How do I stop a dog from barking in his new outdoor kennel?

Question

12 month old golden reteiver & huskey mix (60 pounds) Has been raised in the house, has destroyed house, MUST learn to live part of the day outside, Neighbors have called police once already about the barking.

Answer 1

With few exceptions, all dogs bark. Barking is a natural behaviour and it is a way of communicating. While the messages can range from loneliness to hunger or playfulness, most often barking is used as an alarm or alert signal that indicates to the other pack members that a stranger or intruder is approaching

Most people have a feeling of security and comfort knowing their dogs are “on the job”. Some people even encourage their dogs to bark and growl when the doorbell rings or someone knocks. They feel this is acceptable behaviour, however, when the dogs become uncontrollable, with barking that is excessive, they become a nuisance. Life is miserable for neighbours who must listen day after day to barking dogs.
Excessive barking often begins in puppy-hood, when the pup who is not yet house-trained is unwisely shut behind closed doors. Improper confinement will definitely cause a barking problem, and dogs that are tied or tethered will eventually become frustrated and begin to bark to communicate their displeasure. We must always remember that dogs are pack animals. It is not natural or normal for them to be alone, however, millions of dogs must learn to cope confidently while members of the family go out daily to work.

Chewing, uncontrolled barking, house-training problems and destructive behaviour have put many dogs out of their homes, and all of this could be avoided if we simply communicated more effectively with our canine companions. They are part of a pack or family, similar in behaviour to their ancestors, the wolves. Wolves travel, hunt, sleep and eat in a group environment, therefore, we must modify this instinct. We must, in our human packs, make our dogs feel comfortable and secure about being alone in the “den” while the other pack members are away.

Because most barking takes place when you are away from home, you have no choice but to believe your neighbours when they complain.

Barking is actually quite common and not that difficult to rectify. Let us consider the encouraging owner who inadvertently praises and teaches his or her dog that its barking is the greatest thing, which makes the dog feel its owner is happy and pleased when he barks.

The easiest way to teach the dog to bark is command him to “speak”. So while the dog is barking at the door, the owner may use the command word “speak”. The dog will associate barking behaviour with this word. Now, your golden moment has arrived. You are going to teach your dog the word “quiet”, or “enough” or “shush” (your choice!). We do not teach the word “No”, because “No” means “Never, ever do that - ever".

When you command your dog to be “Quiet” and he keeps barking, you will have to teach him the meaning of the word “Quiet”. Hitting your dog or using other physical measure or mechanical or electronic aids are unkind and unnecessary. You may hold your dog’s muzzle closed (gently and kindly), or you may have to use a water pistol. Another method is to make a sudden sharp sound (rattle a pop can with some coins in it, or bang on a pot) to divert your dog’s attention from barking. When your dog has ceased to bark for at least three to five seconds, praise him in a quiet, calm voice, perhaps saying, “Good, quiet. Good!”. Avoid stroking, patting and hugging your dog at this point, as you may over-excite him again, and he may miss the point of the whole exercise.

Before you leave your dog alone, remember the following points:

Provide adequate exercise.

Leave the radio or television on.

Provide your dog with proper chewing material - rawhide, nylabones and Kong toys stuffed with yummy stuff are good (beware of using real animal bones - they can splinter).

Crate train your dog.

Unplug your phone.

Place a “Do Not Disturb” sign on your door. This may prevent trades people from knocking or ringing the bell, which would set your dog off on a barking cycle.

Shut the shades or drapes so your dog cannot see outside.

Make your departures calm. Tone things down and be matter of fact. Over-emotional, guilt-ridden departures (and entrances) put your dog in a state of anxiety.


Dogs are highly social animals who are historically
used to being part of a pack. This social interaction insured that a dog would be mentally healthy and secure. When the dog was domesticated, nearly 10,000 years ago, their wild "pack" was replaced by his owner's family.

Sadly, today's backyard dog, will seldom see the inside of a house and will eat, sleep and wait outside for any kind of attention from its owners. If a dog is chained and isolated outside, chances are he is an under-cared-for and under-stimulated-pet.
Some dog owners keep their animals outside in the mistaken belief that they will act as a deterrent to potential intruders. Intruders will quickly learn that the dog is in the yard and not in the house. Police statistics show that indoor dogs deter more than 90 per cent of all break-ins.

