# Dog barking in the car



## merlinrabbit (Jul 14, 2012)

Hello,

This is my first post here and I'm hoping to get some help on how to stop my dog barking in the car.

To give some background: he is a German Shepherd Dog and will be two years old in August. He's always been quite nervous in the car and when we first got him as a puppy he was frequently car sick. In the end we kept taking him in the car to make sure he got used to it and now the car sickness is no longer a problem. After that he was mostly fine in the car but occasionally he barked but it wasn't very often and not for very long so I thought the barking would be something he would grow out of. However, this has not happened and it's gradually got worse to where he will now bark non-stop throughout most car journeys!

The barking can really wind me up but its obviously pretty difficult to stop as I've got to concentrate on driving and he's in the boot of the car. Occasionally, I've tried having somone sit in the back seat and feed him treats through the grate but this very rarely works as he normally stays quiet for a second then takes the treat and barks immediately after.
Any help you could offer would be much appreaciated!


----------



## hayleyth (May 9, 2012)

Difficult one! First thing i would do is make the car seem a happy place. When you put him in the boot give lots and treats and fuss. Spend some time just sitting in the boot with him when the car isnt moving and just help him relax. Then take him out boot and reward more. I would repeat this over few days. He'll realise the car is a good place where he gets fuss and treats. 

Next is to set a good example to your dog. Make sure you are quiet in the car and relaxed even when barking. I would drive a short journey, then stop and give treats, then repeat. Gradually make the journeys longer and he should slowly feel happier about the car. 

Maybe put blankets up at the boot window to restrict view slightly? Some dogs feel very territorial in the car so this may help. Also maybe a kong in the boot, give him something to think about throughout journey? 

Hope you find something that works.


----------



## Old Shep (Oct 17, 2010)

It may help if you can black out the windows somehow. Even with those childrens sun screens you get. If he can't see out he may have nothing to bark at!


----------



## Burrowzig (Feb 18, 2009)

One of my dogs used to bark in the car; I know how annoying and distracting it is.

I put her on the passenger seat in a car harness, and with one of those tube-type muzzles on, so she couldn't open her mouth enough to bark properly. After a few days, I started with the muzzle off, but if she barked I'd just pull over to the side of the road and put it on. It meant planning routes without stopping restrictions!

It took just a couple of weeks and she stopped barking in the car altogether (as long as I'm in there too - if I get out to go into a shop or something, it was a different story).

Now I have 2 dogs, they are in crates in the back and travel well and quietly. The other dog has never barked in the car.


----------



## Guest (Jul 15, 2012)

I had 9 rescues who used to go to 4 sports ovals and run up and down. (I have a van). It was a dead end street, and the dogs loved it so, they would start to scream and bark, from the moment we turned into the last road. I have to say, 9 dogs in a hollow van, it was utterly deafening, but I just couldn't stop laughing. I did start to fear for my hearing, so as soon as it started, I stopped. The noise went on until they started to get puzzled, and sad, because we hadn't got there. Once the last noises started, I moved off. The screaming and barking started, the car stopped. The car became silent, apart from my smothered laughs. We started off, they started up, we stopped... In 2 trips, it had stopped, and I still feel a little sad. They were SO excited!!! SO happy...


----------



## Old Shep (Oct 17, 2010)

That's fantastic househens! Well done!


----------



## deybecumu (Feb 18, 2011)

it's not the treats, it's when you give em'


----------



## ClaireandDaisy (Jul 4, 2010)

Next time you go to the supermarket, take the dog. 
When you nip out in the car to get a paper, take the dog. 
Going to the library? Take the dog. 
When he barks - ignore it. 
If barking serves no purpose and if nothing good happens at the end of the journey, the dog will settle.


----------



## creativesam (Mar 3, 2012)

I had similar problem with Max jumping around the boot and barking. The only way i managed to stop him was to invest in a fabric covered crate. I think it works because he can not see out any longer. He is so good now we went 100 miles to Norfolk a couple of weeks ago and didn't hear a peep out of him, obviously we did stop for breaks.


