# Dog barking at TV, please help!



## Ginniepig (Mar 26, 2010)

My 8 year old female shihtzu cross yorkshire terrier constantly barks at any animal on the TV, she has always done this, but it does seem to be getting worse. 
She barks loudly at the TV and will jump down and run to the TV jumping up, she was scratching the TV so we have had to fit it to the wall higher up. 
She will recognise the sounds or music from any advert that features an animal, so even when she is relaxing and not "watching TV" she will hear the sounds and start up again. 
I often leave my TV on at night and she will wake me up barking and growling at the TV. 
I have tried a dog whistle when she does it, but she ignores it. The only thing I can do to stop her barking is to say "biscuit" and give her a biscuit (if it is late and everyone is sleeping this is necessary to quiten her down) but obviously this is rewarding her for bad behaviour.
Any advice would be very welcome, Thank you


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## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

Ginniepig said:


> My 8-YO F shih-tzu X yorkie constantly barks at any animal on the TV, she has always done this, but it does seem to be getting worse.
> She barks loudly at the TV and will jump down and run to the TV jumping up, she... scratch(ed) the TV (it is now on) the wall higher up.
> She... recognise(s) sounds or music from any advert that features an animal... she will hear the sounds and start up again.
> *I often leave my TV on at night and she will wake me up barking and growling... *
> I have tried a dog whistle when she does it, but she ignores it. The only thing (that) stop(s) her barking is to say "biscuit" and give [one] (if it is late and everyone is sleeping this is necessary to quiet her down) but *obviously... is reward(s)... bad behaviour. *


hey, ginnie! :--)

no, the biscuit is not rewarding bad-behavior - she SHUTS*UP to get it  
so yes, U are rewarding quiet.

is the dog crate-trained? 
if not, i would start there, teaching her to happily enter an AIRLINE-type kennel, not a wire-cage. 
if she has an airline-approved carry-crate for the car, that works great; if not, U can buy one used on the local Craigslist 
for about $5 to $10, used. it needs only to be large-enuf to enter-U-turn, and exit - crates are for lying-down, 
and she need not be able to lift her head fully when standing - she will not be standing in the crate except to get up, 
turn about, and lie on the other side.

putting her in the crate before turning on the TV, with the SOLID rear of the crate facing the telly, is step one. 
asking her to focus on U during commercials for training is step-two - 
ask her to sit, down, stand, turn-around, roll-over, anything she already knows + can do within the crate, 
and if she knows nothing, now is a good time to teach her. 

have a good supply of very, VERY tiny, but very VERY good treats at hand - 
not carbs, protein + as lean as possible; 
an 1/8th inch cube is plenty, a 1/16th inch cube is fine, too. 
chicken-breast, mozzarella, provolone, tuna from a can, etc.

re the barking at night - 
TURN * OFF the TV before going to sleep - U cannot train the dog while sleeping, 
nor can U monitor her behavior with Ur eyes closed. 

calmatives can help - so can NILIF - 
Pet Forums Community - View Single Post - dog body-language - and why it matters so much...

let us know how she gets on - we love happy endings! :thumbup: 
--- terry


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## Ginniepig (Mar 26, 2010)

Hi Terry,
Thank you for your reply 
She is not really trained to do anything, but like you say now is a good time to start. 
I shall most definately be trying out the training tips you have given, so thank you very much! 
I will let you know how I get on with her


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## cullamubba (Apr 2, 2010)

This is exactly what my westie does. We do laugh at her sometimes though. Like with some adverts when she knows an animal is at the end but she barks from the beginning, even when we've never seen the ad before! It's crazy!

Anyway, we had a one to one with a trainer and he told us to get a plastic bottle with some stones in it and either throw it down in front of her, or just shake it hard once to startle her and make her stop. Also don't say anything when doing it. Don't tell her off or say no or anything cos they just look on that as praise as any attention is good attention to them. It did work for us but we kept loosing the bottle and shouting instead and it didnt make any difference when we did that. But I'm sure if your persistant and make sure you dont say anything whilst doing it, then it should work.

