not at me. it was a fear/hyper alert driven barking.
But if your dog is barking at you, the above probably isn't the most constructive approach.
When your dog is barking at you, while not the only reason, a couple of fairly common ones are. You did/are doing something scary/uncomfortable to your dog and probably didn't realize it. Or your dog has learned that barking at you gets a response and now your paying attention to him.
Which is it? To help figure that out, can you give a better picture of a typical day for your dog.
how often and long are your walks
how regularly does he get fed
do you do any kind of training activities to work his brain
how often left alone and for how long
What are you doing (or possibly not doing) when your dog barks at you.
Things like that. basically anything you can think of that might help give a better picture of what might be going on.
Re: stop barking
he has 3 walks lasting between 20 minutes and 45minutes. one in the morning around 10am, one around half past 5 and one around 8pm(this one is usually only a quick walk as we found he tends to have no accidents over night when walked at this time).
He gets fed at 7.30am, and again at 5pm, could it be that he needs feeding earlier than this?
I have two 5 minute training sessions a day,i also play alot of fetch games with him,i would say around 20 minutes per time, between once and twice a day
He is usually left alone for one hour in the morning this is sometimes 2 on a shopping day, and one hour in the evening while i get the kids from school, there is 1 day out of the week where he is alone for around 4 and a half hours as i see my grandma on this day
When he is barking at me it is usually after i have asked him to sit because he is jumping. Im not sure whether it is just a teenage puppy stage,ive heard these exist. it has only been the last 2 weeks he has started barking to the extent i have worried about the neighbours because he barks for a good ten minutes. When he barks i usually turn around so i am not looking at him,but he has started nipping at me so i have to speak to tell him "no,sit" which seems to make things worse if i speak to the point he is jumping and nipping,sometimes growling. I have had a trainer out to help three times with basic training techniques since he was 8 weeks old and even she cannot understand why he has only just started this,its not only at me but the children too, its like a sudden change of behaviour and i cant think of anything that has changed other than more exercise in his daily routine
He gets fed at 7.30am, and again at 5pm, could it be that he needs feeding earlier than this?
I have two 5 minute training sessions a day,i also play alot of fetch games with him,i would say around 20 minutes per time, between once and twice a day
He is usually left alone for one hour in the morning this is sometimes 2 on a shopping day, and one hour in the evening while i get the kids from school, there is 1 day out of the week where he is alone for around 4 and a half hours as i see my grandma on this day
When he is barking at me it is usually after i have asked him to sit because he is jumping. Im not sure whether it is just a teenage puppy stage,ive heard these exist. it has only been the last 2 weeks he has started barking to the extent i have worried about the neighbours because he barks for a good ten minutes. When he barks i usually turn around so i am not looking at him,but he has started nipping at me so i have to speak to tell him "no,sit" which seems to make things worse if i speak to the point he is jumping and nipping,sometimes growling. I have had a trainer out to help three times with basic training techniques since he was 8 weeks old and even she cannot understand why he has only just started this,its not only at me but the children too, its like a sudden change of behaviour and i cant think of anything that has changed other than more exercise in his daily routine
Re: stop barking
Hello, first thing to point out is that at 20 weeks, your puppy is still very much a baby, he needs at least 3 feeds a day and possibly 4. The best rule for exercise is 5 minutes for every month of life, so at 20 weeks (5 months) 25 minutes spilt into 3 short walks would be better than 45 minutes at a time. His joints are still forming and Labs can suffer with joint problems if over exercised when too young. If you also do some short training sessions with him 2/3 times a day for about 5 minutes, this will tire him out too, all that learning and using his brain is exhausting!!
Labs are busy, active dogs, they like to join in with life and stuff you are doing. When he barks he is probably wanting your attention which obvioulsy he can't always have. You can re-direct him onto a nice raw meaty bone or dog chew, make him lie on his bed, give him his bone and ignore him. Approaching 6 months he will be demanding and entering his hooligan stage when he will require more training and stuff to keep his mind busy, so start teaching him tricks and obedience, heel work, stays, retrieves etc now. Establish a good routine now, it will pay dividends later but make sure he has a 'safe' place he knows is his where he can chill out away from the all the bustle and excitement of the children and teach the children to leave him in peace when he is in his safe place.
Some dogs are more barky than others, one of mine is quite vocal, the other rarely says a word but I think it will be just a phase he is going through, like kiddies learning to talk. Good luck.
