Barking

[KellyRobertson]

My 8 month old wheaten has recently started to bark at any and all noises. If we are inside he barks at noises from the tv, from pots and pans, noises from outside (other dogs, trucks on the street), if we are outside he barks and lunges at any loud vehicle that drives by (buses, trucks, motorcycles). He doesn't bark at the doorbell or when we meet other people or dogs.
He barks at me when I sit down at my computer. and recently is barking  at us when we sit down to eat dinner.  Lately, he has started barking in the middle of the night at animal noises he hears from our backyard (sleeps on the floor of our bedroom) I have tried telling him to lie down, taking him outside, but not working so far. 
Help, how can I stop this very annoying behaviour?

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hi Kelly,

Welcome to the forums!

That sounds like a lot of barking, but interestingly, he's not barking at something that most dogs bark at: the doorbell!

From your description it sounds like you may be dealing with a variety of forms of barking, from anxious barking, to possible territorial barking and some attention seeking barking as well. These forms of barking will need a different approach.  

I will be posting some tips on these various forms of barking shortly. In the meanwhile, you may find some general pointers in this section of the course:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/behavior-training/barking/

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Since it appears that this behavior has increased now that your dog is 8 months, have there been any recent changes?  Is he neutered? Are all these forms of barking  new? Or were some of them there before and have just increased? If so, which ones are new and which ones have just increased?

Thanks for these extra details. 

 

[KellyRobertson]

Thanks for guiding me to the pointers section.
He was neutered the end of August, so fairly recently. We did have a full house (everyone home from school for the last year because of covid) now the house is just me and him. Since we adopted him, there had always been 6 people in the house, now my husband is back in the office and my kids have all gone back to school. When he was young he barked at new loud, loud noises on the street and the tv. But he seemed to get used to it. He has barked at me in the past when I sit down at the computer (attention seeking) but what is fairly new, he barks whenever we get food, especially when we sit down and he can see the food. If we move to the kitchen counter and it's not at his level he quiets. We have recently changed from kibble to a variety of raw and gently cooked foods, which he loves. Before he was not interested in the kibble and is very picky what treats he likes for training, now he can't wait for his meals. I wonder if he has become obsessed with food. The barking at meal time is new, but the others forms of barking have just increased recently. The barking in the middle of the night seems to have been a one off.
Thanks for your help!

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Thank you for the extra details, they are very helpful!

It sounds like a lot of changes have been going on (recently neutered, kids backs to school, husband back at the office) and changes can be unsettling for dogs as they like routines and they surely love having all the family around. This may cause some stress which may manifest through new behaviors or certain behaviors becoming more consistent. 

Based on your info provided, here are few tips/ideas: 

For attention seeking barking: Dogs who bark for attention typically do so while they're looking at the owner and they're usually hoping for the owner to interact. When you take your eyes off computer and look at your dog, talk to him or check what he wants, you are reinforcing this barking since attention fuels this behavior. Even if you scold your wheaten for barking, it doesn't matter. Scolding still qualifies as a form of attention--even if it's of the negative type. 

 If your wheaten barks at you when he's bored and wants attention, try your best to ignore him.  Then, when he gives up and leaves, wait a few seconds and praise and reward him.

Now, during the process, be aware of extinction bursts, that is, the phenomenon of the barking increasing or morphing into something else (like pawing at you, nudging you with his nose) in hopes of generating a response. Ignore the extinction bursts as well. If you give attention to any of these behaviors at this crucial time, you'll have reinforced persistence. If you instead ignore the barking (and any other attention-seeking behaviors piggy-backing it), it should gradually subside. 

However, make a mental note and find ways to strategically prevent these episodes of barking from occurring in the first place. For instance, if your wheaten barks at you in the evening when you sit on the couch or read emails, make sure to walk him first, play with him and then strategically give him a long-lasting edible or stuffed Kong to enjoy while you're busy. The goal is to have him tired enough so that his needs for interaction have been exhausted while also giving him something productive to do. 

For Barking at Predictable Noises: If you know exactly which sounds are known to trigger a bout of barking, preempt this form of barking by using the hear that method outlined here: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/fear-noises/

For barking at night in response to noises:  The traditional term used by terrier-men for barking is "giving voice." In the past, this distinctive trait of barking when aroused turned useful when terriers were sent out for hunting. Indeed, the barking was selectively strengthened  over several generations due to its usefulness. 

It could have happened that the terrier was trapped somewhere or was difficult to locate. In such cases, barking served as a locator beacon and the louder the barking, the better. Whether barking from arousal or barking from frustration, such as when the dog is prevented from hunting (like being behind a fence or locked in the home), it comes as no surprise that barking is a rather normal affair when living with a terrier. 