If you solve this one for good, please let me know! We're still working on it!


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## Dirky47 (Oct 20, 2009)

That's my dogs problem before. But I usually ignore it then eventually, he learns to stob barking at the television and come with me watching.


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## kaisa624 (Mar 5, 2010)

We just make an "UH!" interrupting noise, and she'll normally calm down, and lie back down and shut up. If we have to do it more than 5 times, she gets told to "go bed". We have her crate in the kitchen, but she has a bed in whatever room we are in. She seems to chill out in her bed and fall asleep


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## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

cullamubba said:


> ...we had a one to one with a trainer and *he told us to get a plastic bottle with some stones in it and either throw it down in front of her, or just shake it hard once to startle her and make her stop.* Also don't say anything... Don't tell her off or say no or anything cos... any attention is good attn to them. It did work for us but *we kept loosing the bottle and shouting instead and it didnt make any difference when we did that*.
> But I'm sure if your persistant and... dont say anything whilst doing it, then it should work.


hey, mubba! :--) 
and how long do U want to be rattling a shake-can at the dog? 
how often were U doing this - once an evening, say once in 4 to 5 hours? 
every 20 to 30-mins? basically once every 20-commercials? more often? less?

*startling* does not add calm, it adds arousal - it may SUPPRESS behavior, but not by adding calm - 
it adds *stress* + intimidates the dog into silence. dogs who are highly-persistent may continue barking, 
but added stress may emerge as they chew their feet, itch compulsively, get snappy over minor upsets, etc; 
suppressed behavior comes out elsewhere - as stress.

i would suggest skipping *suppression* which teaches nothing - a behavioral vacuum cannot exist - 
and teach WHAT * U * WANT instead. which is *quiet* - vastly different from *SHUDDUP YA #[email protected]!&*%##@ DAWG... * 
if U want the dog calm, U have to be calm, too.  
--- terry


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## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

try adapting this one... 
HowStuffWorks Videos "Barking at the Door"


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## Dirky47 (Oct 20, 2009)

leashedForLife said:


> try adapting this one...
> HowStuffWorks Videos "Barking at the Door"


Thanks for sharing this resource link. :thumbup: We find it useful. :lol:


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## emilysaccount (Aug 11, 2011)

My 3 year old Jack Russell X has been doing this since we got him (for about 1 year now) we have only just started taking action, we usually say "NO." and shut him out of the room, or we would make him sit in his "naughty corner" in silence if that was necessary.


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## wayno26 (Apr 30, 2012)

Our four year old Westie barks and confronts the TV ,when a animal or cartoon, even if a character has a gun or weapon of some kind. His favourite Tv show is Hawaii five o and Match of the Day. We live in a council house and can ill afford for him to be barking outside the watershed ours. He sometimes responds to sharp,abrupt " Quiet or That Enough " command, but generally we have to selective choice, what to watch on TV. 
So i can relate with fellow westie owners.


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## hutch6 (May 9, 2008)

What TV do you have?

The reason I ask is on some you can change the refresh rate (Hz) to a lower level so dogs can't see the moving picture.

We can still see a moving picture at 50-60Hz where as a dog supposedly sees still frames due to their higher retina refresh rate. If you have the option try lowing the TVs frequency to 60Hz. Most LCD/Plasma screens have a 100Hz+ refresh rate meaning the dog sees the moving film.


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## Howl (Apr 10, 2012)

I am tackling barking at the window. I found he following method to be working. Get up guide them away from the tv so they are facing a wall/sofa. Ask them to sit then lie down once they have visably relaxed praise and release . It took about 2 weeks before there was a clear improvement but it is much better now. It produced a quieter bark and generally more relaxed dog. 
Best of luck! 
Ps. It is annoying at first but getting up and dealing with it is important my OH sometimes say enough etc but unless someone changes what happens and distracts it doesn't seem to work.


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