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Leeo was like this. Train him to "talk" ... By the time I was finished with my training ... Leeo could mimic the word "out" ... and he knew it meant outside to potty! I started by using his "talking" (those funny sounds) to my advantage and would give him a treat and make a big huge ordeal of it and praise him when he did. When he would bark I would say " I am not paying any attention to you when you bark... TALK!"
It took a while ... but then he would try and communicate with me about everything ... it was sooo adorable! He could sing too. Believe me ... he was a nuisance barker as a pup!
I am sure there are others who will come along and tell you to use the "Look at That" method ... which is the proper method. It is conditioning him to bark at only necessary things and to not become a nuisance barker.
When the dog sees something that he is about to bark at ... you say "Look at that!" ... and "Before" he barks give him a treat and lots of praise and say "Good Quiet" ... or whatever word(s) you choose. You have to catch the dog before he reaches his threshold. If you don't the barking will start and it will not be easy to correct.
This is what I have tried with Abbylynn. But I used a tug rope because it is her favorite thing to do. When I would see something I knew she was going to bark at ... I would quickly say "Look at that!" and give her the tug rope and play for about a minute. I did this for quite some time. She now brings me her tug rope to play with instead of barking. Actually this is a great way IMO to distract the dog before they bark ... and you don't have to count calories!
It took a while ... but then he would try and communicate with me about everything ... it was sooo adorable! He could sing too. Believe me ... he was a nuisance barker as a pup!
I am sure there are others who will come along and tell you to use the "Look at That" method ... which is the proper method. It is conditioning him to bark at only necessary things and to not become a nuisance barker.
When the dog sees something that he is about to bark at ... you say "Look at that!" ... and "Before" he barks give him a treat and lots of praise and say "Good Quiet" ... or whatever word(s) you choose. You have to catch the dog before he reaches his threshold. If you don't the barking will start and it will not be easy to correct.
This is what I have tried with Abbylynn. But I used a tug rope because it is her favorite thing to do. When I would see something I knew she was going to bark at ... I would quickly say "Look at that!" and give her the tug rope and play for about a minute. I did this for quite some time. She now brings me her tug rope to play with instead of barking. Actually this is a great way IMO to distract the dog before they bark ... and you don't have to count calories!