----------



## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

Can I ask if your dog barks on the way home from walks or just there? I have the same problem with my girl Bella (also a 2 year old gsd), she yells the whole way on the walk, if Im not driving and sit in the back shes fine but she wont shut up the entire way to the walk when Im not in the back . Ive sort of started learning to ignore it now :blushing:


----------



## 8tansox (Jan 29, 2010)

Flint my Rottie barks in the car, only when he sees people and dogs though. 

I have tried all sorts of methods; ignoring the noise and praising him when he's quiet, rewarding him for being quiet, "watch" commands, make a set of curtains for the windows in the car (  seriously??) l.a.t. games, all to absolutely no avail whatsoever. However, on the homeward journey he's usually a little quieter because he's tired and lying down. The other two dogs in the back of the car don't make a sound.

Honestly, now, I just let him bark. The odd thing is though he only does this when the car is moving, if the car is stationary (in a car-park) then anyone can come right up, get into the car next to ours and he doesn't make a sound. 

I've driven up and down busy high streets and he goes nuts, but as we live in the middle of nowhere, I think it's going to be an ongoing issue with him, and as I've already said, I'm just going to let him bark and hope I never have to live in a heavily populated area again!


----------



## x PIXIE x (Feb 9, 2012)

Try and get him used to it. reward the good behaviour. He will get used to what you expect if you condition that behaviour


----------



## dobermummy (Apr 4, 2009)

Some good ideas on here to help you  im no good i just turn the music up louder so i cant hear the barking


----------



## MissyDD (Dec 6, 2013)

I'm afraid I don't have an answer but a similar problem.

Our Vizsla Amber has wore a harness from very small which was secured into the back seat belt clip with an attachment, she was a bit fidgety looking out either window etc but didn't bark and ended up laying down on the seat by the end of the journey.
We recently changed our car to an estate so that we could get a dog crate (Amber is already crate trained) and although she goes in quite readily now she barks constantly the whole time the car is moving, when we stop at a junction or lights she stops and then when she knows we are finished the journey & getting out of the car she goes mad jumping around in the crate & barking madly.
Its just not nice for any passengers and making us loathe to take her out anywhere that involves the car but we are members of a Viz Whizz and enjoy visiting different places with others of her breed, would hate her to miss out! 
She's not had any incidents of car sickness and we made sure we took her out regularly in the car from the day we picked her up.
Is there a remedy we could give to calm her down, Bach flower maybe? :001_unsure:
Sorry to hijack your post but looking for similar advice please.
thanks Donna


----------



## Hopeattheendofthetunnel (Jun 26, 2013)

"househens" suggestion is brilliant.

I have seen this very technique working on a friend's Border Collie who barked and twirled non-stop in the car. How she managed to focus on the road and traffic is a mystery. Deafening and annoying.

Time consuming, however. The results weren't as rapid as househens. It took about a week or 10 days. The first trip took her 3 1/2 hours....for a destination less than 10 min. away. The second trip took 2 hours. Once her boy really understood the connection between "barking=going nowhere, quiet=vehicle starts moving again" the trip duration swiftly decreased.

I'd pick a free weekend to start and also bring a few good books and a thermos filled with hot chocolate.


----------



## Twiggy (Jun 24, 2010)

Personally my dogs are told to lie down and stay down.

Dogs normally bark through excitement and are therefore sitting/standing/bouncing when they do so.


----------



## merlinrabbit (Jul 14, 2012)

We've made progress with Merlin since I originally posted. We've set up a crate in the back of the car (he was happily crate trained already). Then we covered it with a crate cover and also used a towel to cover the front of the crate so he can't see out at all. Finally we put a comfy bed in there. This seemed to solve the problem almost immediately and we now have bark-free journeys.

We tried covering the windows in the boot but it didn't work as he kept pulling the covers down! 
Plus I don't think it helped that he had so much room to stand up and move around in the boot.

The only problem is we don't have a huge car and now the crate takes up the back seats and boot! The things we do for our dogs!!

So if you haven't already tried maybe try covering up your dog's crate so they can't see out would be my suggestion.


----------

