Get Your Dog To Stop Barking!
One of the most common problems a dog owner can face is the neighbor-annoying, drive-you-crazy, bark of your dog. Getting your dog to stop barking is going to require a couple of things from you, though.
First, you need to understand that you will never be able to get your dog to stop barking completely. Nope. It just ain’t gonna’ happen. The sooner you come to this realization the better.
Next, you need to understand why your dog is barking. Is he trying to alert you to eminent danger? Is there something out there that he thinks you really need to see? Is he trying to get your attention? Oh boy, this last one is a big one at my house.
Learn from my mistake here, please. I bring Sam pretty much everywhere I go. What can I say? The boy likes a good car ride. Anyway, when he was younger, I would always (foolishly) say, “No bark!” before I walked away from the car. Of course, as soon as I got my foot into the door of the store, I would hear his VERY LOUD barking. I would rush outside and say, “Sam, I said no bark!”. A more effective way of teaching a dog TO BARK, I have never found. Now he knows that the faster he starts up, the faster goofy Mom will return.
Now that you know what not to do, here’s an effective, simple way to teach your dog not to bark:
Teach your dog to bark on command. Yep. I said it. Sounds crazy, huh? Believe it or not, teaching your dog to bark or “Speak”, will greatly reduce the incidences in which he feels compelled to do it on his own. After you’ve taught your dog this simple command, then you can move on to the next step.
Next, pinpoint what’s causing your dog to bark in the first place. He’s probably barking for a very good reason (in his mind, at least) and figuring out why will greatly increase your chances of success here. Now, if he’s barking like mad because a stranger just entered your yard, let him know that that’s the right way to do things. The dumbest you can do is turn your dog into a completely submissive, docile dog that doesn’t alert you to danger. And of course, whatever you do, don’t make the mistakes that I did with my sweet, loud mouthed baby. Can you teach an old dog new tricks? I’ll have to get back to you.