Hamoth,thanks so much for your thorough replies!
My biggest concern right now is my wife's health as a result of her loss of sleep from the barking. She sleeps upstairs, with the door closed, wearing earplugs and Maddie still wakes her up from a sound sleep every day. I'm a little worried that a month's worth of training may be too long for us to stand.
I really must say though that her barking does not seem to be a plea for attention. When we approach her, even with a calming or cheery voice, while she is barking, she runs from us. She puzzles me.
I will try to work on ignoring her but it is sometimes simply impossible. The frequency at which she barks is ear piercing sometimes and a few minutes of it would drive Mother Teresa to murder. |