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Permalink Reply by Vanessa on January 28, 2014 at 3:24pm

Now, I'm sure I will get a lot of flak for this. First of all, this is a well known corgi trait. They bark A LOT. At anything, at anytime. My two bark in the middle of the night when my cats get too loud. It scares the crap out of me. Sometimes one will bark at someone walking across the street when s/he is on my lap and scare the snot out of me. They are very barky dogs. I was also getting some "feedback" from my neighbors about the barking, and yes, I caved and got the collar. They have ones that spray citronella when they bark, and they have the ones that give a graduated shock when they bark. I got the shock ones. It starts with a beep, and then it shocks, and it has 6 levels of shockitude. I have two, one for each dog, and they got the message real quick. Now all I have to do is show it to them and they zip it. You don't use it all day, it's just for a short time, but its a training aid, as I see it.  We have to live with them and they have to be civilized! I did a lot of research on the collars I chose for them, and the reviews said it was effective but not too severe.

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Permalink Reply by Jane Christensen on January 28, 2014 at 10:23pm

I have a barking collar also(for Livvy) she was constantly barking...now I put it on once in awhile and she doesn't bark at all with it on. PS....my daughter and I tried it on my son-in-law, he barked till it shocked him...glad he was a good sport about it and we can say it was people "tested".

What works for my other Corgis is a spray bottle with water in and a stern "No Bark" as you spray.

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Permalink Reply by Holly on January 29, 2014 at 12:45am

Not sure if I am right about this but my dog (who almost never barks) did bark when I first adopted her this year at age three. I think it depends why they are barking. I was lucky because I have very dog friendly neighbors. Sully would bark in an almost anxious way about any noises she heard outside in the yard or in the hallway. It was sort of an alarm bark if she heard someone outside raking or collecting trash or walking in the hall. I would help her look out the window and she would stop barking when she saw the source of the sound was not a threat. With the neighbors I would open the door and show her the neighbor and my being friendly with the neighbor then give her a treat if she stopped barking. I tried not to let her avoid anyone, like the one woman she seemed most agitated by who always wore a hat. Not sure why she fears people, even small children in hats. I made her walk by that woman calmly (with the woman's consent) while I held the leash. It only took one try and she never barks now at that lady or any of the people she knows, even those wearing hats.

She also doesn't bark unless she can't see the source of the noise and she doesn't recognize the noise or the scent. I know she was never really a barker so it isn't the best comparison, but I really think the minimal barking she did initially could have become excessive if I weren't lucky enough to have patient neighbors who loved her from day one and were patient about letting her get used to living in an apartment with a new, often clueless owner(me). She did bark a few times early when the lady across the hall opened her door but now that they are best buds she just lays on the floor and tries to peek out at her through the crack under the door. Maybe your neighbor could try giving her a treat when/if she greets her (on the leash) without any barking, if she is open to helping her break the habit. Sully barks so seldom it shocks me when I hear it, but I have heard some corgis bark loudly and often. I don't know if they can be trained not to bark but I did get lucky for sure. Good luck. It can be nerve-wracking worrying about disturbing neighbors.

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Permalink Reply by Jane on January 29, 2014 at 12:47pm

Is she specifically barking at a person she sees, or is it just the noise of the door opening/person walking that she barks at?

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Permalink Reply by Samantha de Jager on January 29, 2014 at 1:30pm

She's barking when she hears the noise no matter who it is.

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Permalink Reply by Andrea on January 29, 2014 at 1:56pm

Sounds like my pup too. She's driving us crazy! She barks at every little freaking noise. Cat meows, Ein goes nuts! We've tried the citronella bark collar. It worked for like 2 days and then she got immune to it. She'd then growl/bark until it was empty and then go back to barking as usual. We were filling it up 5+ times a day and those cans don't last long and cost a fortune. We scrapped it and just ordered a shock one. It worked for my Dad's yorkie. So, we're going to try it before she drives us to insanity. GL!

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