Rafferoo
Well-Known Member
I am the proud owner of a 6 year old JRT. She is a fantastic little dog who spends all day with me at work (currently asleep in my offfice!) and is full of beans, very clever and alert and a general joy to be with. However we do have a bit of an issue with barking at home. She barks when people arrive/post comes etc which I don't have a problem with but she also barks a lot at wildlife visible from the house.
There is an interesting scale of barks with just a small woof for garden birds (does ignore these most of the time), a fairly good bark for pigeons (not a fan of them at all), a full blown barking attack for squirrels (really not keen) and the most extreme reaction is reserved for our neighbours tough nut ginger toms (hates them with a passion - especially as she knows full well they could beat her in a fight). I have to be honest over the years I have got very lazy and just try to ignore it because everything I have tried does not seem to stop her and as we are out of the house a lot (work during week, stables at weekend) it has not been a huge issue.
I am however rather pregnant at the moment and have been at home a lot more which means the barking has become more noticable. I am also worried that she is going to constantly wake the baby when he arrives. I have tried distracting her, reprimanding her and also a spray collar. The collar makes her sneeze but unfortunately she is certainly not going to let that stop her!!
In other respects she is quite well behaved - great recall - good off the lead, doesn't wander, affectionate and I absolutely love her to bits (she is maybe a tad spoilt!).
So dog experts - any tips for me? I would be eternally grateful if anyone could help me get this sorted or even just improved a bit!
There is an interesting scale of barks with just a small woof for garden birds (does ignore these most of the time), a fairly good bark for pigeons (not a fan of them at all), a full blown barking attack for squirrels (really not keen) and the most extreme reaction is reserved for our neighbours tough nut ginger toms (hates them with a passion - especially as she knows full well they could beat her in a fight). I have to be honest over the years I have got very lazy and just try to ignore it because everything I have tried does not seem to stop her and as we are out of the house a lot (work during week, stables at weekend) it has not been a huge issue.
I am however rather pregnant at the moment and have been at home a lot more which means the barking has become more noticable. I am also worried that she is going to constantly wake the baby when he arrives. I have tried distracting her, reprimanding her and also a spray collar. The collar makes her sneeze but unfortunately she is certainly not going to let that stop her!!
In other respects she is quite well behaved - great recall - good off the lead, doesn't wander, affectionate and I absolutely love her to bits (she is maybe a tad spoilt!).
So dog experts - any tips for me? I would be eternally grateful if anyone could help me get this sorted or even just improved a bit!