Barking Corgi

My corgi, Lucy, is 13 months old now. She is a great dog and has been very attentive to training, except for the barking. The past six months or so, her barking is just out of control. We live in an apartment, so whenever she hears people coming in she goes crazy. It's nice to have a watchdog, but when we tell her to be quiet, she won't listen. Has anyone else had this problem? I've heard that corgis are very vocal, but this is getting out of hand.
We go on walks and to the dog park, I play with her inside and outside to get her the exercise and stimulation she needs, but even at the end of the day if she hears one noise that she doesn't recognize, she's off.
Thanks!

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Permalink Reply by Sam on February 5, 2008 at 6:29pm

I have to guess she is still not getting quite enough exercise. This is not an uncommon problem for many corgis and especially for young ones that have an over abundance of energy. There are several training methods that you can use. As with redirecting any behavior remember that you have to catch them "at the moment" and be consistent. Some folks do well to have a spray bottle with water. You need to develop a command such as "quiet" or "hush" Give the command once and if they do not comply give a quick squirt in the face. This does not hurt them but does get there attention quickly. Praise lightly when they comply. Some folks have luck with a can half full of pennies. This makes a loud noise that will also get their attention quickly. This is not a chosen method for a sensitive dog. I often recommend putting a dog on lead and tying them to you so corrections can be made immediately. You may find this to be helpful for this behavior. Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Charlie on February 5, 2008 at 7:12pm

After the dog park Saturday, Charlie and I stopped for a bag of dog food. A couple came over and were asking about Corgis since they (of course) thought Charlie was very cute! They were trying to decide on a dog breed for their next dog. The man's final question was "Do they bark a lot?" I said, "Oh yes! Corgis can be quite the barkers!" From the look on the guy's face, I guess they may not be getting a Corgi. LOL

Charlie's barking is somewhat under my control. My initial idea was to teach him to "Speak!" on command, so that I could then shake my head "No" or give him a "Speak" command followed a "Quiet" or "No Speak" command so he knew there was a difference. Funny thing though, when he's barking his head off I can look at him and say, "Charlie. Speak! Speak!". He gets really quiet and looks at me like "I don't know what you mean." Silly dog. "Speak!" makes him be quiet. LOL