hi gwen,
i have a quick question, i just got a 8 week old pomaranian puppy and she barks and growls at us when we put her in her assigned area. we were wondering how to properly train her not to bark and growl?is flicking her mouth and saying :no barking" a good effective way to do so? because it dosn't seem to work for us.
thank you
 

Congratulations on your new puppy!! i wish your quick question had a quick answer..... but it doesn't. First you need to show her that her assigned area a fun and rewarding place to be. That means spending time with her there playing with her, giving her special treats and toys. She probably won't be very happy right now if you just pick her up and plunk her down in there and leave. Please don't flick her mouth or nose as that will probably only irritate her, it may hurt her and she may become hand shy and snappy as a result.
On my website, please read all the articles i've written on barking, whining, puppy tips on whining and barking. (www.perfectpaws.com/whine.html and www.perfectpaws.com/bark.html. Even tho she may not be whining, any vocalization whether is barking, growling, snarling, whining or crying can all be the same issue. It's all related and maybe one of the suggestions there will work for you. Remember she's only 8 weeks old. She's very young and probably confused because where did her mother and family go and who are you?? You certainly don't look and act like her mom and sisters/brothers. I would also suggest that you read all the articles on the puppystuff section (www.perfectpaws.com/pupstuff.html and www.perfectpaws.com/pup4.html) as you may find other helpful hints while raising her. This is the most critical time period in her development and what you do and don't do during this time will impact her behavior and personality forever. Secretly i'm envious that you have a new puppy as i'm still waiting for mine and can't wait for her to arrive! Have fun. I'm not sure yet how to post a picture, but if you send a picture of her maybe i can find a way to post it on the blogsite. thanks for writing. gwen
 

Help! we have an 8 week old labradoodle puppy. i think potty training is going along ok, but at night when i put him back in his crate, he whines and cries until i go sit next to him. i dont have to play with him, just sit there and he calms down. weve had him for 2 days. last night i fell asleep on the kitchen floor next to his crate. any other options? can i move the crate at night to my kids room so he feel like he has company? help!!
 

yes, move the crate to the kids room. I've always kept the crate next to my bed and everything has worked out well. I've also sat and held my puppy in my lap or sat next to her crate until she fell asleep, then i moved back into my own bed. Fortunately my pups have always fallen asleep within minutes.
 

Gwen,

Maybe you can help my girlfriend and I keep our sanity. About three weeks ago we got our cute little Maltipoo (now 3 months old), named Mirabella (who was bought from a well versed lady on a horse farm, who has about 10 dogs, and only breeds when it is necessary). She's the newest addition to our family. We currently have an eight month old cat, who is very playful, and loves to help the puppy exercise. We live in a 500 sq. ft studio, as we are working college students.

Now let me fill you in on our little problem. I would definitely classify little Mira has having separation anxiety, and in our situation it's an absolute nightmare. She is pretty much pad trained (well as much as she can be at 3 months old), but we are having the most difficult time leaving her alone. We started out trying to crate her for an hour or two at a time when we would go out. I assume she barked just about the entire time. When we would get home she would be extremely, eager to give us kisses and jump on us - to the point that she would actually start biting us (because she was trying to kiss us so much). We then started crating her at night. Now when I say night, our night time and your night time might be a bit different. We would end up staying up till about 1am and at that point we'd try to get her in bed by 1:30am. She would bark for about an hour or two and then get tired out and sleep for another few hours. We would then end up taking her out of her crate at about 6am (which was when the barking was at its worst). Other than that we ended up putting her in an 8x8' (vanity) room when we would go out for an extended period of time, which is monday through friday 7am-2:30pm. She had her pee pad in there, food/water, bedding (not the crate -- however we will try that next time), and her toys. We also shut the door during those prolonged periods because the cat has a tendency to play a bit rough with her and we didn't want them to be unsupervised -- for Mira's safety. Anyway, I assume she barked all day there too. When I would come home, she would usually be covered in feces because she would eliminate on the pad, but end up being so excited that she would bounce around the whole room (from what we could tell). Needless to say -- those are not the conditions I would want her to live in. I would wish that she would calm herself when we are not there. To show how bad it is -- she won't even eat if we aren't right there with her, let alone if we leave the apartment. Keeping in mind that we have a tiny studio (we have a kitchen, bathroom, vanity area, and walk in closet -- where our bed resides), the barking goes a long way. We can't get any sleep at night, and I honestly don't even want to know what the neighbors think! (You can hear into each apartment, clear as day, by just standing in the hall way). And to add my final note about her not being able to cope with us being away from her -- if we walk out of the room, whether it be into the kitchen, or the bathroom, she will cry and bark until we come back.

