11/18/2024
📢 Ahhhh, Alert Barking. Commonly known as Watchdog Barking, we know it, we love it, we really could live without it. 😬
To curb watchdog barking, reinforce a behaviour that is incompatible with the barking, and then cue it when the barking triggers appear.
To start, train a rock-solid behaviour such as ‘go fetch your toy!’ or a down-stay with no distractions present.
Fun fact: for some dogs, a ‘down’ position interferes with barking. We don’t know why, but we count it as a blessing and merrily train it in!
Next, introduce a staged version of the trigger at a low level. This could be walking to the door and knocking it gently from the inside. Atter knocking, cue the incompatible behaviour (‘go fetch your toy!’ or “down!”) and reward it heavily once your dog does it.
Keep working on this until your dog immediately performs the trained behaviour when you knock on the door.
Now, raise the level of the distraction. Maybe a friend knocks on the door from the outside before you cue the behaviour. Repeat this until your dog’s knee-jerk response is to go fetch their toy/do a down as soon as they hear the knock. And so on.
Build this up until your dog can perform the behaviour with the real-life triggers. Good luck! 💪🏼
Remember, barking is a wide topic with a lot of nuance, so don’t hesitate to reach out for professional support for your barking baby!
Comment below to let us know which other barking types we can help with! 👇
