Hello! Recently, probably since around the clock change and darker nights, Ellis has started barking at people on walks. He doesn’t do this during the day, nor does he bark at everyone at night - not sure who he considers ‘barkable’ or not. He isn’t much of a barker generally (on daytime walks or at home), though he does occasionally make himself heard if someone new comes into the house. So far, we’ve tried distracting him, focusing his attention on us, and treating when he’s quiet. I wonder if it’s his second fear stage kicking in? He’s around five and a half months old. Have any of you come across this before, and what did you do or what would you suggest?
Hi there, Bit of a different circumstance but around 6mths my puppy has had a few barking episodes at night... I asked the vet wondering if it was an age thing... He did say she was at the age were age developing sexually and so it can effect them mentally as well. It didn't sound like it was a definite reason for the barking but yeah...
Thanks @Me and my dog! Useful to know, even if circumstances are a bit different. My main concerns are that the barking becomes more prevalent (during the day, at home, and so on), or that he frightens someone, which would be understandable at night. If it’s something he’s likely to ‘grow out of’, we’ll just need to keep a watchful eye. But if there’s something we can proactively do, I’d like to try it
I’d suggest that rather than rewarding for quiet that you go down the classical conditioning route and make an association between people ( in the dark) and food. So as soon as your dog sees a person, give food. If he won’t take food, then when you see people move further away but still give food.
It could be that walking in the dark is just a little scary, and he is lacking in confidence in this situation. Maybe find somewhere quiet, and don't plan to walk a route -so you are not trying to get from A to B in a set time. Maintain a good distance between yourself and other dogs/people but praise and give Ellis treat everytime he sees a person or something he usually feels he has to bark at. Gradually Ellis will build positive associations with meeting people and things when walking in the dark. Have a search for LAT training on the forum.
