# Barking issues



## Davidrob2 (Dec 10, 2012)

Harry has developed a barking problem since we moved to a new (to us) house about a month ago. A little background: we are renovating this house and had to move to a hotel for three weeks until it got to the stage where we could even camp out here. Harry was in a kennel during that time. We visited him often and brought him over here for "field trips" before we moved in. In the past when we put him in the kennel, he would bark a little more for a couple days after we picked him up and then settle in.

Since we've moved in, there have been contractors here most days making a ton of noise. Harry has handled it like a trooper. However, the past few weeks he has been demanding to be the center of attention ... Bringing his toys to the workers and barking constantly until they play with him or acknowledge him with loads of attention. We probably have 6 months more (at least) of construction ahead of us. I need to come up with a game plan before this gets out of hand and construction lasts 9 months because the workers are spending so much time with Harry! He is getting plenty of exercise ... Two walks a day with a minimum of 45 minutes each, one on one play with me, etc. I've started some obedience training again, but the barking continues.


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

Baby gate him away from the workers, or take him to dog day care while they are there. He could get hurt in a construction zone, so he should not have free run in the house anyway.


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## Leslie B (Mar 17, 2011)

Baby gates are a given and they will work ONLY if you instruct the workers to ignore the barking every single time. The workers are rewarding the barking with their attention. It can be hard to focus on work with a barking dog in the back ground and it is so much more fun to play with the dog so it might be harder to train the workers than the dog.

Second, consider a bark collar. Set on a low setting it will not hurt but it will discourage the barking quickly.


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## Aleksandrina (May 27, 2014)

I agree with the usage of an exercise pen where you leave lots of toys for him to play with. But as others have pointed out, that's only going to work if the workers ignore him.

You could try using a no-barking Citronella spray collar. They are pretty effective and harmless to dogs.


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## MercyMom (Dec 19, 2011)

I hope you find a solution for Harry. Wishing you the best.


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## Davidrob2 (Dec 10, 2012)

Thanks for the suggestions. I have been keeping Harry out of the work areas. Sorry I failed to mention that in the original post. We actually implemented the "ignoring" suggestion today before I had read the responses. The sheet rockers were here and, because of the nature of their work, couldn't engage Harry. He barked a few times, realized they weren't going to pay attention to him and settled in beside me for the entire time they were here. Now to train the other workers to do the same thing. Do they make training treats for contractors?


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## Swampcollie (Sep 6, 2007)

Davidrob2 said:


> Do they make training treats for contractors?


Yep! It's spelled BEER!


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