How To Get a Dog To Stop Barking – Top Dog Tips

March 31, 2020 Kar-Bay-Inc 0 Comments

Excessive barking is one of the most common complaints of dog owners. Of course, you can’t expect that your dog will never bark. Barking is how canines communicate, so your pooch is going to bark from time to time. If your pet barks more than normal, you can easily learn how to get a dog to stop barking.

Dogs bark for a number of reasons, including:

fear
to protect their pack or territory
boredom
excitement

Some dogs bark because of an underlying issue like separation anxiety, depression or a compulsive need. In order to learn how to get a dog to stop barking, you first need to figure out why he is barking in the first place.

If there is an underlying condition causing the barking, you’ll need to treat that before working on any type of behavior training to curb the noise. As with all types of canine training, learning how to stop a dog from barking will take time and patience. It’s not going to happen overnight, but if you stay consistent your efforts will begin to see progress.

How To Get a Dog To Stop Barking

Remove the motivation

If there is something that always causes your dog to bark, like people walking down the street, do what you can to remove the motivation to bark. Of course, you can’t prevent people from walking past your home, but you may be able to prevent your dog from seeing them.

Add curtains or shades to your windows. If possible, remove the dog’s ability to see out the window. For example, we have an elevated dog bed in front of the picture window in our living room. Moving the bed would remove our dogs’ ability to look out that window.

You might need to get creative. If your dog jumps up to look out the window, find some type of barricade (perhaps a pet gate) that will keep him from accessing the window.

It may take a bit of ingenuity and a few dollars, but removing the motivation to bark is the fastest choice when learning how to get a dog to stop barking. If you can get rid of the motivation to bark, you won’t need to do any behavioral training.

Redirect your dog with behavior training

If you can’t remove the motivation to bark, you’ll need to work on behavior training. If your dog barks at other pets in your home or barks excessively when guests come to visit, these are things that you cannot prevent.

In the video guide above, I use the example of people coming to visit your home. I’ll stick with the same example for this article.

We want our dogs to bark as a warning when someone comes to our home. However, sometimes the barking can be excessive and visitors may view it as threatening or aggressive.

MORE: 6 Humane Tools To Get Dogs To Stop Barking

First, you’ll need to come up with a verbal cue to let your pooch know when he needs to start barking. I tell my dogs “It’s okay.” That gives the signal that I acknowledge that someone is here and they don’t need to bark anymore.

Once you’ve given the cue, you’ll need to redirect your pet to a chosen area such as a dog bed or another room. Use a treat that your dog really likes to distract him from the visitor and lead him to the desired area.

While leading him to the chosen spot, use a verbal command such as “go to bed” or “go lie down.” Praise him when he gets there, and be sure to continue the praise if he sits there while your guest enters the house. Use another verbal cue to tell him when it’s okay to come greet the guest.

It won’t happen overnight, but if you’re consistent, your dog will eventually realize what he is supposed to do when a visitor arrives: bark to warn you, go to his designated area, and then wait until the visitor enters the home to greet them.

Ignore the behavior

Sometimes, neither of the previous solutions will work. One common situation that comes to mind is crate training. It is typical that a dog who is in the beginning stages of crate training will bark when he is closed in his kennel.

In this situation, you’ll have to ignore the behavior. This will teach your pooch that barking will not get him what he wants. If you let your dog out of the crate when he barks, he’ll begin to think that barking will get him what he wants. If you give him attention (even negative attention like scolding), he’ll realize that barking gets your attention.

Ignore the behavior until your dog stops barking. When he’s quiet, reward him with a treat. If he begins to bark again, ignore it and wait until he’s quiet. Gradually make him sit quietly for longer periods of time before he receives his reward.

Prevent boredom

Sometimes dogs bark to burn off excessive energy or to get attention when they are board. If your dog barks when left a lone or left in a crate, it may be due to boredom. Make sure you let him have plenty of time to play and burn off excess energy before leaving him.

If your dog barks at you to try to get your attention, spend some time with him. Provide lots of toys and chews to entertain him when you don’t have time to play. Puzzle toys are a great way to provide mental stimulation and keep your dog’s interest. If your dog is busy, he won’t have time to bark.

Use a head halter to stop barking while walking

If your dog barks at people, a head halter may be a beneficial training too. Head halters offer a humane way to show your dog that it isn’t acceptable to bark at people while in public.

You can easily attach a leash to the halter, just like you would to a traditional harness or collar. With a slight pull, the halter will close around your dog’s muzzle. This applies pressure to his muzzle and closes his mouth.

A head halter is an easy and safe way to learn how to stop a dog from barking at other people or other animals when you’re in public. Your pup will quickly learn that when he barks the halter will tighten around his muzzle, and he’ll lose the desire to be noisy while out for a walk.

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