If you intend to keep your dog in your backyard, you can expect:

A dog that barks excessively due to boredom and loneliness.

Repetitive digging and chewing due to lack of exercise.

Injuries to your dog stemming from his inability to escape or protect itself from attacks by other animals.

Unwanted pregnancies if your dog is not spayed or neutered. Male dogs will seek out a female in heat any way they can; gates and fences are unlikely to stop them. The resulting litters of puppies will be an unwelcome and inconvenient addition for you and will add to the already critical problem of pet overpopulation.

A dog that is overly aggressive will most likely direct his frustration at small children, neighbours, other neighbourhood animals and any strangers who approach him.

Your dog will run a much higher risk of contracting diseases carried by urban wildlife than a dog that is sheltered inside.

Your dog will be susceptible to fly-bites on its ears. This can result in open wounds on the area, which will eventually lead to maggots.

If the outside temperature is too hot or too cold for you to feel comfortable, you can be sure that your dog feels the same discomfort.
Being confined outdoors is unhealthy and lonely for your dog. Remember, your dog needs to feel that he is a valuable member of your "pack" and, as such, he should be welcome to share your home at all times.

A backyard is not a home. Don't turn a cold shoulder to your dog.


There are two major causes of destructive behaviour: boredom and separation anxiety. Separation anxiety
is a term used to describe the insecure behaviour of a dog who is too dependent on his owner and thus becomes destructive in his owner's absence.
Separation anxiety is also common in dogs who have been abandoned or mistreated
Too many dogs are given up for adoption because of destructive behaviour, usually without any effort by their owners to change or improve their pet's behaviour. Accepting the responsibility of owning a dog means being prepared to deal with such situations.
The suggestions listed below will help you and your dog get right back on the good behaviour "track":

Have your dog spayed or neutered.

Give your dog rigorous, tiring exercise before you leave your home. This will require more time and effort on your part, but it is necessary to help your dog.

Make all home departures and arrivals uneventful. Avoid exciting your dog at these times.
Most destructive behaviour occurs within the first and last half hours a dog is alone. This is due usually to anxiety brought on by the excitement that often surrounds this time.
Plan a play session for your dog half an hour after you arrive home.

Never reprimand unless you have caught your dog in the act of being destructive.
Punishing your dog on your return for something done in your absence will serve only to increase its anxiety and confusion, and will hinder any progress you have already made.

Purchase a crate for your dog to stay in while you are away from home or are unable to keep an eye on your dog (this is comparable to placing a toddler in a playpen). Line the crate with a blanket and provide a variety of safe and suitable chew toys for your dog.
Never use the crate as a form of reprimand. Make the act of entering the crate enjoyable.
This method is commonly referred to as "cage" or "crate training", and emulates a natural habit of dogs, which is to go into a den for a safe and secure place to rest. Once you feel your dog can be left on his own, you can practice leaving him alone for short periods of time.
Allow your dog access only to certain areas of the house and, as with children, make sure breakables and dangerous items are well out of reach (also keep in mind that your dog may just prefer to stay in its "den").
Before leaving, switch on a radio tuned to a soft music/talk station. The sound of soft human voices and music has a calming effect on dogs.

Consult a veterinarian about your dog's diet. Foods that are too high in protein and/or lack other necessary nutrients may have an effect on your dog's behaviour.

Make use of the experience of others. Many excellent books are available.

Most behavioural problems can be solved with the right amount of love, time and patience. Don't give up! The love and devotion your dog has for you will make it all worthwhile.

Answer 2

Dogs are social animals that hate to be left alone. If you can't take proper care of him, consider putting him up for adoption. Just be honest about his problems so that he doesn't keep getting adopted and dumped back in a shelter.

Having to listen to someone else's dog bark for hours on end is really annoying. I'd recommend that you be a good neighbor and keep them inside when you're not home. If they are destructive or not housebroken, use a large dog cage - which you should have done when he was a little pup so that he didn't learn he could destroy your house!

Depending on where you live, you can receive a fine for violating noise ordinances. If your dogs do not have food, water and shelter, you could have them seized by animal cruelty officers. It's kinder to have them surgically debarked by a vet than to use shock collars or punishment. The bigger problem is that your dogs may be injured or poisoned by your frustrated neighbors.

