How can such a small dog be so loud???

[Jessica & Benny]

Last weekend Benny (4 1/2 months) went from being a relatively mellow non-barker, literally overnight, to barking at everything. Things he can see or hear or smell. Things he thinks he can see or hear or smell but no one else can. I've been reading mixed messages about giving treats to stop this, and I'm not sure what to do.

There are two issues: 1.  The above mentioned barking at mysterious things outside when he's in the house and 2.  Barking at every single person or dog who walks by the front yard (and there are a lot of them). When outside I've tried to distract him but it's like his little brain has gone crazy. He's currently in training on an invisible fence since he seems to have developed some teenage wanderlust, so he's always on a leash outside for now.  This is definitely something that needs to be nipped in the bud, and any suggestions would be much appreciated!

[Barbara, Zoey and Zeke]

            It is amazing how loud that bark sounds!  Doggie Dan's advice on the subject is this:

1st bark - acknowledge it with a thank you

2nd bark - go to look at what the dog is barking at then say thank you

3rd bark - time out for 30 sec to 1 min  (I use my hallway bathroom for this)

This lets the dog know that you are owning the problem and taking care of the problem.

Type in barking in the search feature up top and there are a lot of other ideas.  Hope this helps.  :^) 

[Jessica & Benny]

Thanks! I tried it a couple times, and it actually seems to work. It's totally bizarre how saying thank you stops him barking. I haven't had to do the time out yet, but I'm sure he'll go nuts soon and then we'll see. The next trick is to stop him when he's outside and barking at a jogger.

[Barbara, Zoey and Zeke]

Great to hear!  In the videos that I watched, Doggie Dan was able to stop a dog that barked non-stop when he saw any neighbors out in the yard or people walking by.  This had been going on for years.  He DID have to do the timeout several times, but I was just amazed at the results.  A couple of days later some boys were out playing basketball by the dog's house, and he was not barking at all.  Also seemed calm!