Dogs bark for a number of reasons:
• Boredom
• Anxiety
• Stress
• Lack of attention
If you know why your dog barks it is possible to control and subsequently stop the barking in a relatively short time. Below are four simple and effective ways to stop dog your dog from barking:
1. A tired dog is less likely to bark; to tire a dog it must be both physically and mentally exercised. Make sure your dog has a good walk everyday; if your dog returns from its walk and still wants to play it has not had enough exercise. To provide mental exercise consider joining an obedience class where you will also benefit from learning basic control techniques.
2. If you leave your dog at home alone this is the most likely time for it to bark, and obviously as your are not there the hardest to correct. Don’t be naive if your dog barks when you are at home it will bark when left alone. You need to provide your dog with some entertainment while you are out. A good solution are Kongs, these are toys which can be stuffed with dog food or treats and force your dog to work really hard to get to the treat. Dogs enjoy play leave your dog plenty of toys so that he doesn’t get bored. The TV and radio can keep certain dogs entertained, so leave them on.
3. Corrective techniques; a very good method of stopping your dog barking is to correct the behaviour when it happens. Use a water spray every time your dog barks at you shoot him straight at his face and say firmly ‘quiet’. For this to work you must be consistent so repeat the process every time he barks. When he stops barking make sure you praise him, he will then associate not barking with praise and barking with a punishment. When spraying the dog always use the same command, i.e. “quiet”, as he will associate that word with the water spay.
4. Positive correction; rather than like above in this case you should reward your dog with a treat when he stops barking. When the dog starts to bark say “quiet” and, if he stops barking, give him a treat. Show the dog the treat but make sure your dog is calm before you give him the treat during which time he won’t bark. Remember to praise him for being silent and repeat the exercise, increase the time he has to remain calm before he gets his treat. This may prove easier than using the corrective techniques but using this method the dog can easily associate barking as a method of getting a reward.