Having a dog watch over the house is one of the benefits of dog ownership. Canine ears can pickup even the slightest of noises. Also, a dog’s bark is an excellent deterrent to someone who would attempt to break in. That person must consider that not only will the dog sound an alarm, but even the smallest dog is apt to attack whether they are out matched or not.

There is a point that barking becomes a nuisance!

There are methods commonly tried that might seem logical, but never seem to work.

· Physically correcting the dog. If your dog experiences pain in relation to something, he will only learn to dislike and wish to force away whatever that object (doorbell, skateboarder, other dog’s, kids) would be.

· Verbally correcting the dog. Your dog is apt to view that you are hostile towards the same thing he is instead of realizing your directing it his way. If he does understand that you are upset with him, as with a physical correction, he will only learn to dislike the object.

A method that does work?

Teach the dog to speak, so we can teach him to be quiet!

Teaching your dog to speak on command

Guidelines:

· If you need a helper to get your dog to bark then round one up.

· Get treats your dog really loves. The treats need to be small in size, easy to give quickly and very desirable.

· Try to get your dog to mildly bark. Be careful in what you choose to elicit a bark from your dog. If your dog goes too crazy this will make your job harder. Try to find what gets a bark, but is still a manageable situation. If the doorbell is too much, then try it with someone the dog knows well standing in the open door ringing the bell.

· When your dog barks, praise & treat him. Keep praising the dog when he barks until you get a sense that you can time in a command before he barks.

· Time in your command. Before your dog barks, but when you think he is about to, give him the command "Cheese Steak, Speak!"

· Continue until your dog will bark on command.

We learned where the on switch is, but we now need to find the off switch.

When the speak command is all that you need to get your dog to bark he is ready to learn the shush command.

Teaching The Shush Command

Guidelines:

You may need to work on this for a few days to resolve a serious barking problem. If this is the case, then back track some from where you left off the previous day.

· Command your dog to speak. "Cheese Steak, Speak!"

· Wait for him to speak.

· Command him "Cheese Steak, Shush!" (The shush should be less like the word shush and more like an actual shush) and at the same time use a hand signal (finger to your lips). The hand signal is important for times such as when you are on the phone and would rather not say a loud "Cheese Steak, Shush!."

· When he stops barking, praise him and treat. Continue this until he realizes what the command "Cheese Steak, Shush!" means.

· Introduce the situation that makes him bark. Just like in teaching the speak command, try for a mild, controllable situation.

· When your dog barks give the shush commands "Cheese Steak, Shush!" Use a treat to direct him. If he has to follow or sniff and bark at the same time he will be apt to abandon the barking.