How do we get along with strangers??

[boricuajenny5]

Hi all, My Amaya use to having a problem barking excessively when the door bell rang (read previous post http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=136212). She has learned to control herself once she smells the visitor, which I can deal with.

She now barks excessively at anything that passes our front door. We have a full glass door which she sits in front of all day to watch the cars go by and catch some sun. The second a child runs by or a stranger walks pass, or she sees a dog, cat or bird, she goes crazy! She tries so hard to scratch at the door to get outside. I know it is not an aggressive bark because her tail wags anxiously the whole time. I’ve been teaching the family to sit in between her and the door so that she cant get to it unless she is quiet. I have a Rottweiler which I practiced with. I put him outside within view and sure enough Amaya starts her barking routine. I sit there with some treats and she quickly learned that quiet = freedom to sit at the door with a treat. I’ve had kids run by from time to time as well. The problem is that once these animals/people aren’t strangers anymore, she doesn’t bark. So when a stranger passes by, its like she hasn’t learned a thing and we have to do it all over again. I’ve tried keeping her outside but there is no way of controlling her once she starts barking out there. I cant possibly introduce her to everyone in the world so she has to learn how to accept that strangers will pass by.

Any thoughts?

[Ginger's Mom]

I was ready with a reply, until I came to your last sentence. And that is take her outside, on lead, to gently and politely meet people/animals as they go by. It is true that you cannot introduce her to the whole world, and that strangers will still exist. However, the more people and dogs in the neighborhood she meets, the less strangers there will be, and the less barking and upset to the household. I know of many dogs (my Ginger included) that will bark at people/animals that they do not know. But are not phased when dogs and people they know go by. So you are right, you may not be able to end all barking from her, and you may not want to end all barking. Having a dog that barks when a stranger is around is not the worst thing in the world. You just need to take her out there and let her know which ones are friendly and not a threat to her neighborhood.

[emc]

The more a habit becomes ingrained the more difficult it is to break. Maybe your only recourse is to shut the door so she can't see outside.

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[boricuajenny5]

I was able to practice all day with her on Father's day. Our street was closed for kids to play so there were many kids running back and forth. Amaya wanted to stay outside with us so bad that she quickly learned that her barking was getting her back inside...alone.

She was able to sit on the steps, off leash, all day! I was so proud of her. She even played with some kids she didnt know. I think she was just happy to be outside and the amount of people was too overwhelming for her. She has barked at strangers once since then. Hopefully she keeps this up. We dont get block parties very often so I dont know when the next time will be when she will be surrounded by so many people.

Thanks for the advice!