Sunday, April 24, 2011

Whenever your Puppy Barks To Get Attention

By Wendon Lee


A puppy who barks and barks and doesn't quit barking can cost you a great night's sleep, your neighbors' friendship, as well as your affection for the puppy. The simplest approach to address that dilemma would be to pick your puppy from breeds that don't bark an excellent deal, like golden retrievers, and prevent the breeds notorious for their barking gusto, for example beagles. But when you absolutely fall in enjoy with that cute Chihuahua yipping within the rescue shelter, you will discover methods of training even one of the most barking-prone puppy. The first step would be to figure out why your puppy is barking in the first location. Distinct motivations for barking require unique training approaches to get the barking under control.

For example, some puppies bark to get attention. If your puppy is guilty of this behavior, you yourself may be part of the problem. When your puppy barks if he wants to play or when he wants a treat or when he wants to be petted, do you respond by giving him what his bark is asking for? If so, you're only reinforcing that behavior. You might be in effect teaching your puppy that barking works as a means of obtaining his desires satisfied.

To obtain your puppy to stop barking to obtain your attention, you might have to "unteach" the lesson that performing so will get him what he wants. When your puppy barks, ignore him. Do not speak to him, touch him, or even make eye contact with him. At first he could properly bark even far more, figuring that the reason you're ignoring him is due to the fact he isn't barking enough. Just continue to ignore him.

And don't shout at him in anger or frustration. He could interpret this as you joining in with him, and in any event, he will see that he has gotten your attention, which obviously is why he barked in the first place. After a even though, he will see that the barking is acquiring him nowhere and he will quit. That's when you lastly praise him, hug him, and give him a treat. In this way you are reinforcing the behavior you would like to encourage, not the behavior which is driving you nuts.

You may speed the method up by preceding your periods of deliberately ignoring your puppy with an audible cue (snapping your fingers, a sharp clap, etc.). This may draw your puppy's attention to what you are performing and he will a lot more promptly understand which you are ignoring him particularly because of his barking. Puppies like to please the human members of their families. It's up to you to teach him what does not please you, and what does.




About the Author:



No comments: