Barking at Baby

[LouiseJB]

I have a 14 month old GSD / Beared collie cross who is very clever and likes to turn everything into a game. She is very bouncy, excitable, friendly and pushy (for attention).

We have a problem with her barking at my sisters 8 month old baby. It doesnt bother the baby at all - she laughs and gets quite excited but the parents are scared to death of the noise and I think they see it as agressive (which it isnt as far as I can tell). I think the dog is after attention.
We do keep the dog and the baby seperate as the parents are very worried about the combination - especially now the baby is crawling. I do keep the dog on a house lead when they are around to ensure as much control as possible.

To try and stop the dog barking I have tried removing her from the room each time she barks at the baby but this has turned into a "catch me if you can" game - therefore, She gets attention and a game when she barks at the baby - all good for the dog.
I have also tried treating her when she is quiet - again - a win win situation for the dog - she barks, she stops for 10 seconds - she gets treated.
I have also used a covered crate and put her inside for 10 seconds each time she barks - but this results in the "chase me" game again.

My other niece is disabled (6 years old) and the dog also barked at her yesterday when she was being carried around - she doesnt bother barking at her when she is in her wheelchair.

I really could do with some advice on how to keep the dog quiet so that the parents are less scared.

Many thanks

[Shepherd103]

Does she bark only at little ones?

[emmabeth]

I would do some impulse control work, check out the 'its yer choice' thread in the articles section, but you can do this with toys, and also 'things happening', ie, exercise self control and remain sitting, or the door doesnt open to go out for a walk.

The more you do this, the better, as long as you are not overbearing or get frustrated with it.

Time outs ARE useful, but as you are finding, putting the DOG out can sometimes turn into a game. Personally, I would send the person holding the baby (and obviously the baby) out! (Make that person YOU to start with!).

Put a trailing leash on her too so you can get the lead and take her out for situations where the object of her barking cannot leave the room.

I would also look at the amount of exercise and training shes getting - can that be increased, improved upon, because attention seeking and developing 'funny' games like this tends to be a clue that the dog isnt quite getting what they need.