Barking article - request for help

[UncleBob]

Hey all,

I'm currently writing a blog post about barking dogs - and I'd like your help!

Request for information:
Please would you complete the poll below to help me gauge what proportion of owners have barking dogs and what treatments have been most effective? (We're not talking about stopping barking completely - it's about excessive barking). Please feel free to add further detail in the comments below.

Request for photos:
And, looking back through my collection of photos I can't see any of my dog, Harvey, actually barking! So, please would you let me have any photos you have of your dog barking? I'll give you full credit in the acknowledgements section of the post (if you want to be identified!) so please let me know the name of your dog and how you would like to be referred to.

 

[Cath]

Sorry my two don't bark really, Fred not at all and Annie only if someone come to the house to let me know. Then stops when I go to the door.

 

[UncleBob]

Sorry my two don't bark really, Fred not at all and Annie only if someone come to the house to let me know. Then stops when I go to the door.

That'll be the first option then

 

[Atemas]

I have ticked I don‘t have a dog that barks excessively and I had success using reward - based training. Red does alert barking (there’s always a reason). It’s not excessive but we have trained her not to bark e.g. at the snarling dogs In the garden behind us. It’s still a work in progress but we have made huge strides this year

 

[Anne123]

I have a dog that barks ‘excessively’...He barks more than our others did. He doesn’t bark when he is home alone. I asked the postman who delivers packages. Only when I am home. We tried to stop him barking with positive reinforcement. Didn’t help. We tried to distract him, it only works for a short time. When encountering other dogs he starts barking, when I see the dog first I try to distract him with a treat, it worked for a while, but now he seemed to think ‘okay, there’s the treat, where or what does mum do not want to see me’ and start barking. He knows exactly that I dislike him barking, for as he sees another dog and doesn’t bark, he touches my hand to say hey I didn’t bark so where is my treat!

 

[Candy]

Joy barks if someone parks outside our gate, opens the gate, or comes through it. Much of this is excited barking as she loves visitors. Some, I think is alert barking. She never snarls, but does make squeaky noises and do the odd 'Grrruffff!' I don't consider any of this to be excessive. I like the way she sounds bigger and fiercer( probably only to the un- trained ear) than she actually is. She makes me feel very safe.

 

[Naya]

When someone new comes to our house Harley barks excessively. Ive tried so many things over the years, but to no avail. She will bark if she hears a car door outs or someone coming up the driveway. She carries on until I get up, go to the door to look and say ‘no one there’. It’s annoying at times.

 

[Lab_adore]

I ticked that he barks excessively but it's only if he thinks someone is in the front yard (stranger danger) or if someone visits (starts off stranger danger then as soon as he sees they are friendly with us it turns to needing desperately to meet and jump all over the new friend)

I've tried treats and LAT but nothing works. He is too worked up

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

I honestly wish Carbon would bark a bit more. Or growl. Or wake up. Or just twitch when there is a noise outside. Anything.

Either I'm really very lucky that I've never had a barker, or it's something about me that turns my dogs kind of comatose.

 

[Candy]

I honestly wish Carbon would bark a bit more. Or growl. Or wake up. Or just twitch when there is a noise outside. Anything.

Either I'm really very lucky that I've never had a barker, or it's something about me that turns my dogs kind of comatose.

Emily, do you think it could be something to do with him being a rescue? Maybe he kind of never grew up with the concept of anything he owned enough to guard? Maybe I'm totally off my rocker and undergoing Midsummer Madness?
Who knows?

 

[UncleBob]

... or it's something about me that turns my dogs kind of comatose. ...

If you could bottle that you'd make a fortune!

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

Emily, do you think it could be something to do with him being a rescue? Maybe he kind of never grew up with the concept of anything he owned enough to guard? Maybe I'm totally off my rocker and undergoing Midsummer Madness?
Who knows?

Lots of rescues bark and goodness knows that pack in the shelter where Carbon came from could raise a serious round the clock ruckus. But even in there Carbon wasn't a barker. Who knows?

But even fosters who have started out barky with me tend to turn into lumps at home given enough time. It must be my thrilling personality.

 

[Candy]

Or maybe you just make them feel so safe that they feel they never need to be on the alert again?

 

[Atemas]

it's something about me that turns my dogs kind of comatose.

Sky never barked. She could but we rarely heard it. Then it was an alert territorial bark e.g. if anyone came too close to our tent. She never barked in the house

 

[Jacqui-S]

Lilly isn't much of a barker but @Sophiedoodle Oreo is (and Windsor).

 

[SwampDonkey]

The boys are quiet. The house is peaceful. They bark when play and if there's a thing they perceive as a threat or want to draw something to my attention. I just say good boys that's great they are happy and it's all quiet again. I live next door to a spaniel boy are they noisy. There's nothing that dog does quietly. Everything was s greeted with barking. Hysterical yappy barking. If a sparrow farts he barks. I couldnt cope to loud

 

[Cupcase]

Cassie is a barker, also a fence runner. We got her when she was nearly 6 years old and the barking was an issue from the start. She's the first dog I seriously worked at preventing these behaviours with positive reinforcement.
We did a lot of management with the issue, preventing her from racing at the fence, I adapted the windows in the house with window film to prevent her seeing outside. When we could afford it a fence went up that was fully enclosed and double sided to prevent her seeing the other dogs. Unfortunately the fence is 5 foot high and I can't see anyone coming but Cassie must hear or smell them as she's off tearing towards the fence, barking the entire time.
She will be 15 next month and I hate to admit this but her barking has got worse. She now sits in the middle of the garden and woofs at any noises.
I'm sure I can get a photo of her barking at some point today lol.
This isn't anything new as a few of my dogs were barkers.
Jake barked for attention, food, play but not so much at people or dogs going pass the house.

 

[Boogie]

Tatze was a barker at the neighbours.

Each summer, when we emerge into the garden and she sees/hears the neighbours in theirs she goes back to it a bit to the barker she was as a youngafter.

I deal with it by being in the garden every time with a bag of treats and bringing her to me as soon as we hear them. After a week or two she hardly reacts at all - just the occasional ‘huff’. Next summer we’ll be doing the same routine again, I’m sure.

Echo isn’t an alert barker at all and doesn’t ever join in with Tatze.

But he is an attention barker with bells on! I find this so much harder to deal with as it’s really hard to be consistent in any strategy - and I’ve tried quite a few!

 

[edzbird]

My 2 are horrendous barkers. Coco is chief barker, I think, with Meg coming in a fraction behind him joining in. They bark at anything through the front window. They bark at the neighbours going about their business in the garden - though that has lessened a tiny bit, with me calling them away & praising, or praising the slightest noise that is ignored. They bark if you leave the room, closing the door behind you, which I have to do if I want to make a phone call without them disturbing me.
The barking escalates if someone actually comes down the path like the postman or milkman.
They bark in the car - mainly excitement here, but Meg will bark aggressively if we drive past people.
And lastly, Coco is an attention barker too. This is a more squeaky bark.

As for photos..well this is actually one of the best ways to stop the barking - they both hate having their photo taken!

 

[Cath]

If a sparrow farts he barks.