Labs are busy, active dogs, they like to join in with life and stuff you are doing. When he barks he is probably wanting your attention which obvioulsy he can't always have. You can re-direct him onto a nice raw meaty bone or dog chew, make him lie on his bed, give him his bone and ignore him. Approaching 6 months he will be demanding and entering his hooligan stage when he will require more training and stuff to keep his mind busy, so start teaching him tricks and obedience, heel work, stays, retrieves etc now. Establish a good routine now, it will pay dividends later but make sure he has a 'safe' place he knows is his where he can chill out away from the all the bustle and excitement of the children and teach the children to leave him in peace when he is in his safe place.
Some dogs are more barky than others, one of mine is quite vocal, the other rarely says a word but I think it will be just a phase he is going through, like kiddies learning to talk. Good luck.
Re: stop barking
thank you for your responses. I rang the rehoming centre and spoke to a behaviourist after he bruised my knee with one bite because i did not pay attention to him. She said it is a classic sign of attention seeking and gave me a few ideas of what to do when he is over the top jumping and nipping/growling which seems to have calmed him down alot to the point first time everytime he is sitting when asked to and even has sat quietly at the side of whoever he wants attention off!! im amazed as this is the first day of removing him rather than me from the room when he is misbehaving. I am enjoying being around him now as apposed to quite frightened. and the kids seem more relaxed too.
Re: stop barking
Good news and well done. Lab pups are quite demanding so get busy with the training and keep his mind occupied.
Re: stop barking
I've read more than one place, and on my puppies food bag that after 10-12 weeks the feeding should only be 2 times a day (the variance here might how much activity the dog gets.) Just my $.02
Re: stop barking
That's interesting and very surprising - both for the fact that manufacturers normally want to sell more food 
and for actual puppy well-being. I feed mine four times a day until about 4 months, then 3 times a day until about 6-7 months, but the puppies dictate the number of daily feeds as they phase themselves out of the middle two and just put themselves on to 'breakfast' and 'supper' by not being particularly interested in more food.
I suspect this would not apply with all breeds!
and for actual puppy well-being. I feed mine four times a day until about 4 months, then 3 times a day until about 6-7 months, but the puppies dictate the number of daily feeds as they phase themselves out of the middle two and just put themselves on to 'breakfast' and 'supper' by not being particularly interested in more food.I suspect this would not apply with all breeds!
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog
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Re: stop barking
just keep in mind for future issues that if a "time out" is the appropriate response both options work. remove your self or removing the dog. which to use is dependent on the dog and it's motivation.amzh86 wrote:this is the first day of removing him rather than me from the room when he is misbehaving.
And remember to keep the "timeouts" short..10 -15 seconds short.
Well done on finding something that seems to be clicking with your dog.
Re: stop barking
Hi guys, didnt want to start a new thread although i have a slightly different situation with the barking now.
Baxter is constantly barking in a morning, my partner works and gets up in a morning to let them out, give them fresh water and fuss them, He goes to work monday and tuesday at around 6am, on these days guaranteed baxter will be barking by around 6.15, the rest of the week, he goes to work around 7am, Baxter ive been told will be barking by 7.20. Ive been ill this last week so havent slept at night so when he usually starts barking i dont hear him right away. I dont know what time he started barking yesterday, it was 7.45 before i heard him,which is when i heard my neighbour shouting telling me to shut my dog up.
When i do come to see to him, i open the door, he goes straight into his bed so i open the door and tell him to come toilet, he doesnt, instead he lays down in his bed and goes to sleep,until i leave the room and then he barks. He barks if the kids are in their area of the yard and he cant get in, he barks if i peg my washing out. i know he can get up and down the stairs so ive even tried getting him to come up,he wont instead he stands at the bottom of the stairs barking until i come down.
I apologised to my neighbour, ive also rung around a few trainers in my area for advice and they all told me to do what my previous trainer told me and that was to ignore it but i cant do that anymore. The neighbour i spoke to said theres quite a few people who are fed up of his barking and are on about reporting the constant barking.
I cut his walks down to half an hour, most of which is off lead now so he plays with other dogs, we play hide and seek games with him,either with treats, a ball or us. Im actually scared of going out and leaving him incase he starts while im out. My neighbour recommended i muzzle him to stop him barking and i just dont know what to do. Ive been that low about it all ive actually cried the last few days its getting to me that much.
Any ideas??
