The doorbells rings, and Fluffy immediately starts barking to ward off the intruder. Except the intruder is actually your mother-in-law, who now is judging you by your dog's behavior. If you're familiar with this scenario, you can stop your pup's behavior by using a whistle to help you train her.
Step 1
Teach your pooch to speak on command, which helps her understand there's a time to bark and a time to zip it. When she barks, give her the "speak" command. If she barks after you say "speak," give her a treat. Continue working in short sessions over several days until she barks every time you say "speak," even when you spring it on her.
Step 2
Blow a whistle when your little diva decides to yap when you don't want her to. Make one sharp blow. This noise is likely to distract her from her barking just long enough for you to praise her and give her a treat.
Step 3
Blow the whistle again if she resumes her barking. When she pauses, praise her and give her another treat.
Step 4
Be consistent with the whistle training. Every time she barks during the training period, blow the whistle and give her treats and loving when she stops.
References
Tips
- Although you can't hear a dog whistle, Fluffy can hear it just fine. A standard whistle or dog whistle should work equally as well to stop her barking.
- Your training sessions should be short, no longer than 10 minutes each, although you can have several training sessions throughout the day.
- Instead of waiting for your pooch to bark randomly, have a friend help you by being her trigger, such as ringing the doorbell or picking up Fluffy's toys.