Too much Barking,,,help!
Hello all! I need some advice from my fellow corgi owners. I have read that Corgis are barkers due to their breed, however, my breeder denied this. Every book I have read since bringing him home on Corgis state that they are barkers. Oliver has always been an barker for appropriate things, but now he's out of control!! Barks all the way to daycare,, and ever since we've opened up the windows for the warmer weather, he barks at everything!! His hearing sensitivities are at an all time HIGH! Last night, I had to get up and close all the downstairs windows and that helped him.
As some of my friends know, we have nicknamed him "Bob Barker", or "Snarls Barkley!!" I don't understand the barking in the car ride. I thought dogs loved riding around in cars!! I used to let him sit up front but he has thrown me out of gear, opened windows, etc., so back in the back seat he went! Doesn't matter where he is in the car, he barks like crazy. I put on Classical music, give him a chewy, open the windows, pet him, and that seems to calm him down but am just wondering if others have the same kind of problems. My husband thinks it's due to him being traumatized by my car since it's the vehicle we brought him home from the breeders and it was a three hour ride. My husband picks him up in his truck when he is exhausted from daycare and he sleeps most of the way home. I drop him off in the morning when he's full of energy!! Any info or advice would be appreciated!
P.S. We will not use those barking shock collars.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Markley on
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Well, you can do one of three things.
1) Accept that corgis bark. At everything and anything. Especially when excited--that may be the source of the car rides. They bark at anything out of place. A butterfly. Anything.
2) Muzzle him. Quiets the bark to a simple "ruff". But not very aesthetically pleasing to the dog.
3) Teach him barking is not appropriate. Do a simple "shush" when he woofs. Go see what he is alerting at, and tell him it's OK. Shush him again when he lets loose. Do this over and over and over and over and over.....then resign yourself to the fact that all corgis bark. At anything.
Good luck. I've found it's a losing battle.
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Permalink Reply by Sandy Stickney on
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Our corgis know the "quiet" command, and are pretty good about shushing up when we use it, but yes, they alert to anything out of the ordinary, be it a sound (like a distant dog bark from over 2 blocks away), or something new in their environment (someone known to them came in our house wearing a hat). And I agree with you regarding the bark collars, although I have heard of some that emit a smell (citrus, I think) that they don't like, so a little more humane I suppose.
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Permalink Reply by John Wolff on
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Al and Gwynnie are virtually silent. They'll do just a little motion-activated barking at the soccer ball; they'll do a few warning barks at passersby or visitors (appropriate dog-alarm/doorbell); they'll fawn all over me with a lot of invitational/greeting barking when I come home. But they never bark at nothing. The breeder claims this seems to be characteristic of their family line. I don't know.
You must get this under control; a barking dog can be pure hell for neighbors. I don't know how it's done.
In the car, try crating? Seat belt harness? The different-car theory is interesting.
He should not be loose in the car (fatal head-on collision here once caused by a dog in the front seat; owner was among the dead).
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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on
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I have one barker and one non barker. Sparty likes to talk about almost everything although he doesn't bark in the car. My guess is that your's is just very excited when you take him to doggie care and that is the cause of in the car barking. I had a little luck with a little canister that released air but did not replace it when it ran out of gas. Also, Sparty will quiet down when I toss a magazine in the air (high tech I know) but I am afraid he is just a noisy one. He also, growls, whines and woofs at various times. He was great in obedience until he decided to bark in response to every command. I think some of the corgis are just so high energy that they have to release it somehow and barking works. When Sparty recently had to spend a couple nights in the hospital we could not get over how quiet the other two dogs were when we came home. Some people have had good luck with shaking pennies in a can or spraying water. That barely makes Sparty pause though. My other corgi(RIP) was not a barker either but I think it is just luck of the draw.
