How to Train a Dachshund to Stop Barking

Let's say the dog has a habit of barking excessively when visitors come to the door. You can't then hear what the guests are saying and gives the impression the dog is out of control. One solution is to give the dog an alternative activity to do, in order to distract him. Many dogs will fall silent when they are busy with a different command. Suitable actions include going to a mat or bed, or fetching a special toy. (The latter has the added benefit that when the dog holds something in his mouth it helps to muffle the barks.)

This technique has the dog fetch a favorite toy and offer it to you in anticipation of a reward. Find a toy the dog really likes, perhaps a cuddly toy or a squeaky. Make it extra special by playing with it one-to-one for a few minutes every day but then removing it so the dog doesn't get bored with it.

Start training the dog to fetch the toy, but without any distractions (such as the door bell going). You will introduce the other factors later, once the dog is reliably fetching the toy. Start by moving the toy to make it exciting and then praising the dog when he takes it. Have him sit, and then give him a treat when he gives up the toy. Toss the toy so that he gets it back again, and give him lots of praise.

Now, instead of giving the dog the toy, routinely toss it away so that he scampers after it and brings it back to you. Give him lots of excited praise and a small treat reward. Do this several times. At the end of the session, bring things to a close with a high value, long-lasting treat such as a chew bone.

Now add in the doorbell. Engage the dog in fetch with the toy. When he's really into the game, have a friend ring the doorbell once. If the dog barks, immediately distract him with the toy. Then when he brings the toy back, praise him and give a high-value chew bone as a reward. The dog now has something more interesting than bothering about the door and retires to his bed to chew. Ultimately, learn to keep a toy handy by the door, so you are prepared to distract him when visitors call for real.

You can train a dog to fall silent on command when he first understands the "Bark" cue. By teaching the dog to bark, he can then be rewarded for the opposite - the absence of barking we call 'quiet'. You are then able to put silence on cue and reward the dog, hence cutting him off mid barking session.

This sounds bonkers for sure, but teaching the dog to bark on command is essential to teaching 'quiet'. Work out some way of making the dog bark. Something as simple as standing with your back to the wall and knocking on it with your fist, usually does the trick. Knock, and when the dog barks, say "Bark" in a happy voice. When he woofs, praise him and give a treat. Repeat this several times.

Now try saying "Bark" ahead of knocking on the wall. If the dog woofs, congratulations, you have put barking on cue and can move onto the next step.

Use "Bark" to make the dog woof. Praise and reward him. Give a treat and while he's eating the treat, gently hold his muzzle and say "Quiet". Immediately give him another treat to reward the silence. Repeat this.

You'll get a feel for the quality of the silence after the bark. When the dog is paying more attention to you, looking for a reward, than to barking, then you are ready to try and silence him mid-bark. This time say "Bark" and wait. Let him bark a couple of times, then say "Quiet" ahead of giving the treat. If he falls silent, give him max praise and a treat. Well done! Now you just need to practice... plenty.

Your Doxie may have little legs but he still needs plenty of exercise and mental stimulation. Be sure to play with him regularly and take him for walks, along with regular obedience training sessions. This helps prevent boredom, which matters because a bored dog will find his own amusement, which for a Dachshund usually involves barking.

Shouting at a barking dog only gets him more excited and rewards him with attention. The dog may even believe you are trying to join in and making a poor job of it. Either way, don't shout at him to be quiet, it's not a long-term solution (even if it does make you feel better).

If the dog does an experimental bark, ignore him. This avoids the pitfall of accidentally rewarding the bark with attention. However, if he barks when the mailman comes to the door, he's trying to warn you about a potential threat. Simply saying, "Good job, Fido, I hear you. I have this now," may be all the reassurance he needs to stop barking, safe in the knowledge he's done his job of alerting you.

If your Dachshund lies on the sofa back and barks at people passing the window, then there is an obvious trigger. The trick here is to prevent him seeing the people walking by. Do this by putting the sofa in a different location or by obscuring the view from the lower half of the window. A cafe-type curtain or using a frosted glass effect spray on the lower part of the window are both effective ways of doing this.

Barking is habit-forming. If you leave the dog in the yard all day he will get bored and bark at people walking by, leaves fluttering, or moving shadows. Instead, take him for plenty of walks or have him go to doggie daycare if you are out all day.