Sudden Barking Episodes - What can I do?

[Gracie's My Girl]

To say that I am very serious about socializing our 13 week old puppy would be an understatement. I see it as my responsibility to train her to be friendly and relaxed in a variety of situations. Ever since she finished her second round of shots a week and a half ago, I have been taking her out daily to do new things. However, we are hitting some bumps.

During her first puppy class on Tuesday, she was incredibly nervous. So much so that she was foaming a bit. Gracie seemed to calm down as the session progressed, but suddenly began barking at the trainer's Doberman who was laying quietly in the corner.

On our first trip to the park, a couple of ladies were walking around the track. As they step off of the track and are about ten feet away...Gracie starts to bark and back up underneath the bleachers. She was very nervous and was literally chocking on her collar in the process of trying to get as far away from these people as possible.

Tonight, we were watching football practice at the park. There were about one hundred people there. She wasn't too bothered by it and was able to sit nicely beside me for about thirty minutes watching. People were very intrusive of our space and frequently came running by her loudly with massive football gear. While I could tell she was nervous, I did not encourage her. I have been working on getting her to focus on me. Whenever a person would walk by, I would snap her attention back to me by saying "Watch me!" and rewarding her when she did. Gracie got to the point that every single time a person went by, she glanced at them and then looked up at me. She became comfortable and I was so proud of her. However, this child who was about three, started to come over to look at her. Suddenly, Gracie starts barking at him. He didn't do anything to irritate her at all. He just began to walk over and was not even close to her. Needless to say, she scared the poor kid to death. I felt so bad and apologized to him and his mother after redirecting her attention back to me.

This behaivor is a huge mystery to me. She has been great with new people that have come to visit her. She has loved everyone at the vet. When we are in public, she is comfortable with having people come up to her and pet her.

I am not sure why she is so timid at times. Is it possible that she doesn't realize that certain people are in the area and when she suddenly does, she reacts fearfully by barking and backing up? There are times when she has nerves of steel and then there are sudden moments when something is too much. I am so worried about her. She has not had any bad experiences and I am not sure what is triggering these sudden barking episodes. Am I doing something wrong? What can we do to work through this?

[onyx'girl]

She may be over her threshold and overwhelmed. You need to show her you have things under control and the burden of feeling she has to be 'on' lifted from her. Young dogs don't need that pressure, and are better off knowing their handler has their back.
Confidence building thru training, praise and keeping that flowing down the leash is helpful.
When she has a 'barking episode' redirect her with a favorite ball, tug or treat and keep the mood upbeat and light. Don't reprimand her for her barking, she may see the correction as coming from what she is reacting to. Instead just go about things as nonchalant and get her focused on something else(preferably before she reacts)
Reading body language is crucial during this time so you can redirect her before she starts in.

[Gracie's My Girl]

Originally Posted by onyx'girl

She may be over her threshold and overwhelmed. You need to show her you have things under control and she can have the burden of feeling she has to be 'on' lifted.
Confidence building thru training, praise and keeping that flowing down the leash is helpful.
When she has a 'barking episode' redirect her with a favorite ball, tug or treat and keep the mood upbeat and light. Don't reprimand her for her barking, she may see the correction as coming from what she is reacting to. Instead just go about things as nonchalant and get her focused on something else(preferably before she reacts)
Reading body language is crucial during this time so you can redirect her before she starts in.

I never punish her for barking or freak out and I do redirect her. She responds well to that and I am going to continue to do that. I would love to know how I can let her know that I am in control. What can I do?

[onyx'girl]

What are you doing for training? Do you take her to classes? That will show her that you have it under control thru obedience exercises. Socializing is great, but being around 100 people can be overwhelming and can backfire. Especially if you have people/kids running amok in the pups mind. Scents, sounds can be so stimulating to a canine, humans aren't overloaded by them as dogs can be.
Is there a favorite toy or treat she enjoys that you can use for training/ redirecting only? It will be of higher value if you only bring it out during certain times vs free access.
Remember too, that any tension on the leash will be felt by your dog, so a relaxed pose from you will help her know you are confident and she'll feel that emotion. If you get stressed she'll feel it immediately.
Onyx was reactive at that age, and she could feel me tense up when I knew she was over her threshold, making it worse. I had to force myself to relax and then I just decided to take a break from taking her to places that were too much for her until she matured a bit more.

[Gracie's My Girl]

Originally Posted by onyx'girl

What are you doing for training? Do you take her to classes? That will show her that you have it under control thru obedience exercises. Socializing is great, but being around 100 people can be overwhelming and can backfire. Especially if you have people/kids running amok in the pups mind. Scents, sounds can be so stimulating to a canine, humans aren't overloaded by them as dogs can be.
Is there a favorite toy or treat she enjoys that you can use for training/ redirecting only? It will be of higher value if you only bring it out during certain times vs free access.
Remember too, that any tension on the leash will be felt by your dog, so a relaxed pose from you will help her know you are confident and she'll feel that emotion. If you get stressed she'll feel it immediately.
Onyx was reactive at that age, and she could feel me tense up when I knew she was over her threshold, making it worse. I had to force myself to relax and then I just decided to take a break from taking her to places that were too much for her until she matured a bit more.

I do train her and take her to classes. As a matter of fact, moments before she began barking at the boy...we were working on sitting. She was doing it perfectly. I am going to go to the pet store tomorrow and find a fun toy for her to redirect her with.

I am definitely going to work on being more relaxed. I am a normally calm person but I suppose it can get stressful for both of us when we are going to our first ever puppy class or socializing her to large amounts of people.

[onyx'girl]

These are great training toys and durable:
Gappay Ball on String - Medium
Elite Working Balls with T-tug Handle-Elite K-9 the 2.5" not the smallest one, it could be a choking hazard

Synthetic Tug 12"-Elite K-9
Too bad you can't find them in pet stores...

[BowWowMeow]

She could be going through a fear stage.