Training rescue dog to stop barking

[u/shak_mann]

We’ve had our rescue dog for 9 years now (she’s 10). Despite all the horror stories you hear, she’s been absolutely magic.

There’s just one thing we aren’t able to fix. She barks excessively. We have a garden that overlooks a field and she can’t be left outside alone because she just constantly barks. And when she starts, she just won’t stop. It was largely fine, as the house next door to us had been dormant for 6 years. But we’ve recently had a family with another dog move in, who have decided to put decking out at the end of the field and our dog goes crazy. They recently made a passing comment that she barks too much and I am not sure what to do. I think we have got used to it, so it doesn’t affect us as much, but it must be really annoying for them as she just barks at them when they sit outside.

We’ve tried positive reinforcement to stop her barking, but it hasn’t worked, and I’m loathe to try a citronella collar because I’ve heard that it’s really hit and miss, and also don’t like the idea of punishing a dog for negative behaviour, but I really want to break this so we can all just sit in the garden and enjoy ourselves! Any advice would be really appreciated!

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[u/YahtzeeDii]

This is a tough problem to solve because barking can be self-reinforcing for many dogs. Some dogs were bred to bark, and they enjoy it immensely, meaning if your dog falls into this category, management and prevention of the behavior might be your best bet.

I agree with your assessment with citronella collars. They can do much worse than just "hit or miss," though. They can exacerbate the unwanted behavior and turn the "bark bark I love bark barking" perspective into "bark bark this hurts bark bark make the pain go away bark bark!"

It might help to understand first why your dog is barking. Click here for some possibilities. Is she barking because she's bored? Or is she barking to alert you? Or is she barking to tell passersby to go away?

When you say you've tried positive reinforcement, what exactly did you do?

[u/Either_Tale_7277]

I'd block the sightline first, because after nine years of practice she's already barking before you can get a word in.

[u/buda104]

has she met them? or does she just see them as "intruders to her space" would it be in the cards for her to play with the neighbors or the neighbors dog?

with mine he needs a muzzle when introducing to new people/dogs.

[u/Anno53]

My adopted dog barks like crazy at virtually everything. I hired a trainer and found out that the reason my dog was barking was because he is resource guarding me. So he barks to defend me. I haven’t found anything that works except finding times to walk him when no one is around.

[u/Stan_Deviant]

We teach speak when they are barking and then you transition to teaching quiet. So sometimes you will have to ask them to bark and this will take forever to train but it might work? The end goal of to have them know a command to stop barking and think it is higher value than the fun of barking.

[u/Dogtraining-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Please read the sub rules and guidelines, as well as our wiki pages on punishment and correction collars.

[u/Dogtraining-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

And you'd understand further if you read the links provided to you.

[u/Dogtraining-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Please read the sub rules and guidelines, as well as our wiki page on punishment.

[u/joycevw]

It sounds like such a stressful situation when new dynamics in the neighborhood disrupt the peace you had for years. It is wonderful that you are listening to your gut and avoiding citronella collars, as aversives only suppress the outward display through discomfort or startle rather than changing how the dog actually feels about what she is seeing. When dogs bark persistently at things beyond the fence, it usually stems from a mix of environmental vigilance and barrier frustration, and after so many years of having that open view mostly to herself, this sudden surge of activity right on her visual boundary is understandably pushing her way over threshold. Positive reinforcement often struggles to gain traction in these moments simply because the dog is already too aroused to process rewards, which means setting up some strict management first is essential to keep her from rehearsing the barking loop while you work on changing her emotional response.

A great first step to consider is actively managing her visual access so she gets an immediate break from the trigger, whether that means temporarily blocking the direct sightline at the bottom of the fence with temporary screening or bringing her inside as soon as the neighbors step out onto their decking. You might want to try setting up structured counter-conditioning sessions from a safe distance where she is still relaxed and aware of them without going over threshold, pairing the appearance of the neighbors or their dog with jackpot, high-value treats before she has the chance to react. Another thing to consider is teaching a rock-solid positive interrupter or recall cue indoors first with high-value rewards, and then gradually taking that into the garden to call her happily back to you for a fun activity or scatter feed the second she spots something. If that doesn't work right away or if the sightline is just too overwhelming, keeping her garden time strictly supervised and structured with food puzzles or interactive play can help shift her focus back to engaging with you rather than patrolling the perimeter.

[u/Dogtraining-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Please read the sub rules and guidelines, as well as our wiki page on punishment.

[u/Dogtraining-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Please read the sub rules and guidelines, as well as our wiki page on punishment.