How to Stop Your Petit Bassett Dog From Barking
The basset hound is a gentle, well-mannered, friendly breed. They are generally lovable and good with children. Despite their good nature and generally peaceful demeanor, basset hounds can develop barking problems. Basset Hounds, like other dogs, bark instinctively to identify themselves to other dogs, to warn of dangers and in play when they are excited. They may also bark when they are lonely, scared, anxious or trying to get attention. Barking can become excessive and even habit-forming in dogs if ignored or inadvertently encouraged.
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Things You'll Need
- Dog crate
- Comfortable bedding
- Treats
- Toys
- Spray bottle with water
- Bag with coins in it
- Ultrasound bark collar
- Citronella bark collar
Instructions
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Establish trust with your dog by being a responsible, caring pet owner. Never hit or abuse your dog.
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Establish yourself and the members of your family as the dog's pack leader. Things like eating first, going through the door first, and speaking to your dog in a firm voice when training establishes you as the leader. When training, all members of the family need to be consistent to establish them all as equal leaders. Choose the same training words and techniques.
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Establish training time as a fun time with positive reinforcements, such as treats and praise. Basset hounds appreciate mental and physical stimulation. Have a daily training routine that lasts five to 10 minutes.
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Be a positive example. If you are angry, anxious, impatient or uncaring toward your dog, you will reinforce negative behaviors, such as excessive barking, in your dog. Dogs may be dogs, but they still pick up on these negative cues and respond badly to them.
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Teach your basset hound to speak on command. Do this by putting your dog in a situation where they bark. Say "speak." Repeat it again and again and give them praise or a treat every time they speak. Then teach them to stop barking by saying "stop" or "enough." When they stop barking, give them a treat or praise.
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Exercise your dog with a daily walk. About a 60-minute walk every day is recommended.
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Vary your routines when you leave in the morning. Practice leaving for short periods of time and coming back. Ignore the dog when you are going through the routine of leaving. Ignore the dog upon returning. This will establish leaving and returning as normal and nothing to become upset or anxious about. Once you have been home for a little while, and the dog is calm, you can acknowledge and spend time with your dog.
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Create a comfortable environment for your dog where they feel warm, safe and loved. Many dogs enjoy having their own crate with comfortable bedding.
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Give your basset hound things to do while you are out, like listening to the radio, playing with chew toys, finding food throughout the house that you've hidden inside toys. If he says busy, he is unlikely to bark.
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Remove outside distractions that will make them anxious or will encourage them to bark. You can do this by closing the windows, blinds and curtains. Some dogs are more settled when they can see what is going on outside, so you'll have to gauge what works best for your dog.
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Have them lay down when they are barking. They are less likely to bark when they are laying down because it calms them.
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Distract your dog when it barks by spraying your dog with a squirt bottle filled with water or throwing a bag of coins to the ground. Discontinue this technique if it adds to the dog's anxiety or does not resolve the barking.
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Purchase an ultrasound bark collar or citronella bark collar. Put one of these collars on the dog when you go out. With these collars, your dog will hear a sound or be sprayed with citronella when he barks.
This method should be used after you have tried other methods or in conjunction with other methods. This method rarely works on its own. Discontinue using the collar if it adds to the dog's anxiety or does not resolve the barking.
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Consult a dog behavior therapist or a veterinarian if the problem persists. These professionals can give you specific, detailed advice for your basset hound. Your dog may need medication to treat a severe anxiety disorder, which can be diagnosed by a veterinarian.
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Tips & Warnings
Basset hounds are stubborn and have bad memory retention, which means that they require more time and patience when training.
Basset hounds are prone to anxiety and ,therefore, tend to respond better to positive reinforcement. Try positive reinforcement first. Negative reinforcement may not work as well and may even make their anxiety, which may be the cause of their barking, worse.
Using shock collars or surgically debarking your dog are also methods that people employ to stop their dog from barking. These methods are not recommended and are not necessarily effective.
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