Help- dog barking at bushes/trees...

[txgsp]

Hey yall-

I have a 6 month old GSP and he has some odd obsession with the bushes in my back yard. There are red berries that hang from them and he will go out there and bark as loud as he can at them and jump and grab them. He pulls on the bushes and tries to get the berries (I am assuming that's what he's trying to do).

Also, he usually only does it if I or my friends go out back. It almost like he is doing it to annoy me/show off. How can I get him to stop because the bark is super loud and frankly its really annoying. I don't want to get a e-collar yet because he is going to get trained in 2 months and they are going to condition him.

What do yall suggest?

Thanks in advance!
William

[gonehuntin']

Bark collar.

[ezzy333]

Change the routine for a couple of weeks. Put him in a crate or someplace other than the yard when you go out. Then when you reintroduce him to the yard put him on a leash for a time or two. All I am saying is change the routine so he can break the habit.

Ezzy

[Ruffshooter]

I think a Physchiatrist may be in order. But I have one that on occassion does similar but usually just once in a while. But just go to the bush and work in the area, prune them etc. while he is with you.

Who really knows what to do with that. Bark collar as GH says but?

I dunno.
Rick

[txgsp]

Yeah I really don't understand his fascination with them. I really do think he does it to annoy me because he sits there and barks and as soon as I approach him, he runs off because he knows he shouldn't be doing it.

I'm close to just taking clippers to the bushes and pruning the heck out of them.

[Sharon]

He's a puppy still. Relax. If you have training in mind, throw away the idea that " He does it to annoy me." They don't think that way. Maybe he's not getting enough hard running exercise so has to use up some energy barking at the berries. Maybe he thinks those berries are quail in the tree and it will all pay off in the end.

[twofeathers]

I wonder if at some point he was able to get birds to fly out of the bush by doing that action. Perhaps he is only trying to impress you "Look dad heres where birds are".

[txgsp]

I'm hoping its because he thinks there are birds in there/got some out of there.

I probably need to trim the bushes anyways so I am going to go ahead and do that over spring break next week. I think he will eventually learn to stop when I tell him to. Maybe when he decides to listen to me and not have selective hearing