We adopted Gigi last September and I love her to death. She’s small and is well crated trained. She goes right into her crate at bedtime. Sometimes but not very often, she’ll start barking like crazy in the middle of the night. Last night was one of those times. I have no doubt that she’s echoing the barking of another dog a quarter mile away or there’s a possum on the porch or some other such emergency.
What should I do in these situations? I hate to train her that if she barks in the night that I’ll get up and let her out. Being stern works only temporarily. In the past, I’ve just turned up the sound on my babbling brook noisemaker and gone back to sleep but it makes me feel guilty.
Can you put her crate somewhere where it is less likely for her to hear the neighborhood dog, or see the porch possum?
When our dogs were crated, we had blankets over the crates (connected like a tunnel) so they were like a big cave, for the two dogs to snuggle in together. This lasted for a year. Now the dogs have a doggy door they freely use, with a fenced back yard. And they have wormed their way into sleeping in bed with us. We are total suckers.
What about leaving on the radio or a babbling brook noise machine for the dog? If she’s hearing dog barks from a mile away and possum scuffling around and that’s making her bark, some background noise might muffle some of that.
I find quietly admonishing dogs in a firm but disapointed tone works much better than trying to yell over their racket. Raising your voice seems to make them think that you’re joining the fun. Maybe try that?
Is this a joke? A correctly fitted muzzle allows a dog to eat, drink, and yes, bark, while wearing it. Muzzles are tools to prevent dogs from biting.
OP, can you explain more why you “feel guilty” for ignoring your dog barking? It’s the right thing to do, IMHO.
Also, where is the crate located? If possible, move the crate to your bedroom, so Gigi thinks of crate time as “pack time” - this could reduce her watchfulness/reactivity. If you’re out of the room, it’s possible she thinks she should be on sentry duty overnight.
I will 2nd the bark collar suggestion. We have one for a dog we got a few months ago that is bark activated; he used to bark at night in his crate as well. No, no more! They work wonders. And it’s only a temporary thing… after a month or two of wearing it fairly regularly, you should be able to just put it away for good like we have.
The crate is in the living room and is right next to the porch. We usually cover it at night but sometimes my daughter forgets to. I could move it a little farther away from the porch but not very much. Unfortunately, the bedroom is out.
I tried leaving Pandora on over night but that didn’t seem to make much difference.
I suppose that I feel guilty like I would if a baby were crying and I ignored it. At some emotional level, it just doesn’t feel right.
For those suggesting a bark collar, are these the shock or the “bzzzzt” variety. I’m no member of PETA or anything but I don’t think I could shock my dog and I wonder about the efficacy of the “bzzzzt” kind.
I’ve used a beeping (not shocking) bark collar with foster dogs before. You don’t even have to put it on them. They were too heavy for our little chihuahuas. Just lay the collar on top of their crate. Only takes a few barks the first night or two and they figure it out.
Crating is good for dogs, especially rescues you’re fostering. Helps comfort them from anxiety issues, housebreaking, food aggression, and gets them used to being in one for all the trips to the vet or groomers they’re in for.
Get (or better yet, borrow if you can) a beep/shock collar of an appropriate size for your dog. A lot more depends on proper training than the tool, and I’d again suggest pairing it with a separate method like a clicker. You can use it in beep mode, or go to beep/shock mode, where the shock is delayed and encourages response to the beep. I don’t like shock collars, either, even on my big dogs, but they have their place for rapid training when used correctly.