The days are long and the nights are getting even longer! Currently, just to make sure I can concentrate through 18 credits of classes, I am letting Mira sleep in the bed with us (So she doesn't bark all night). She knows how to get down, go to the bathroom, and come back up. She is totally content lying at the end of our bed. However, I know allowing her to do so is detrimental to her crate training. Do you possibly have any tips that could help with this terror called separation anxiety?
I thank you in advance for any help, tips, referals -- anything you can do to assist with our cute, but loud and very attached, little puppy.(We have read all most all of the training manuals online and the only thing we have yet to try is a low dose medication) Mike
 

Hi Mike.
Since you are gone for so many hours during the day, it would seem that Mira would eventually adjust to being alone. I would certainly ask some neighbors if they hear her while you're gone. If she does bark, ask them how long it goes on. I find it hard to believe that she would bark for 7 straight hours. Then once you find out how long she barks and what time she barks, you can use that info to help train her.

For the time being, i think during the day, leaving her in the vanity room with all her stuff and her crate (leave the door off of it so she isn't trapped inside) is a good idea. The messiness from her housetraining and excitement should subside as she gets older and has more bladder/bowel control. I know it's a mess now, but every puppy i've ever paper trained had the same problem. Maybe not to the extent of little Mira because of her long hair and small size, but just wanted to let you know that it is normal. yukky, but normal.
It appears that she's already been rewarded by getting to sleep in bed and it will be too difficult to go back to anything else now, so i would go ahead and let her sleep in bed.

Now when you are home and have time to train her, put her in the vanity room and leave her there. You should have some idea of how long she will bark from what your neighbors say. Now either just wait it out and when she' s finally settled down and quiet, then come in and sit with her, wake her up, play with her, let her play with the cat, etc. Let her experience that you come back when she's calm and quiet. That's one approach, but you will probably need earplugs to keep your sanity while you're waiting for her to settle down. If anytime you come in to "rescue" her while she's barking, then it reinforces and rewards the barking, so it will be harder to cure the problem. And this has probably already happend many time. As she gets a little more sturdy, watch her and the cat play closely because the cat will be important in helping her not feel lonely and get over her separation anxiety. But if you feel it's too soon to leave them unsupervised, then don't do that just yet.
Now when she starts barking while confined to her own room you can show her that yes, you will return but it won't be very pleasant. If she's quiet you return and give her attention, but if she's noisy, you return and it's NOT pleasant. Don't hurt her, but let her know without a doubt that your appearance is not what she had in mind. With my last puppy i sat outside the door for hours, when she was quiet i went in and gave her attention and treats, etc. When she started howling and barking, i returned swiftly banging and clanging pots and pans. She was so shocked into silence, then i immediately disappeared. After a moment of so of her stunned silence, i returned and rewarded her. It only took a few repetitions for her to put it together and learn to be quiet.
You still must deal with her anxiety of being left alone so i assume you are doing all those thing listed on the articles you read concerning sa. If you have not read mine, please do so along with tips on barking. See www.perfectpaws.com/sa.html and www.perfectpaws.com/bark.html.
 

We adopted a 4 yr old, yellow lab cross from the local humane society back in the fall. When we adopted him they advised us he was very insecure and whined, etc. a lot but my daughter had already decided she 'must have him' and in our introduction sessions with him he displayed a good basic grounding in obedience and it seemed like they were exagerating the problem. When we brought him home he did whine a lot (in the car, when getting ready to go for walks, basically anytime there was change of any sort) but he seemed to be managing to improve as time went on. Recently he has regressed to whining at everything again and has begun snarling and snapping at any other dogs he meets when out for a walk (even ones he knows and has played well with in the past). I am at a loss to figure out what has happened to make him revert and what to do to correct it this time. (ignoring the whining and correcting the snarling just doesn't seem to be getting through to him any more).

Regards
Fletch
 

Most dogs when they enter a new home are on their best behavior because they are in an unknown environment. As soon as they adapt and become comfortable and secure, they revert to their old behavior patterns and habits. Since he was in a humane society that's a good indication that someone else did not want him because of behavior problems. I'm guessing this because i worked in a humane society for many, many years. If he's had this whining problem for the past 4 years, chances are it's not going to change very quickly. Most humane organizations offer training classes because they do sincerely want the relationship between the new owner and dog to work out. They should be able to give you some very specific advice on how to build his confidence so he isn't so needy and how to address his behavior with other dogs. He sounds like an intelligent dog so perhaps you can enroll him in another training class (even tho he knows the basics). This will give him something to do and give him more exposure to other dogs, especially in the presence of the instructor so he/she can observe it and diagnose what is happening. Sometimes when dogs snarl, it's just play but it can be interpreted as aggression. It could be fear or frustration and it's difficult to know without observing it, but your trainer should be able to if he/she's it as it occurs. If it's any encouragement, i adopted a whiner too. He whined in the car, before walks, before meals, before playtime, for attention....... so......
I used the "no whining" (instead of 'quiet' or 'no barking') command as outlined in my article on barking and after a couple of theatrical displays on my part, from then on, whenever he started whining i would just say, "no whining" and he'd stop instantly. You can try that too. www.perfectpaws.com/bark.html In the article, just substitute the word whining for barking.
 

