Ask a Trainer - Barking

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Q: My normally quiet dog, Chula, has lately started barking at all sorts of things she finds strange (the workmen doing sewer upgrades in our neighbourhood, anyone with a limp, someone running by her, skateboards, etc). She sometimes also exuberantly barks at nothing at all, like when she runs ahead of me into our office building in the morning, announcing her arrival. She's just 10 pounds, so I'm not sure how to effectively chastise her so this doesn't turn into a full fledged barking problem. A stern "NO" is definitely not doing the trick. I also don't want to look like a bully when I have to correct her when we're walking down the street. -Lady, New York, NY

A: Good call to not clobber her for barking on the street as it's a very different animal from the barking she does at your office.

When Chula barks on the street, it's because her fight-flight button has been pushed. She's freaked out and barks to keep the limping person or other scary thing at bay. This is automatic software that dogs run when they're spooked, much the same way horses run horse applications like rearing up or bolting when they get spooked. If you're harsh with her, you've put her in a double bind, no different from you being punished for recoiling from a spider. It would bump the stress up even more and possibly result in neurotic behavior, including, ironically, barking.

The deep solution is to gradually increase her confidence about these things. Whenever she spooks, immediately put on a happy face yourself, giggling and baby-talking her and then offering her a favorite treat. Keep offering until she's back in her head enough to eat it. It's worth keeping a supply in a snackie bag in your pocket just for such conditioning. If ever you have time, hang out for a little longer next to workmen or skateboard parks, feeding plenty of treats the whole time. Chances are, she'll get more used to them and you'll accelerate her associating them with snacks.

The arrival announcing sounds like plain, old-fashioned, bursting-at-the-seams excitement. For this, you can provide a plain, old-fashioned consequence. Before you enter, remind her ("Quiet, please!") and, then, on the very first bark, inform her she's blown it ("Too bad for you."), scoop her up, and put her in the penalty box: her crate with a blanket over it. After a couple of minutes, let her out. Repeat as necessary. ■

Jean Donaldson is the founder of the San Francisco SPCA Academy for Dog Trainers and author of several books on dog training and behaviour, including Dogs are from Neptune and The Culture Clash.