Curbing Your Scottish Terrier's Barking Habit
In principle there is nothing wrong with your Scottish terrier barking. Barking is a natural, instinctive reaction to the presence of strangers, visitors and other animals. Barking is his way of communicating with you and with other dogs and should not be completely suppressed through training.
However, the habit of barking turns into a problem when it becomes excessively frequent, many times for apparently no reason,
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Very few things can be as annoying as a dog that keeps non-stop barking all day and also at night. You will soon get complaints from your neighborhood, specially if you live in an apartment or condo. |
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So it is more than necessary to do some dog training and curb the barking habit of your Scottie. There are four basic things you can do:
1. Since barking often is related to boredom, keep your Scottie busy with toys and plenty of exercise. He hardly will bark if he's got plenty to do or if he's too tired after a long exercise like walking, frisbee or ball playing.
2. Remove or hide whatever causes him to bark. If you have a yard fence it so he cannot see outside. If inside your home, close the curtains or blinds.
3. Approach him and say a firm "quiet" or "stop barking" command followed by a reward or praise. If it doesn't work, repeat the command, then shake a can with marbles or slam a book down to make a loud noise. Sometimes he will bark to get your attention. Do not look at him and only pay attention if he stops barking.
4. Teach him to speak. No, I'm not going nuts. Here's what you have to do: take away something that will make him bark, like his favorite toy or treat, and say the word "speak" (or a similar one) until he barks. Once he barks, give him a reward/praise while repeating the word "speak" or a similar one. He'll soon learn that the word "speak" is his license to bark and he'll start barking on command.
Curbing his barking habits will certainly not be an easy task happening overnight. Pursue the training for some time until he gets used to certain sights and does not react to it by barking.
You can teach your Scottie to curb its barking when you have visitors as well, by applying the same training as in the case of strangers or animals. Once he is used to seeing your visitors more regularly it will naturally stop barking.
When relatives come to visit you and stay over, you will need to have him hang around with you and your guests. It is important to make him understand that it is safe with the people around and that he can relax. Don't forget to reward your Scottie during these times as well.
With proper training your Scottish terrier will only bark when really necessary.