Hello Gwen,

My husband and I have 3 cats and 3 dogs, and we find your website to be a valuable resource. Two of our dogs are primarily outdoor dogs who get to come inside occasionally. They began as indoor dogs, but due to a few run-ins with the cats, we've found it best for them to not be around the cats unsupervised, as they tend to gang up on them when bored. Also, our first daughter was born last year, and they are not aggressive, but are very unaware of their own power and size, so we decided it best that they live outside and only come in for visits. Our third dog is a half westie, half jack russell named Casey, whom we adopted from a shelter last year, a few months after our daughter was born. When we adopted him, we thought he was the perfect dog. He is happy, snuggly, mild-mannered, and very good with the baby. I do not hesitate to leave him with her, because he is incredibly protective of her, to the point where he almost bit my husband once because Casey thought that he was hurting the baby (he was tickling her and making monster noises).

During the entire first year of her life, I have been fortunate enough to be able to stay home with our daughter, and I have cherished my time at home, but finances dictate that I return to work now that she is a bit older. Unfortunately, my being away from home has revealed a Mr. Hyde personality in our dog. Whereas before he was a sedate furball content to lounge at my feet all day long and sleep peacefully in our bed all night, he is now completely neurotic. We started by leaving him in the house with a doggy litter pan, which is a big mistake, because he soiled the carpet (which he has never done before), and chewed up a laundry hamper, some socks, and my daughter's doll. The next day we put him outside with the other dogs in their kennel (it is very large-- about 8 feet by 30 feet, so that they can run around), but he managed to chew through chain link to get out, and cut up his gums in the process. The following day we let him roam the backyard all day, but the neighbor told us he howled the entire time, and I am afraid he will dig his way out and go into the road. Finally, we put him inside in a crate, but he urinated in it and smelled horrible when we got home, and he chewed up the edges of it. The next day I put a huge rawhide chew in with him (the largest I could find), and he ate it within 6 hours (remember he only weighs 21 lbs.). His high-pitched yodel-like cries might be amusing if the same neighbor didn't tell us that she heard him crying all day again, even though he was in an upstairs bedroom, and she lives across the street! What on EARTH are we supposed to do? I really don't like the idea of him living 6 or 8 hours a day in a crate for the rest of his life anyway, but I already have to put most of my paycheck toward daycare for my daughter; doggy daycare is out of the question. Any help you could offer would be appreciated.
Annalisa
 

Annalisa,

This is a huge change in lifestyle for Casey. He used to be the "pampered special one" being the only dog that got to stay with you and the baby in the house. Suddenly he has nothing to do and feels abandoned. The fact that he goes to the bathroom in the house and in his crate indicates extreme stress. His misbehavior is a result of the circumstances not because he is a naughty dog. When dogs are upset and anxious, they are destructive, they howl and bark and they soil their home. So the solution depends on making him feel secure, content and happy again. This will take some time, but during the evenings and weekends you can try to acclimate him to his new lifestyle.
It would be ideal if he could be outside with the other dogs so he has some companionship. And hopefully he'll soon be relaxed enough to not bark and whine and try to escape and will revert to lounging around again. If he were my dog this is what i'd do:
I'd start on a saturday and pretend that it's a workday.
1. Take him for a walk in the morning before leaving, or at least schedule a vigorous playtime for him before i went to work. 10 - 15 minutes should be enough. Of course i'm not really leaving but i would do this at the same time i would be doing it on a work day.
2. Put him outside as if i were going to work.
3. I'd spend the entire day monitoring his behavior and giving him feedback. When he's being "good" i'd go outside and reward him and encourage him to play with the other 2 dogs. When he started barking and howling, i'd go outside and scold him being careful that he doesn't interpret the scolding as attention. I don't want him to train me to go outside and give him attention. I have to make sure there is a difference between me going outside with reward and praise and attention for his good behavior and going outside to scold him for misbehavior. The article on separation anxiety may be useful to you. www.perfectpaws.com/sa.html. Also please read all the articles on my site on barking, there are a few.
Another plan i think i might try, again when i'm home so i can monitor what happens instead of have to deal with the consequences after a long day at work. I would try confining all 3 dogs in the house in a dog-proofed room so they can't destroy the house and they can't bother the cats. Maybe somewhere in the garage will do. Or if the dogs are trustworthy in the house, i'd confine the cats to a few different rooms so the dogs can't bother them. I guess that would depend on the cats' personalities. Just a thought, you might immediately know that it wouldn't work in your situation, but perhaps some variation is worth a try.
 

Hi Gwen,
We have a 4 month old lab. Over all she is very well behaved and we have few problems. We have trained her out of whining in her crate all times except one. She wines in the morning from the moment she wakes up until one of us comes downstairs. Normally I would just leave her alone until she stops but I only have limited time in the morning and If I want to get her walk and play time in she needs to be let out immediately. Any suggestions to help stop this?
Melissa
 

Melissa,
if this is the only time she whines and it isn't for a very long period, i might be inclined to just let it go. If you wanted, you could get up before she gets up so that you let her out before she whines, just so that you don't reinforce her habit. You could work with her on weekends or when you don't have to rush the time you spend with her and teach her the "no bark" command as explained on my website article on barking. But if you delay letting her out too long, she may not be able to "hold" herself and i think the housetraining takes priority. If she were my pup and i really wanted to stop the whining habit, then on weekdays i would get up and let her out before she whines. Then on weekends i would get up, let her out so she pees, then immediately put her back in the crate without the playtime, etc. This will probably cause her to whine in protest, then i could work on the no-bark command.
 

