Dog barking in the night

Share your favorite training tips, ideas and methods with other Positively members!

Moderators: emmabeth, BoardHost

Post Reply
Drunkentulip
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Jun 07, 2010 6:59 am

Dog barking in the night

Post by Drunkentulip »

I have a 2 year old cocker spaniel.we have had him since he was a puppy. He has 2 good walks a day as well as play and mental stimulation at home. He has always slept in the same room just off the kitchen without any bother.
However for approximately 3 weeks, he has been waking up and barking in the middle of the night. Sometimes, he has barked for 40 minutes before stopping.
At first we went down to him as we thought he may need the toilet, however he didn’t always need it. We have now started ignoring him, as we don’t want to reward his behaviour by going to him. But he still continues. We have bought ear plugs but can still hear him. We always leave the radio on for him too
We are at the end of our tether as we haven’t had a good nights sleep for ages.any advice would be appreciated.
JudyN
Posts: 7018
Joined: Tue Jul 26, 2011 1:20 pm
Location: Dorset, UK
Contact:

Re: Dog barking in the night

Post by JudyN »

Broken sleep is the pits :(

Is it consistently at the same time every night? Do you think it could be wildlife or cats in the garden? Could it be associated with fireworks - even if they're not going off now, could they have upset him when they started and now he's still unsettled?

Could he be cold, or in a draught? You might want to try him in pjs to see if that helps. It might also be worth trying an Adaptil diffuser/spray to see if that helps.

One solution could be to let him sleep in your bedroom, on a bed or in a crate if you don't want him on your bed. Then if he wakes, hopefully he'll feel more secure and not need to bark or if he does bark, you'll be able to settle him better. My dog sleeps next to my bed - I'm a very light sleeper but he actually makes less noise than my husband :lol:
Jasper, lurcher, born December 2009
Drunkentulip
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Jun 07, 2010 6:59 am

Re: Dog barking in the night

Post by Drunkentulip »

As we are in the uk, we have had a fireworks recently, however his barking stated before they did. Also, he has never showed any issues with the fireworks, usually sleeping through them.
It tends to be at different times in the nighy when he barks.
I have wondered myself if there’s been a fox about in the garden or in the street but again, it just seems odd that this has started all of a sudden, when I know we have had foxes in the garden before.
Neither myself or my partner want him in the bedroom, we know he would want to be on the bed with us, which is a definite no no.
User avatar
Nettle
Posts: 10753
Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 1:40 pm

Re: Dog barking in the night

Post by Nettle »

You have to go with the art of the possible. Compromise is necessary.

Dogs don't bark for no reason. Something is disturbing him in the night, and it is, as has been said, quite probably cats or wildlife, though it may be some other noise.

You don't want to upset the neighbours either.

You don't want him in the bedroom. Your choice, and I respect that.

I can see two possible ways - leave a radio on downstairs to muffle outside noises, or have him upstairs in another room or on the landing if enough space, so he is near enough to you to feel safe but not in bed with you. Is he crate trained?
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog

SET YOURSELF UP FOR SUCCESS
CaraN
Posts: 16
Joined: Sat Oct 27, 2018 2:20 pm

Re: Dog barking in the night

Post by CaraN »

If he has access to window views, I would block them asap. If he is barking looking out the window, I recommend luring away with a yummy treat and then asking for a sit/stay. You can also teach quiet, which from my experience is not that easy but its not too bad either. You need to teach the dog to bark on command first generally, although I managed to teach my dog without that but in retrospect I think teaching "speak" first is better. Do something that will make the dog bark (think doorbell, knock on the door, etc) and say "speak" before you initiate the trigger. Once the dog quiets after a few seconds, say quiet, mark and treat. If your dog's barking easily gets off the rails, I really just recommend the first method. You may need to use something particularly enticing the first few times.

If the dog is barking a lot at night and it seems to be something in the house, you may have mice!!! They can drive our pets crazy.

Also, you may want to try a thundershirt. My dog is not afraid of storms or fireworks but occasionally gets anxious or restless and it really helps her settle. Some studies have been done which show it works by lowering the dog's heart rate. I was very skeptical on it, but it was the only thing that helped my dog relax after her spay surgery and had the added benefit of covering the scar.
Post Reply