To reduce this form of barking it may help to animal proof your yard as much as possible with the right type of fencing. Another option is to hire an exterminator using pet-friendly methods to get your home or yard free of unwanted critters. A tenacious terrier won't typically give up barking from arousal or barking to be let out to hunt. Terriers struggle giving up when they sense critters and they have very sensitive hearing that helps them detect the faintest sounds. Playing some white noise at night (fan, white noise machine) may help somewhat buffer noises. 

For barking at the TV:  

 

Here's a thread on that: 

For Barking/begging at the table: 

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/begging/

Many dogs get more appetite once they get a taste of raw, homemade foods. Make sure with your vet that he's getting the correct portions and that it's nutritionally balanced. 

For barking/lunging at cars:  Wheaten terriers, as other terriers, tend to get hyper aroused when they see something that triggers them. Their tenacity combined with their hyper aroused state, often seen when their adrenaline kicks in, often causes the rest of the world (including you!)  to magically vanish. 

Removing his focus once he's in this state of mind may feel like an arduous task, however, you can gain some leeway by learning how to keep your terrier below that critical stimulation threshold so he can pay better attention to you. 

Often your best bet when your wheaten is barking at something on walks is to increase distance from whatever excites him and keep moving. Putting more distance will help him stay under threshold so you can keep his focus on you. Here is a read on threshold levels: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/

Walking him at a distance from cars can therefore be a good starting point. Once you can have his attention, you can work on creating a solid respond to the smacking sound https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/the-airplane-game/the-smacking-sound/

More general tips for barking:

-Keep that brain and body busy. Wheaten terriers thrive on exercise, training and mental stimulation and therefore love to be kept busy. This isn't surprising since they were bred to hunt, run, dig and bark on a daily basis. Fail to keep these dogs busy, and they may find their own forms of entertainment such as barking, digging, jumping, chewing and nipping. So make sure to provide regular exercise, socialization, training and mental stimulation (brain games, food puzzles). A tired wheaten terrier is much easier to live with and train.

-Keep your voice low. Often, when dogs bark, we feel like yelling. When you yell at your dog when he's barking, he likely thinks you are barking too. Your dog won't likely understand why you are so upset.

-Redirect your terrier with play. Many terriers get frustrated and bark often because they don't have a chance to chase critters as they would like. Provide your dog an outlet. For instance, when your terrier barks (or better, when he is about to bark) you can wiggle a flirt pole (stick with a stuffed animal attached) and let him play with that, occasionally rewarding by tossing some tasty treats to the ground. 

Train to respond to a smacking sound.https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/the-airplane-game/the-smacking-sound/ Grab some tasty treats and practice at home in a quiet setting making a smacking sound and then feeding your terrier a treat. Repeat several times until your wheaten realizes that every time you make this sound, a tasty treat follows. Next, try doing this exercise in the yard and then once you get a solid response practice it when your wheaten sees triggers by the window or on walks. Here is an example of he exercise using a window: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/university/look-at-that/

Be determined to help your dog succeed. Terriers aren't the easiest dogs to train. Training a wheaten terrier requires a good level of determination. You'll need to be equally focused, persistent and tenacious as your dog is. 

I hope this helps,

Happy training!

 

[KellyRobertson]

Great info.
We are just beginning preschool so hopefully with some brain training and some patience, along with putting the above tips to use, my little boy will learn better things to do than barking.
Thanks, can't wait to get started!

[Adrienne Farricelli]

You're very welcome! Keep us posted on how things go. 

[Jim]

Hi 

Our dog Sully barks at everything i cannot seem to get a handle on it he barks at people on the street, people at the door, other dogs and faint dogs barking in the distance and at nothing we hear. He is a rescue and we have had hom about 3 years, he is a good dog but his barking is driving us crazy. We have tried your recommendations with no improvement, can you help us.

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hi Jim,

This barking seems to stem from some deep underlying anxiety. It's unfortunate but with some adult rescues, we don't know what they may have gone through. Most likely there is some underlying issues at play such as lack of socialization when he was young or even some negative events. Some dogs may be genetically prone to being reactive through exposure to stress hormones in the womb. While it's true that we can't change genes or a dog's past, a calm and nurturing environment can have a positive impact. 

Can you please report exactly what methods you have tried so far, for how long and what happened? Was he too "over threshold" to follow directions and take treats? 

Have you worked on creating a strong response to the smacking sound?

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/the-airplane-game/the-smacking-sound/

Have you tried the "hear that" method? 

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/fear-noises/

Have you tried the "white noise" for the barking at night?

For people at the door, here are some guides:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/behavior-training/barking/doorbells-knocks-on-doors/

For barking when somebody enters the home/room:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/dog-barking-someone-enters-room/

Is he kept outside in the yard on his own for most of the day? Or is he barking at people on the street from inside the home? 

Is he barking at other dogs on walks? The look at that method first used indoors and then used outdoors on walks can help with that, it's based on the smacking sound:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/university/look-at-that/

Please provide some details on what you have tried and what happened and we can do some troubleshooting.