Border Collie rescue dog.
I have a gorgeous Border Collie bitch whom we got from a rescue centre a year ago when she was eight months old, and we love her to bits.
She hadn't had the greatest start in life, since she'd had three homes already before she came to us, and for a while she tended to look upon us as just another staging post in her life. Now, however, she knows she's home and she returns our love in spades. She's great with the grandchildren (if a little over-enthusiastic on occasions), she's well socialised and has a group of other dogs she plays with very happily every morning on our local rec, and generally she's a dream ... but ...
Get her in the car and she turns from a loving dog into a monster. She barks violently, throwing herself at the windows if anyone comes even close, never mind about touching the car. She almost deafens us with this behaviour and she has a tendency to do it in the house as well, though not quite so badly; though I have to fight her off and shut her in a room before I dare open the door to anyone.
I've tried rattling a tin of stones at her and tried squirting water into her face (oh boy, she loves that!) A few weeks ago I went out and spent the better part of �90.00 on an anti-bark collar and very briefly it worked. Now, however, she's worked out that it simply squirts at her, doesn't hurt her in any way, and she's no longer impressed or in any way put off!!!
Please, does anyone have any suggestions as to how we can stop this barking? Sometimes it's really tempting to thump her to shut her up (though I hasten to add I've not succumbed to that yet ), but it is really irritating, very embarrassing and sometimes actually quite frightening.