how much barking is ok?

t_r

Sorry if has come across wrong but there is no way I could ever condone the use of electric collars.
I do think if using distraction like rattles etc you should be taught by a proffesional otherwise the dog could end more confused. Train the owner.
I can only speak from personal experience with BB and it has worked for Lucky and I (nervous collie spaniel X)
I will butt out now because I dont wont to take this further off topic

dellybelly_2

I have a 4 yo golden cocker spaniel female who barks when someone knocks at the door or if there's a loud thumping and banging noise. The house attached to mine is vacant and the boys in the street have been using it for football practise and the noise it makes bouncing off the wall also makes her bark but because she's indoors it doesn't bother anyone around me. She does make the most awful whining if she's locked in the back garden that would wake the dead but I usually bring her back in pretty sharpish before it gets to loud or goes on too long. I guess my point is, any responsible dog owner makes sure their pet doesn't bother their neigbours.

Now for my question. There are neighbours moved in up the street from me and they have a large black labrador type dog which barks at all hours of the day or night. It barks if we switch on our outside light at night or even if we're chatting in the garden hanging up washing or playing with DS and it goes on for quite some time after we've given up and gone back inside. I realise it's only April but can you imagine the kind of summer I'm looking forward to at the minute? So far, the owners have made no attempt at quieting their dog that I have heard or seen. Has anyone any ideas of how I can approach this.?

dellybelly_2

autismmum wrote: »

i bought a sonic bark buster thingy. it makes them quieter or well they bark once only, id like to train them, and i have a behaviorisist come, but they believe the dogs are quiet compared to most dogs,

i like the idea of a water gun, it seems not to bad. problem is aparently the dogs are still quite young 18 months and 2 , so i can train them , .

How wonderful that a dog behaviourist has said that your dogs are quiet compared to most. I think 18 months and 2 are the perfect ages to get them trained. I've been training my dog since she was 12 weeks old and we maintain the training regularly now that she's 4. Basic commands, sit, stay, recall (coming when she's called), not jumping up on visitors, going to her bed when the family are eating. Waiting before she eats etc. etc. After posting on here last night I looked into ways of stopping a dog from barking - whilst remembering it's in their nature and it seems that the best way is the squirt from a water pistol to stop their barking followed by a treat and the command to stop barking (quiet, shssh - whatever word you want to use) when they're quiet. ... reinforce their good behaviour with a morsel cheese/chicken/small doggie treat (literally a taste). is much more effective than a pat and a good boy at the beginning at least.

give it a go autisimmum and let us know how you get on.

t_r

My BB trainer has recomeded using a water spray not for barking but for other issues. I can't see why it wouldn't work same as dellybelly.

I suppose you could be proactive I see you have spoken to the OB and the dog warden, but how about speaking to the council. It might help if you aproach them before a formal complaint is made as you wlll be demonstrating that you are a reponsible dog owner.

There is the risk that you are making them aware of a problem and they get all excited and rush into act. Guess it will depend on the council.

Getting back to the orginal question.

My dog barks at postman the door the binmen or when she's in the garden strangers who walk past my gate. So compared with mine 10 times in a day is good and I do not concider my dogs to be barkers. To me a problem barking dog would be one left to bark constantly.

WeirdoMagnet

The trouble is that by using a water spray or any other aversive, the dog only stops barking because essentially it is being punished. The dog only stops barking because something unpleasant happens when it barks. It does not treat the cause of the behaviour, only the end symptom. It can make them worse, because they may come to associate the thing that makes them bark i.e. the postman/someone knocking on the door, with something worse - the squirt of water. And they can easily associate the squirt of water with you too.

There are several ways that you can use to teach your dog not to bark. Initially, you need to prevent the dog from practicing the unwanted barking, so you will have to 'manage' it so it doesn't get the opportunity to bark. Then, I'd teach the dog to bark (we use 'speak'!), which leads onto 'quiet'. We've done this with Tilly using clicker training. There's another method on Karen Pryor's Clicker Training website, but teaching the bark first.

To the OP: I don't think it sounds like your dogs are nusiance barkers. If your neighbours complain to Environmental Health at the council enough, they will be given a sound recorder which will show how often your dogs are barking. I really wouldn't worry - we had horrid neighbours who had barking dogs and were generally anti-social, playing v loud music at night etc etc, and the council (or police for that matter) really weren't that bothered, so I think they will consider your neighbours more of a nusiance than you!

kle87

Ive got two rotties, one of whom loves the sound of her own voice. She only barks if theres somebody about or an unusual noise but she barks until shes sure they have gone. We now put ours in at night and she only barks if necessary like when my neighbour was burgled and the noise of my dog woke her. I think your neighbour is just being a nuisance as other people have said have a chat with your council rep and local environmental health officer im sure they will say the same

autismmum

georgina... what a great link, im learning it now, its a bit easier than having to remember a water gun and wont make them more upset.
many many thanks to all

6am

We recently bought a dog. He is two months old. As soon as our neighbours discovered they instantly complained that he barks at night. They complained that our dog barked in the garden at 5am. But we know for the fact that he did not bark and he was not in the garden at that time. There are a lot of other dogs around who bark sometime. How can we stop neighbours making false accusations?
These neighbours complain all the time. They complain that the sun shines, that it is raining, that children play on the street, that wind blows leafs from our tree into their garden, that dog barks. I am really sick of them and want them to stop complaining and leave us in peace.

Kimberley

6am wrote: »

We recently bought a dog. He is two months old. As soon as our neighbours discovered they instantly complained that he barks at night. They complained that our dog barked in the garden at 5am. But we know for the fact that he did not bark and he was not in the garden at that time. There are a lot of other dogs around who bark sometime. How can we stop neighbours making false accusations?
These neighbours complain all the time. They complain that the sun shines, that it is raining, that children play on the street, that wind blows leafs from our tree into their garden, that dog barks. I am really sick of them and want them to stop complaining and leave us in peace.

They would need to record the dogs barking and the time, without proof they can't do anything, just ignore them and in time hopefully they will get used to the idea of you having a dog.

Merlot

6am wrote: »

We recently bought a dog. He is two months old. As soon as our neighbours discovered they instantly complained that he barks at night. They complained that our dog barked in the garden at 5am. But we know for the fact that he did not bark and he was not in the garden at that time. There are a lot of other dogs around who bark sometime. How can we stop neighbours making false accusations?
These neighbours complain all the time. They complain that the sun shines, that it is raining, that children play on the street, that wind blows leafs from our tree into their garden, that dog barks. I am really sick of them and want them to stop complaining and leave us in peace.

You must live near me, cause you have summed up my neighbours in the above post.....some people simply have too much time on their hands....ignore them and they will give up and work with you eventually rather than against you, my neighbour even talks to my dog through the fence now rather than shouting at him.

No-one can do anything without a noise log, its a long winded process of getting the dog warden to take action...don't worry, enjoy your puppy and your children, and ignore your petty neighbour.

Merlot.x.