Hi everyone, our little 11 wk old lab Neville is doing so well in most respects, but he has started to bark for my attention when I’m doing anything cooking/cleaning at the kitchen. It’s been like this for the last few days and I’m getting really worried he’s going to be ‘a barker’. It’s so loud and is making me resent him (then I feel bad because I know he’s just a baby). I completely ignore him, even when he nips at my legs and wait for the moment he falls quiet and sits and then say ‘Quiet’ and give him a little piece of his kibble. He then barks again after a few seconds and I wait til he’s quiet and repeat. I’m worried though that I’m teaching him ‘bark - be quiet - then get attention and a treat’. Hope that makes sense. Do I just need to stick with it and I’ll see a difference in a week? It feels like I’m rewarding his barking and he keeps doing it. If he’s barking because he’s bored and I give him a kong or similar in his play pen, is that also rewarding the barking? This first time puppy parenting is hard! Any help greatly appreciated. Liz
Our puppy is a bit barky too and like you I have been ignoring it, turning away etc. I try to work out when it might happen and preempt that time with training, a trip around the garden, or a Kong/treat ball. Our puppy is now 5.5 months and doesn't bark as much as he did so I think it's working... I think you're doing the right thing.
My 10 week old Sophie whines and is very vocal with other sounds I can't even describe in her playpen when she wants attention. What I've been doing is ignoring her and I wait until she's quiet for a good 30 seconds to 1 minute before I reward her for quiet and I say "good calm" and then when I'm walking by, if she is calm, I give her a treat and repeat "good calm" and it has helped slightly. Like you though, I always wonder if I'm doing the wrong thing and accidentally reinforcing the wrong behavior by mistake! It's kinda hard!
I’m glad it’s not just me who finds it confusing. Thanks for your response. I’m giving him something else to do when I’m trying to do things in the kitchen. Fingers crossed ignoring him when he barks and rewarding calm behaviour improves things.
