We have a beautiful lab who is perfect in every way apart from when we have to discipline him! If we stop playing with him or have to take something he shouldn’t have off him, he will start barking at us. He’s always fed, watered, well exercised and socialised. We’ve tried withdrawing attention but he will sometimes try to jump at us when we do that so we then end up giving him time out like we used to when he was a few months old. This generally calms him and we give him lots of praise but it will then start up again (up to several times in the day) before he finally crashes out. This has only started over the last couple of months. Is this ‘teenage’ behaviour or something else? Any advice appreciated!
I can't give any advice on whether this is an age associated behaviour. However, Rusty is also currently having a difficult time accepting that playtime is over. If we go to a location that he associates with playtime, especially the beach, he will become very excited and start bouncing up next to me waiting for the ball. His nose will be poking my hands on my pockets and it will go on for ages. I found this behaviour unsettling so I did some googling and decided to let him go cold turkey from ball games for a while and to also I have started spreading my fingers and showing him there is no ball and saying 'game over'. I have yet to see the results of this so it might be terrible advice. Hopefully someone else will offer some better understanding.
Hi @RobbieD1506 I suspect you are inadvertently reinforcing the barking. Puppy barks gets your attention. So when you stop something if he barks enough you will interact with him even if it is an annoying glance. Extinction will occur if the dog does not get any payoff. So you have to make sure you don't give any payoff to the dog. Think. What is the dog getting out of the barking?
Thanks, I will keep completely ignoring when he does this (I have been doing this but possibly need to keep going for longer).
It sounds like he might be under-stimulated - and needs more exercise/training/food or treat puzzles and stimulation generally..... He is barking because he wants you to interact with him and provide him with stimulation in some way - why not identify that need, and meet it, in order to solve the barking?
But he has 2 walks a day, lots of play, some kong puzzles which we put some of his food in and basic training every day so we are “meeting his needs” thank you.
Hi @RobbieD1506 my answer and Jo Laurens' observation are not necessarily inconsistent with each other. Dogs can bark out of frustration. The dog's expectation of mental stimulation might exceed your expectation of how much exercise to undertake. My comment was just on the point that if you respond to the dog's barking, then barking can be reinforced. So here's a suggestion. Wait for 10 seconds while the dog is quiet, after perhaps barking at you (in doing so barking itself is not rewarded), then play a game with him that involves him using his brain--say find it with some of his treats. If the barking dissipates/stops, then you have evidence that his expectations exceed your expectations-- that he needs more mental stimulation. Walks as conventionally undertaken by humans, in which one beats a path along a footpath are not particularly mentally demanding events for dogs.
Thank you Michael, I think that’s very constructive advice that you’ve given me and I will definitely try this
It's not so much having '2 walks a day', but ideally you should be providing a new *experience* every day - such as going to find an escalator, taking a ride in an elevator, having a playdate with a well-socialised adult dog, going to a pet store - and so on. Puppies don't need 'walks' - they need new experiences, which will leave them mentally tired and much easier to manage, at home...
I meant walking in general. We tend to take him to different places on these walks most days. He goes to daycare 3 times a week, he visits fields, streams where he’s began to swim, shops, other friends’ houses, garden centres, goes in the car, wait for my partner at the bus stop etc. So every week we’re taking him to different places/to see different people). Just ask me what I’m doing/where I’m going rather than assuming...
well to clarify: I walk him in different places most weeks (a variety of towns, country, shops, car parks, on buses, fields, streams, hills etc.) Does this count as new experiences? I, of course, welcome any further advice on what else I could be doing to combat the barking aside from what I’ve already mentioned. Thank you.
@RobbieD1506 behaviour occurs because it is being reinforced in some way. Behaviour which is not reinforced, stops. Therefore if you have ongoing barking occurring, you need to look at what is happening and how you are responding to it - because science tells us that you have been reinforcing it in some way. Once you have identified how you are reinforcing it, you need to remove that reinforcement for a prolonged period of time until the behaviour stops.
