Thanks for the tips. I have used "Enough" with my pups in the past when they bark to alert me. Now they tend to stop when I acknowledge them. With two they are sometimes a little more stubborn than when I had one.
I am lucky most of the time, my pups tend to bark when they play with each other or when someone is at the door - I always know when UPS drops off a package even when they do not ring the doorbell. Abby does bark to tell me that her ball has rolled under the couch and then Max runs to me very concerned. As soon as Abby sees me coming her way, she stops barking and just looks under the couch to show me where the ball is (at least that is what I like to think she is doing).
My issue comes when I come home. They are in the master bathroom all day and when they hear me come home, they bark and jump. Excited to see me, I know, but not something I want to continue. I am trying to deal with the jumping, as when they see me they stop barking. I do not talk to them until I can see them. In the back of my mind I am worried they will jump and get their paw caught in the gate and hurt themselves. I tell them off and then guide them to sit before I will pick them up.
To add to this, I have a dog sitter that comes in mid-day to play with them. I have asked her not to talk to the pups until she goes into the bedroom and they can see her. (This also helped with Max's excited pee issues.) I asked her to put her hand out, palms down, and guide them off the gate to a sit.
Any suggestions for how to teach the pups not to jump on the gate when I come home or when the dog sitter comes over? |