[jthomas1600]

OK, I have a sheltie and a german shepherd/lab mix and they are driving my wife nuts with their barking. Especially the shepherd. We don't want silent dogs...it's nice to know when people come on to the property. We also wish they wouldn't bark and bark and bark at every squirrel, rabbit, or cat that wondered by. Sometimes they will bark at each other. So anybody have any suggestions to quite these two mutts down? Thanks.

[Folk_guy]

Originally Posted by jthomas1600

OK, I have a sheltie and a german shepherd/lab mix and they are driving my wife nuts with their barking. Especially the shepherd. We don't want silent dogs...it's nice to know when people come on to the property. We also wish they wouldn't bark and bark and bark at every squirrel, rabbit, or cat that wondered by. Sometimes they will bark at each other. So anybody have any suggestions to quite these two mutts down? Thanks.

My mother has a similar problem with her beagle, it howls like a coyote sometimes. She found that a bark collar worked well. It gives the dog a mild shock, when it's barking gets too loud. Doesn't leave it on the dog all the time, but will put it on when she really needs the dog to be quiet, like at night when people are trying to sleep.

[PontiusPirate]

How old are your dogs, how long have you had them, and how long have they barked like this?

It sounds like a fear reaction. Find a reputable trainer to help you work through their issues.
A bark collar will only mask the problem, and won't separate bad behavior from healthy barking.

[Thrash]

Originally Posted by PontiusPirate

How old are your dogs, how long have you had them, and how long have they barked like this?

It sounds like a fear reaction. Find a reputable trainer to help you work through their issues.
A bark collar will only mask the problem, and won't separate bad behavior from healthy barking.

I have the same problem with my German Shepherd.
Good advice!

[roscoestring]

Have you tried asking them nicely?

[jthomas1600]

Originally Posted by PontiusPirate

How old are your dogs, how long have you had them, and how long have they barked like this?

It sounds like a fear reaction. Find a reputable trainer to help you work through their issues.
A bark collar will only mask the problem, and won't separate bad behavior from healthy barking.

They are both about 2. After hurricane Ike last year we got the sheltie from the pound and the shepherd had obviously been driven from his home by the storm and was just wondering our neighborhood.

Yeah, we're wanting to keep healthy barking. Just not the barking all night and all day.

[tenwatt]

Originally Posted by jthomas1600

Yeah, we're wanting to keep healthy barking. Just not the barking all night and all day.

Have you tried a mild sedative? Maybe chloroform?

My aunt had a basset hound and a trainer told her to squirt him in the mouth with a spray bottle of lemon juice diluted with water every time he barked when he wasn’t supposed to. It worked.

[MtlMom]

Oh, the memories of Miss Mollie. We had a border collie/lab who would bark when she was bored - which is most of the time, because she was a border collie. She really needed a job.

Lots of exercise and lots of attention - that's the only way we could manage her barking. We did resort to a bark collar after a neighbor complained, but that didn't work for her - the collar was designed to stop the shocks after 5 times, and she decided it was worth the annoyance to scare off "intruders". We found another bark-activated device that was supposed to emit an ultrasonic siren at a frequency heard by dogs but not by humans (like a dog whistle). I don't know if it was working properly or not, since I couldn't hear it - but it didn't seem to bother Mollie one bit. I heard recently that large dogs don't respond as well to these devices, so that could have been it.

Good luck. Have the kids double their play time with the pooches. Make sure there are lots of toys and chewy-things available (Mollie ate our fence).

She died of old age earlier this year, and I miss her. I don't miss her barking, but I miss her friendship. I could write a book about that girl.

[PontiusPirate]

While MtlMom is correct about keeping your dogs occupied, this doesn't sound like straight up boredom barking - especially considering the circumstances.

Trauma causes just as much damage to pets as humans, and they're just as good at hiding it - or we're terrible at understanding it. Again, I highly suggest finding a trainer to work with you.

What you can do:
*Re-direct - If the dogs are barking insanely at something, find something to distract their attention. At first, this may be extremely difficult. You may need to put a leash on them and walk them around the house/yard/etc. a bit until they forget about it. Don't stop until they are calm.
You can use a phrase like "time out" when you do this, though I suggest starting this later. Praise them when they become quiet, and praise them when you remove the leash.

Use only positive re-inforcement at the beginning. Praise them when they are quiet for periods of time. Don't use "no" or "shut up". No yelling. This will only heighten them, and if it does work, it will only push the problems below the surface.

Using any negative re-inforcement at the beginning, as well as training modes like collars, will only mask the problem. When you mask a problem like fear, you get bigger issues later down the road.... such as "The dog attacked for no reason". There was a reason, it was just 5 years in the making.
Sedatives are only for dogs who are so stressed & fearful with certain things (such as travel) that they cannot focus on anything, and may cause harm to themselves or someone else. They should not be used otherwise.

I hope this helps.

[Seanhard]

I have a dog and also have a major barking problem. I have tried some tips and tricks but without much success. Here's one quite good article about this..... take a look, maybe it helps how to stop dogs barking