Hello! This is our first full day with our new Beagle mix puppy Dakota. She is 9 weeks old, and from what we can see, very gentle and well-mannered. I'm a stay-at-home mom, so I'm with her all day. I've been taking her outside every hour, letting her run around with my kids for a while, and then putting her in her crate. Every time I put her in the crate she whines. I know she's had a huge change and is probably lonely for her brothers and sisters. I don't want her to feel neglected, but I want to train her the right way. Should I leave her even if she whines, or is a little cuddling for the first few days a good idea? I let her stay out for what I assume was too long this morning, because I had a little puddle and a little pile to clean up. Your comments would be greatly appreciated! Thank you, Lorraine
 

Hi Lorraine,
congratulations on adopting Dakota!! It is a traumatic time for them the first few days so i always hold my puppy in my lap and comfort her before i put her in her crate. After she is fast asleep, i gently put her inside. Then i stay next to the crate for awhile in case she immediately awakens. If she does, then i just put my hand in there, or a finger thru the door and gently pet her til she falls back asleep. It's best to prevent her from whining. If she's in the crate and starts whining and then you let her out and comfort her, she may think she can control you with her whining. So you want to try to get her to fall asleep before putting her in there. I realize the timing is difficult and i'll be facing this soon when i bring my new puppy home. I'm sure i'll have little sleep the first few weeks, but i'm looking forward to it. Leaving her out too long is not the problem if she pees/poops. We certainly don't want her to do it in her crate. The goal is to take her to her designated toilet area frequently enough to prevent accidents and to establish where she is to do her business.I usually take a puppy of this age to her toilet area every 30 minutes. Please read the article on housetraining a puppy on my website (www.perfectpaws.com/htrp.html) as it explains the difference between passive and active training because obviously you can't moniter her 24/7 even if you are home most of the day. You do have things to do around your home besides watch her. Also if you read the blog posts under the heading of "training" there are more tips and suggestions there on getting your pup used to her crate.
 

hi,
i have a 9 yr old cock-a-poo who is overwieght. i cut down her food just a little each week. like she used to get two bowls full a day or more which is about 4-5 cups a day of Beneful weight loss, which wasn't working so i put her on the schedule of reducing food. now she is down to 2 cups a day. the problem is since we hit 3 cups a day she starts barking consistently after meals and won't stop unless she gets more food. also when i feed her i give her a 1/4 cup at a time to prevent her eating too fast. How can i stop the barking?
Amanda & Peaches
 

Amanda
You could follow the "no barking" procedure described in my barking article on my website, but you could also just give her low calorie snacks to take the edge off. I always give my dogs things like carrots and cabbage and zucchini. They love it and it's non fattening.
 

Hi Gwen...just happened upon your site, and I've got a question. We've had our Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier for a little over a year now, and she's a really smart dog. She picks up new tricks pretty quickly, etc.

The one big issue we have with her is barking. She will bark for hours on end if the lawn guys are outside, or if the maid is in the house, or if there's a utility truck outside.

Any recommendations? Thanks,
Matt
 

Hi Matt,
It sounds like you need to teach her a 'no barking' command. To do this you have to be there, so i'm wondering if you're home when the lawn guys are outside or when the maid is in the house. If so, then you have the perfect opportunity to work with her. Instructions to do this are on my website. Also have you thought about introducing her to these people. Once she knows them and makes friends with them, perhaps she'll stop barking at them. If you are not home and are just hearing this news second hand, then perhaps arrange to stay home one day and find out if it's true or not. And while you're there, you can work on teaching her to be quiet. Sometimes a dog barking intermittently will sound like hours and it certainly can wear on nerves like it's for hours. If you are not able to be home or find that you are not in a convenient position to be able to work with teaching her to stop barking (as it does take time and effort) then perhaps you can hire a professional trainer to come to your house for just this problem. You don't need to hire a trainer to work on an entire program, they can and do come out for single problems. It appears you are not adverse to hiring professional help for your lawn and home, so that avenue may be ideal for you. Alternatively, you can try products on the market that are harmless and often very effective to stop barking. I used a citronella collar on one of my dogs and on many clients and it worked like magic. When the dog barks it dispenses a harmless lemony scent that dogs do not like. However other dogs i've used it on have barked away and the only result was the house smelled clean and fresh. gwen
 

My husband and I recently got a Mini Rat Terrier who we named Kolby. She is now 2 months old and just a normal, playful pup. Really the only big problem that we are having with her is her whining at night. I wear hearing aids so at night I don't have to be so annoyed by her, but my husband can still hear her through his ear plugs. My logic is to just have tons of patience and ignore her, but my husband tends to get very frustrated and he loses his temper with her. We just don't know how to deal with her whining at night. She doesn't whine that often during the day and she is getting better at being by herself, but at night it's just terrible. We keep her in the utility room at night with the door closed (to block some of the noise) which is set up perfectly for her, but she still has problems at night. We keep thinking that she will grow out of it and finally learn that we are not leaving her and we'll be there in the morning. She is the most adorable, sweet, playful puppy, but I just wish that she wouldn't whine at night. Do you have any further tips other than the ones I've already read on this site? Any advice would be very helpful.
 