BEFORE you get any dog you should read some great books on training. (Try not to pick books randomly - there are a lot of bad books out there also!) These are some of my favorites and you can get them on Amazon.com
What All Good Dogs Should Know – Volhard http://www.volhard.com/
Good Owners, Great Dogs - Brian Kilcommins
Dog Tricks : Eighty-Eight Challenging Activities for Your Dog from World-Class Trainers by Haggerty and Benjamin
Don't Shoot the Dog - Pryor
Training Your Dog: The Step by Step Method - Volhard
Dog Problems - Benjamin
Cesar's Way - Cesar Millan
Also, watch the Dog Whisperer on the National Geographic Channel. Cesar Millan is the best trainer I've ever seen on TV.
http://www.dogpsychologycenter.com/

Answer 3

There are a couple of issues that need to be addressed:
Bordom, lonliness, a feeling of punishment, overstimulation, feelings of loss of control, abondonment, change, etc.

If he has destroyed in the house entrances and exits (ie. doorways) they the dog is having extreme stress with you leaving the house and uncertainty of your return. If he is destroying general property, then we are dealing with bordom.

Is kenneling inside the home a possiblity? With water bowls removal early in the evening, and a walk/potty break before you leave for work, most dogs are fine with holding for the potty break until owners return home while in the home.

Your dog being a year old already and raised at home and now being outside is having some feelings (as I listed in the beginning) that he is having a terrible time dealing with - his way of coping inside was chewing, getting in the trash, etc and outside it is barking.

Excercise and attention consistently on a schedule is very important (for any dog). Whether he is in or out, pup needs to know that when you leave for work - it isn't a big deal - don't make it one! Coming home, same thing. I.e. If pup know that when you pick up your keys and coat you are leaving - the stress level goes up. Practice pickup up your keys, walking around the house, put them down. Later grab your coat and go outside for a short time and come back - desensitizing your pup to you leaving with lessen the stress.

Look for some positive dog training where you can get some one-on-one attention from a dog behaviorist. They can help you understand what you can do differently to either make things work inside, and/or make the outdoors more palitable.

Answer 4

I hate to recommend this, but there is something called an E collar, or electronic collar. We have used it on our dogs to help with training. (one of my dogs is allergic to bee stings, so I use the e collar to "zap" or in her case "vibrate" the collar remotely, when she starts to point at the bee. Shes a setter and points out anything that flys. But each time your dog barks at NOTHING, "zap" the collar once. From then on, only a vibrate mode should work. She misses being in the home with her "pack". She won't understand that you are useing the remote control to "remind" her not to bark. I'm sorry you have such un feeling neighbors. But if you are going to keep her, you must take the responsiblity. Remember, she is still a puppy, and can learn more easily than an older dog. Also, I hope you have had her groomed to accomodate the outdoor conditions (heat, etc) Our Chow Chow lives outside in a coverd kennel during most of the day, and even though he is shaved, I put a mister out there to help him with the heat. We are in Kansas, and it gets hotter than blazes! Good Luck

ALSO, I like Hillary's answew above. I kennel my setter puppies in the house when I leave for an errand. Keeps them safe, and my house safe

Answer 5

I have raised some of the largest dogs out there and not one has destoyed my home or barked incessantly. Or, lived outside. They have all been inside dogs. If they can't live inside I don't get one.

1. Bring the dog back in and put it in a crate when you can't watch it.

2. Walk/run dog no less than one hour a day. No substitutes.

3. Read, watch, record, attend seminar, tune into National Geographics The Dog Whisperer. Do whatever he says to do. It works.

4. Buy the roller blades Cesar wears. They have them at Sharper Image.

Get off the sofa. The dog and the neighbors will love you for it. When a dog tears a home up it isn't the dogs fault. When your infant falls off the 'big bed' and dies, is it their fault for going to bed there??

Change everything you are doing. It isn't working.

Best of luck. Sami

Answer 6

We bought a training collar for our dog who had the same problem. Worse though my husband is an officer on our local police department! We picked the collar up for $10 and it emits a high pitched frequency every time he barks. He stopped barking for no reason rather quickly (a day or two) and would only bark for the right reason, not recognizing the car pulling into our driveway etc. Eventually we continued putting on the collar but took out the batteries. He no longer wears the collar but has not regressed at all. Good Luck!!

Answer 7

this isn't the DOG's problem: it's yours.

