Barking is essential to communication between dogs, but it’s never a welcoming noise to people visiting. Dogs’ verbal expressions could cause anxiety and even be frightening for people not accustomed to hearing their barking. It is essential to understand why dogs bark to reduce the sound, mainly when your dog is in the vicinity of other people.
Why Dogs Bark
The barking of dogs is a way to play to defend themselves, greet others and attract interest. Consider barking as a dog’s alarm to alert your dog’s loved ones to any unusual activity. An unexpected visitor or foe, the frightening smell from wildlife that is a threat or someone who rings the doorbell could trigger dogs to bark.
Barking dogs also get their way. If your dog barks at the mailman daily and the mailman does not return. Your dog’s brain believes this acts as a reward for the barking. The intelligent dogs will remember the success and repeat the same behaviour repeatedly. If a guest comes to your door and your dog becomes concerned about the person and barks, it will repel a possible invader.
If you shout at your pet not to bark and stop barking, your dog may think you’re participating in the barking contest and start barking even louder. Sometimes, you let your dog bark to draw the attention of others. If a harsh reprimand follows the bark, your dog may consider, “Mom pays attention to me when I bark.” The dog’s barking has been rewarded.
There will be no way to stop the barking of dogs because they are committed to protecting and warning your loved pets. However, you can train your dog’s barking limitations through your Hush command.
How To Stop Your Dog From Barking At People
The accurate way to end the nuisance barking is by training your pet to “speak” on cue. Barking will reward your pet because it is a pleasure to bark. Instructing commands such as “Hush” is much simpler when the barking originated from your own idea.
- Identify a noise like the doorbell that reliably prompts a bark.
- Choose an irresistible treat the dog ONLY gets during training. Pieces of cheese, liverwurst, or even cat treats work well, but keep them small. This isn’t to fill up his tummy, only to give him a taste to whet his “no bark” learning appetite.
- Get an accomplice to stand outside the door and ring the bell on your cue or play a doorbell sound on your phone. She should listen for you to loudly say, “SPEAK!” and then wait two beats (count “one Mississippi, two Mississippi”) and then ring the bell if the dog didn’t bark.
- When the dog does bark, at that very instant (not before, and not after), you say, “YES!” and give Rex one tiny treat. Say “YES!” and give him a treat even if he barks before the doorbell rings.
- Wait a few seconds, and repeat the exercise. Call loudly, “SPEAK” (so your friend hears through the door and rings the bell). As the doorbell prompts the dog to bark, once again say, “YES!” and reward him with another treat.
- Keep doing this until all the treats are gone. You’ll know your boy “gets it” and begins to understand what SPEAK means when he barks on command but before the doorbell rings.
How To Train A Dog To Stop Barking: Teaching the Hush Command
Once your dog has learned the SPEAK command, the SHUSH training becomes easy.
- Follow the steps above by saying SPEAK. After he barks, you should applaud the bark and repeat, “SHUSH.”
- When you say SHUSH, allow him to go for a sniff.
- Dogs can’t chew, sniff and bark all at the same time. Therefore, when he smells (and shush), you must say, “YES!” and let the treat go so he can gobble it down.
- Repeat this until he realizes that SHUSH means quiet. SPEAK is permission to bark.
Bark Collars and Ultrasonic Bark Control
Another option to get your dog not to bark often is to put on the collar for barking, which gives him an uninvolved but annoying warning for barking. Within a few days, your dog can reduce his bark. Using ultrasonic bark control, it is also possible to train a dog not to bark together outdoors or indoors. The bark-control devices emit an ultrasonic signal that dogs of all breeds can hear. This will result in peace and quieter days and nights.