I'm sure you saw the pictures of the puppies at the top of the blog. It has to be incredibly difficult for a puppy to go from the security of all the littermates and mommy literally so close at night, to suddenly having to be completely alone. No wonder some puppies scream and whine and feel so lonely and abandoned. It's a difficult transition period for them, and fortunately they usually adapt. I however never wanted to put my pups thru that, so i would hold them in my arms until they fell asleep, then i would put them in their own bed and stay there with a hand on them touching them so they felt me close. As soon as i knew the pup was completely asleep, then i would leave and go to my own bed. With some pups, i put their bed right next to mine so i could dangle an arm over the edge of the bed and beable to touch them. This always gave them enough comfort that they would sleep peacefully. I have a feeling that Kaylee will be sleeping in bed with me from day one. I've never done that with a pup, so i'll be posting on the blog to let readers know how it goes.
 

Hi Gwen
We have recently adopted a Lab/Walker Hound cross. We named him Walker (of course). We also have a 10 year old lab who is excellent with him, teaching him how to play etc. Walker is 11 weeks old and we have had him since 8 weeks. He is very smart, easy to train, except for 1 thing. We are crate training him. He goes in his crate at night easily. I am sure he doesn't dislike it. It is the right size for him, we put in a cozy blanket and his favorite stuffy. The problem is that every morning at 4:15 (precisely) he starts barking. I get up at 5:00 to play with him for a couple of hours before I go to work, so that 45 minutes is torture for me. I have been getting up and putting him out for a potty break and he does his business really quickly. Then I put him back in his crate for 45 minutes and he barks for the entire time. His crate is in our living room which is where we spend the majority of our time. Last night, I thought I would let him bark and hopefully he would just stop, but not a chance. At 5:00 when I get up, he was still at it. I make him be quiet before I let him out. Any ideas???
 

With a puppy this young, it's an instinctive and survival mechanism to bark when isolated. If you saw the pictures of the puppies at the top of main blog, you can see how closely the pups all stay together. Being separated from the crowd could mean the pup will die of exposure, so when separated, they need to get mom's attention so she can recover (save) her pup. It's difficult for her to keep track of all of them at once, so their "job" is to let her know when they're "lost." So you're fighting against mother nature. I personally could not allow my puppy to feel so alone and abandoned, especially since this is an innate instinctive reaction. I don't consider myself an over-indulgent over-protective "mother" as you would know if you read my "Help! My Dog has an Attitude" book. But in this situation, i will do whatever i can to alleviate the pup's anxiety. If you've read the other posts you've read all the specifics of what i do with my pups at night/early morning to help them feel secure. Some of the info may be in the housetraining section.
With that said....... it may also be that your pup is past the separation anxiety stage and his sleep/wake cycle just needs to be adjusted. If his normal waking up time is 4:15, then you need to shift it to a later time. You can do that in 5 minute increments. First try to make him stay awake at night an hour or so longer. This is what i would do and i know you're probably going to dread it because you don't want to get up til 5 but since he's making you miserable from 4:15 to 5:00, you may as well get up and train him. So set an alarm for 4am, get up, do all his usual morning activities. Do this a couple of days. Then extend the time, so that you go from getting up at 4am, to 4:05 am, then 4:10 and so on until you are at 5am or whatever time is more convenient for you. As a quick fix you might try moving the crate to the bedroom and seeing if just being in the same room with you might alleviate his insecurity. If it works, great, and if not, nothing is lost.
 

One more thing regarding Walker,
i intentionally said to get up 15 minutes earlier than he usually gets up, so that you're the one waking him up instead of him waking you up. The idea is to prevent his barking in the first place so that he doesn't unintentionally think he's training you via "vocal blackmail." But if for some reason he does get up before you can beat him to it, then as you have been doing, make sure he is quiet before letting him out.
 

Hi there Gwen,

My husband and I got an 8 week old yorkie/maltese mix two days ago. His name is Bradshaw and he is adorable. We have decided to crate train him and only today tried putting him in his new home. As we expected, he is crying and is generally unhappy with his new situation. My parents, who bred and raised him, did not use a crate with him. However, we did not expect for him to make him self sick crying. Is this normal? Also, if he is not used to the crate, should he stay in there all day (with hourly potty breaks of course)? Or should we put him in there for smaller periods of time to aclimate him slowly? I just don't want to exacerbate the anxiety our puppy probably feels being in a new environment. He is so sweet natured, playful, and lovable, and I don't want that to change!!! Any advice you have on this would be wonderful. We really want to do the "right" things with him so our life and his will be easier. Thank you.
 

i would not leave him in his crate until he is happy and comfy in there. In the mean time, just use the confinement method when you can't be with him. You can find that info in my housetraining a puppy article. Also if you read the comments posted under the Training Issues topic you'll see some tips on how to make him learn to accept his crate. But just as a quick summary, you never want to force him in there, you want to lure and entice him inside. If he's already fearful of it you might need to remove the top and start to teach him to like it again introducing it sort of like a bed or basket. Put a big cozy towel or blanket in there, feed him in it, play with him in it, etc. You want him to feel like it's a special haven, not a prison.
 