Baxter is constantly barking in a morning, my partner works and gets up in a morning to let them out, give them fresh water and fuss them, He goes to work monday and tuesday at around 6am, on these days guaranteed baxter will be barking by around 6.15, the rest of the week, he goes to work around 7am, Baxter ive been told will be barking by 7.20. Ive been ill this last week so havent slept at night so when he usually starts barking i dont hear him right away. I dont know what time he started barking yesterday, it was 7.45 before i heard him,which is when i heard my neighbour shouting telling me to shut my dog up.
When i do come to see to him, i open the door, he goes straight into his bed so i open the door and tell him to come toilet, he doesnt, instead he lays down in his bed and goes to sleep,until i leave the room and then he barks. He barks if the kids are in their area of the yard and he cant get in, he barks if i peg my washing out. i know he can get up and down the stairs so ive even tried getting him to come up,he wont instead he stands at the bottom of the stairs barking until i come down.
I apologised to my neighbour, ive also rung around a few trainers in my area for advice and they all told me to do what my previous trainer told me and that was to ignore it but i cant do that anymore. The neighbour i spoke to said theres quite a few people who are fed up of his barking and are on about reporting the constant barking.
I cut his walks down to half an hour, most of which is off lead now so he plays with other dogs, we play hide and seek games with him,either with treats, a ball or us. Im actually scared of going out and leaving him incase he starts while im out. My neighbour recommended i muzzle him to stop him barking and i just dont know what to do. Ive been that low about it all ive actually cried the last few days its getting to me that much.
Any ideas??
Re: stop barking
He is telling you he wants your company...
The problem here is, whether he actually needs it or not he has now figured out you WILL come, if he barks, so you cant leave him to figure out that you wont.
The only real way around this now is to remove his need to shout for company by letting him have company all the time (so let him sleep in your room, let him be in whatever room with you), and then you re-teach being left alone, at a pace he can handle and in a way so subtle and gentle he never EVER figures out again that barking will make you return to him.
That won't be easy, but doing it this way will mean you are not battling with massive stress from the neighbours complaining about him.
So at night, let him come up to your room - insist he stays on the floor if thats what you prefer, but let him up. You might actually find that it is being shut away that upsets him, not 'not being in the same room as you', but only time will tell there. Some dogs settle quickly in another room as long as they know they CAN go to their owners if they need to (and to be fair, if he needs you, its better he can come get you, than he shouts his head off wherever he is until you come!).
Find ways around things in each situation where he barks, so that you remove his need to bark.
Once you have achieved that, then work on teaching him to cope on his own at a time and pace he can handle, and wont upset your neighbours (like, when they are out, during the day, not in the middle of the night). We can help you with how to do this, but you will need to build it up minute by minute, even in 30 second chunks maybe.
The problem here is, whether he actually needs it or not he has now figured out you WILL come, if he barks, so you cant leave him to figure out that you wont.
The only real way around this now is to remove his need to shout for company by letting him have company all the time (so let him sleep in your room, let him be in whatever room with you), and then you re-teach being left alone, at a pace he can handle and in a way so subtle and gentle he never EVER figures out again that barking will make you return to him.
That won't be easy, but doing it this way will mean you are not battling with massive stress from the neighbours complaining about him.
So at night, let him come up to your room - insist he stays on the floor if thats what you prefer, but let him up. You might actually find that it is being shut away that upsets him, not 'not being in the same room as you', but only time will tell there. Some dogs settle quickly in another room as long as they know they CAN go to their owners if they need to (and to be fair, if he needs you, its better he can come get you, than he shouts his head off wherever he is until you come!).
Find ways around things in each situation where he barks, so that you remove his need to bark.
Once you have achieved that, then work on teaching him to cope on his own at a time and pace he can handle, and wont upset your neighbours (like, when they are out, during the day, not in the middle of the night). We can help you with how to do this, but you will need to build it up minute by minute, even in 30 second chunks maybe.
West Midlands based 1-2-1 Training & Behaviour Canine Consultant
Re: stop barking
Just to add, a muzzle will NOT stop him barking. A basket muzzle allows the dog to open its mouth (mine can certainly bark with his on), they're purely a barrier between the dogs teeth and whatever it may bite, and the fabric ones that hold the mouth shut aren't safe for long periods of use. I wouldn't leave any muzzle on an unattended dog though.
Re: stop barking
he is fine at night time, he is more than happy to stay in his bed in the kitchen at night or during the day when i am in, its when i go out or first thing in a morning he barks, or if the kids are playing and he cant get to them
