How to Train Your Dog to Bark at Intruders
Jump to section
Introduction
You’re lying in bed at night when you hear a faint and peculiar sound coming from downstairs. You quickly wake up your partner and beg them to go downstairs and check. Thankfully, they return two minutes later holding the bedside lamp. All is clear, you can sleep easy again. There is a quick and easy solution to fears about intruders though, and that’s to train your dog to bark at them. If he barks when intruders approach the door, you will always be quickly alerted and it will also act as a pretty effective deterrent.
If you have children, valuable possessions, and cars then a barking dog can come in very handy. Studies have found dogs are the biggest burglary deterrents, so if you can train him to bark at any intruder, you can sleep peacefully every night.
Top
Defining Tasks
The good news is training your dog to bark at intruders is surprisingly straightforward. It is achieved by teaching him obedience commands so he barks on cue, but also so that certain situations will trigger a bark too. You will need to manage their environment so they can notice intruders swiftly and respond appropriately. If your dog is a puppy, he will respond to training in as little as a few days. If your dog is older and spent many years without using his voice, then he may need a little while longer to catch on.
Getting this training right could be essential for keeping your home and family safe and sound. Every year, homes are successfully protected by dogs and nothing puts the fear of God into intruders more than a chilling bark.
Top
Getting Started
Before you bring the roof down with your barking dog, you will need to get together a few bits and pieces. His favorite food or a selection of treats will play an important role in training, as they will be used to incentivize and reward him.
You will also need a quiet place, free from distractions to train and probably somewhere that isn’t going to make you your neighbors’ arch enemy. You will also need some brave volunteers who are unknown to your dog to test the efficacy of the training.
Once you have all of that, just set aside 10 minutes a day for the next couple of weeks and come with a can-do attitude.
Top
The Bark on Command Method
Most Recommended
3 Votes
Most Recommended
3 Votes
Set the stage
Secure your dog to a leash and a fence in the back yard. Then head out there with some treats in hand and his favorite toy to get him excited. Before you can train him to bark at intruders he needs to be able to bark on command.
Get him excited
Play with his favorite toy in front of him to get his attention. Play close attention to his body language, you are looking out for signs that he is about to bark.
Anticipate the bark
Just before you think he will bark, say ‘speak’. Then as soon as he does bark give him a treat and reward him with praise. Practice this for 10 minutes each day and then have him bark without having to wind him up with a toy in the first place.
Add a trigger
Now leash your dog near the door and have a friend or someone approach the door. As soon as the person gets close to the door give him the ‘speak’ command. Once he does start barking, be sure to reward him with a treat and praise him.
Practice
Keep practicing this whenever someone unknown comes to the door. It is important you don’t give him the cue to bark when a family member approaches the house otherwise he will bark at anyone that approaches. As he gets the hang of training, he will soon learn to bark at strangers without you having to give the command. When this happens, you can slowly reduce the frequency of treats.
The Bark and Run Method
Effective
3 Votes
Effective
3 Votes
Timing
Put your dog in a situation in the house that he usually barks at. It could be just before you take him out for a walk or when you prepare his meal. This is because the first thing you need to do is train him to bark on your command.
Add the command
As soon as he barks, say ‘speak’ and give him a treat and reward him. Practice this for 10 minutes each day and begin to say ‘speak’ before he barks. As he gets the hang of training, practice instructing him to bark even when he isn’t in a situation he usually barks at.
Establish his turf
Before you can train him to bark at intruders he needs to feel like the entrances are his to protect. You can do this by simply moving his bed and toys into those areas and ensuring he has freedom to go there at night.
Cue the intruder
Now have an unknown person approach the house. Instruct him to bark and then have the volunteer to shout and run away. It is important the pretend intruder yelps and runs, this will signal to the dog he needs to bark at an intruder until they go away.
Reward and reinforce
Give him a treat and shower him with praise as soon as the person runs away. This will reinforce precisely the behavior and result you want. Practice this with someone different each day for a week. If he can smell the same person he will know they aren’t an intruder and the training will stall. Eventually, you will no longer need to instruct him to bark or reward him with a treat, it will become a habit and natural that he wants to defend his territory.
