# 24 month spoo loves to bark at the TV



## 94Magna_Tom (Feb 23, 2021)

I don't know if it's normal or not, but my Spoo (Elroy) mostly just watches. Occasionally something very exciting comes on and he'll bark a few times. I wonder if you leave the TV on, with (or without if you need quiet) the sound on, if maybe she'll get used to it and relax. Perhaps you are treating her inappropriately and encouraging the unwanted behavior.


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## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

None of mine have paid much attention to the TV, apart from barking when the movie had the sound of something like a doorbell or a howling wolf. Usually Galen brings a tennis ball, and he and hubby spend the entire program playing fetch.

What sorts of programs do you watch? My husband normally watches programs which are pretty boring by dog standards: This Old House, Roadkill Garage, American Pickers. Occasionally he branches out into Marvel. (Hubby is such a dude.) Hubby himself quietly sits in his chair as he watches the programs. I could see how sports programming might get a dog excited, because the humans themselves are generally yelling and acting excited.


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## molliespoo (Nov 19, 2021)

I know, she used to just watch but not anymore. I never treat when she's barking, I'll have her go through sit, lay down, spin, all her tricks, which she'll do just fine until after I treat her, then she returns to the TV.
I think I'll have to start with static images because she'll growl at the home screen because sometimes a picture of a dog slides by.
I mean, she'll bark at pretty much any program, but especially action shows like Alias or similar. I like to turn on the tv just to have something to listen to while cooking in the kitchen (we're a quiet family) and she'll bark while I'm like 15 feet away ignoring the tv.


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## 94Magna_Tom (Feb 23, 2021)

cowpony said:


> What sorts of programs do you watch?


"Lucky Dog", "Star Trek", "Star Trek Next Generation", "...Voyager", "...Deep Space Nine". These are all Elroy’s favorites. He walks right up to the TV for Lucky Dog and sometimes interacts, and for the Star Trek series, he just watches from a distance. I think the background soundtrack intrigues him. Lots of cool sound effects!


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## Misteline (Mar 10, 2019)

Evelyn has no interest in the tv, regardless of what's on it.

How long has she been doing this, and how long have you been trying to correct it? You list several different tactics here, how long did you spend on each? The longer and more entrenched a habit is the longer you'll need to use a training tactic before you can say it isn't working. Barking is self rewarding, so it is very difficult to break a dog from and the tactics you've used seem like mixed messages. Especially if your timing is off.


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## molliespoo (Nov 19, 2021)

Misteline said:


> Evelyn has no interest in the tv, regardless of what's on it.
> 
> How long has she been doing this, and how long have you been trying to correct it? You list several different tactics here, how long did you spend on each? The longer and more entrenched a habit is the longer you'll need to use a training tactic before you can say it isn't working. Barking is self rewarding, so it is very difficult to break a dog from and the tactics you've used seem like mixed messages. Especially if your timing is off.


I'm jealous of your dog lol. My friend's dogs have always ignored the tv, and so did our last family dog who was a JRT.
We've done timeouts for quite a while, but it doesn't seem to be working. She's been doing this for about a year so it's kinda frustrating. What would you recommend as far as tactics? and how to fix timing?


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## Misteline (Mar 10, 2019)

molliespoo said:


> I'm jealous of your dog lol. My friend's dogs have always ignored the tv, and so did our last family dog who was a JRT.
> We've done timeouts for quite a while, but it doesn't seem to be working. She's been doing this for about a year so it's kinda frustrating. What would you recommend as far as tactics? and how to fix timing?


I'm not a trainer and have little experience with training out barking. Hopefully one of the people with more experience with this issue will chime in!

What I have noticed is often, and I very much include myself in this, we think we've tried a training tactic for a long time when actually we used it sporadically and inconsistently for a few day or weeks when actually we would need to use it with focused intent for several months before we would see any major progress. I think if I were in your situation I would eliminate the opportunity to practice the behavior wherever possible except for times when I can focus on training it out. From what I understand the first step to eliminating barking is to reward the dog for being quiet and calm without the stimulus and then slowly introduce the stimulus. In this case I would think you and your family members have a lot of control over when she's exposed to the tv or whatever images are exciting her. 