U failed to train the dog to tolerate being left alone at home, by CRATING your puppy when U left the house - he would then have been completely unable to "destoy" the house.

Ur fault, Ur creation.
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get the dog out of the kennel & back in the house; give him regular EXERCISE when U are at home, don't just come home from work & take him for a 20 min walk on-leash.
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Go back to square one:

get a crate, teach the dog to enter it ON HIS OWN, by tossing a treat or toy, 1st just inside the door, then further in.

when he can enter the crate to get a toy/treat all the way to the rear, & U-turn to come back out, he's ready to have the door closed.
toss the treat/toy to the BACK, close the door AFTER he's fully in, wait a count of 3, give a treat thru the "window", open the door =before= he whines or stresses.

build his tolerance for the crate a few minutes at a time; maybe 5 min increments.
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HUSKIES are !! notorious !! in training circles for separation-anxiety; YELLING a the dog, or Hitting Him, will > Not < fix the problem. it will WORSEN it, as it makes him more anxious, so the chewing goes up as the stress-levels rise.

Huskies are very much "pack" dogs, & hate being solo.
a crate =inside= Ur house, in the AC in the heat, in the warmth when it's cold, is the only humane answer to a monster-behavior that YOU created.

please don't blame the dog; he's alone, stressed, & soothing himself the only way dogs know how: by chewing.
get him a Kong toy, stuff part of his breakfast into it, FREEZE it, & give him his "pupsicle" before U leave to go to work.
when U come home -COOL- entrances; no excited reunions, no long goodbyes; don't even SAY good-bye, just give him the Kong & git.

that goes for everyone in the house: cool departures, calm arrivals; U want this to be as unremarkable as the sun coming up; no yelping, jumping, barking mania!!

-Calm...-

good luck; a good behaviorist in Ur area can help U, but this will not be an instant cure.

PS: sleeping in his crate in Ur bedroom at night will also help:
that's 6 to 8 hrs of "quality time" for the dog - U're asleep, but he can hear, see & smell U. it helps to comfort him, & he'll feel more secure the next day.

Answer 8

I was told to use lemon juice. Let it bark, tell him no bark. If he barks again, no bark. If he barks again, give him a small squirt in his mouth (towards the inside of his cheek so it doesn't hit his throat and he chokes on it). Squirt him, hold his mouth closed and tell him no bark while you stare him down. After a few seconds, release and walk away. If he barks again, tell him no bark. Again, no bark. Again, squirt him with the lemon juice again. It'll take some time but eventually he'll learn it's no bark or a mouth of lemon juice (which won't hurt him, it'll just burn a little). Make sure he has fresh water to drink though.

If he learns to like the lemon juice (and I've had one do that) switch to tobasco sauce, but use the same training.

Also make sure he has things to keep him entertained. Try a Kong ball--virtually indestructable and hours of entertainment.

Good luck!

Answer 9

Your dog is BORED and LONELY. And may suffer from seperation anxiety.

Puruse obedience training, hire a behaviorist to check for possible seperation anxiety (this is a disorder that can ONLY be solved through serious behavior modification), get some puzzle toys, take up jogging with the dog in the mornings, and look into crate training (if seperation anxiety is not the issue).

No one said dog ownership was easy. There is no magical behavior solution that will solve all of your dogs problems, but rest assured, if you do something to force him to stop barking, he will take up some other destructive hobby (even chewing on himself until he bleeds) to relieve his boredom, lonliness and anxiety.

Just chucking your dog with behavior problems outside results in sharing your dog's problems with your entire neighborhood, not actually solving them.

Answer 10

A dog should be trained on how to eat, walk with you, not to bark, potty training and sleep on its place etc. You can teach anything to your puppy, dogs get trained easily with some good instructions. If you want some good training tips visit https://tr.im/6ljiI

If properly trained, they should also understand whistle and gesture equivalents for all the relevant commands, e.g. short whistle or finger raised sit, long whistle or flat hand lay down, and so on.

It's important that they also get gestures and whistles as voice may not be sufficient over long distances and under certain circumstances.

Answer 11

He is bored. He is a young, active dog that needs lots of attention, training, and something to do.

Consult with a trainer, teach him house manners so he doesn't have to be outside. Teach him some obedience, possibly some tricks so he can have fun with you. Get him out regularly for exercise - a tired dog is a good dog.