The Boundaries and Quiet Method
Least Recommended
3 Votes
Least Recommended
3 Votes
Establish a perimeter
Put him on a leash and walk him around the perimeter of your home/area you want him to protect. It is important he is aware of where his territory ends and at what point someone becomes an intruder. Do this everyday, once or twice for a couple of weeks.
Trigger barking
Purposely put him in a situation where he will bark. This could be when you play with his favorite toy or when it is time for a walk. You are going to do this so you can teach him when to stop barking. This will ensure he doesn’t bark at people he knows and that he stops barking when the intruder has run away.
Add a 'stop' command
When in a bark inducing situation, wait patiently for him to stop barking. As soon as he stops barking say, ‘stop’, give him a treat and then praise him. It is important this happens as soon as he goes silent otherwise he won’t associate being quiet with the treat. Practice this everyday until you can issue the ‘stop’ command and he falls silent even without the promise of food.
Allow certain barking
now knows where his territory is and will naturally want to defend it. Be sure you emphasize to him barking at people he doesn’t know is the right behavior.
Stop unwanted barking
When he barks at people he does know, such as family and friends, issue the ‘stop’ command. You will need to use a combination of praising for barking and the ‘stop’ command for a week or two until he learns to only bark at the smell, sight and sound of people he doesn’t know. It isn’t a straightforward ask to bark at intruders, so be patient and consistent with the training and you will see results in a matter of weeks.
Written by Amy Caldwell
Veterinary reviewed by:
Published: 10/08/2017, edited: 01/08/2021
More articles by Amy Caldwell
Training Questions and Answers
Quenten
cross dreeding pit bull
Nine Months
Question
0 found this helpful
0 found this helpful
to bark at Indroders
Nov. 21, 2023
Quenten's Owner
Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer
1128 Dog owners recommended
Hello, For the alerting, first teach pup to bark by teaching the Speak command. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-german-shepherd-to-speak Once pup knows the speak command, recruit friends pup doesn't know to step onto the property or come to the door while pup watches from a window or inside somewhere. Command speak and reward with a treat when they do. Practice with telling pup to speak each time the person is there, until pup barks on their own when the person tries to enter without saying speak. At that point, have the person come onto the property or up to the door, wait seven seconds to see if pup will bark on their own, reward if they do, and command speak if they don't - then reward but give a smaller reward when you tell pup opposed to when pup does it on their own. Practice until pup will bark each time someone enters the property. Practice with different people you can recruit, that pup doesn't know so that pup will learn to do this with anyone who enters the property and not just that one person. Draw pup's attention to people outside or people on your property, and reward pup when you see them watching someone in general - so that pup will begin watching people and staying more alert as a habit. Pup doesn't have to bark to reward this one - just reward when pup is watching someone and you notice that. I also recommend teaching the Quiet command, so that you can tell pup when to stop barking after they alert. Quiet method: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bark If you only want them to bark when the person comes inside, you can teach this with the same process, but secure pup with a padded back clip harness and strong leash to something very secure, like a column, to ensure the helper's safety. Command Speak when the person opens the door, then have the person leave again when the dog barks - to help the dog think they made the person leave. Don't reward aggression but do reward the barking. Also, practice telling pup Quiet and rewarding them for calming back down, since you will want the ability to tell pup when to stop if a guest you know is entering at other times - which is why you don't want to encourage true aggression just barking and intimidating. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden
Nov. 30, 2023
Kenobi
German Shepherd boxer mix
1 Year
Question
0 found this helpful
0 found this helpful
My parents get really irritated when my dog barks at the neighbors and they constantly tell him "no speak". I would like for my dog to bark, but he needs to bark only when it is necessary to do so and not whenever he wants to. Is there anything I could do to limit who my dog can bark at?
May 2, 2021
Kenobi's Owner
Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer
1128 Dog owners recommended
Hello Sean, I would work on desensitizing pup to barking at people in general. Just practice desensitizing pup to everything except what you actually want pup to bark at - like someone coming up to your door or window, but not barking at those just outside your building. Check out this channel with examples of desensitizing. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAA4pob0Wl0W2agO7frSjia1hG85IyA6a And this article and the Desensitize method. The Quiet method would also be useful. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bark Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden
May 3, 2021