Barking Problem....Woof

[divinesloth]

Muffin is a rather quiet dog that seldom bark. However, mum have received complains that Muffin is a barking hell in the afternoon when all our family members are at work. I'm wondering if theres anyway to train her not to bark when we are not around. She is so quiet when we are at home! Help!

[dutchman]

The trainer for our obedience class says that the citronella spray anti-barking collars do a good job. They are expensive about $150.00.

Tom

[Krista]

Before Resorting to an anti-bark collar, I'd try some other things.

Maybe your dog has separation anxiety since she only does this when no one is home. Why not try leaving a radio or TV on for some "company." Many dogs are soothed by the human voices.

Maybe you could leave a video camera set up and see if she is barking at something that happens everyday.

Also, make sure she has plenty of safe chewies like a kong stuffed with goodies to keep her mouth busy, not barking.

Hope something helps!

[divinesloth]

Thanks for the suggestions. Well I'm living in Singapore and there are no spray/shock collars that I can buy and no Kong too. I don't know why but the doggy toys available here are restricted to just rubber duckies. Maybe Singapore pet store owners are just not creative enough. Sigh! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif

I think the reason Muffin bark is because she is bored, not separation anxiety. Any idea on how to keep her occupied? De-barking her will be my very last option if I still can't get her to shut up.

Thanks again.

[Krista]

Can you order some more creative toys online?

There are many wonderful sites with toys and pet supplies for sale. There are also sites that sell those citronella collars.

I would try the radio/TV thing anyway, since it might make her feel less lonely and if it doesn't help the barking, it might make it harder for your neigbors to hear her.

[Oscar's Mom]

I've seen anti-barking devices that emit a sound when the dog barks and you can adjust it. They have some at drsfostersmith.com .

[Penny's Aunt]

The problem with Citronella collars is that some dogs are smart enough to realize that if they bark-bark-bark right away, the Citronella runs out & they can bark more with freedom.

A possible problem with electronic collars is that they have been known to malfunction & getted locked ON, with no relief for the dog. One dog panicked & ran into the street & got hit by a car.

I would advise some Aloneness Training, where you leave for short periods of time, then gradually extend the times.

Leaving stuffed toys is a good idea, too. Is there something that you could adapt? It would have to be safe, chew-resistant, hollow, with about a .75" inner hole to hold stuff. A sterilized cow shin bone is what I usually use, but maybe you could order a Kong online.

Also, do you feed dry food? You could teach the game Find It! to the dog, then hide her entire breakfast all over the house. My dog absolutely LOVES this game!

Tell your dog to sit/stay, or have someone hold her. Show her you have a piece of food, then let her watch you hide it in a simple place, like around a corner. Tell her to Find It! & let her go. Then hide 2 or 3 pieces while she watches. Once she gets the idea of the game, put her in another room, & hide more food, in gradually more difficult places. They all have to be within her reach, but not necessarily on the floor. Once she knows the game, hide all her food before you leave in the morning, then turn her loose just before you go out the door. Games that use a dog's mind like this use up even more energy than physical exercise.

And be sure she gets enough physical exercise, too, ball-chasing, tug of war, etc.

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Penny's Aunt on November 30, 2000 at 01:39 PM</font>

[divinesloth]

Hah! Just got a medium kong toy from someone who got fed up with the creatively dead toys in pet shops and imported some kong toys.

How do I pack food so tight that Muffin will take hours to undo the food. What food do you stuff into your kong?

[Oscar's Mom]

For it to take the longest you should freeze what you put in it. There was a kong discussion a while back, I think under the Toys, toys, toys category. You'll get lots of ideas there.

[Krista]

Break up doggie cookies into odd shapes, or use some kibble bits, mix it with a tablespoon or so of peanut butter or plain yogurt and stuff the mix in the kong and like Oscars mom said, freeze it. That works pretty well.

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Krista on December 01, 2000 at 09:13 AM</font>

[Heather]

There is a kong website that has alot of recipes that you can use to put in the kong.

I lived in Singapore for most of this year, to bad I did not know when I was there, I could have met you and muffin! Hans and Bean were not with me though, I was afraid to fly them 24 hours. Was concerned they would not make it.

[divinesloth]

Hah! What were you doing in Singapore?
Your doggies would probably be roasted by Singapore's weather!

[Brian]

Hi all,

Those bark spray collars are not always a good thing. My old girl would deliberately bark to set the spray off then would try lick herself. She was not distressed, and was certainly enjoying the spray. She would work the collar off and often bark at it then lick the collar madly to get the taste up. She was one odd cookie<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm35.gif" border=0>

Brian