Barking
 

[COLOR=DarkGreen]How much barking should I allow from my 3 month old toy poodle? If he sasses me I ignore him, and if we're playing fetch and he gets too noisy I stop the game. But sometimes when he's playing alone with one of his toys he goes kind of nutsy (some people call it frapping, I think?) and gets noisy. I don't want a yappy dog, but I don't want to intrude on his play if it's not going to lead to problems in the long run.

Whenever someone asked "Why are the dogs barking" when I was growing up, my father always said, "Because they're dogs!" Hmm... how true![/COLOR]

I don't ever worry about the "happy barks". I love to hear it. The barking at someone is a different kind of bark. I have awakened in the middle of the night to hear my little guy chasing from room to room after an imaginary playmate and giving those little happy yips. I wake up my hubby and we lay there laughing at his silliness. I never ever hit my dog. I do have to admit that there were times he would ignore me and keep barking at some sound outside. I found it very effective to swat my own leg with a folded newspaper to get his attention and then to say a loud "No!" Shaking a few pennies in an empty soft drink can worked well too. Socializing your puppy around lots of people and other pets in different environments and activities is also really, really important to build his confidence so he won't be a nervous little thing. Small puppies need lots of sleep and a calm environment while they're little. If there are children around, don't allow them to over-excite him. Poodles tend to be high-strung and extremely sensitive to tensions in the home. You want him to develop well-adjusted and secure. They get a bad rap for being neurotic but they aren't. Den-Den gets really excited when someone comes over, but they are always amazed at how calm he is soon after. They can have really macho "big-dog" attitudes when they mature if not neutered, but are such soft, loving, eternal puppies when they are. Mine were all neutered at 7 mos.

The happy yappieness is OK, but barking because of nothing is not. If he is playing and yapping, thats OK, and if someone comes onto your property or knocks on the door, barking then is OK. Barking at weird noises is OK, too. Barking for no reason is not, though. I would stop him from barking at nothing right after you know that there is nothing that you can see or hear that he is barking at. If he continues to bark when being corrected, then there is something to look into. He is obviously barking at a high pitched sound or something that you aren't seeing if this is not a normal behavior with him.

[COLOR=DarkGreen]Okay, thanks! That's very helpful![/COLOR]

Happy dog, let the dog bark...play barking is communication!!

We wouldn't like it if someone told us to shut up huh ;)

I have a collie who talks to me all the time!