My concern with your trick and treat tactic is in this case you might be ramping her up with engaging commands, giving her a treat and then...? She's still engaged and amped, but there's nothing to do but put that energy into the next engaging activity - barking at the tv. Of course I could be off the mark, but what you're rewarding her for doesn't appear to be connected to what you actually want, which is a quiet calm dog.

Of course how much time and energy you want to invest depends on how much it's actually bothering you. I couldn't cope with that for a week, much less a year! But I'm super sensitive to sounds...


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

Beckie is reactive to the tv and she growls when she sees other animal. I tolerate it if it’s short and soft, but will tell her to stop otherwise. I don’t tolerate barking either so she is used to being told to stop.

Just find a cue and make her stop. If not, get her off the couch or send her in another room. I know these methods are old school, but they work. You won’t be hurting your dog, just applying discipline.


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## molliespoo (Nov 19, 2021)

Misteline said:


> My concern with your trick and treat tactic is in this case you might be ramping her up with engaging commands, giving her a treat and then...? She's still engaged and amped, but there's nothing to do but put that energy into the next engaging activity - barking at the tv. Of course I could be off the mark, but what you're rewarding her for doesn't appear to be connected to what you actually want, which is a quiet calm dog.
> 
> Of course how much time and energy you want to invest depends on how much it's actually bothering you. I couldn't cope with that for a week, much less a year! But I'm super sensitive to sounds...


Ok that makes a lot of sense! I was thinking that it was working her mind and giving her something to do besides bark but I see how that could get her amped and engaged too, especially since she loves doing tricks. I'll start working on calmness, which is the opposite of what she is lol. She's a happy excitable floof for sure. Thank you!


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## molliespoo (Nov 19, 2021)

Dechi said:


> Beckie is reactive to the tv and she growls when she sees other animal. I tolerate it if it’s short and soft, but will tell her to stop otherwise. I don’t tolerate barking either so she is used to being told to stop.
> 
> Just find a cue and make her stop. If not, get her off the couch or send her in another room. I know these methods are old school, but they work. You won’t be hurting your dog, just applying discipline.


Awesome thanks for the input!! I'm going to work at being 100% consistent, as Misteline suggested and hope that we might start to see a breakthrough. Or an extinction burst would show me I'm on the right track.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

Have you ever tried clicker training? It’s pretty amazing how it captures the tiniest moments and behaviours. It’s like speaking poodle. That’s how I taught Peggy to settle in the living room.

If you’re interested in learning about this method, google Karen Pryor and you’ll find loads of resources. Once you’re comfortable with it, you can start easily reinforcing moments of calm.


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## molliespoo (Nov 19, 2021)

PeggyTheParti said:


> Have you ever tried clicker training? It’s pretty amazing how it captures the tiniest moments and behaviours. It’s like speaking poodle. That’s how I taught Peggy to settle in the living room.
> 
> If you’re interested in learning about this method, google Karen Pryor and you’ll find loads of resources. Once you’re comfortable with it, you can start easily reinforcing moments of calm.


I haven't! Although I think I have a clicker laying around somewhere so that might be something I'll be breaking out.  Thanks for the suggestion, I'll look her up!


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

I don’t use the clicker often, but it’s my absolute favourite tool for teaching new things.

Some more rambling thoughts on this topic:

Mollie barking at the TV is probably pretty similar, psychologically, to Peggy alerting us to noises in our current vacation spot (our most recent challenge). Shouting no, saying no firmly, grabbing her muzzle.... All of those things people do out of frustration have zero positive effect on a dog that’s in a hyper-alert state.

I try to think of barking as an unconscious action, kind of like your heart rate speeding up when you watch a scary movie. Imagine someone yelling at you to STOP IT because your pounding heart was annoying them? Would you know what they wanted from you? Or how to stop it?

