How to Stop Dog from Barking

What is your response when he starts the barking? If you give him any kind of attention trying to "calm him down" then you are rewarding the behavior.

Have you ever watched Cesar Milan (The Dog Whisperer on National Geographic channel)?
He deals with this sort of thing a lot on his show. He often will use his index finger to sort of poke them in the chest (just to get their attention via touch- not to hit them!) and simultaneously "shush" them. He uses this sound that I don't know how to type phonetically, lol... sort of a "tscht" sound. Then, when he stops barking you can give him a command (like sit) and then praise him for sitting.

Most of the time it seems like annoying dog behaviors are associated with lack of exercise and attention in general. Do you take your dog for daily walks? Do you walk him correctly (YOU being in charge of it and him being the follower, not the leader)?

My dog gets very excited when my husband comes home and starts barking and whining, etc... because she has been accidentally "trained" to "find" the kids for him. They hide in the house when his car pulls into the garage and when he comes into the house, he "looks" for them... she LOVES this game!! So she gets very excited when he comes home and she gets to play it. When the kids are in bed, she doesn't do any of the whining and barking, because she is conditioned to find them "hiding" when he comes in. If they are in bed asleep, she knows there is no game, and no "reward" for "finding" them, so she doesn't get all wound up.

So, you have to figure out what the "reward" is for all your dog's barking... Do you pet him and show him attention and tell him that "it's okay..." ? Then you are rewarding his antics. Figure out his reward, then get rid of it, and reward him for sitting and being well behaved (and quiet!).

If you can, try to watch a few episodes of the Dog Whisperer show and see if his techniques can help you out.

Good luck.

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S. - you have had some good ideas here, I adopted a little mix breed from the animal shelter about that size. She had some big health issues at first and was not so lively. Now I have your issues, she barks at so many things. Yap, Yap, Yap etc, it drives me nuts. Of course if I pick her up she is fine! I work so I am gone for approx 6 hours a day and she goes outside a lot. We have 1 acre so that is plenty for a little dog. Plus I have 2 other dogs for company. So I will be watching your replies for some insight too!

M. F

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My ex had a cocker spaniel that used to bark his fool head off. It was driving us and anyone withing ear shot crazy! He would explode if any one came over, if he heard a car door two houses away, if there was a door bell or knock on tv, it didn't matter. We bought a shock collar - and tried it in the palm of each of our hands before we tried it on the dog. Well - it wasn't crazy painful - no burning or anything like that - just a weird buzzy vibration. Anyway, we put it on the dog, my ex knocked on the wall - the dog took off barking like a fool, the collar gave him some warning beeps, and then buzz buzz. It sounds mean - but it was really funny - because he jumped and looked around behind him as if trying to find what just hit him. (I think he thought the cat did it). My ex knocked again, the dog took off barking, he got the warning beep and shut up! I don't think that he ever got buzzed again! We left it on for a couple of days, and he would make this muffled little woof, get the warning beep and stop. After that, we took the collar off. If he was in a "barky mood" or we had people coming over, we would put it on him and he would immediately go into quiet mode. We even put it on him with dead batteries! He had no idea that the batteries were dead - because he knew not to even try it. He got alot more positive attention when people came over, he could meet, greet, wiggle, shake and wag and enjoyed the attention alot more than being yelled at or put in the other room or backyard because he wouldn't shut up! So.....while others said that they wouldn't use the shock collar - for us, it was the best $30 we ever spent! I had another dog - who NEVER barks - a keeshond/chow mix. He is quite perfectly behaved EXCEPT that he finds water completely irresistible - no matter what - if he can smell water - he will break out, find it and take a little swim. This used to drive me crazy - especially after I moved to a waterfront home on a canal a few houses from the Imperial River in Bonita. The water is brackish - and alligators have been seen in there alot - and no amount of yelling would keep him out of that water. I installed the wireless fence / shock collar combination for that. They say you are supposed to put out flags and walk the border with you dog for awhile before turning it on etc.... Well, I just turned it on, opened the door and let him rip! He charged straight for the dock at full speed - with me screaming "NO" the whole way! He got to the line, got his warning beeps and then buzzzzzz, he froze right on the line! I pulled the collar down in the front and then snapped it off of him, brought him back up into the yard and put the collar back on. When he wandered back in the direction of the dock - he got the warning beeps - and immediately turned around. He NEVER went back in the canal again!
Like I said, I know it sounds mean, but for me -especially because I tried it in my own hand first - I knew that it was best for those two dogs. It does not burn or leave a scar or mark, you can adjust the strength of the buzz, and remember - it isn't going on bare skin - they have fur between the collar and their skin. With the cocker spaniel -it made for a much more pleasant experience for everyone involved, and for Oliver I knew that he wasn't going to be some alligator dinner! Good luck!

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Do u take him out fpr walks or the dog park?? He needs outside time away from home.

