How to Stop a Barking Dog

Nothing is more annoying than to go to bed, only to hear a neighbor’s dog barking and barking.  It is important to understand that dogs have many reasons for barking, some of these good and protective, but others bad.  For instance, you may have a dog that barks when you arrive home from excitement or one that barks at strangers at the door.  These are positive cases of barking.  However, if the dog barks at passersby or leaves blowing in the front yard, these are definitely bad.

You also need to know that some dogs naturally bark more than others do.  Great examples of breeds that tend to be more vocal include Shetlands and Beagles.  On the other hand, Basenjis and Greyhounds seldom make any noise.  Therefore, when shopping around for a dog, if you do not want to deal with barking problems, you might choose the right breed accordingly.

Dogs also bark as a way of communicating with other dogs, just as people talk.  The sound, pitch, and intensity of the bark all mean something in dog language.  In this case, you would expect some level of barking to be normal, a simple way for dogs to talk.  However, when the barking gets out of control, it is time to take measures to stop the barking, which is not only annoying to you, but also disruptive to neighbors.

Barking falls within three specific categories.  First is the dog that barks because he is lonely, wanting companionship.  Then, you have the dog that barks at people walking on the sidewalk or strangers.  Third, there is the dog that barks for his owner’s attention.  Regardless of the reason, generally there is some type of need not being met and the dog is merely trying to tell you.

You can use commands to try to teach your dog not to bark.  For this, whenever he barks in a situation when it is not necessary, tell him no or no bark firmly.  Then, remove him from the situation.  For instance, if he were at the door, barking at people, tell him “No bark”, and take him to the back yard or a bedroom to get away from the area.  Unfortunately, while this might work in some cases, some owners have to take a more advanced approach.

For this, you could choose a no bark collar, which is actually humane, causing no pain or harm to the animal.  During training, teaching him with verbal commands not to bark, this special collar is placed on the dog.  Then, when he barks, he would receive a slight shock, just enough to get his attention.  You could also choose a type of anti-bark collar that uses a quick spray of citronella.  Again, the purpose of this type of collar is to break the connection between the dog and whatever has his attention.  Soon, he will understand that barking when the collar is on will result in something unpleasant.