Ahhhhh….one of the $64,000 questions - how to stop a dog from barking.
Just to let you know, up front, it has been my experience that small dogs, in general, but not always, tend to bark more than large dogs. If I am set-up at a show, beside someone that has a dozen small crates, I know it's going to be a loud weekend, since some of the smaller dogs tend to bark at everything that moves.
My first suggestion would be to take him to a local obedience class, to give him an avenue to burn off some excess energy. Then, I would plan to work him at least 3 days a week, to reinforce what he learned in class. Also, remember that puppies have very short attention spans, so don't make the sessions too long, or he might get distracted. If you are not able to do the class and training, due to your pregnancy, have your husband, or a friend, do the training. Whoever does the training should do both class and at-home training, for consistency.
One thing you might try, if you can't find a local obedience class, is to put him on a leash, then provide a distraction that usually causes him to bark. Tell him to hush (or whatever command you choose), and give him a quick snap of the training collar, or a light pop under the chin, to reinforce your command. If he is quiet, for only a second or two, praise him and give him a treat. Be careful about the praise, however....you don't want to give him a lot of exuberant praise if it causes him to bark - a subdued "good boy," accompanied by a treat, should work fine. Continue this process, waiting longer and longer before giving him the praise and treat (and giving him the treat at random intervals as your training progresses), until you are able to successfully control the barking with a simple voice command.
Giving him another command, like sit/down/shake, etc, might help take his mind off of barking, since he would be expected to do whatever you told him to do, instead of barking. Teach this command as you would the command to stop barking. However, make sure you use a command that is only used for that one action. In other words, don’t use the command “down” to mean both “lie down” and “don’t jump on me.”
Also, as has been mentioned earlier, teaching him to bark on command might be an option. You would do just like the command to stop barking....short training sessions, being sure to praise and reward immediately upon the desired response to your command (i.e. the bark).
You can explore a bark collar, if you wish - they do make small ones. However, I would try to focus the energy first, before using the collar. But, the collars do work. We have a 6yo b!tch that loves to just get out in the middle of the yard and bark at nothing (I think it's her version of singing in the shower). We have used a collar on her for several years, with success. And, in case you were wondering, her attitude is still magnificent!
I always consider debarking as a last resort. However, if all else fails, it would be an option. If you decide to go this route, BE SURE you have the procedure performed by a veterinarian who is experienced with the process. You might want to contact some local Yorkie or Maltese people in your area and see if they can recommend a qualified vet. Collie and Sheltie people also tend to know who is skilled at performing this surgery.
I went to the Yorkie Club of America's website (
www.ytca.org), and found an interesting tidbit in their list of Pros and Cons for having a small dog. To quote the site, “Behavior problems may be directly associated with their human families behavior pattern. (Noisy family/noisy dog, calm family/quiet dog, emotional upset in family/behavior change in dog).” In other words, if you have a lot of commotion at your house - getting ready for the baby, other dogs running around, etc. - this could contribute to the barking.
The YTCA site lists the phone number of a lady who is available to talk Yorkies at specific times during the day. I would strongly suggest giving her a call, to see if she has other ideas that may be more specific to the breed.
Hope this helps.
Larry (Tervman)
