Horrible experience @ pet store...

[bckrazy]

Personally, if I had a dog with whom barking was such an issue, I would have the dog surgically debarked and forget about it.

D: ugh. I hope I read that wrong! I know you've given great advice, Redyre, but that is seriously a drastic measure, no? A painful and invasive surgery should be the last resort, as should muzzles, IMO.

Fozzie started developing barkiness, as is the tendancy of his breeds, and it just takes time & consistency to stop the behavior. He doesn't get any sort of reward for barking, and he completely stops with a stern "shhh", and he's only 5 months old. Puppy classes are great for socializing and practicing basic Obedience with distractions, but to be honest a l l of that info is available on the internet (http://4pawsu.com/articles.htmp has a lot of good pointers) and in books, so that shouldn't be to blame for behavioral issues. It sounds like the biggest factor in this is that the puppy does not respect the OP, and he's most likely using barking and jumping as means to demand attention from her. So, start at the root of the problem and work on that using NILIF & frequent training sessions at home. If it is difficult for you, find a good behaviorist, as you can get an appointment much sooner than September for a pretty affordable price, just to get one-on-one advice.

[dukedogsmom]

If it's a big chain of stores, you can get good results here:
www.planetfeedback.com
It's a great place to make sure the proper people see what's happening with their businesses. I've had good results and I've written more positive than negative letters.

I would have been fuming, were I you and would have talked to the manager right away. And I surely don't know how a shock collar is more humane.