How to stop your dog from barking at and protecting construction workers

Barking can be annoying and disturbing for visitors. Ben Randall shows how to get some peace and quiet.

Sometimes you can have a dog that is as hardworking as gold. And yet the sudden arrival of a new person in the house, such as a builder, electrician or (traditionally) a postman, can result in unwanted barking. This is not aggressive, but it is undoubtedly annoying and can make visitors uncomfortable. This is the situation faced by today’s reader who emailed me at [email protected] asking for advice.

Hello Ben,

I am trying to solve this problem. I have a two year old Norwich Terrier called Gwen. She was born in a family home but the lady was diagnosed with cancer and was unable to care for a puppy so Gwen went to a reputable breeder from Norwich and an international judge in East Riding. She was in kennels with other dogs, apparently she was bullied a little, because of her bloodline they tried to get her pregnant but that didn’t happen.

So when I needed a new dog I called the breeder and was offered Gwen. I picked her up on New Year’s Day this year; she is perfect in every way, devoted to me, good on a lead, comes to visit at the wildlife park, never runs away, sits in cafes, travels well, gets on well with children, cats and other dogs (she can be a bit bossy if they are too lively). I have never seen her growl at anything or anyone. She lives with an older Norwich and they get on very well.

But there is work being done on my house, so when a builder comes, she barks and runs to me to tell me the builder is there. She does this every time they move, but only when I am in the house. When I am not home, she is well behaved – not a sound – and the builders can come and go as they please without barking.

She loves the builders/painters/plumbers (she sits on the painter’s lap while he paints the stairs). She loves people.

Why is this happening? And how can I stop it? Currently, I throw her a squeaky toy to distract her. That’s fine if someone just comes to the door, but if someone is going in and out, I can’t be there all the time to throw a toy — EA, Norfolk

Thank you for your question! As with all questions, I can only go by the information I have been given, so there may be other possible angles we can look at, but we’ll stick with what we have.

So your dog is perfectly behaved, but when there are construction workers (or other visitors) in your house, he seems to bark at them. When you are not there, he does not bark. This tells me as a trainer that the dog is in a slight “protective mode” towards you. The dog gets stressed when people enter your house and place, and he feels like he has to protect the place and you. A dog that is happy and content and trusts his owners will see an owner that can handle these situations. The dog should not have to worry about this.

You also mentioned throwing a toy to distract the dog. Unfortunately, all you’re saying to the dog is, “If I bark, she’ll throw me a toy as a reward.”

I want you to look at how you interact with the dog on a daily basis. What I mean by that is, if a dog is behaving like this, there are other command behaviors that have not been taught properly or solidly enough. It is never just one problem, but a collection of problems that cause the barking.

So there is a lack of respect for your commands and mild stress and worry about her having to take control.

The Norwich Terrier can be distinguished from the Norfolk by its pointed ears. Image credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

1. Back to basics with Foundation commands

I want you to repeat some of your basic commands. For example, teach the dog to sit patiently at mealtimes and during all chores in and around the house. This can be covered in my Consistency at Mealtime articles, and one of the most powerful weapons in my arsenal is the “Down” command.

My “stop” command is used for any negative behavior. Once they receive this command, they understand that they have to stop doing something for a reason and they start to trust the system. So it should be as simple as: a construction worker in the house, a simple “go” command, point to the bed and give the “in” command. That is the end goal

2. Replace bribery with mutual respect and show that you have the situation under control

Read my article on barking at the door. It explains how to do this in detail, but a perfect example would be: There was a knock on the door and someone came into the house. The dog’s first thought should be, “Go and sit in my bed until I get praised or some kibble as a reward.”

Sorry if I read that wrong, but when they throw the toy to distract from one behavior to another, that usually tells me that my clients have used treat bribery training. And with bribery training, like any dog ​​or human, there is very rarely mutual respect between both parties when you bribe them to do something. They only do it for the initial reward, whereas with my proven reward-based training methods, I build trust, bonding, and partnership and my dog ​​understands that I am giving a command for a reason and that he should trust him. And he understands that he is working for a reward for a period of time. This helps the dog to trust that the more he follows each command, the more the reward will come.

Since it’s your house and your front door and you hired the builders, the behavior you want will come from repetition, so use these things to your advantage and repeat them until a habit is developed.

Ben Randall’s book “How to Train Your Gundog” is now available. You can order it here for £40.

For more detailed advice on Ben Randall’s positive, reward based and proven BG training methods, one to one training sessions, onsite training or five star dog boarding at his BGHQ in Herefordshire call 01531 670960 or visit www.ledburylodgekennels.co.uk. A free seven-day trial of the Gundog app, which costs £24.99 per month or £249.99 per year, is available at www.gundog.app/trial