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Take an empty water bottle and fill it with uncooked pasta. Every time your dog barks inappropriately, shake the bottle at him. Dogs hate the sound. This trick worked with my Maltese, now he stops barking if he sees me go near the bottle.
Good

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Did the dynamic in your house change any that could have affected his behavior? Work w/ him give him the sense that he's still in charge-If you know some one is coming over have your Papillon meet him outside(w/a treat or special toy) in neutral territory and then both come inside the house. He also probably needs to get out of the house a little just regular walks in the neighborhood to burn off a little steam. I know its hard to take a Papillon to the dog park b/c his so much smaller than other dogs-hey maybe we can set up a play date I have a 4yr old Papillon :-)

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YOu may want to review: http://www.ultimatebarkcontrol.com/?gclid=CMHgmNGm4p0CFRQ...

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S.,

Here is a trick I have used on my dogs and cats. Get a spray bottle for water. When they bark you give them a squirt. It doesent hurt but they don't like it either. I usually use the stream on the sprayer not the mist but if you are close the mist might work.

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WE have a barky dachshund. DOG WHISPERER...get the book, it will save you so much frustration.

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Pat yourself on the back for never hitting your dog and not giving up and resorting to shock collars or other pain methods. There are plenty of things you will be able to work on and find the best solution for you/your dog that involves working together.

I highly recommend using a trainer...one that doesn't use force based methods (you will have to ask a lot of questions about their philosphy and methods when you call them in order to weed through all the old-fashioned traditional heavy-handed trainers). The place to start would be looking at the APDT website to find a local trainer (Association of Pet Dog Trainers) - they are the only true organization of pet dog trainers that has independent certification for trainers and there are several good ones in the area. I can refer you if interested.

I'm not a fan of the Dog Whisperer....he is popular simply because he has a TV show. I agree with his idea of having a well exercised pet and not treating them like a human but many of his are heavy-handed and many are difficult for the average pet owner to replicate ate home, safely. He can do things quickly/easily and it can work,but so can I (or any other trainer) but we all know that training is training the pet owner on how to handle the dog and situation, so it is YOU that needs some good advise and hands-on help. I would recommend two books that you can find on www.dogwise.com and probably amazon.com .... one is called "the bark stops here" and the other "feeling outnumbered"- this one is great help on dealing with individual issues when you have multiple pets. But again, nothing beats a really good trainer with quality experience in animal behavior.

Until you get someone in I would suggest breaking the cycle by setting up a comfy crate or safe area in your home that is FAR away from the front door. First(if hes not already used to one) get him comfy with the crate by feeding in there, giving quiet time with great treats etc....NEVER as punishment. Once he's happy with it, that is where he goes BEFORE you get shoes on to leave or BEFORE you answer the door. Get some good 'busy-mouth' toys such as KONGs that you can stuff with awesome treats or pb and keep one handy or frozen for whenever you leave/open the door...he gets it in the crate so he is happy,comfy and his mouth is too busy to bark! Eventually you can build up to giving him the stuffed kong or similar item at 'door'time and he will have built up the habit of chewing at those times rather barking...but that is a while away :-)

Email if you want.....

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Professional dog training saved my marriage. Well, our marriage wasn't in trouble, but my reactions to his dog due to his dog's trying to BITE ME were, needless to say, causing problems in the house. And my dog wouldn't listen to a thing my husband said. So, professional dog training taught us both how to be better dog owners, and our dogs were transformed. His nasty little beast became a sweetheart. My dog obeyed my husband. Life became a thousand times better.
So I am a STRONG ADVOCATE for professional help. Find a good dog trainer. You won't regret a cent or a minute spent.

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hello, i have two paps, one barks all the time, nothing we did worked. we even hired a trainer (2 trainers) to help us, he now has a shock collar that shocks him only when he keeps barking...they are pricey, but it has saved us from going nuts. the other only barks when he should be barking. they say to "growl" @ them like a mother dog would when they do something wrong & then praise in a "high" pitched voice when they correct it or stop the poor behavior. we have been doing that as well, they are yapping dogs, but sooo cute & great w/my son. so good luck...J. j

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We have a 7 year old Shih Tzu. I also had the same problem with the barking. I also wanted her to bark when someone was coming in our driveway but not excessively when people come to our home. One or two of our friends do not like dogs which added to the problem.
I started by teaching her no barking. I also folded up a few pieces of new paper and put a think rubber bad on it. I hardly have to use it only once in a while.

By teaching her no barking and it takes a lot of patience, however, it works.
She goes to the bank and does not bark at all because they give her a dog treat. As soon as we leave she will bark at stangers.
Good luck

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I have a hyper crazy dog, but would never do anything to harm him. If he misbehaves I change my tone and roll up newspaper, (would never harm him) but it scares him enough to stop whatever he is doing. I was always anti-shock collar, however after reading here from others that its adjustable and just "buzzes" not really a shock, then maybe worth a try for your sanity. Tsk Tsk to the one who said to "trade him in", thats an awful statement.

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i agree to watch the dog whisperer, he always has good ideas, I have a very barky 150 pound great pyreness, and his bark is so loud it shakes your bones, he would bark all night and i didnt want to try shock collars, because i knew he was barking for a reason. i had to sit with him all night and tell him shh when he barked, he still barks a little now but only when he hears something - he is an outdoor dog.

maybe you can try crate training him, and put him in the crate when you have visitors, it sounds like he need to be removed from the situation. also wear him out with walking, paps need a lot of exercise. you can get citronella collars which spray them when they bark also, i have never tried these.

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Papillions are hyper and barky dogs. Next time get a shitzu. Maybe you can trade it in?