Don't Let Your Dog Drive You Barking Mad!

You love your dog – but he barks! It can be really annoying to you and your neighbors if it becomes incessant barking. So what can you do to control or reduce your dog's barking and make him the most loved dog on the block?

First off, there are the traditional methods. Dog training and dog obedience schools help train the dog and also teach you how to handle your pet too, so that you can grow a lasting bond with your dog. Of course if you take your dog out and give him lots of exercise, he’ll be a lot less inclined to bark. A tired dog has less energy to bark and a tired sleeping dog can’t bark!

Sometimes barking is good, it’s your dog’s main way of communicating with you. He may have heard or smelled something and wants to let you know. Just acknowledging him may well stop the barking, if not try a NO, or Quiet command. If he stops barking reward him so that following your commands becomes pleasurable to him.

Giving your dog something to chew on is also a good deterrent to barking. How many dogs have you heard barking with their mouths full?

If the traditional methods don’t seem to be working it may be time to try a barking control collar. Many of these work by using sound so that the desired behavior cam be associated with the sound. Some of the more sophisticated, (and of course expensive), models also use electric shocks to deter the dog from barking.

Bark control collars use two types of bark detection, either sound or vibrations from the dogs throat. Neither type is totally infallible; the vibration type can be set off by motion, and the sound type by external sounds. However both have proved to be effective in helping control your dog's barking humanely. The best collars employ both methods at the same time to reduce the ‘false’ readings and help bring barking under control.

Whichever method you use, barking can be brought under control in a reasonably short space of time, so persevere and enjoy your dog for years to come.

David Amos is a dog lover and long time dog owner. For more information about dogs click Dog Stuff, and for more about dog Training and keeping your dog happy click Dogs and Puppies Online.