![]() ![]() Once you’ve gained their attention, tell them, “sit”, and reward them with a treat upon cooperating. The jangling noise diverts your dog's attention towards you. ![]() An easy method to distract your dog is by shaking your car keys. Distraction MethodĪs simple as it sounds, distracting your pet is one of the best ways to stop the barking. Instead, calmly use your quiet command, and then divert their attention from the stranger by giving them a treat or snack, like a small piece of chicken. If holding your dog’s muzzle causes frustration or un-cooperation, you can attempt this method without holding. Gradually increase the time between giving treats, as this allows the command to properly sink in. If they start barking again, repeat the process, rewarding them each time they stop barking. If they remain quiet, reward them with a treat. Then, gently hold their muzzle and say, “Quiet.” Avoid shouting, as that produces negative reinforcement. Once your dog starts barking in the presence of a stranger, let them bark a few times. Consistent training is key, and it is important to be patient with your dog and provide positive reinforcement. Remember that even with the best dog training techniques, training your dog to quit barking, which is an inclination by nature, is not going to happen overnight. Barking in this situation usually stems from overwhelming anxiety. Similarly, a traumatic experience with previous owners could damage their ability to trust strangers as well. This is also common for rescue dogs coming from shelters, where human interaction is not frequent. Often times, dogs that did not have a lot of human interaction and attention as a puppy will bark at other humans because they aren’t as familiar with how to act around them and don’t have an established background of trust. However positive this aspect may seem to you, it can often catch the stranger off guard and leave them feeling fearful because they don’t personally know your dog. Usually, this is a strong indicator that your pup is a people lover, which is undeniably a redeeming quality. Rather, they are frankly just excited, expressing their ecstatic energy through loud noises. This type of barking, especially when it occurs in areas that a dog would not consider as their territory, is typically not threatening. ExcitementĮspecially common among puppies, over-excitement is one of the main contributors to barking at strangers. Although it is beneficial to have a guard dog, this poses a threat to the stranger and also causes a disturbance to anyone in the home or within hearing distance in the neighborhood. Usually, this means that your dog views them as a potential threat. Often this happens when someone comes to the front door or merely just walks by. If your dog often barks when a stranger or new dog approaches your home or yard, accompanied by a stiff body and possibly even raised hackles, it is a definite sign of protecting their territory. Knowing which of these causes your dog to bark helps inform dog training techniques to specifically stop dog barking. While there are many reasons that cause dogs to bark, there are three major causes of chronic dog barking: territorial barking, excited barking, and lack of socialization barking. Keep reading to understand how to train your dog not to bark. Think of these reasons as a list of 3 ways your dog asks for help, and we’ll set you up with the answer! Whether your dog barks at strangers due to territorial reasons, over-excitement, or lack of human socialization, it is important to expand on each of these three reasons prior to diving into training methods. There are three main reasons why dogs bark at strangers, all of which can be managed if handled correctly. However, it is important to first understand why your dog is acting this way in order to why your dog is acting this way in order to break bad habits. Using behaviorist methods, you can change your dog's behavior after a few training sessions so that they are welcoming for every family member and guest who comes to your house. But you don't need to resort to bark collars to get your dog to stop. Dogs have been bred to bark sometimes, a dog's barking is an instinct that they can't control. In many ways, training a dog to stop their excessive barking is no easy feat. Does your dog bark whenever the doorbell rings? Or whenever a package arrives? Or whenever someone just walks by your house? It probably seems impossible to stop a barking dog from, well, barking. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |