Anyone ever managed to teach a old dog (border collie mix) how not to bark? This dog was not

[applegrove]

properly trained as a pup. Is it even possible? Do meds help?

[valerief]

1. Maybe a thundershirt would help.

http://www.thundershirt.com/HowItWorks/Videos.aspx

[TorchTheWitch]

2. I'm guessing you're trying to stop excessive barking?

Not barking at all isn't such a good idea. Barking can be helpful as a warning or to get your attention that the dog needs something. But excessive barking or barking because of separation anxiety is a problem.

Yes, a dog can be trained to stop unwanted behavior. It's just a matter of the right training.

So, is the barking you want to stop excessive barking when the dog just barks for no apparent reason and at practically everything, or is it only when you leave the house (separation anxiety), or boredom, or what? There's really no way to know how to go about re-training to stop the unwanted behavior without knowing the details of what exactly the unwanted behavior is.

[applegrove]

3. The dog wakes up my friend with barking at 5 am. The friend needs to be stern with the puppy. Dog

always barks and barks alot when somebody new arrives at the house. I'll ask for more details when I see him next.

[TorchTheWitch]

4. Do you know about how old this dog is?

The 5 a.m. barking could mean the dog needs to go out and go potty.

This may help...

http://leerburg.com/qa/qna.php?id=147

I definitely recommend Leerburg for learning how to establish a leader position with a dog or puppy and train it (or re-train it). There's a ton of free info on the site though they also sell good training DVD's.

Once a dog knows who is the boss, training to stop certain bad behavior is just a matter of learning how to correct, re-direct, teach commands, etc. Your friend should probably start with the puppy training info since training a dog or a puppy is really the same training except with a dog it's re-training (the process is the same though). That's the lovely thing about dogs... it's never too late to correct general unwanted behavior. First things first, though... your friend needs to establish that they're the boss of the dog.

[applegrove]

5. The dog is about 11. The guy inherited the dog when the student, who rescued it from

the pound at about 7, and was my friend's roomate, moved on to another college and could not take the dog with him. Thanks for the website. I'll definitely pass that information along.

[CountAllVotes]

6. I trained my late Sheltie not to bark

Last edited Wed Mar 14, 2012, 12:52 PM - Edit history (1)

I got him when he was 8 years old!

What I did is tell him in a firm voice, NO BARKING! I'd put my hand around his muzzle and say NO BARKING.

Lather, rinse repeat about 1,000X and yep, he finally got it.

He had cut way down on his barking towards the end of his life.

Much of the barking was due to stress being he was in a new home and the fact I had two cats that he was unfamiliar with at that time.

If you are willing to work with the dog and continue with the put the hand around the muzzle and say in a stern, but not necessarily a loud/screaming voice, the words NO BARKING repetitively and the dog will eventually get it.

You can teach old dogs (and cats for that matter) new "tricks" so to speak.

Best of luck!!

[roody]

7. Is the dog outside and lonely?

[applegrove]

8. Nope. He is inside and most often not alone. He was just never trained properly and now

it is a problem.

[TorchTheWitch]

9. it's fixable though

Despite the dog's age it can be trained to stop unwanted behavior like excessive barking fairly easily. I love that about dogs.