How to teach "Shh/Quiet"?

[DogLover9501]

I was going to start teaching Jasper the "Shh/Quiet" command because he is starting to bark ALOT for no reason, and usually late at night.

I was going to say something that makes him bark(moms home, pops home, someone is comming) and then say "Shh/Quiet" and as soon as he stops, click(the clicker) and give him a treat.

I was wondering, is it fair to say something that normally makes him bark and then make him stop? Basically to make him bark and then make him stop, I just don't know if it would be confusing?

Thanks

[jenfer]

While Gigi is barking her head off, I will click and say "good quiet" when there is silence. I still don't have a reliable "quiet" from her yet.

[rotten_two]

i would tend to think that quiet is a behavior best captured. i taught speak first - which of course is barking on cue. then when i taught quiet i would click and treat radom bouts of quiet. then i added the "quiet" cue first and click and treat. seems to have worked as i can quiet a barky dog :)

good luck!

[cyber-sibes]

One of my dogs barked alot at night - as she slept outside, i would have to go sit with her at 1 am, 2 am, 3am,...you get the picture! Seemed to me that she was just socializing with a whole lot of other dogs that were barking at night, too. During a really bad bout (my husband was threatening to get rid of her over this) we tried an anti-bark collar - I have to admit it worked well. But we only used it when all else failed. So I kept working with her and would gently hold her muzzel and tell her "no bark", and reward her when she was being quiet. Eventually all it took was saying - shhh, no bark.

[ParNone]

Gully, being a Collie, can be pretty barky too. So I first taught him to speak on command. I took a treat and held it in my hand, forming a fist. Then I'd put my fist up near my mouth and entice him to bark. "Speak, Gully, Speak". As soon as he barked, I'd give him the treat. Didn't take long before he'd bark, when I cued him with my fist near my mouth. So I can ask him any question and get a bark in response, because he's cueing off the hand signal, not what I'm saying.

After he got the barking command down good, I'd get him to bark and then as soon as he stopped, I'd put my finger to my lips and very softly say "shhhhhhh". Then quickly give him a treat and say "Good quiet". After he got that concept, I try to lengthen out the quiet time.

He also wants to bark out at the fence at people walking by. The finger to the lips with "shhhhh" doesn't work at all in that instance. So I started taking him out in the backyard with a pocket full of treats and as soon as he was distracted, I'd call him to "Come" and give him a treat. Then if I heard people coming, I'd call him to me. I just kept reinforcing "Come" to me and you'll get rewarded. So now if I need to be busy in the house, I leave the back door open and if he starts to bark at anybody I just call him to me and that breaks his pattern of barking.

I've seen quite a bit of improvement doing this. I doubt he'll ever be as quiet as Murph, but he's at least at a manageable level now.

Par...