Need help in training my dog no to bark!!

[rockynI]

Hi, I'm a first time rottie owner and my dog is 4mnts old now, he's an absolute sweet heart, and I've had him for a little over 2mnts now:) His training is going wonderful, he used to be very aggressive when we first brought him home, growling and playbitting very hard, but I managed to train him on not doin that and it worked just fine! He never growls anymore, and he's already learned some commands like "sit", "stay", and he even handshakes with me(very cute) anyways... oh and yes, he's beeing socialized, he loves people and kids and he's pretty good with a friend's puppy(germ.shep) so all together he's an awsome dog, I guess I was fortunate BUT hopefully he'll stay as calm and lovely as he is cuz i don't wan't him to change, he's perfect!
OK, now my real question...he barks at nights:( and my neighbor is complaining.. grrrrr, we met with a trainer and he said he'll start training him when he's 6mnts old so I still have 2mnts to wait, meanwhile I'm trying to train him myself as much as possible but I DON'T know how to deal with this one. He barks for about 20-30 minutes at maybe 1 or 2 in the morning and he wakes up at 6-6:30 and he barks some more LOL(like that was not enough)...I don't know, he's not leashed at nights but he only has like 1/4 of the yard to himself, we blocked it so he won't eat the plants and rocks(by the way, is it normal for them to eat rocks??)
I've tried keeping him on leash at nights and it only made things worse, he was crying all night long and so I really need HELP, does anyone know how I can make my dog stop barking at nights?? I mean it doesn't bother me at all, but if it bothers the neighbors then we have a problem:(
Thank you in advance

[Patty1231]

I'm sure you'll get good responses from the experts, of which I'm not, but my guess would be he's lonely - they like companionship. Why is he outside? There are probably a lot of noises out there - he's young, probably scared. I don't know how you could stop this if he's outside and you're inside.

[RottiMomCT]

Originally posted by rockynI
HELP, does anyone know how I can make my dog stop barking at nights??

Sure I have a solution - bring him INSIDE at night. A 4 monthold pup should NOT be outside all night (or at all at night) unsupervised! He's probably lonely - since he has free run of the yard he probably doesn't have to go to the bathroom...bring him in, get a crate, and train him. Once he realizes that his tantrums will not get hom OUT of the crate, he'll settle down. Get him good and tired prior to going to bed for the night, take him out right before you crate him and leave him be until morning.

Even if he barks all night while in the house, it won't wake the neighbors!

[spidey]

Yep, I agree, he's barking because he's outside. Bring him in, Rottweilers are very people-oriented dogs who need to be with their families, only bad things will come of leaving him outside by himself. It's not healthy for him mentally to be alone outside, dogs are pack animals. If you wanted a dog to leave outside, you should have picked a different breed and bought more than one dog.

[LavenderRott]

I personallly, have never had an outside dog. In most of the U.S. it is getting too cold for the poor little guy to be left out anyway.

Bringing him in the house will, most likely, solve your problem. At his age, I highly recommend crate training.

[samanthac]

He needs to be inside in a crate. He's lonely and he's way too young to be out like that by himself, especially now that its getting cold. Leaving a dog that age out by iteslf is tantamount to leaving a human infant outside at night. And I know you would not do that. :)

You'll find that most people here their dogs live inside with them, unless they have a mutli-dog household that requires the use of outside kennels....sometimes 4 or 6 dogs just won't fit comfy int he house. :) But even then you'll find many still keep their dogs in the house, even as adults.

[rockynI]

Thank you guys very much for your responses, however my family doesn't really agree with the dog that big staying inside at nights! I mean we can do that for now since he's still a puppy maybe for 4-5mnts but not forever! He has his doghouse there and I have a dog bed in it so its pretty warm and comfy, and I do give him about 30minutes of exercise every night, so if I do the crate training, can I put him back out when he's a year old or will he get used to staying inside at nights and go back to his barking routine once he's out again??

[danyp1]

What is the difference for them if he is locked in a crate inside the house instate of being outside? Why are they bothered by a dog in the house at night(which would be in the crate) if they are not bothered by it during the daytime?

[Skip]

Originally posted by rockynI
Thank you guys very much for your responses, however my family doesn't really agree with the dog that big staying inside at nights! I mean we can do that for now since he's still a puppy maybe for 4-5mnts but not forever! He has his doghouse there and I have a dog bed in it so its pretty warm and comfy, and I do give him about 30minutes of exercise every night, so if I do the crate training, can I put him back out when he's a year old or will he get used to staying inside at nights and go back to his barking routine once he's out again??

I don't understand the reasoning of the statement "my family doesn't really agree with the dog that big staying inside at nights!". What is their concern? This should have been addressed long before you got the dog. Most rottweilers can be trained to be a very well-behaved dog all night long.

[Patty1231]

Again, you chose the wrong dog for ourdoor living. Obviously, it's a little late now. Are you old enough to get a place of your own? (I'm assuming, perhaps wrongly, that you're living with your parents.)

[Major]

Please stay on topic (training not to bark).

[spidey]

can I put him back out when he's a year old or will he get used to staying inside at nights and go back to his barking routine once he's out again??

Again, this is not a suitable breed for living outside alone. No amount of training is going to change the fact that this dog does not belong outside alone at night (and yes, this is something you should have sorted out before you got the dog). I suggest you return him to his breeder while he's still young enough to rehome easily. To stay on topic - I don't believe you can or should try to train this dog not to bark when he's left outside alone, he is barking because he is lonely and wants to be inside with you, this is unlikely to change unless his attitude changes in ways you don't want (i.e. he stops wanting human contact), or you get him another dog for company (in which case he'll bond to that dog rather than you), and in my opinion it's not in the dog's best interests to try and force it to accept living outside - he'd be far better off in a home where he can live inside as a member of the family.

[Gracie H.]

I agree with the previos posters ...
It is very difficult -- perhaps impossible to train 'not to bark' when the dog is left outside.
There is far too much stimuli outside. The squirrels. The newspaper deliverer. The birds waking up. A leaf falling.
Just curious -- what is your families objection to the dog living indoors?

[Major]

If we can't stay on topic I will start deleting posts.

[moondog]

A barking dog can be taught to "bark" on command, and subsequently taught to "no bark" on command. Unfortunately, someone will have to get up in the middle of the night, go outside, and give the command.