I
am having extreme problems with barking. The older dog
barks at anything that moves. He does look for my attention
a lot and when I am at home I keep him with me when
I can. The other dog barks continually at play. He vocalizes
all his game playing tactics.
I
have had irate neighbours leaving notes in my post box,
understandably so, as they are on pension and cannot
stand the noise during the day. I asked my Vet about
using the citronella collar, of which he said was the
best try. I purchased the collar at R750.00 to try on
the older dog and have been using the collar for over
a month. I've gone through two bottles of citronella
at R90.00 a bottle. At first he kept quiet and I really
hoped that it would work, but now find that he has grown
accustomed to the collar and barks anyway, even with
the squirt.
I
love my dogs, but am finding that the barking is seriously
hampering my home life and the dogs' life, as I am continually
shouting at them. I am at wits end.
Your
advice please
BARKING
MANIA
--------------------------------------------------
Dear
Barking Mania,
First
let me extend my sympathies. Dogs that bark excessively
are a major cause of stress for the owner, neighbours
and the dogs. This problem can cause relationship breakdowns
all round.
Your
two dogs are very similar in age, so I will have to
assume that there is a degree of canine bonding. This
means that the dogs have a stronger imprint on one another
than with people. This is not to say that they will
walk to the ends of the earth for one another and ignore
people, it does however mean that their behaviour is
often more "primitive" and hard-wired. Addressing
problematic behaviours can therefore be more challenging.
It
is by no means indicative of the breed, but a lot of
the Aussies I have worked with have displayed similar
problem behaviours - very high energy levels and excessive
barking when presented with a relatively unstimulating
environment. So what we are working with here is hard-wired
genetic behaviour compounded by canine bonding in what
would appear to be an unattended environment during
the day.
It
sounds pretty grim doesn't it? But there are things
that can be done:
1.
"The older dog barks at anything that moves"
- This dog may have a degree of either Hypersensitivity
Overactivity Disorder (Overall, 1997) (Overall, 1998)
(Pageat, 1995) or Hyperactivity Disorder (Dehasse, 1998).
Does he show any of these signs?
The
fact that he has "beaten" the citronella collar
shows that he has applied a normal habituation learning
process, but to an aversive stimuli. So in effect it
is not a normal habituation learning process.
A
veterinary behaviourist is the only professional who
can make diagnosis of these behavioural pathologies
and recommend treatment.
2.
"He does look for my attention a lot and when
I am at home I keep him with me when I can"
- He may have some separation anxiety as well. I suggest
you read the article on this and implement all of the
recommendations.
3.
"The other dog barks continually at play"
- Yes, this would be a "normal" expression
of excitement/arousal. If it is troublesome then rather
play games that do not initiate the barking or change
the environment (play in the house) as well as the nature
and intensity of the games (scent work instead of retrieves).
The
brain "switches on barking". The internal
motivation for flicking this switch is often due to
increased motor activity and resultant increased emotion
- barking is thus a release. Reducing the motor activity
and stimulating cognitive function (thinking) as opposed
to reactive function (barking) should disengage the
"bark switch" temporarily.
Timing
of any perceived reward by the dog is imperative as
you could be inadvertently encouraging barking. If you
are throwing toys for them, wait until they are quiet
before the toy is thrown. Getting them into a down can
help give you that window of opportunity as most dogs
are loathe to bark when lying down.
4.
"I have had irate neighbours leaving notes in
my post box" - Do yourself a favour and take
them a box of chocolates and some earplugs (I kid you
not). Let them know that you are sympathetic and that
you are addressing the problem. They may even offer
to help and they could do so by keeping a Bark Diary.
This could help identify a pattern and subsequent management
of the environment could be the solution. In this way
you get your neighbours to buy in to the concept and
actually take some ownership of the problem as well.
This will reduce your stress levels considerably.
5.
"I love my dogs, but am finding that the barking
is seriously hampering my home life and the dogs life,
as I am continually shouting at them. I am at wits end."
- There is no doubt that you love your dogs - why else
would you be asking for help? Shouting at the dogs may
be counter productive as it tends to have a "monkey-see,
monkey-do" effect. Try whispering for a week or
two. Your dogs will initially go through an extinction
burst, but if they want to hear what you have to say
they'll have to keep quiet. This also sets a good example
to them.
You
could also try whispering slowly, hands around you mouth,
eyes closed and your head bent slightly down. It sounds
crazy indeed, but it seems to catch and refocus their
attention and it often interrupts the barking. You could
then calmly reward them for not barking. If they start
up again you repeat the process. They will soon learn
that excessive barking makes you withdraw.
You
could also look at enriching their environment (toys,
visual access to the street, puzzle feeders etc.) to
reduce self-stimulation barking. Another option is to
teach them to bark on command. Once they are reliably
barking on command you simply never give the command
to bark. In theory this sounds great, but in my experience
it has little effect on true bark-a-holics.
So,
there are a number of options open to you. I suggest
you try the behavioural therapy outlined above as well
as the separation anxiety steps. If there is no improvement
in two weeks please consult a veterinary behaviourist
with regard to the behavioural pathologies mentioned
above. Good luck!
Shannon
References
" Dehasse. Clinical management of stereotypies
in dogs. Ames, 1998
" Overall KL. Clinical behavioral medicine for
small animals. Mosby, 1997.
" Overall KL. Self-injurious behavior and obsessive-compulsive
disorder in domestic animals. Blackwell science, 1998:
222-252.
" Pageat P. Pathologie du comportement du chien.
Editions du Point Vétérinaire. 1995.