The sweet sound of a boxer puppy barking or yapping makes you smile, right? What happens when that cute little puppy is now 2 years old and won’t quit barking. Barking is a dog’s way of saying, “hey, gather round- I want to alert you of something.” Way too often, a boxer who barks too much is somehow being negatively reinforced.
After reading an article written by Dr. Stanley Coren (a psychologist who writes about canine behavior) posted on the Psychology Today website, most people “misunderstand what barking is about.” If barking is a way to alert the pack leader (YOU) and you come over and yell things like “no”, “stop it”, “shut up” technically you are barking back at the dog. In a sense, your boxer called you over to alert to something and you began barking too. What you need to do is recognize whether the barking is because of a true threat or not; and then deal with it as the pack leader or Alpha. It is extremely important that you stay calm and understand your boxer’s communication patterns. Ok, then what do I do? Dr. Coren explains it best by explaining that in the wild the canine …
pack leader or the puppy’s mother places its mouth over the offender’s muzzle, without actually biting, and then gives a short, low and breathy growl. The low growl will not be heard very far, and it is short in duration. The mouth over the muzzle is not actually inflicting pain, so there is no yelping or attempts to escape. Silence usually follows immediately.
Humans can mimic this behavior to stop barking. With your dog sitting at your left side, slip the fingers of your left hand under the collar at the back of your dog’s neck. Pull up on the collar with your left hand, while your right hand folds over the top of the dog’s muzzle and presses down. In a quiet, business-like and unemotional tone, you simply say “Quiet.” You repeat this silencing manoeuvre whenever it is necessary. Depending upon the breed, it may take anywhere from two to a couple of dozen repetitions to associate the calmly stated command, “Quiet” with an end to barking.
What you have done in this instance, is to effectively copy the way in which the pack leader will silence a noisy puppy or other pack member. Your left hand on the collar simply immobilizes the head. Your right hand serves the same function and communicates the same message as the leader’s mouth over the noisy animal’s muzzle. The softly spoken “Quiet,” mimics the short, low and breathy growl.
Be sure, however, that you only use this procedure to stop a dog from barking when barking is unnecessary, as in an obedience class or a public place. Remember that we specifically bred dogs to bark, so if your dog sounds the alarm at the approach of stranger, or even at the sight of a cat outside of your window, don’t correct him. If there is no cause for any action, just call him to your side and give him a quick pet or a rub. By barking your dog is only doing the job which we designed him to do thousands of years ago.
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My two boxers brother and sister are not as socialized as they were when they were puppies and maybe that’s the only problem but we moved in with my bf and everything has gone great but we have a double sized outdoor kennel that they run out to go potty in …so its not all over the yard …we have dog parks in the area but they aren’t that busy would love if there were more people and dogs for them to get to know there…but great for running. ..anyway in there potty kennel ..its by a sidewalk …our only option and they bark at everyone walking by…they are never out there long bc they just run back and forth from there to the house but i really don’t want people walking by to be afraid of them…is there anything I can do to fix this …???
Same here I did a report on how to train your dog when you first get him! If he doesn’t wanna go potty ostdiue you may want to buy some puppy pads and put one in each room.. If You catch him going to the bathroom grab him quickly and place him on the puppy pad and/or if your to late Tell him NO! in a stern but not loud voice and place him ostdiue asap! This Will take some time to finally get him to go ostdiue but as long as you keep at it, it can be accomplished!About the cat.. My puppy pretty much is the boss of my cat but What u could do is Put the dog in the room with the cat ( you must be in there to). When he starts barking take him out immediately until he is calm.. Bring him back into the room and repeat.. When he finally is calm when the cat is in the room give him a treat! Its normal for puppies to bark at random things.. My dog barks at a plastic back blowing in the wind Im sure he will grow out of that depending on the breed of dog he is And yes that’s a great thing your puppy is licking your face! He is showing his love.. But if you don’t like him licking your hands/Face etc. They have a product at walmart, Walgreen’s etc. Called Bitter Apple which is something you spray on things you don’t want your dog Chewing/Licking and it will put a fowl taste in there mouth.. causing them to Back away Some dogs like it tho so that may not work Was this answer helpful?