HELLO GWEN,
I'VE READ YOUR STOP BARKING INSTRUCTIONS BUT STILL AM NOT SURE ABOUT MY PROBLEM. I RECENTLY RESCUED A BORDER COLLIE FROM POUND. HE IS SUCH A SWEET, LOVEABLE, MILD MANNERED DOG.........BUT....HE IS AN ABSOLUTE BIRD FREAK. WHEN I LET HIM OUT IN THE MORNING HE WILL NON STOP BARK AT THE BIRDS IN MY REAR FENCED YARD AND THE NEIGHBOR'S YARD. HE WILL ALSO CHASE THEM ACROSS THE YARD. THIS WILL GO ON JUST ABOUT NON STOP ALL DAY LONG. THE NEIGHBORS ARE COMPLAINING AND I REALLY HATE TO RETURN HIM TO THE POUND. HOW DO YOU STOP A DOG WHO IS DOING SOMETHING THAT APPEARS TO BE TOTALLY NATURAL TO HIM?
THANKS,
 

yeah, this is one of those obsessive border collie "things." It can be extremely difficult to distract him from this and try to engage him in a more interesting activity. B.Collies need a job and apparently this is what he has taken on as his responsibility. The cure is to find another occupation for him to replace this one and to discourage him from continuing to engage in it. There is your work. I think i might try a barking collar (citronella or similar)
to stop him. Finding something else for him to do will be a challenge. Realistically, he probably belongs in a different environment where he can have a more appropriate and acceptable outlet for his instincts. It appears that the current situation is not fair to him or the neighbors or yourself.
 

Hello Gwen,

We have a 5 year old male Miniature Schnauzer. He has always been a near perfect pet. Recently (for a little over a week) he has been exhibiting a behavior that's about to drive us crazy. He has always slept with us and no matter what time he awakened, he wouldn't disturb us until between 7 & 7:30 AM. For the past several days he has been waking earlier...from 5:30 to 6...and being very agressive in his attempts to wake us. There is lots of whining and "doggie talk". He will nudge me with his paw, which is normal, but now he has begun to actually climb up onto me and nudge me with his nose and whine loudly. There is no indication that this is simply a need for a potty break The only other time I can remember his behaving this way, a female dog down the street was in heat. While I know that isn't the case with her now, could it be there is a dog in heat somewhere in our neighborhood causing this out of character and very irritating behavior? Any suggestions? Thanks so much for your help.
 

It definitely could be something in the environment or neighborhood getting him up. The sun is rising earlier each day and more activity is occuring earlier each day. If this were my dog, i would do a little investigating since the behavior is so out of character with him. I would probably take him out at that hour and see if he leads me to the stimulus that is eliciting his urgency. Then if necessary, i would use the No Bark training method i describe on my website to train him to stop barking. it's at www.perfectpaws.com/bark.html
 

Gwen,
I have a three year old pitt bull mix. We just moved out of my parents' huge house on three acres into a small apartment. Now she whines and barks and cries when I try to leave the house. I think it's because she has never really been alone (my parents had two dogs that would keep her company)and she thinks I'm going to leave her forever. what should I do to get her used to being alone for the first time in a small apartment?
 

There are many good articles online about separation anxiety. you might need to try a few different techniques til you find one that works for your dog. If you haven't already read my article, you can start there and read any related articles as well. it's at www.perfectpaws.com/sa.html
 

Walkers mom here again. Thanks so much for your advice regarding Walker barking in his crate (question submitted 03-17). We tried the bedroom thing but it only got worse. He was waking up (after a hard evening of play and stimulation) at around 12:30 a.m. and barking endlessley and by that I mean hours on end. As a reminder, this has been going on for 5 weeeks. Walker is now 13 weeks old. The wierd thing is he goes in his crate fine, falls asleep fine but wakes up and barks. I would put my fingers in his crate to offer some comfort and it did nothing to help. After the past 2 nights of continuous barking (and no sleep), I laid on the floor last night right by his door. Within 10 seconds he settled down and went to sleep. I stayed down there all night. Everytime he woke up, he just sniffed my face and went happily back to sleep. Can I tell you how relieved I was. He and his brother were crated together until they were 8 weeks old so I am guessing our little man is just missing company at night. Kind of sad really. And kind of weird because he does none of this behavior during the day, even though he is crated then too. As I said, we have family and friends that come over during the day to provide some company, exercise, bathroom breakes etc. So, the big question is, now that we know what will relax him in his crate at night, how do I wean him off of me laying with him?
 

