Hi,

When I take my 6.5 month old gsd out for walks she barks at strangers that are walking towards her or running by her. What's the best way to stop her from barking at people for no real reason. She didn't always bark at strangers till recently. Once the people go by she just stares at them and continues on her walk. If people approach her she is fine with them once they pet her or she sniffs and licks them and then she pretty much ignores them unless they give her attention. I'm not sure what is the best method to stop her from barking. Any ideas? Thanks.

Kim

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Hi,

When I take my 6.5 month old gsd out for walks she barks at strangers that are walking towards her or running by her. What's the best way to stop her from barking at people for no real reason. .....

This is a pet, right?

This thread about barking at other dogs on the walk has what you need (IMO).

You will see that a common thread in the responses is timing. "Staring at them," if you want her to stop focusing on and barking at, is too much attention away from heeling. JMO.

http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/showf...rue#Post4176518

Good luck! Oh, btw, my pet dogs aren't always marching along at heel, but their release to sniff and pee and so on is at my discretion -- not theirs. So it's not like the whole walk is one big heeling session.

Hope this helps. Have fun! <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I've got some personal experience with this sort of thing and I'll tell you what I've been doing to fix it with my dog.

We started doing formal training with our GSD when he was five months with an eye toward earning a BH and Schutzhund titles. The only way to correct the situation is to start with positive motivational experience with the pup having people you can trust not to put too much presure on him come-up give the puppy food and walk away. Get his used to people walking by as he walks toward them and while he is standing or in a sit. Have them give him food, but don't let them talk or make eye contact with him at first. Get him used to being in motion with other people in motion.

Once your puppy knows what is expected of him when he is near people and that people are a good thing...get him a prong collar. Set him up for the experience and make sure that you are neutral in that you keep a very lose line. Let him pay attention to the folks and if he barks give him a correction.

Go Positive/Motivational Happy social experiences and then move toward corrections. Helpers are a must for this kind of thing in my experience so you'll have to recruit some folks.

I'll also add that at some point down the line when he is more mature you should try placing him in a down and keeping him in the down while people and dogs run by. No barking, no standing, just a calm down...that is the ideal.

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......The only way to correct the situation is to start with positive motivational experience with the pup having people you can trust not to put too much presure on him come-up give the puppy food and walk away. Get his used to people walking by as he walks toward them and while he is standing or in a sit. .....I'll also add that at some point down the line when he is more mature you should try placing him in a down and keeping him in the down while people and dogs run by. No barking, no standing, just a calm down...that is the ideal.

Ah, I see. I want my dogs to ignore other people and dogs on the walk unless I interact with them and allow them to. But my dogs are socialized adults, and I haven't had puppies.

At what age would you want the dogs to maintain an aloof demeanor when passing strange people and dogs on a walk? Or would you always allow stare-don't-bark? I'm thinking of how I want my dogs to heel until released, and it feels like watching passersby isn't the heel I want. Maybe it's a matter of degree, or maybe it's just the difference between an adult and a 6-month-old....?

I'm starting to feel like Simon Legree! <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

P.S. I feel the same way about food; I don't want them to eat anything that didn't come from me.

Well, reasonable minds can differ.

I think it really depends on your dogs temperment as to whether you NEED to go the food route. I've seen dogs that have such poor temperments they wont even take food out a stranger's hand because they are so filled with avoidance and fear.

If you can come up with another way to reward you dog for positive behavior than go for it. If your dog is toy driven maybe you could release him after he behaves well and let him get a ball or tug. The main thing is that you need that positive association, because if you move to correction too soon you're dog is going to associate people with pain and that is not what you want.

Socialization really needs to be JOB #1 in my opinion for family pets and/or dogs you want to title at some point.

As for at what age you want the dog to be aloof I would say that is much more training dependent than age dependent although both factors play a role. It is all about taking it up notch by notch with longer and longer downs around more and more serious distractions. I always try to push just as far as I can before I know my dog is going to lose it and then next time try to go past that point. So, it is all about reading your dog and learning their limits. You always want to end things strong with his best try being his last try for the day.

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......I think it really depends on your dogs temperment as to whether you NEED to go the food route. I've seen dogs that have such poor temperments they wont even take food out a stranger's hand because they are so filled with avoidance and fear. ..... You always want to end things strong with his best try being his last try for the day.

Gotcha. <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

And I love it that you bring up something I always suggest to owners I work with: End each session on an up note. No matter what we are training, we end with something I *know* the dog knows and will do, so we can end with a reward and praise. (We end before anyone can get frustrated, too, and leave everyone wanting more..... ) <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />