How do i stop him barking at people in the street?

Question

Ive had my dog a lab/collie cross over 2 and a half yrs now. He has always been a bit naughty, but Ive managed to straighten out most of his issues with vigourous exercise. Now however he has started barking at people who are just walking down the river bank, on his lead he doesnt make a sound but off he charges at people and terrifies them, I dont know where this has come from as he has never done it b4. Id really appreciate some help with this as he is a hyper dog who needs the freedom to run off his energy, and at the minute i just cant allow it for his own safety and others. thanks

Answer 1

You need to train the dog maybe?
In a class with other people?

Someone said giving him treats. The best thing to do is have your dog interact with other people and try to keep him calm. Then have the other people give him treats.

Answer 2

My dog does exactly the same.She is a Border Collie, she barks at people who is only walking past her and gets down on the ground and tries to creep along. I too have tried everything and she just is mad. I thought at 5 she would have calmed down but no when she sees another dog she goes mad to get to it to play with it and by the time i have brought her back home i need Diazapam. I try and calm her down by distracting her getting her to look at me its hard but i tell her she is such a good girl keep her looking in my direction until the other dog or person has went past.If i see a dog or person coming towards us i keep saying no then her name and good girl keep repeating this as it helps as hearing my voice distracts her from wanting to do something different. I also have a dog clicker which you can buy in the pet shop about £3 or £4. I keep clicking this when i want her to do things like stop pulling on the lead if she hears me she slows down.Hope this has been a bit of help i know its hard going but we love them. She too only started this about a year ago good luck.

Answer 3

You will find the charging and barking is the Collie instinct, as the collie is bred for herding. You may find that it is thinking that the runner on the street is a stray and is trying to bring it back to the herd or flock.
The only way you can get your dog out of this habit is by patience and knowing when your dog is likely to exhibit the tendency to run after people.

Mind you, see a dog behaviour specialist, there are many about and they will be able to treat your dog and you, because your reaction may be fuelling your dogs action.

Answer 4

My dog does this when I take him to work and someone walks in to speak to me. Grown men cower in the corner of the room. I have been recommended to either put him on a lead before the person comes in or buy a crate and use this sort of training. When we are out he is not too bad as long as he is distracted with his ball (he's a collie as well). If I were you I would try one of those extendable leads for a while and try different techniques whilst you've got control of him - maybe a dog whistle to recall him. Not much help - I'm bleeping useless really.

Answer 5

Pale brown plastic muzzle was good for mine cos people reassured to see it and he could drink and pant and bark through it but only head butt people. 'Halti' lead is good but use with care. Recommend professional training classes (with other folk and dogs). Don't like electric collars eg what if another dog barks at him. I think such collars are borderline cruel. And yrs sounds a bit screwed up about something anyway. Never stopped mine challenging but could get him to come to me and stay by me. Yes dogs should have time off the lead. Mine never needed one after training. You want to be careful cos he's going to really piss people off and get you both in trouble.

Answer 6

You can try a flexi lead for more freedom but still some control but he needs socialising with people. Ask friends to make a fuss of him and ignore bad behaviour ofr if he barks. Walk him up the high street as well on a tight lead so he gets used to people and you have control.

Answer 7

same prob with my dog the way i got her to heal is i have a regular leash and i swing it aroung like in a circular motion infront of my like an inch or two as i walk holding about a foot or so lead on the leash with one hand and using the other hand( MY WRITING hand) to rotate it in a circular motion it has to go sorta fast not extremely just sorta if the dog walks in front of you it will get hit on the nose with the leash instead of concentrating on people it will concentrate on the leash so that it wont hit her when she is good and doesn't step in front of you causing the leash to hit her congratulate her by saying good him if your dog starts to whimper tell him to sit ( this is not a must you can if you like thats what i do ) tell him no! and the say heel and begin doing what you were doing before if your dog is good for awhile say like a minute or so try not swinging the leash if your dog stays by your side say good boy or whatever you wnat to say that implys he did good i know this sorta sounds harsh but believe me this can sometimes be the only way to get their attention ...warning - you may hit yourself with the leash sometimes but it doesn't hurt that badly... also don't give him treats unless he's being good because that would be rewarding for bad behavior and would probably make this more of a problem

Answer 8

Our dog used to bark at everybody too. We purchased a bark collar(around $40) that would send out a stronger shock the more the dog barked. It work within the first day, and after a while we stopped using it all together. They also have bark collars that spray citronella that apparently dogs don't like.

Answer 9

E collars are great for off-lead obedience. Dogs learn really quickly that they ALWAYS have to obey. Get a quality product and a trainer to help you introduce it to the dog. If the dog only does this off leash, he knows that he can get away with it.

Answer 10

My dog does this too and i dont worry about it although it does kinda annoy me sometimes. The way i see it is if someone stranger was coming up to the house or god forbid trying to get in the dog would bark giving me a warning. So i dont try to change it.