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My dog is a pretty calm dog. She hasn't been "certificate" trained but I've trained her with basic commands and have used a lot of what I've seen in various programs on Animal Planet and such. She is a good dog and I've had people comment to me that I have "worthless" dogs because they don't bark and growl at people who walk by my fence (my dogs are worthless because they aren't extremely territorial and aggressive??-SHEESH).
Anyway. All three of my dogs are pretty quiet. All three bark if anyone or anything comes up in the back of the house that I'm not aware of (like to the back door--which only gets used for the dogs). But the minute they have my attention and I acknowledge them barking, they stop. Even if it doesn't go away (unless it comes closer or tries to come in the yard, then they bark again). But usually it's a stray cat or dog and when I go out and talk to the animal, it runs away and my dogs stop barking. I basically tried to train them where they'd forewarn me of any potential danger near my house without disturbing my neighbors with constant barking all day long (they don't stay outside at night but in the event it did have to happen sometime, they wouldn't bark all night long like the mutts across the street that never, ever shut up). LOL Sorry.........
Anyway--long story short, my big dog HATES my meter reader. She barks at him in ways I have, in 4 years, NEVER heard her bark. She doesn't growl, show teeth or drool by any means. It's your typical bark/howl. But he is the only person she does this with. I tried telling her "no bark" through the window--which usually stops her bark dead in its track but she just starts back up shortly there after. I went outside and put myself between her and him (the yard is fenced so the fence is between him and me). And then when she went to bark I made some stupid noise to grab her attention. I have tried making her lay down and when she'd try to stand so she could bark at him, I stopped her and gave her a treat for laying down/not barking. I even had him cover over to the fence once and he pet her and gave her a treat and was talking to her and her tail was wagging fast as could be and she never once barked at him. But when he walked away, she was barking again. And I've seen him a few times when he'd stop to read our meter he'd go acknowledge her and pet her and whatnot and then when he went on his way she was barking again.
I know this is only once a month and he's only around for 3 minutes maybe (reading mine and the few people around me). He's not at all afraid of her and he often tells her "no bark".....and when he does she stops and walks away. But she just ends up back a few seconds later barking again.
If dogs are only supposed to see black and white--why is it she only gets this way with the electric meter reader (who wears a brown uniform) and the UPS guy (who wears a brown uniform). She doesn't bark at the FedEx guy! But she barks at the UPS truck when it's still so far down the road you can't see it.....it's like she can hear it and knows it's a UPS truck. LOL That sounds so stupid but I am SOO serious. It's just them two. And the UPS guy doesn't get out of his truck, she only barks at him when he drives by. So that one lasts all of 5 seconds tops.
I'm at my whits end. I hate the barking at the electric guy--he knows she's not being aggressive. Obviously if he can walk up to the fence and stick his hands in to touch her she doesn't mean any harm. She doesn't usually bark for attention, normally it's a yippee "here I am" playful howl and she hops like a rabbit. So she does a "hear I am" howl and dance for attention. But this guy she barks at (or as good a bark as she can get out anyway--she's not a very good barker).
Any thoughts or ideas?
Anyway. All three of my dogs are pretty quiet. All three bark if anyone or anything comes up in the back of the house that I'm not aware of (like to the back door--which only gets used for the dogs). But the minute they have my attention and I acknowledge them barking, they stop. Even if it doesn't go away (unless it comes closer or tries to come in the yard, then they bark again). But usually it's a stray cat or dog and when I go out and talk to the animal, it runs away and my dogs stop barking. I basically tried to train them where they'd forewarn me of any potential danger near my house without disturbing my neighbors with constant barking all day long (they don't stay outside at night but in the event it did have to happen sometime, they wouldn't bark all night long like the mutts across the street that never, ever shut up). LOL Sorry.........
Anyway--long story short, my big dog HATES my meter reader. She barks at him in ways I have, in 4 years, NEVER heard her bark. She doesn't growl, show teeth or drool by any means. It's your typical bark/howl. But he is the only person she does this with. I tried telling her "no bark" through the window--which usually stops her bark dead in its track but she just starts back up shortly there after. I went outside and put myself between her and him (the yard is fenced so the fence is between him and me). And then when she went to bark I made some stupid noise to grab her attention. I have tried making her lay down and when she'd try to stand so she could bark at him, I stopped her and gave her a treat for laying down/not barking. I even had him cover over to the fence once and he pet her and gave her a treat and was talking to her and her tail was wagging fast as could be and she never once barked at him. But when he walked away, she was barking again. And I've seen him a few times when he'd stop to read our meter he'd go acknowledge her and pet her and whatnot and then when he went on his way she was barking again.
I know this is only once a month and he's only around for 3 minutes maybe (reading mine and the few people around me). He's not at all afraid of her and he often tells her "no bark".....and when he does she stops and walks away. But she just ends up back a few seconds later barking again.
If dogs are only supposed to see black and white--why is it she only gets this way with the electric meter reader (who wears a brown uniform) and the UPS guy (who wears a brown uniform). She doesn't bark at the FedEx guy! But she barks at the UPS truck when it's still so far down the road you can't see it.....it's like she can hear it and knows it's a UPS truck. LOL That sounds so stupid but I am SOO serious. It's just them two. And the UPS guy doesn't get out of his truck, she only barks at him when he drives by. So that one lasts all of 5 seconds tops.
I'm at my whits end. I hate the barking at the electric guy--he knows she's not being aggressive. Obviously if he can walk up to the fence and stick his hands in to touch her she doesn't mean any harm. She doesn't usually bark for attention, normally it's a yippee "here I am" playful howl and she hops like a rabbit. So she does a "hear I am" howl and dance for attention. But this guy she barks at (or as good a bark as she can get out anyway--she's not a very good barker).
Any thoughts or ideas?
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