Jo's Old Site

As I am told that miniature schnauzers tend to be a bit vocal at times, I have been doing some research to find the most effective ways to manage this behaviour. And I also like to bring up that barking is a form of communication in domestic dogs, as there are many reasons for it and also some owners of dogs can tell what their dogs are barking at because their dog or dogs have different types of barks. Also some breeds were originally bred because of their watchdog or guarding abilities. But too much barking is a sign of stress in a dog and when a dog barks we should go and find out what has caused it.

As for example my mother’s rottie was almost launching herself off the verandah, because she had spotted some kids in trees that I thought was too young to be out of their own backyard. Later on Dita sounded the alarm again as the kids came back because of the horse and mum told the kids to go back home.

I also heard from mum that the place that had the horse that these kids were so interested in also has a dam that is full of water and has a canoe on it and she told me this time it is the horse but when they find out about the boat… Anyway what I’m getting at is because mum didn’t ignore Dita’s barking, and told the kids to go and play in their own backyard there wasn’t too much barking and as we sometimes hear about backyard drownings perhaps the kids wont discover the dam and canoe… well not yet.

Then another reason for dogs to bark is because they are out of control or stressed out, and when this is happening I have read that we should wait until they have stopped and praise them for when they are quiet. Also I have read that punishment often doesn’t work with dogs, as this just makes them more unhappy.

And to find out more about controlling this behaviour in dogs I recommend watching Susan Garrett’s Crate Games DVD as her idea of training a dog to be quiet, or quieter is to use a crate that a dog can see through and when the dog barks and carries on we should ignore it but when they stop we give it treats instantly. I also like this idea of hers as watching how she does it I can see that she is rewarding the dog at the right time.

Also covering the crate up with a blanket is one of her ideas, and is very effective. I also remember when mum and I were taking our dogs to Imparra Pet Motel that there was a lady with a Stumpy Tailed Cattle Dog who was having problems with her dog barking at cars while she was driving and Syd told her about using a blanket and this is where I first heard about the blankets effectiveness on controlling dogs that bark.

The owner of this Stumpie told him she couldn’t possibly do that as she needed to see out of the car to drive. And nothing more was said about it but I can see now after having watched Crate Games that if this owner thought: to get a crate that was big enough to hold her dog, and covered that up with a blanket she could drive her car with her dog not attempting to herd the other cars.