I remember many nights sleeping on the floor with my dogs as well. Not just when they were puppies, but even as adults whenever they were sick, injured or just afraid of something like a thunderstorm. It's amazing how much comfort they derive from just our closeness and presence. I'm reminded of it everytime i see the puppies sleeping all huddled together. What i did in the past was lie on the floor next to my dog until she fell asleep, then i'd crawl back in bed. Of course her bed was right next to mine so i didn't have to go far. She usually slept for 30 minutes or so before she realized i was gone, so as soon as she started to panic, i would get back on the floor with her. Within a few days she would sleep longer and longer before she woke up and eventually she slept all night long. With Kaylee, i plan to let her sleep in bed with me from the first nite. I'll be sure to write about how that goes.
 

I have one simple comment. I HATE MY GRANDMOTHER'S BARKING CHIHUAHUA!!! My grandma has a teacup chihuahua and he has total and complete controll over the entire house and she thinks it's cute. We can't even enjoy a peaceful Sunday dinner with out the barking. When we say anything about it she complains that we are just being mean to her"baby". It has gotten to the point that we don't even like to visit any more. What should we do or is there anything we can do since she doesn't see the problem. Help me!!
 

My condolences...... i probably would not visit her...... maybe you could try getting a hearing aid for her and earplugs for you.....????
This is probably more a problem for Dr. Phil because there's not a thing we can do to change her "baby" if she doesn't recognise a problem. I have a whole section in my book about the kind of attitude she has. The book is called Help! My Dog has an Attitude, but secretly much of it is about the owner's attitude. I do sympathize with you. I love dogs, but spoiled rotten ones often give dogs a bad reputation.
 

hi gwen
i have a 2 year old rat terrier who barks when someone comes to the door, when a car drives by, when people walk down the street. And i am fine with that.
what bugs me is when i come home (or anyone in the family) she barks. Is there anything i can do about that? Is there something wrong with her?
thanks,
Sally
 

Hi Sally,
You probably just need to desensitize her to your returning (or anyone else's returning home) It's a simple process but it can be tedious and time consuming. When i would do with my clients who had this problem is that we'd have the owner "return" home 30 times in a row, so that the dog eventually just became bored with it. The owner would come in the front door as if returning from work or shopping, then immediately leave thru the back door, then straight away would "return" home thru the front door. Sometimes the owner had to do this coming and going routine for 20 minutes everyday for a few weeks. Some dogs learn quicker than others so yours may learn in a few days. Rat terriers are very smart. Also make sure when you do come home you aren't feeding into her excitement by giving her lots of attention. I would come in, completely ignore her and then leave. When she stops the barking you can "stay home" and gently and calmly pay attention to her. If she starts up with the barking, the immediately "leave" again.
 

HI GWEN,
I AM LOOKING FOR A LITTLE HELP WITH OUR DOG. WE ADOPTED HER FROM A RESCUE 2 WEEKS AGO, SHE IS A 5 YEAR OLD BRITTANY SPANIEL. SHE LIVED WITH AN ELDERLY LADY WHO WENT TO A NURSING HOME, AND WAS AT THE RESCUE FOR LESS THAN A WEEK. SHE HAS TRANSITIONED REMARKABLY WELL AND IS GREAT WITH OUR 4 DAUGHTERS. WE HAVE ALL GROWN TO LOVE HER, SHE IS VERY GENTLE, IS HOUSEBROKEN, AND BEHAVES BEAUTIFULLY WITH THE RUN OF THE DOWNSTAIRS AREA OF OUR HOUSE WHEN WE ARE GONE. HER ONLY TROUBLE IS AT NIGHT AFTER WE HAVE ALL GONE TO BED SHE WHINES AND BARKS INTERMITTENLY FOR A GOOD PART OF THE NIGHT. WE HAVE A TWO STORY HOME AND ARE TRYING TO CONFINE HER TO THE DOWNSTAIRS BY USE OF A GATE ON THE STEPS. (MY HUSBAND HAS SOME ALLERGIES AND WE ONLY HAVE CARPET UPSTAIRS, WE ARE TRYING TO KEEP HER OUT OF THE BEDROOMS) OUR LIVING AREAS ARE ALL DOWNSTAIRS WITH OUR BEDROOMS ALL UPSTAIRS. SHE DOES NOT SEEM TO MIND BEING ALONE DURING THE DAY, WE LEAVE FOR A WHILE IN THE MORNING AND HAVE NEVER HEARD HER BARKING OR CRYING WHEN LEAVING OR RETURNING. I AM SURE SHE PROBABLY SLEPT WITH HER FORMER OWNER, OR AT LEAST IN HER ROOM. THE FIRST NIGHT, I SLEPT WITH HER IN THE LIVING ROOM AND SHE WAS JUST FINE. FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS SHE WHINED AND BARKED A FEW TIMES, BUT THEN SLEPT MOST OF THE NIGHT WITHOUT MUCH TROUBLE. THEN WE ALLOWED OUR GIRLS TO SLEEP IN THE LIVING ROOM WITH HER OVER THE WEEKEND FOR 2 NIGHTS, AGAIN SHE WAS JUST FINE. THE NEXT NIGHT SHE SLEPT FINE. THEN THE NEXT FEW NIGHTS, SHE BEGAN WHINING AND BARKING AGAIN, STANDING AT THE GATE AT THE STEPS. I AM SURE THAT SHE IS JUST LONELY. I HAVE TRIED GOING DOWN AND TAKING HER BACK TO THE LIVING ROOM TO HER BED AND TELLING HER TO LAY DOWN AND TO STAY. THIS WORKS, SOMETIMES FOR A FEWMINTUES, SOMETIMES FOR AN HOUR OR TWO. A FEW NIGHTS I JUST KEPT GOING DOWN EVERY TIME SHE WHINED AND SENDING HER BACK, ONCE OR TWICE I ENDING UP ON THE COUCH BEACUSE I WAS SO TIRED AND FRUSTRATED. THIS WEEKEND WE ALLOWED THE GIRLS AGAIN TO SLEEP WITH HER, SO I AM CERTAIN WE ARE IN FOR A NIGHT OF WHINING TONIGHT. MY BETTER JUDGEMENT TOLD ME NOT TO LET THEM, BUT THEY WERE INSISTENT AND I WAS SO TIRED! I JUST DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO, I KEEP THINKING SHE WILL FINALLY GIVE UP AND THAT SHE'LL QUIT, BUT IT DOESN'T SEEM TO BE WORKING. I AM CERTAIN SHE HAS NEVER BEEN CRATE TRAINED AND AM HESISTANT TO DO THAT TO HER BECAUSE SHE HAS BEHAVED SO WELL WHEN LEFT ALONE (AND SHE REALLY IS NOT ALONE FOR VERY LONG VERY OFTEN) AND BECAUSE SHE HAS ALREADY HAD SUCH A TREMENDOUS CHANGE. I AM HOPING YOU MIGHT HAVE SOME HELPFUL ADVICE, WE JUST ADORE HER, SHE IS A WONDERFUL AND GENTLE DOG, BUT I NEED SOME SLEEP! THANKS SO MUCH! CHRISTY
 

