How To Teach Your Dog Not To Bark

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dog sitting patientlyYou never thought you would be looking for information on how to teach your dog not to bark, have you? Most people don’t. In the beginning, listening to a puppy barking is like watching a newborn take his first steps or listening to his first words. You have fun watching your puppy barking at your friends with his fragile and funny voice, or scaring the neighbor’s cats.

But as your puppy turns into a dog, his voice changes and so do your expectations and priorities. You only realize you need to learn how to teach your dog not to bark after a sleepless night, when you cannot get along with your friends because your dog is demanding attention, or when your neighbors start complaining about it.

Luckily for you, training a dog not to bark is not such a big challenge. In fact, it only takes some treats, a clicker and a lot of patience. Here are a few things you should keep in mind throughout the training process.

The Keys to Successful Training

Consistency: You need to come up with a training schedule and stick to it. Exceptions will only delay the results.

Never lose your hope or temper. Focus on the progress and fight against the bad habits. The results will soon show up.

Do not hurt your dog. You want him to stop barking for nothing, not to become traumatized. Besides, violence has never been beneficial to the learning process.

If the training does not pay out, it does not mean it is the dog’s fault. Maybe the problem is with you, and you either need a new approach on how to teach your dog not to bark, or you need to leave the job to professionals.

Stop Dog Barking: How to Train Your Dog Not To Bark

1. As you probably already know, the most important step in any training process is to get the dog used to words like “good” and “bad”, or “yes” and “no”, to help him associate these words to what he is or isn’t allowed to do. Once you have that figured out, success is half ensured. Therefore, every time your dog starts barking, say a loud and clear no in a cold authoritative voice, looking directly into his eyes and pointing your finger. This way, your dog will understand he has done something wrong and he is being admonished.

2. Another basic step in the how to teach your dog not to bark process refers to rewards. When your dog obeys and stops barking, give him a biscuit, his favorite ball, play with him for a minute or two, pet him and talk to him kindly. He will know he had done something good, he will enjoy the rewards and do what it takes to obtain them.

3. However, there will be times when your dog will continue to bark. That is when you need to show him who is in charge. Give him the silence treatment, put his collar on and confine him to a place he does not like. After a few minutes, take him back, remove the collar and continue training. No matter how many articles and tips on how to teach your dog not to bark you read, all of them will agree that punishments are a fundamental step in the process.

4. If you were expecting to discover some revolutionary advice on how to train a dog not to bark overnight, you will be disappointed. Whether you like it or not, repetition of the reward and punishment steps and consistency will be your best friends on your quest for your perfectly behaved dog.

Evaluation

The training may take from a few days to a few weeks.

Some dogs learn faster than others, some owners are better trainers than others.

Always remember that the loud barking may hide your dog’s joy to see you or be around you, his intention to protect you and your loved ones, or just an expression of his needs.

Your quest for advice on how to teach your dog not to bark is proof enough that you are subject to mistakes and limitations yourself, so don’t be disappointed when your dog proves to be the same.