Bark only once....or twice....then stop!

Lets talk "Doglish".... bit long but well worth the read!!!

So true that we don’t always want to hear barking, such a racket, and certainly our neighbours may not! Like many owners I fell into the trap of telling my dogs, “quiet” …only not so politely and angrily! This never worked, so I would just get more frustrated and the barking would go on..and on …and on - recognise this anyone?!

Our energy is how they read us. If we start shouting, get angry or wave are arms around a dog will not follow our lead, they do not follow instability and weakness which is how they see us if we act like this. So the barking will escalate, we are seen to be joining in as an equal - barking is self-rewarding giving the dog an adrenalin surge, so not what we want and the barking continues, often even louder. They too will know if we're worrying about the neighbours - so clear away such thoughts, to stop barking we must focus only on being calm, assertive! Always follow through, think stop - mean stop!

The way I address continuous barking is to tell them to stop in a way they understand! I get my dog’s attention by interrupting them (no voice from me) - I will add something they don’t like to surprise my dogs, e.g. use a water pistol (never direct at eyes) or rattle a tin can with coins in it, this momentarily stops the barking display, then I can distract them to put an end to it. Timing is crucial, the “surprise” element must be added when they are barking, the distraction when focused on you. Interupt barking, reward quiet, calm response. You can also choose sound, ensuring the assertive sound is one like “pshhht” or “aargh” - not talking (which regardless of what we say can be interpreted as affection thereby reinforcing the barking behaviour!)

Remember it’s up to you to decide if you want your dog to guard bark, teach them and always be in control of how they guard, why/when/where it starts and stops, be consistent else you’ll have an insecure barker/uncertain response.

I want my dogs to bark to signal alert. Having carried out the routine hundreds of times, now I can go over to where they are, check out the situation, calm and assertive I add commands, telling them “Thank you” and to “leave”. If I do need to interrupt them I do this with the (now famous in "doglish") “psssht” sound instead of a tool such as the tin can. Thanking them works as when we say this we usually mean it, so our energy is calm and grateful yet we’re assertive with our decision to leave it to me as the pack leader.

If one dog is still carrying on I will mimic a true dog pack leader and claim the window, I get in front of the window, lean forward, point at them and silently I keep moving in front of them to block them until they give me submissive respectful body language. In the wild, a dominant dog does not use aggression to get his way, so neither should we.

Ignoring a “rant” bark from a dog can be another way to stop the behaviour, as Pack Leader if you pay no attention the performance will stop, you may need ear-plugs and good claming techniques for yourself!

It’s true then if you let a dog wind you up with the bark, this reinforces their response, so “carry on barking” is all you‘ll hear! So I “bite my tongue”…..”keep my cool” and “carry on pack leading”!!!

More ideas soon….for now it’s back to our new pack game - hiding from the snow for the us!!!