All dog owners can be divided into two groups. Some have very “talkative" dogs, and they dream that their pet will be quieter. In others, the dog is constantly silent, and the owners want their dog to be more active. In this article, we will use the Spitz example to talk about how to wean a dog to bark.
Lai and his reasons
Experts have proven that the dog must bark if it is left alone at home, during an unexpected phone call, with strange sounds outside the door. Sometimes dogs bark for a walk at the sight of strangers. Barking is a warning sign that a conflict is possible. However, if your four-legged friend barks non-stop, then this is not a warning signal, but an ordinary nonsense. People cease to attach importance to such barking, and it begins to annoy the owner, as a person hears this sound throughout the day.
An ordinary dog at the sight of a stranger should bark just a few times. But if the dog feels that it is in danger, then it will begin to bark and growl without stopping. Owners of large dogs are often tormented by the low loud sounds made by a four-legged friend. But Spitz is a small decorative breed with a high and clear voice. Such barking causes even more inconvenience than barking of a large dog.
All owners want their pet to be obedient. After all constant barking causes discomfort not only to all households, but also to people around during a walk. Sounds that are too loud can also be heard by neighbors. And if a baby appears in the house, then silence becomes especially valuable.
If your pet does not obey you at all, then you will need a lot of time and patience to train him. However, you will be satisfied with the result.
Dog barking is an alternative to human screaming. The dog so expresses a call to play, a request to go out into the fresh air. It could be some kind of emotion resentment, fear, joy of meeting a familiar dog, warning the enemy or a notification that this territory belongs to him.
Before scolding a dog for extra sounds, you need to understand why he makes them. Very often a bark is a request for help. Have your dog examined independently or take it to the veterinarian. It is likely that she is in pain or discomfort.
Since the dog is the “brother” of the wolf, it only feels confident in the pack. Therefore, in your absence, she can bark all day. To avoid this, the dog must be gradually accustomed to the absence of the owner, every day prolonging loneliness for half an hour.
If the dog is old enough, you can use another way to deal with barking. First of all, teach him to execute the "Sit!" and "Lie down!". If the dog carries out commands, it should be encouraged. As soon as the Spitz learns to obey all your commands, you can begin to use this obedience - if the dog starts to make noise, give him the command: “Lie down!”. So he instantly calm down.
Re-education of an adult pet takes a lot of time and effort. This process will take about two months of daily training. Do not forget to arm yourself with a couple of kilograms of goodies.
Almost all dogs love to sit near the front door, and when at least the slightest sound occurs in the stairwell, they begin to bark nonstop. So the Spitz shows that this territory belongs to him. This is a good quality, but because of it, all the inhabitants of the entrance will hate you.
The training is very simple: one of the tenants goes out the door and starts to ride in the elevator, stomp, rustle in the entrance. And at this time you should take the dog by the collar and order: "Quiet!". Please note that a person standing in the entrance must never touch the door. It will be very bad if the dog stops responding to the opening door. Remember: the dog must first protect the apartment.
As soon as the Spitz began to calmly relate to extraneous sounds outside the door, you should imitate breaking the lock. And in this case, dog barking is encouraged by goodies.
Today, a large number of effective ways to train a dog are known, thanks to which the owner will be able to permanently get rid of senseless barking. If there is a reason, then the dog will continue to bark and this will not be taken away from him, however training will help to control unnecessary sounds.
Raising a puppy
Every dog owner must understand that better to prevent uncontrolled behavior than to suffer in the future with an adult dog. If you are a fan of silent Spitz, then from a very early age you should make it clear to the puppy that you do not welcome unnecessary sounds in the apartment. You can choose any method convenient for you to train your puppy, for example, every time a dog barks for no reason, raise his voice or ignore him if he is trying to play.
Not a single dog likes to be in a cage, so every time your four-legged friend is wrong, you can put him in a corner - put in a cage. Some owners slap a dog in the face immediately after barking. note that the stricter you will raise the puppy, the more obedient and smarter the dog will be. And when the puppy grows up as an adequate dog, you will once again make sure that all efforts were not in vain, and your guests will be amazed by such an obedient dog.
Remember: education must begin from childhood. After all, changing the nature of an adult dog is much more difficult, so you need to work with a dog from the first days of life. But if you already got an adult Spitz in your hands, then you should not be upset - there is still a chance to re-educate him.
How to wean?
Ignoring
Each owner pays attention to the dog when he barks.If the dog notices this, then he will bark every time he becomes bored. You can not pay attention to these sounds, do not look in his direction. As soon as he stops "cursing", you can treat him to a treat. A little time will pass, and your pet will understand that goodies are a reward for silence.
Command
It is very important that your four-legged friend stops barking at the command “Quiet!”. To train, put on a leash, provoke barking and immediately command: “Hush!”. Immediately after the command with your hands, hold your mouth or give a piece of food. As soon as the Spitz stops barking, be sure to pet and praise him.
There is another good way to wean a dog from barking. Always carry a water gun and cookies with you. As soon as the pet begins to bark, immediately sprinkle it with water and command: "Quiet!". For the same purpose, you can use a glass of water, and for each disobedience, splash a quarter of a glass on the pet. As soon as the dog shuts up, treat him with cookies.
Be careful not to get into eyes or use hot water. Try to keep the glass or gun with water constantly in front of the dog.
Special collars
In the modern market for pet products, you can find collars designed to combat excessive barking. Some of them can control the bark, even when the owner is not nearby. These products can be divided into two types.
- With a spray. These collars are filled with liquid. As soon as your four-legged friend begins to make unpleasant sounds, the collar throws a trickle of water with lemon aroma. Dogs have a very sensitive scent, so this smell will give them a lot of discomfort.
Do not worry - this is a temporary measure, and the aerosol will not do any harm to the four-legged friend. This is a very good solution, but it has a significant minus: if the Spitz barks very often, then the liquid inside the collar will end quite quickly.
- Stun. This is a more effective solution. The collar runs on battery power and each time the dog makes a bark, it will give out a small discharge of current. This is not an electric shock: the force of the blow does not exceed the click that a person experiences when removing his woolen sweater.
The result will not keep you waiting: in less than a week you will see it. A stabilizer is built into the collar, so you can be sure that your pet will not receive a large discharge. However, because of the love of his doggie, not every owner allows himself to buy such a collar, believing that the option with a built-in spray is a more humane acquisition.
Recommendations
Sometimes during games you need to give the dog how to bark properly. To do this, use only the “Voice!” Command. But the causeless barking must be stopped by the command “Quiet!”. It often happens that a dog barks at running people, at cyclists, at other dogs. If this happens, then every time you need to give the command "Lie!" and "Quiet!" pull the leash.
Experts do not recommend hitting a dog, as many do. This method does not give the desired effect. Spitz must respect his master, and not be afraid of him. When using pain, the dog will keep clear of you and will not bark, even when necessary. A frightened dog barks even more, so painful punishments will only worsen the situation.
Many owners of silent Spitz specifically teach them to bark. And if the dog begins to bark constantly, the owners begin to regret their decision. If the dog barks non-stop, going out into the street, you can order him: "Lie down!". He must be in a supine position until your order is canceled. The fact is that a dog cannot lie and bark at the same time.
See how to wean a dog to bark at home.