I probably don't have the answer you want to read, but i do wish you would allow her to sleep in one of the girl's rooms at night. Perhaps the one with the bedroom furthest from yours so the allergy problem for your hubby is minimal. There are products you can put on the dog to minimize allergens and perhaps your husband would be willing to take an antihistamine at night if it really bothers him....... that would be my course of action if this were my situation. Perhaps another trainer will have a response more to your liking, but with her history i just couldn't leave her alone at night. It's a very special time for dogs to feel included in their pack and isolation at night can be one of the more difficult things for them especially when they are accustomed to closeness.
 

Well, here I am again. Walkers mom. The last time I wrote, I told you that Walker likes his crate but in the middle of the night would wake up and bark for hours. I moved his crate into our bedroom and he still barked endlessly until one night when I slept on the floor beside him. He settled instantly. That was going well until the past 3 nights. Now when I get on the floor, he claws at his crate door, whines and barks to be let out. I ignore him and he does stop after about 10 minutes, but he wakes up every hour and fusses. We seem to be going backwards. We have had Walker for 7 weeks and have not had more than 2 complete nights sleep. I am not sure what to do now. Do I keep going on the floor when he whines? I'm afraid if I don't, he'll start that endless barking again. We tried to let him sleep out of his crate for 2 nights. We left his crate door open and closed our bedroom door. The first night was great. Hardly a sound. He slept on my labs matt on our bedroom floor. The second night, he was up and ready to play at midnight. We have a 10 year old lab that sleeps on our bed with us and I was up with the 2 of them for the next 3 hours. They played and I cried so that was the last out of crate experience for him.
As a rule, Walker is exhausted when he goes to bed. We try and keep him up but he is always fast asleep by 9:00. He sleeps soundly until precisely 2:30 every morning when he is awake. I don't understand why he doesn't sleep through the night. We are thinking about letting him sleep on our bed with us and see how that goes, but that is a last resort. Our lab takes up much of our bed as it is. I look forward to any more advice. You have been very helpful and at the very least, it feels good to be able to vent to someone who may understand. My friends think I am nuts going through this for a dog. They don't get that he is a part of our family and whatever they would do for their kids is no different.
Thanks and I look forward to your response...
 

Walker sure is a challenge and it may be that he'll end up sleeping in bed with you. I don't have a problem with that. I finally went out and got a king size bed just to be able to accomodate 4 large dogs and a husband!! It appears that Walker doesn't need as much sleep at night as should be expected. Maybe he needs more daytime activity to keep him awake. Does he nap alot during the day? If my puppy does this, i'm going to bug her and pester her when she tries to sleep in the day so that she'll be too exhausted from lack of sleep to even think about getting up to play at 2am! So no more 9pm bedtime for Walker, do something, anything to keep him awake.I know you've tried this, but try harder and be more creative if you can. It may just be a case of adjusting his sleep/wake cycle to get him to sleep thru the night.Good luck and let us know how it goes. I'm with you on the belief that our dogs are a part of the family.