Barking - help needed

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

so, we moved into our apartment yesterday, and Cooper has started barking. At everyone walking past, at every noise in the hall way, at every other dog barking. She even growls sometimes - not aggressively, but its still a growl and it is unacceptable.

We have lived in shared houses before (2 other suites) and she never barked. Then we lived in the country with the inlaws for 7 months where there were no noises from other people. is she just getting used to the noises again or is this going to be a habit? 

Thankfully everyone here is very nice, most have dogs themselves (some who do bark at every noise) but I dont want this to become a problem

Thankfully Im home most of the time at the moment so I want to stop it now before it becomes a habit. what is the best way to go about it? I do have an air purifyer which gives background noise but it doesnt seem to make a difference

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Since you are home, you can fill a can with coins and shake it sharply and say firmly , "NO" every time she makes an unacceptable noise.  This works for us when we go camping and are around.  It does NOT work when you aren't there, but if it is just a new phase perhaps this will stop it.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

Hopefully she is just getting used to it again, but of she hears other dogs barking she may just join in? We have used the can trick also.

[K and Racey]

Racey does this when I go to my moms condo. . I spent the night out there once, and she stayed up all night guarding me. She even growled (meanly) at my mom in the morning when she came into the room and I was still asleep.

I think it has to do with unusual noises. When she starts growling, I calmly tell her "it's okay" if she doesn't stop, I firmly tell her "no"

I guess it depends on how you want Cooper to respond. I want Racey to alert me when she hears something unusual so I don't tell her "no" until after I have already told her "it's ok." 99.9% of the time, she stops growling when I say that. Once she sees that I'm calm and there is nothing to be worried about, she will stop growling. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I think Cooper may be feeling a little disoriented and not quite sure of her surroundings. She may be feeling a little insecure and unsure if there is some threat in all the new noises. Once she settles in and adjusts, I think she'll relax a little when she sees that she's safe and stop feeling like she has to sound an alert at every unfamiliar sound. In the meantime, I think Nancy's suggestion is a good way to discourage her.

[Martha & Cooper]

I use the can with coins to stop my Cooper from barking too.   Now, I don't even have to shake it.  I just have to show him the can, like others here.   It doesn't work if I am not home though.   He barks when he hears me pull in the garage.   I ask the neighbors and they tell me he is mostly quiet, but if they are outside, they do hear him bark when someone comes on our porch, ie the mailman.   

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

Sophie does this too sometimes when people are in the hallway and walk by my apartment, or when she hears a dog out on the street. sometimes winston joins in too. I shush them, tell them "no bark". It works somewhat, but the problem isn't so severe that I feel the need to correct a lot. I kind of like the idea of her warding off potential danger. Even though the second she sees who's on the other side of the door she's all play and affection. I bet the can trick will work. Or spray some water. I also had a trainer teach me to get her to go in her crate for a treat everytime she got excited about movement outside of the door. Adittedly, I never followed through on that one though.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Our trainer has us using something similar with G & M.  For Guinness, barking because of sounds outside is his way of warning me (that bark has it's own distinctive sound), but for Murph, it is more territorial (highly dominant body language and a very aggressive bark).  At the first bark (or sooner if I hear the sound before they do), I put they in a down/stay away from the door or any window.  Being able to see the person, truck, other dog, etc. makes matters worse.  For some reason if they're in a down/stay they will not bark.  It's a much more submissive position for them, and so they give up the idea of protecting their territory.  It's basically giving them a different "job" to do.....they lay there calmly while I take care of whatever is going on outside.  It takes some discipline at first, and you have to be consistent, but it's helped tremendously.  I do agree with everyone though that a lot of this is just because she's getting used to her new territory. 

[Amy, Cubbie & Ollie]

I guess Cubbie can multi-task because I tried the down/stay with him to stop his constant annoying barking and he still continues to bark or woof.  :(  

I tried using the can, but it just scares Ollie too much.  Guess i'll have to keep reading the suggestions in this post.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

How about the citronella collar for Cubbie?

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

This was one of the issues we had on our lists of things that we took to that last trainer that we worked with.  She told us to use "ENOUGH"!  She said it is their way of letting us know that something is going on and that as soon as we took control of the situation they would stop.  So, as soon as they start to bark we say ENOUGH, I'll go check.  We would then go and look out the door or window what what ever direction they were barking and so It's ok, it's just the mailman or whatever.  It has worked very well here.  We have a hole lot less barking than we used to.  This was a way that they still bark to alert us, rather than making them not bark at all.   Now pretty much as soon as they give a bark we just say ENOUGH and they pretty much stop. 

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

this is exactly what I do, I just didn't know it was a 'technique' lol. It works well. They just need to know you have it covered :)

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Kaytlin, I use a fan on the highest setting to mute noises. I am going to try the coins in the can trick, however, for in the car. They have just starting barking at everything in the car and I have had it :) I think Cooper is just adjusting to the new place and all the new sounds. It might calm down as he realizes this is home. Good luck!!