How to Train Your Older Dog to Stop Barking

How to Train Your Older Dog to Stop Barking
Medium difficulty iconMedium
Time icon1-6 Weeks
Behavior training category iconBehavior

Introduction

You love your aging dog, for his protruding grays and those extra few seconds it now takes him to get up. But one thing you probably don’t love is the peace shattering barking he refuses to give up. Does your dog wake you up from every nap with deafening barking as soon as someone walks past your house? Are you fed up of shouting your ‘hellos’ to anyone that comes to visit over persistent barking?

First and foremost, solving this problem will grant you some well-deserved peace and quiet. It will also make having guests over a much more relaxing affair. If your dog scares other dogs and people with his barking then it will also rid you of that. If you’re looking to end the sound of the kennels coming from your house, then tackling your old dog’s barking is definitely advisable.

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Defining Tasks

There are a number of techniques used to stop barking in dogs. Some rely on treats, others use technology, and ironically, some tackle barking with silence, but more on that later. All of these methods have seen significant success, but applying them to old dogs is never straightforward. The older your dog is, the more stuck in their bad habits they are, and barking probably feels like part of their personality by now.

Fortunately, with perseverance you could end your dog’s barking campaign in just a few weeks, finally granting you a relaxing and peaceful day at home. If your dog’s barking aggravates the neighbors too, then getting it sorted might also make you more popular the next time you step out of the front door. So don’t be deterred by the challenge ahead, it won’t be easy, but it will definitely be worth it!

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Getting Started

Before you start tackling the noisy problem at hand, you need to get together a few things. Firstly, get your hands on some treats so you can reward your dog when he makes progress. Also invest in some food puzzles to keep him distracted.

If you’re going to use the ‘Gadgets’ method, you need to get your hands on any number of bark collars and deterrents. They can be bought from a range of online stores and plenty of local pet stores.

Apart from that you just need a positive attitude, a good degree of patience and maybe some ear plugs!

Now you’re prepared, it’s time to tackle that noise pollution…

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The Tackle the Cause Method

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Food puzzles

Your dog may partly be barking because he has got nothing better to do and knows barking will bring some attention. So if there are particular times of the day your dog barks, give him food puzzles to distract them. This will not only keep him quiet, but it will tire him out, sapping his energy for barking.

2

Exercise

Your dog may be barking because he is full of energy, so increase the amount of exercise you give to knacker him out. You don’t necessarily have to walk him again, just throw a ball or stick while you’re on your normal walk to keep him constantly running.

3

Take away the motivation to bark

If your dog barks when he sees people walking past the house, then draw the curtains and you’ll be afforded some peace and quiet. Your dog will bark less and less, breaking the constant habit.

4

Turn on the TV or radio

If your dog barks when he hears strangers or other dogs, leave the radio on so your dog can’t hear over the noise. He’ll be none the wiser to the people passing by and you can go back to that early evening nap. This again will break the need for him to constantly bark and will slowly break the habit.

5

Provide toys

You can get your hands on a whole range of dogs toys online and from local pet shops. All can keep your dog preoccupied for hours at a time. If he’s dead set on ripping the ear off a toy monkey, then he won’t even have time to bark! By doing all of the above, your dog will bark less and less as he is more distracted and the motivation to bark will be taken away, until eventually he breaks the habit entirely.

The Gadgets Method

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Deterrent collars

Consider fitting your dog with a deterrent collar that provides a negative consequence when he barks. Be cautious if you are in a densely populated canine area, as other dogs' barking may set them off.

2

Noise collar

Fit your dog with a special bark collar that slowly trains your dog not to bark. When your dog barks, the collar transmits a high frequency sound that dogs don’t like. This will see to it your dog associates barking with an unpleasant sound.

3

Citronella collar

If noise collars don’t reduce your dog’s barking, then try a citronella collar. When your dog barks, an unpleasant burst of citronella will be released.

4

Spray collar

Many dogs love jumping in ponds, but hate being hosed down after. Inspired by that, you can now get collars that spray a short burst of water towards your dog’s face when he barks. He will soon realize if he wants to keep dry, he’d better keep quiet.

5

Head halter

If collars aren’t doing the job, you can try a head halter. They slip over your dog's mouth and when your dog barks you gently pull on the leash, closing their mouth. This will quickly signal to them that barking will have consequences.

6

Muzzle

Once your dog starts to bark, put a muzzle over its mouth. Dogs dislike the feeling of muzzles and he will quickly learn not to bark. You will soon get to the point where even getting the muzzle out will silence the barking and eventually they’ll give the barking game up all together.

The Incentivize Silence Method

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Bark on command

It might sound crazy, but before you can command your dog to be quiet, you need to teach him to bark. So say ‘speak’, wait for him to bark two or three times, then reward them with a treat.

2

Practice

It might be more noise than you can bear, but keep repeating this training until you can command your dog to bark without the promise of treats every time.

3

Time for 'quiet'

Firstly command your dog to ‘speak’. Then when they’ve barked two or three times, say ‘quiet’ in a firm voice and hold the treat in front of their nose. When they go quiet to sniff the treat, give them the treat and verbally praise them. Repeat this process until they don’t need a treat to successfully respond.

4

Practice in a loud environment

Time to practice your ‘speak’ and ‘quiet’ commands when there are other distractions around, such as friends, family and other dogs.

