Help!!! My dog won't stop barking

Hi. Havent posted on here for a while. But Deebo, my 4 yr old staffie will not stop barking while in the garden. My poor neighbours are at their wits end. He barks and barks and refuses to stop. Its like he's barking for the sake of it, and as the weather is starting to turn better, neighbours cant even step into their garden without Deebo starting. When I go out to call him in, he runs off and refuses to come to me. As soon as I go back in, he starts barking again. This is really stressing me because my neighbours start phoning me. Please can someone give me some advice

Its not a problem I have ever encountered I'm afraid, silly question but can you just keep him indoors with you? I take it he has enough toys and is walked/played with to tire him out

He gets plenty of exercise with my son taking him on walks every day. As for keeping him indoors, I do while I'm at home but I cant leave him in when I go out because he would destroy everything within sight. Plus he keeps wanting to go into the garden so I let him out

Unless you are out there with him, there's no way you can stop him!

Does he bark indoors?

No, never barks when indoors.

Have some treats handy, go out into the garden with him & as soon as he starts to bark show him the treat. The second he stops barking to look at the treat say "Quiet" or "Stop" (whatever word you want to use) and give him the treat.

But you'll have to do that every time he barks!

Why don't you try one of the anti bark collars ? It doesn't have to be an electric one but a spray of citronella each time they bark?
I must admit I've never used a anti bark collar , but if my dogs were a nuisance I would certainly consider using one.
A friend nearly got evicted due to his barking dog, he used the collar for a week & then took the battery out & the dog doesn't bark unnecessary anymore, so they do work

I'd go with Caryls suggestion, it's kinder, effective and you dog will learn to respect and listen to what u say !

Ideally u don't want ur dog to bark - unless it's to alert u of something.

The quiet command is a useful tool !

when you find a successful solution please let me know and I will inform our neighbors too

martaz wrote:Why don't you try one of the anti bark collars ? It doesn't have to be an electric one

I would very much hope it wouldn't be an electric one!

The anti bark collars are not necessary if you're prepared to put time & effort into stopping your dog barking in other ways.

I am trying to teach Daisy the quiet command using the tecnique Caryll sugested, It's quite hard and will take time and patience but as said it is a very useful command.

razwana khaliq wrote: When I go out to call him in, he runs off and refuses to come to me. As soon as I go back in, he starts barking again.

I take it that you are angry/stressed with him when you go outside to stop him barking? If so, that's the reason he runs away - he's scared.

You need to be out there with him when he starts to bark, not leaving him out there to just 'do his own thing'. If you're with him you can act immediately with the command word & treats as soon as he barks rather than rushing out when he's already in full flow!

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. Only problem with the treat and 'Quiet' command is that i'm not always home. I work 3 days a week and that's the time he barks at the neighbours or absolutely anybody who passes by, (we have a public path at the bottom of our garden). Once he starts, then its continuous. On the days i'm home, I try to keep him indoors mostly.
As far as the collar goes, I spoke to our vet this morning and she suggests I try it as it sprays a calming thing on him. Could be the citronella mentioned here. Will try this method on the days i'm at work and the treat method on the days i'm home. Hope that won't confuse him lol

razwana khaliq wrote:Thanks everyone for the suggestions. Only problem with the treat and 'Quiet' command is that i'm not always home. I work 3 days a week and that's the time he barks at the neighbours or absolutely anybody who passes by,

Maybe on those days he should be inside, then?

Hi. I'm copy pasting some dog training advice my sister found v helpful regarding excessive barking. Hope it helps. Here goes:

Some dogs get extremely worked up when visitors ring the doorbell, or when dogs walk by the house. Some spaniels and terriers bark at the drop of a hat. And our good friend Larry Labrador will bark whenever a leaf falls from a tree three blocks away. Barking is as characteristically doggy as wagging a tail or burying a bone. It would be inane and inhumane to try to stop your dog from barking altogether: "You’ll never bark in this town again!" After all, some barking is extremely useful. My dogs are much more efficient than the doorbell and much more convincing than a burglar alarm. The goal then, is to teach dogs normally to be calm and quiet but to sound the alarm when intruders enter your property. The barking problem may be resolved to our advantage by management and education: first, immediately reduce the frequency of barking before we all go insane; and second, teach your dog to "Woof" and "Shush" on cue.

