Shetland Sheepdogs (aka the Sheltie) have a reputation for being a very vocal dog. Shelties tend to have a penetrating bark that can sometimes become overwhelming to their owners and the neighbors. It may often seem they love to hear themselves bark, but it’s more genetically programmed behavior. Having ancestors that worked the farms herding sheep, chasing away predatory birds and protecting, barking comes naturally to the Shetland Sheepdog. It’s instilled in their DNA.
A Sheltie that barks too often may cause issues with landlords, neighbors, people in general. The good news is that Shelties are extremely intelligent and most of them can be taught to tone it down.
Message from a Sheltie mom – Having had dogs in the past, I didn’t heed the barking warning that I read about this breed. I remember thinking to myself, “How much can a dog bark?” Misty Blue would make her ancestors proud with her barking ability.
Dealing with noise and separation anxiety escalates her yappy trait. Any noise, such as starting the clothes dryer, tin foil, motorcycles and loud cars causes her to bark, yelp and run in circles like she is hurt. And the Emu on the Liberty Mutual commercial really sets her off. Misty Blue is still a work in progress!
What have you tried to stop your Sheltie from excessive barking?
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Shetland Sheepdog ~ A to Z Blogging Challenge 2020 Posts
A Is For Active
B Is For Barking
C Is For Characteristics
D Is For Dental Care
E Is For Ear Tipping
F Is For Famous Shetland Sheepdogs
G Is For Grooming
H Is For Health Conditions
I Is For Ivermectin
J Is ForJumping
K Is For Kisses
L Is For Lilies and Other Poisonous Flowers
<em>M Is For MDR1
N Is For Nose Work
O Is For Origin
P Is For Phenol
Q Is For Quarantine
R Is For Rainbow Bridge
S Is For Shedding
T Is For Traits
U Is For Unconditional Love
V Is For Veterinarian
W Is For Working Ability (/em>
X Is For Xylitol
Y Is For Yelling and Other Noises
Z Is For Zoomies
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~Plucking Of My Heartstrings~ 
Our ‘Sweetie’ (cross pomeranian and Chihuahua) who passed this January 😦 😦 was a barker! It was good in the sense that she warned us (and the neighbours) of possible trouble, but, she also barked at regular passers by and general noises.
Apart from squirting water in the dog’s face whenever it barks inappropriately I really don’t believe I know what to do. We just accepted that Sweetie was a barker and left it at that. Thankfully, the neighbours never complained! 🙂
Sorry for the loss of Sweetie. It’s tough! I have been fortunate that my neighbors have yet to complain. I did go around and give out my phone number and told them if her barking ever got to be a problem to please let me know. So far no calls and neighbors are still talking to me : )
😀 😀 😀
I remembered, after commenting, about one neighbour who did complain. He has since acquired a beautiful schnauzer. However, this poor little fellow cries and cries – he’s left out the back all alone. The neighbour, on the other side, has told us he’s fed up with the crying, but hasn’t said anything.
We all just feel so sorry for the schnauzer.
Sometimes noise isn’t always a bad thing!
Barking would be a helpful trait in a shepherd dog. We have a neighbor with an English Sheepdog. She barks at me every day on my walk. I thought she was warning me away, but one day she slipped out of her leash and it turned out that she just wanted to warmly greet me!
Funny you should write this. I bet people walking by think Misty Blue might be warning them not to come close to her property. She is a friendly dog and for those who take a chance and walk up to the fence, she is a friendly dog that just wants to say hi.
I agree with Misty Blue… that Emu is annoying!
Me too!
I had a dog once who was a loud barker ( a lab mix ) whose bark could be hear for at least half a kilometre . And she would bark the moment she smelt any of us coming home . And there were four of us going in and out so that was a lot of noise ! Thank God the neighbours didn’t complain.
I love labs! I think the neighbors way down the street can hear Misty Blue barking. I have also been lucky, so far, that no one has complained.
I used to dog sit for my neighbor. Every time I arrived, he barked so often, it scared me. I just wasn’t sure if he liked me and was excited or he still didn’t trust me and treated me as an intruder. A bark decoder would have been nice! 🙂
A bark decoder would be awesome!
It’s good connecting with you, Cheryl. Thank you for following Eugi’s Causerie.