5

Ditch the 'speak'

Your dog should now distinguish between rewards for barking and rewards for silence. So gradually decrease your use of ‘speak’ and instead only command them to be ‘quiet’. It may take weeks of practice, but your old dog will eventually get the message and bark less and less, until he’s so quiet you actually miss the odd bark!

Written by Amy Caldwell

Veterinary reviewed by:

Published: 01/02/2018, edited: 01/08/2021

Training Questions

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Training Questions and Answers

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Jewel

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Husky/Shepherd

Dog age icon

Eight Years

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Question

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Barks and is very anxious around my son, who visits regularily and she has known him since she was born in this same house. We have 2 other dogs 1 sister 1 mom, who do not react that way toward him. Also my son now has a 1 year old female puppy, who gets along with sister and mom but not Jewel. We desperately want them to pack, but are very concious that we need some technics to avoid escalating aggression

Jan. 14, 2023

Jewel's Owner

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Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer

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1133 Dog owners recommended

Hello, I highly recommend hiring a professional trainer who has a lot of experience with aggression and reactivity to work with you in person for this case. I also recommend desensitizing her to wearing a basket muzzle so that tool can be used in training for safety. The muzzle can be introduced gradually ahead of time using treats so she will be willing to wear the muzzle, and not just associate it with your son of the puppy. Check out this youtube playlist to learn about desensitizing. This playlist is most applicable for reactivity related to fear or suspiciousness. If there is true aggression or the issue is more related to possessiveness, resource guarding, dominance or competing behavior, or rage, a different approach will likely be needed. Its important to work with a qualified trainer to determine all of that, and to take the right safety measures like the muzzle or a crate or back tie leash while around your son or the other dog, to prevent a potential bite or attack. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXtcKXk-QWojGYcl1NCg5UA5geEnmpx4a Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Jan. 16, 2023

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Tess

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Sheltie/Border Collie

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Seven Years

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Tess goes into a barking frenzy every time the phone rings; she barks at every slight noise outside my apartment door; she barks every time I sneeze; she barks profusely when she sees a person or dog (or nothing I can see) outside even at a distance, etc., etc. She has been doing this since she was a puppy-she is 7 years & 10 months old. I have been saying 'NO' to her every time, but most of the time she will just keep barking! Also, she wears a halter collar, but she still doesn't obey my 'heel' command frequently. HELP!!

Dec. 13, 2022

Tess's Owner

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Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer

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1133 Dog owners recommended

Hello, First, know that Sheltie's were actually bred to bark as a way to herd small livestock on the Shetland islands where winds can mean animals not being able to hear a quieter dog, so the barking probably comes somewhat naturally to her. I suggest combining a few things in your case. First, you need a way to communicate with her so I suggest teaching the Quiet command from the Quiet method in the article I have linked below - don't expect this alone to work but it will be part of the puzzle for what I will suggest next. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-shih-tzu-puppy-to-not-bark Next, once pup understands what Quiet means you will choose an interrupter - which will be a form of punishment - neither too harsh nor ineffective. An e-collar or Pet Convincer are two of the most effective types of interrupter for most dogs. A pet convincer is a small canister of pressurized, unscented air that you can spray a quick puff of at the dog's side to surprise them enough to help them calm back down. (Don't use citronella and avoid spraying in the face!). An e-collar, aka remote training collar, uses stimulation to interrupt the dog. Only use a high quality e-collar for this, such as E-collar technologies mini educator, Dogtra, SportDog, or Gamin. A good collar should have at least 40 levels, the more levels the more accurately you can train - finding the lowest level your dog will respond to, called a "Working level" so the training is less adverse. In situations where you know pup will bark or is already barking (catch them before they bark if you can), command "Quiet". If they obey, reward with a treat and very calm praise. If they bark anyway or continue to bark, say "Ah Ah" firmly but calmly and give a brief correction. Repeat the correction each time they bark until you get a brief pause in the barking. When they pause, praise and reward then. The combination of communication, correction, and rewarding - with the "Ah Ah" and praise to mark their good and bad behavior with the right timing, is very important. Most bark training only gives part of that equation. Fitting an e-collar - it should be put on while she is calm, just standing around - Ideally have her wear the collar around for a while before starting any training so she won't associate the training with the collar but just with her barking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLxB6gYsliI Finding the level to use for her (sometimes you will have to go 1 or 2 levels higher during training while the dog is aroused but once she improves you can usually decrease back to her normal level again) - this training level is called a dog's "Working level": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cl3V8vYobM Once pup is calmer in general after the initial training, practice exposing her a lot to the things that trigger the barking normally (make a list - even if it's long). Whenever she DOESN'T bark around something that she normally would have, calmly praise and reward her to continue the desensitization process. An automatic bark collar can also be used during times when she likes to bark while you aren't there after the initial training is done - so she understands that the correction is for her barking at that point in the training. While you are not home, confine her in a crate or room that isn't by that apartment door, so she isn't practicing barking the whole time you are away. Barking is a self-rewarding behavior because of the arousing chemicals released in a dog's brain - so once a dog starts she is encouraged naturally to continue it and stay in that state of mind if you aren't there to interrupt. Finally, she also needs to be desensitized to the things she barks at the address her over reaction to noises, in addition to working on the communication and self-rewarding effects of barking mentioned above. Check out the Desensitize method from the article with the Quiet method I have linked below. Additionally, check out this trainer's barking videos, including the Barking at Scary Objects, Barking at Noises, and Barking at the Door episodes. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAA4pob0Wl0W2agO7frSjia1hG85IyA6a Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

Dec. 15, 2022


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