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How to curb a dog from barking at every noise?
We recently moved into an apartment and we normally kennel her while we are away, our neighbor complain that she howls for an hour straight well we believe that we have corrected that problem our other concern is that every single noise she has to bark at rather its a bang from the neighbors, something out side like a car door shutting or someone throwing something in the dumpster or someone knocking on the door, my husband wants to get a no barking collar I oppose that and was wondering if there are any alternatives. thanks very much for any input.
Answer:
Whenever she is in her crate, be sure to have the curtains closed, some soft music on, and something great (like a stuffed Kong) in her kennel. That will do a number of things. The closed curtains will muffle the noises. The soft music will mute the noises. And the Kong will give her something else to do.
Additionally, however, your dog needs to learn that it is not appropriate to bark at every noise she hears. At first, you will need to help her understand not to bark when you are there and to desensitize her to the noises that she would typically hear. If you visit the FindSounds website (http://www.findsounds.com/) you can download a variety of sounds such as doorbells, car doors, and just about any other sound that you can imagine. Create a CD of sounds that your dog is likely to hear.
When you initially begin training, have your dog out of the crate to allow you quicker access to her.
Play the CD at a VERY low volume. For each sound, give her a special treat. If the sounds are causing her to alert in any way, turn the volume down even lower. We want to help her be successful. Slowly turn the volume up and continue the training.
Once you can play the CD at a normal volume, then move her to her crate. At this point, you will need to set the volume very low again. Dogs do not generalize well and she will initially have difficulty understanding that she shouldn’t bark when in her crate either especially since that is where her barking has typically been taking place. So lower the volume and treat her for every sound. Again, slowly increase the volume until you are able to play the CD at a normal volume. At that point, you can begin treating her intermittently. Also begin walking away. At first, just walk a little way away and toss her a treat. Then walk out the door, but come back in quickly to reward her. This portion of the training should be taken slowly because you are asking her to understand that she will not always be treated for not barking and that she must continue to do the quiet and calm even when you are not there.
If you find she is beginning to bark at any point in the process, take a few steps back to the point where she was successful and continue again from there.
If you look at it from her point of view, she may well think that she has been saving the neighborhood up to this point. After all, every time she barks, she manages to get the noise to stop … at least in her mind. The reality is obviously the car door has completely shut and the person has driven away. But she is likely to be certain that she has caused the slamming door to cease. With the desensitization, she will slowly learn that the noises that have previously caused her to bark are instead a good thing … after all, those noises continue to be a precursor to getting a great treat.
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