Now what if they instead turned on the lights and started talking to you about a favourite memory? Your heart rate would naturally slow down. You may be a little annoyed, because you were enjoying the movie. It was entertaining. It was something to do. But now—oooh!— they’re bringing out your favourite snack. And actually, you’re pretty sleepy because you’ve had a fulfilling day and tomorrow will be full of other fulfilling activities. Maybe amping yourself up with a scary movie isn’t so appealing after all. They hand you a good book. You curl up with it and ask if there are any more yummy snacks....

You want to 1) change Mollie’s mental state and 2) provide her with alternative pleasurable behaviours.

You mentioned a 3-hour hike didn’t settle her? That makes perfect sense to me. A 3-hour mountain hike for a dog that’s not conditioned for 3-hour mountain hikes is going to get her adrenaline _pumping_. A consistent routine, made up of moderate physical exercise, regular mental exercise/purpose, and ample opportunity for quiet naps and unbroken restorative sleep, are likely to give you much better results.

And if you need to keep the TV off when you can’t supervise her for a while? Oh well. It’ll be worth it in the long-term. Any time we let a dog rehearse undesirable behaviours, it makes it more challenging to extinguish them. That’s why we typically keep our windows covered at poodle-level. Otherwise watching them and alerting us to passersby would become Peggy’s full-time job. Eek! No thanks.


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## molliespoo (Nov 19, 2021)

PeggyTheParti said:


> I don’t use the clicker often, but it’s my absolute favourite tool for teaching new things.
> 
> You want to 1) change Mollie’s mental state and 2) provide her with alternative pleasurable behaviours.
> 
> ...


Thank you for all the tips and insight! I always heard that if a dog had too much energy at night, then the solution is more exercise, but it doesn't seem to matter whether it's super intense hike or a 30 minute walk with frisbee fetches. That makes sense that about amping her up. 
And @ that last part  That made me smile because although I don't know other dogs who bark at TV, I do know many friends' dogs who love to guard windows as their full time job!


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

Frisbee amps Peggy up like nothing else! She is literally on edge for days after. Neighbourhood walks can have a similar effect on some dogs, especially if they’re reactive. You’ll figure out what works best for Mollie, but Peggy does best with chill sniffy walks on a long leash in natural areas, plus regular, short trick-training sessions with a calm tone. I’ll sometimes even do completely silent sessions so she tunes right into me.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

If Mollie has a high prey drive, which is being triggered by movement on the TV, she might enjoy playing with a flirt pole. Just very short sessions, though, as it exhausts them quickly. As soon as the tongue comes out, I know we’re done.


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## Deere (Jun 25, 2021)

Ivan spoo also barks at tv when there's a lot of activity with dogs on like "Lucky Dog" a dog behavior show otherwise he has no interest in tv(the programs I watch are diverse). Ivan is allowed a couple of barks then"enough"and he settles down. He reacts to seeing a dog on tv by standing up, getting closer to the tv(wall mount) and then he looks at me and gives a few barks. My response is"ok, settle" then he will lay back down on his bed in the family room.


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## molliespoo (Nov 19, 2021)

thanks everyone for responding! It's so neat how every dog is so different.


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## Meisha (Sep 21, 2020)

94Magna_Tom said:


> "Lucky Dog", "Star Trek", "Star Trek Next Generation", "...Voyager", "...Deep Space Nine". These are all Elroy’s favorites. He walks right up to the TV for Lucky Dog and sometimes interacts, and for the Star Trek series, he just watches from a distance. I think the background soundtrack intrigues him. Lots of cool sound effects!


Elroy would be right at home with Meisha and me. I watch "Star Trek Next Generation", "...Voyager", "...Deep Space Nine" from start to finish and then start at the beginning again. DS9 is my favorite. Do you and Elroy watch Star Trek Discovery?


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## 94Magna_Tom (Feb 23, 2021)

I'm unfamiliar with that one, so no. Next generation is my favorite.


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## Cariboo Poodle (Nov 17, 2021)

My one Poodle. Gypsy, who is 4 years old just started in the last couple of months barking and running at the TV every time a dog comes on. The rest of the dogs will be peacefully sleeping and she wakes them all up and always makes me jump. Have started putting her in her crate before I watch TV programs with dogs in it. She loves her crate as she always gets a Kong with treats in it when she goes in.


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