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Permalink Reply by Snickmom on
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I have used the Pet Corrector and it really helps. You have to be fairly close and have the can in hand, but the noise totally distracted Snickers from barking. Then immediately praise and treat for not barking. The hardest part was to keep it out of sight so that my son's friends didn't go "what's this? PSSHHHT.
http://www.petproductadvisor.com/store/mc/pet-corrector-b.aspx
I also look for the triggers and start talking to her before the event. For instance when they are locked in the laundry room and I am going to let them in the house she will get excited and bark. So before I open the door I start with "good girl no barking" over and over in a calm voice as I sloooowly open the door.
I would be interested to hear from anyone who used the citronella collars. I've read that some dogs will even improve by using these collars without anything in them, it will just puff out air. I am very lucky that Snickers is not an excessive barker, but I am enjoying learning all I can for any future problem.
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Permalink Reply by Diane on
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I tried a Citronella collar on mine... the first squirt surprised him and he actually stopped barking. Once. Then he proceeded to bark through the rest of the Citronella in the collar. It didn't even phase him. The good news is we didn't have any issues with mosquitoes that evening ;->
I should add, the person who lent me the collar says she has used it very successfully on her dog (not a corgi though).
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Permalink Reply by Mickey on
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Like Al and Gwynnie, Milo is virtually silent except for the usual Ahhrrooooo. He's had his moments but learned the Quiet command pretty quick. My previous corgi would bark at the UPS truck that was still a mile away and also incessantly at the doorbell (even doorbell on TV). I got the electric collar and that worked - corgis are smart and figure it out real quick. It's worth the time and effort to work with the electric collar. My friend, with a Welsh Terrier, who was a terror barker took a day to understand collar. New technology out there makes the collar very user friendly and effective and you don't have to be around to monitor it, although I would the first day. This collar corrects on the first bark, then if the dog continues, the collar intensifies. If dog continues the intensity increases until dog stops. I've seen it work. Highly recommend the collar - you will have peace in your life. My friends dog got used to the citronella and doesn't even care - continues to bark.
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Permalink Reply by Rachel and Jerry on
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I have a 5 month old Pembroke and she was barking at everything. I used a squirt bottle set on the mist setting and when she barked I gave her a little squirt and said no bark. She now only barks when she needs to go outside.
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Permalink Reply by susieq59 on
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Thank you all for your advice. Unfortunately, we've tried all but the muzzle,mist and shock collers. Shaking coin cans, and other noise distractors don't work. I have used citronella sprays for certain pieces of furniture and wood to keep my pets away from them, but it doesn't work for Oliver, so I doubt that kind of spray collar would work. I think you all made good points. Oliver is going to be 10 months in April so I do think the piece about him just being full of energy (and other things, lol) has a lot to do with it and I also think the new exposure to all the spring/summer sounds has a lot to do with it. I still believe it's part of his breed traits, but could also very well be his personality. We also do want him to bark as a good watch dog and we understand and accept when he barks at other dogs outside the fence or people approaching. He loves people and other dogs so that is more out of excitement and sometimes protecting. John is right though, we don't want him keeping our neighbors up and night and we have a good relationship with our neighbors which we would like to keep. We do praise him when he's barking for good reasons, and then tell him "enough" when he continues. Last night was a good night. It's funny that someone pointed out that their dog even barks at doorbells on tv, so does Oliver. I'm thinking it's just something we just have to keep correcting verbally and since he is such a smart dog, he will get it after a while. As for the car ride, what's a thundershirt? I have opened the windows in the back for him and sometimes that quiets him. He doesn't sit in the front seat because of the issues mentioned in my initial blog on this and I hadn't considered a car harness for him but it's worth looking into.
Anyway, thanks again for all your feedback! It's very much appreciated and if Jane would respond about the thundershirt, that would be great!
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Permalink Reply by Yuki & Ellie on
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The Thundershirt is a jacket for canines that fits snugly, providing a constant and gentle pressure, and relieves anxiety. Lots of people use them on their dogs during thunderstorms (hence the name), but they can be used for just about any situation where anxiety is an issue. The linked site has lots of information for you and can probably do a better job of explaining it than I can. :)
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