Puppy Obedience Training

There is nothing more annoying than a puppy or a dog that is constantly barking.  This can cause annoyance for not only you but also your neighbours.  It is part of a puppy’s makeup to want to bark but some puppies tend to bark more than others.  This can vary for different breeds and will also depend on the temperament of your puppy. Excessive barking can be very annoying and as part of your puppy obedience training plan it is a good idea to find a way to control his barking while he is still a young puppy. The best thing to do is to ignore the barking and reward your puppy when he stops barking.  If you give your puppy attention when he is barking then you will reinforce his behaviour by reacting to it.

First of all try and find out why your puppy is barking. Does he have any health problems that need attention? If so then a trip to the vets is needed to get the problem sorted out. On the other hand if the reason your puppy is barking is because he is looking out of the window and barking at the neighbour’s cat then simply remove him from the room. If he is barking because he is trying to alert you to some sort of danger like an intruder, then his barking is a good because he is alerting you to danger.  But if your puppy is barking just to get your attention then you will have to do something about this behaviour.

The best way to teach your puppy not to bark unnecessarily is to teach him to bark on command.  Use a command such as “speak” and reward him when he barks on your command.  If your puppy starts barking without your command, try to stay calm and relaxed and don’t look at him.  Just ignore him and reward him when he stops barking.

Always make sure that you give your puppy plenty of exercise.  Take him out for lots of walks and if he is well trained you can let him off the lead to run around and go mad for a while.  Play fetch with him and reward him when he fetches the ball and brings it back to you.  Some puppies will tend to bark because they are bored so taking him for lots of walks will tire him out and he will not feel the need to bark so much.

If your puppy is becoming increasingly troublesome by barking too much one method to curb his behaviour and make him stop barking is by surprising him.  Get an empty coke can and fill it with coins or pebbles and then seal the opening.  Make sure the opening is properly sealed and test it to make sure none of the coins or pebbles can come loose.  Next time your puppy starts barking for no reason, throw the can so it lands near him. Making sure that the can doesn’t hit him.  This will surprise your puppy as he wont know that it was you that threw the can and he will stop barking.  Reward him for stopping barking.

If you control your puppy’s barking at an early age your puppy will grow up to be a well behaved dog instead of an unruly troublesome dog that causes annoyance to you and others by their constant barking.

If you need some further help with your puppy, you can get some more Puppy Obedience Training advice here.