| Question
1: Kids throw things over the fence at my dog. Consequently, my dog is starting to bark at
every kid who goes past our house. How can I change this? |
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| Question
2: I don’t want my dog to stop barking totally. I want him to bark at intruders, but
not continuously. |
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| Question
3: My Bichon is fine with other dogs when we go out for a walk without a leash, but if
he’s on a leash he goes crazy, barking and lunging. |
| Answer: He’s sort of like the drunk in the bar; if
you hold him back, he struggles to get loose to fight, and acts really tough. Just drop a
metal Band-Aid can near him that has been taped shut with 10 pennies inside. This will
startle him out of the behavior. |
| Question
4: My dog watches TV and barks at all of the animal actors. |
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| Question 5: Is it a
good idea to teach a dog to bark on command? |
| Answer: I think it’s an excellent idea, unless your
dog is aggressive or very assertive. It’s a great deterrent when you’re
confronted by a dangerous person. |
| Question
6: My dog barks at me when I scold it. |
| Answer: I don’t approve of scolding. It makes your
dog feel like you want to fight with it. Just correct the dog according to its mistake,
then talk happy. |
| Question
7: My adult dog is very restless at night and keeps us awake going from window to door and
whining or barking. He’s always done this. Can we change it? |
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| Question
8: My dog barks at the fence, then looks back at the house. |
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9: How will I know whether my dog is barking when I’m not home? |
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10: I have a dog that goes crazy when the telephone rings. It barks and whines so much
that I can’t hardly talk on the phone. |
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| Question
11: When I go for a walk, my dog chases bicycles and barks at them. |
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| Question 12: My puppy is starting
to whine a lot. It is so annoying! Help! |
| Answer: Never talk to or look at a dog when it whines.
This is an attention-getting behavior. Don’t answer whining by saying,
"What’s the matter?", "Are you hungry?", "Do you need to go
out?", etc. Just totally ignore it. Any behavior that doesn’t pay off will go
away. |
