The time has come, your dog has been non-stop barking and you can’t sleep or relax due to your dog’s barking.
I understand your pain, no matter what you have been doing your dog just keeps barking. Your friends have probably told you to just ignore it, it will stop…
However, you might not be able to wait 30 minutes for them to get tired and fall asleep. Especially, when it is 3 AM and you NEED to get back to bed.
Here are 6 ways you can silence your dog’s barking I have gathered from personal experience and from researching multiple sources across the web.
Table of Contents
How To Stop Your Dog From Barking
Bark Control Remote
If you want a quick and simple solution, bark control remote (link to Amazon). It’s a remote that plays an ultrasonic noise that only dogs are able to hear. This is a lifesaver, and you can use it if you are within 16.5 feet of your dog.
This is especially useful because sometimes when I am working at my desk and my dog is barking out of the window behind me I can simply turn around and put an end to the barking.
This is great if you are okay with getting up and using this but it won’t automatically go off when your dog starts barking.
Also, this is a good short term solution, but I would still try to use a more natural way to teach your dog to stop barking. This way your dog will learn when to bark and when not to.
Teach Them The Quiet Command
The best way to teach your dog this command is to ironically teach them the speak command. It is hard to teach your dog to be quiet if you cannot get them to bark when you want them to.
I know that sounds kind of odd, however, I used this technique to teach my dog this command and can testify to how it works. Anyway, this is how it works in a quick breakdown:
- Teach Your Dog To Speak
1a. Find out what your dog’s trigger is.
1b. Do that while saying “speak”
1c. Reward your dog for barking when you say “speak”
1d. Repeat this until they learn
2. Teach Your Dog To Be Quiet
2a. Command your dog to speak
2b. Calmly, yet firmly say “quiet”
2c. Wait for your dog to be silent for a couple seconds
2d. Reward them and repeat
Replace The Behavior
Say for example a friend is coming over, typically when they knock or ring the doorbell your dog barks.
Instead, when you hear the knock tell your dog to do something else that occupies that time and prevents them from being available to bark.
You can teach them to walk somewhere, or fetch something. One great way of occupying their time is to tell them to run to their favorite place. Whether this is their bed, cage or maybe the rug, let them know to go to their place.
If you see they go there and stay there until you bring the person inside or answer the door, reward them. Eventually, they will learn that is what they should be doing.
Remove Motivation
If something external is making your dog go wild then you can prevent your dog from seeing or hearing it. For example, if your dog is going crazy over something outside consider closing the blinds or curtains.
Bark Control Box
If you are out of options and are on the verge of getting kicked out of your apartment or losing your mind then a bark control box could be perfect for you.
A bark control box (link to Amazon) is like the bark remote except it is automatic. Whenever your dog barks within a 50-foot radius this will disperse an ultrasonic sound that will harmlessly silence your dog.
Also, this specific bark control box is actually shaped like a birdhouse and can be hung up if you wanted to. Can it be used outdoors? Of course, this is a weatherproof product that can survive outdoor conditions.
Burn Off Extra Energy
One last way to prevent barking is to burn off that excess energy so they don’t have the energy to excessively bark in the first place.
This can be done by walking your dog every day, playing with them several times a day for at least 10-minute sessions each time, or any other activity that generally burns energy.
Instead of being on edge staring outside of the window barking at all the squirrels and cars your dog could be sleeping or nibbling on a bone.
Final Thoughts
Those are all the tips on dog barking prevention for now, but if none of these work, don’t be demotivated! There are more solutions out there that could work for you, this list is just the more common solutions I’ve research combined with other tactics that worked for me.