How to stop neighborhood dogs from bothering my home and yard?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Barney! I would try to talk to the owners of the cats first. If that doesn't work, contact Animal control and find out how you can legally (if owned) prevent them from entering your yard or have them come and capture the cats (strays or ferals). You can also purchase noise deterrents that are turned on my motion. Maybe over time the cats will avoid your yard if they find it "scary." I wish you and barney the best!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! From your description, I would recommend establishing a method of training Sassy not to bark. I would recommend using a spray bottle filled with water and lightly spritz Sassy in the face when she begins barking at BoBo while at the same time saying "no bark!" and see if this helps. You can also use an empty can filled with coins and throw it in Sassy's direction while saying the same thing in hopes that this will stop the behavior. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

I'm sorry to hear that you're having this problem! Having neighbor dogs that don't get along with your dog can be very frustrating. From what you're describing, it sounds like the only really reliable solution here would be to put up a fence to keep the neighbor's dogs out. If they are consistently trespassing on your property and attacking your dog in your yard, you can also call your local animal control office to report this - they should be able to fine the owner for not keeping his dogs under control, or even confiscate the dogs if this continues to happen. For your part, I would make sure that you take Sam out on a leash at all times unless you have a fence, so that he can't trespass on your neighbor's property and get into fights.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Almost any behavior can be resolved with training and behavior modification. I would highly recommend you consider contacting a local dog trainer who can work with you in person as that is needed. This should work but it will take time and persistence and of course a professional working with you both. Best of luck!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There are medications that can be used to reduce anxiety at times. These types of behavior can improve though this does require in person training with the help of a qualified dog trainer. I would encourage you to contact a dog trainer that can work with you and your pups in person to really take care of this behavior. The sooner these behaviors are dealt with, the more likely it is that you can improve and resolve them. Good luck and have a great day!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. If this is a behavior that you would like to stop, I find that using a spray bottle filled with water and spraying a dog lightly in the face helps to correct the behavior. Also, using an empty can filled with coins and shaking it loudly can help as well. I used both techniques on my dog and it worked quite well. The can trick was by far the most effective in my case. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any further questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please remember to rate this answer as helpful or not. Thank you!

The first best thing you cn do with a territorial dog is invest in obedience training. This will allow you to have greater control over her when she displays her aggressions to those she feels are 'trespassing'. Additionally, makes sure she gets plenty of physical and mental stimulation. Take her for long walks, runs, play ball or fetch, take her with you wherever you can, rides in the car, anything and everything to tired her body and mind. A tired dog is a happy dog. Highly intelligent dogs are often the most anxious and therefore need a 'job'. She seems to have chosen guarding her yard as her job, you need to convince her to choose somethign else as her primary function. Never punish her for being protective as this may escalate the aggression. Try teaching her tricks or tasks, get her a Kong toy to keep herself entertained, even consider a slow feeder or a puzzle feeder to make her work and think about how to get food and treats and therefore keep her mind occupied with matters other than who's in the next back yard. Also, I highly recommend the books by Victoria Stillwell. He training methods are always based on positive training and never punishment.