Reduce the Frequency of Barks

Dogs bark the most right after their owners leave home for the day. The easiest way to immediately reduce woof-frequency is by exclusively feeding your dog from hollow chewtoys. Each evening weigh out and moisten your dog’s kibble or raw diet for the following day. Squish the gooey food into hollow chewtoys (Kong products and sterilized bones) and put them in the freezer overnight. In the morning, give your dog some frozen stuffed chewtoys. Your dog will spend well over an hour extricating his breakfast from the chewtoys. And if your dog is busying himself with chewtoys, he will be lying down quietly!

Do not leave an excessive barker outdoors. Yard-bound dogs are exposed to many more disturbances and their barks more easily penetrate the neighborhood. Leave your dog comfortably in a single room (away from the street) with a radio playing to mask outside disturbances. If you have been leaving your dog outside because he soils or destroys the house, housetrain and chewtoy train your dog so he may enjoy indoor comforts when you are away from home.

Teach "Woof" and "Shush" On Cue

It is easier to teach your dog to shush when he is calm and focused. Therefore, teaching your dog to "Woof" on cue is the first step in "Shush" training, thus enabling you to teach "Shush" at your convenience, and not at inconvenient times when the dog decides to bark. Moreover, teaching "Shush" is now much easier because your dog is not barking uncontrollably — barking was your idea!

Station an accomplice outside the front door. Say "Woof" (or "Speak," or "Alert"), which is the cue for your assistant to ring the bell. Praise your dog profusely when he barks (prompted by the doorbell); maybe even bark along with your dog. After a few good woofs, say "Shush" and then waggle a tasty food treat in front of his nose. Your dog will stop barking as soon as he sniffs the treat because it is impossible to sniff and woof simultaneously. Praise your dog as he sniffs quietly, and then offer the treat.

Repeat this routine a dozen or so times and your dog will learn to anticipate the doorbell ringing whenever you ask him to speak. Eventually your dog will bark after your request but before the doorbell rings, meaning that your dog has learned to bark on command. Similarly, your dog will learn to anticipate the likelihood of sniffables following your "Shush" request. You have then taught your dog both to speak and shush on cue.

Over repeated "Woof" and "Shush" trials, progressively increase the length of required shush-time before offering a food reward — at first just two seconds, then three, then five, eight, twelve, twenty, and so on. By alternating instructions to woof and shush, the dog is praised and rewarded for barking on request and for shushing on request.

Remember, always speak softly when instructing your dog to shush, and reinforce your dog's silence with whisper-praise. The more softly you speak, the more your dog will be inclined to pay attention and listen (and therefore, not bark).

Teach Your Dog When to Bark

Invite a dozen people for afternoon tea to teach your dog when, and when not, to bark. Instruct your visitors (some with dogs) to walk by the house a number of times before ringing the doorbell. When the first person walks by the house, it will take all of your attention to keep your dog shushed. But persevere: it will be easier when the same person walks by the second time, and again easier on the third pass by. Eventually your dog will habituate and will no longer alert to the same person's presence in the street. Profusely praise your dog and offer treats for silent vigilance. Repeat reinforcement for quiet vigilance several times on subsequent passes by. But when the visitor starts up the garden path, eagerly and urgently say "Speak! Speak! Speak!" Praise your dog when he woofs, and then instruct him to sit and shush at the front door while you welcome the visitor. If your dog exuberantly barks and bounces at this point, simply wait until he sits and shushes and then praise and offer a treat. Have the visitor leave and come back a number of times. Eventually, your dog will greet him by sitting in silence. This procedure becomes easier with each new visitor. Your dog soon learns to watch passersby in silence and to give voice when they step on your property, but to sit and shush when they are invited indoors—a trained neighborhood watchdog, which even non-dog-owning neighbors will welcome on the street where they live.

If you require a more detailed description, read Dr. Dunbar’s Good Little Dog Book. To teach your dog to be calmer and bark less, you will need numerous stuffable chewtoys. To teach your dog to "Woof" and "Shush" on cue, you need some freeze-dried liver treats. All of these products are available from your local pet store.