So am I! My pups know if there is a possum on the back fence....I don't know how. I don't think they make sounds?? Maybe they smell them? I don't know...but I know one thing...no one will ever sneak up on me! LOL

Barking
 

Thank you Ladyjane and others for your suggestions. I did try the ultrasonic device, but my dog took it as the enemy and tried to attack it. It made him more excited it seems. As for trying to comfort him by petting, he gets so worked up I can't get near him. The trouble is that these random barking attacks come suddenly and he goes from 0 to 100 in a second and runs around the house like a crazy animal. If I had notice and could catch him early I think I could calm him. For instance. Last night after dinner I was in bed watching TV and he was sleeping on his bed on the floor. He usually does this and just sleeps quietly. The TV was not making noises etc that would bother him usually. He suddenly shot out of his bed barking and running around and I let him out the bedroom door in case he wanted out the front door. But he just ran up the hall and ran back to his bed. After a few minutes he did it again a few times. I turned the TV sound off but to no avail. I did halt the barking temporarily by using a light mist spray in fron of him, but that soon wore off. As we live in a fairly wild area with all kinds of critters around, I wonder if he hears or smells animals outside that I do not know about and he is defending the home? Or he could be dreaming of intruders? These dogs are so sensitive to things we humans do not know of.
The bottom line is that when he gets the barking fits there is no way to calm him that I have found. In the end he calms of his own accord and settles down.
If he should bark for a reason I know of, I can normally calm him by talking to him in a quiet voice. He also does not bark for long or run around then.

How did he know where the sound was coming from? I have always seen dogs look around when the thing makes the sound....the only time they knew where it came from was when I had the hand held one. I think the others work better....my neighbor uses one and her dogs rarely bark when outside.

Sometimes in the middle of the night Cody will jumped up out of the middle of his sleep barking his lil head off, we have a lot of wild life that comes out at night, these dogs have bionic hearing lol. I just stroke his back and tell him it's ok, he'll give a couple gruffs then settles back down.

I thought this was an interesting article about a study done on dogs using shock collars. Might want to check it out https://positively.com/articles/ever...-collar-study/. I really like Victoria Stilwell.

Joey can hear a fly pass gas at the neighbor across the streets house lol

Barking.
 

Ladyjane. Yes it was a hand held one. So he knew the origin! He certainly did not like the noise.
Maltese. Sounds like the wildlife! These dogs sure are sensitive, but such great watchdogs. Unlike you, my dog does not settle down, and barks for ages until he feels he can safely rest! Or could be the critters stay outside for a long time?? I know we have something out there that ate my oranges!!!! Just waiting for final ripening and they were eaten. Grrrrrr!
Just seen your post Lovetodream. I will check out the link. However, I am sure my dog would go crazy with a shock zap, but worth a try. I love Victoria too.
Thanks all.

We could never ask for a better watch dog
Could we :)

It is interesting....no where does it say that controlled use of an e collar harms a dog. It also says that if you don't use them properly, that is when there are increased problems.

I don't advocate the use of them .. but, would not bash someone who used one in an extreme case. There are different circumstances and not all training methods work for all dogs. I personally could not use an e collar but I know people who have used them in extreme cases with great results....actually potentially saved the lives of their pets by stopping behaviors that other methods didn't help with. AFTER they got them to stop those behaviors they were able to work with them with positive training. I don't believe e collars should ever be used in place of other training methods which is what that study was....a comparison of different training methods.

The last few lines say it all:
This was a comparison study and is not what I have discussed above. No where in my posts did I suggest that the e collar should be used in place of other training methods.

This study also does not discuss safety issues which you have raised. You say it harms them but what I have read is that only happens when the collars are not used correctly.

The last few lines say it all:

"Accordingly, it seems that the routine use of e-collars even in accordance with best practice, as suggested by collar manufacturers, presents a risk to the well-being of pet dogs. The scale of this risk would be expected to be increased when practice falls outside of this ideal."

I wasn’t sharing it to say it said it harmed them I was sharing it to show that other methods worked better. Although it did say that dogs could have issues from it. I’m not against them after everything else is tried persay and a trainer is involved but I really do swear I read some articles about them being dangerous for small dogs last time this topic was brought up. But again I just shared this article to show other methods seem to work better.

Barking
 

Lovetodream. Cracked me up about your dog's detection skills.LOL!
The Yorkie is an excellent watch dog to be sure, but mine would lick any actual intruder to death! But the bark sounds scary.
I read the link re ecollars, and still feel I do not wish to try.
I did try a shock mat with my previous dog, but using the lowest voltage setting it really scared my dog. I got it to stop the dog going up stairs to prevent her going up and hurting her legs when the gate was not a convenient option, but definitely stopped using the mat and returned it. So electric shock of any kind sounds bad for a dog. But who knows it may be the only way to curb some dogs especially larger and more sturdy dogs.
I find it hard to even think of punishing a dog for doing its job as a watchdog, even though the barking can be very annoying sometimes. I just wish he did not get so stressed and that I could thank him for the warning and tell him, all is ok now.

Barking, post 27
 

Sorry, I meant Matese not Maltese!!!! Darned iPad knowing better than me!

Post 22 not 27. Sorry!

But, you did say it was harmful to them in a couple of posts and I guess I got the impression you thought this study backed that thinking.

I just commented saying it is interesting....because it DOES say that it can cause issues if used in place of other training methods and if not used properly. I think it is important for people to know that.

Speaking of watch dog, Yes Emma is a good watch dog when someone is outside but when they are in, she just comes to tell me. Funny Story, my best friend (6'5 ~300 Pounds) was on his way to visit, I was upstairs in my office working Emma was with me. I left the door unlocked. Emma goes down stairs when she hears the door open but she made it half way down the stairs and ran back up and jumped in my lap. I continue to work for a good 15 more minutes not realizing he was in the house. Emma made no peep but the way my best friend explained the how Emma looked (shocked and scared) at him when she made it down the stairs was so funny. So I realized then Emma wouldn't do much in case of an intruder.