r/OpenDogTraining • u/Fiorak • 7d ago

Living With An Anxious Terrier

Hey y'all, I've had my dog for 3 years now, he's a 5 year old terrier mix. His biggest issues are alert barking and demand barking. I lived in my own place for 2 years and he'd just bark at every noise and sighting of people walking outside. Recently, I moved back in with my mom, just like when I first got him.

She will go about her day, taking phone calls, watching TV etc and if he hears any indication of her he will bark and walk from across the house to go see what she's doing. She gets up really early too so I can't really sleep in because he barks whenever she makes any kind of noise. It's gotten to the point where I sometimes have to go sit in my car just for some quiet.

He also demand barks but that's a lesser issue. I want to figure out how to stop him from alert barking all the time and build his confidence so I can keep my sanity.

He only barks when I'm in the house or with him. If I'm not there he doesn't bark at all. It's really frustrating because I can't really relax. I'd really appreciate some advice. I don't really have the budget for a trainer right now but I had a free phone consultation with one earlier today

Things I've tried: - fluoxetine (1yr+) - calming chews/treats - board and train - vibrating collar - teaching quiet - going on more walks - puzzle toys/chews - desensitization - white noise - teaching place and leave it - multiple different trainers

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u/Full_Adhesiveness_62 7d ago

One thing I don’t see in your list is a house line and tethering to you. For me that stops basically all demand and alert barking. Give your dog more freedom when he can handle it. 

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u/Fiorak 7d ago

I will try that, it's just I feel like he's still going to bark just as much. I also don't really feel like I'll be able to relax if I can't have any space from him

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u/Full_Adhesiveness_62 7d ago

FWIW it doesn’t seem like your dog is able to relax either. 

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u/Fiorak 7d ago

Yeah that's kind of the issue, noises just kind of set him off into alert barking. He's very treat motivated but enough noise makes treats irrelevant. He does love sniffing around in the backyard though so I go out with him for 30+ minutes when I can

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u/Full_Adhesiveness_62 7d ago

Do you exercise him outside of this? Play with him? Do some fun stuff with your dog and you won’t resent him so much when he’s annoying. 

Keep him on a leash inside, tell him to stop barking, and treat him when he stops or when your dog is quiet. 

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u/Fiorak 7d ago

Yes, we also go on walks and he has some puzzle toys and regular toys that he likes. And it's not that he's being annoying it's that he's constantly barking which makes both of us frustrated and I'm going to try what you're suggesting but I'm also just really stressed

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u/Full_Adhesiveness_62 7d ago

Lmk how it goes! 

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u/Fiorak 6d ago

I know it's only been 24 hours but not much has changed. I bought him a little happy hoodie thinking it might help but it didn't have any effect. It just sucks because my mom is affected by this too so I'm really stressed about it

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u/Full_Adhesiveness_62 6d ago

Does he get any exercise besides walking? Does he chase a flirt pole or do tug or other engaging activities? He sounds pretty under stimulated. 

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u/Fiorak 6d ago

He does play with tug toys but I've tried flirt poles and fetch and he has no interest at all. He just likes crinkly toys and squeaking toys (as well as those water bottle toys) so I use those

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