Any tips on how to stop the dog barking at / trying to bite the hoover?

[ohChristFENTON]

He's 17 weeks old, a Labrador - Border Collie cross, very well behaved in every other way, housetrained, crate trained, walks well on the lead, good recall but.. goes absolutely bananas at the vacuum cleaner!

He barks himself hoarse, jumping at it and nipping at it - I have tried:-

leaving it out so he's used to it being around
getting him to lay on his bed but he won't stay put
put him in the crate but he continues the barking and jumping about
when it's just running but not moving he just looks at it but as soon as I move it he starts his performance

The only thing that stops him is putting him outside, he can still see it and hear it but he doesn't create, obviously this is not ideal, - I can't expect him to sit outside every time I want to clean.

I could give up vacuuming I suppose..

Any good tips?

Do you have different settings on your hoover? We had this with Jas, and it was a right PITA. But we bought a Miele Cat and Dog, and one of the settings is a bit quieter (it has a pic of an ear on it) and he doesn't react nearly as much. He might still stalk it and occasionally have a lunge, but he isn't hanging off the end of it trying to savage the brush to death. I never hoover towards him, and try to ignore him as much as possible. But when he is calm and chilled around it, I give him a fuss. He has got a lot better.

Yep that's the only option give up hoovering

My JR sits on top of my Henry and gets
Wheeled about... Hilarious

Wow, you have just described my pup to a tee, he also looks like her and is the same age and cross, he wasn't rescue by any chance?!
Anyway... i have the same trouble, but when i put her in crate she just sits quietly and watches. Hope you get it sorted!

so you put your dog outside because you dont like it barking at you so instead your dog barks outside.

No, tropicalfish, he doesn't bark - as I said it's "the only thing that stops him .......he doesn't create"

I'm bothered about the barking because he's obviously distressed and the point of this thread is that I want to help him not to be - don't turn this into another irresponsible dog owners thing fhs.

The only thing that worked for me was putting him in his bed, getting the Hoover out but not turning it on and telling him to leave it. When he did leave it for a few seconds, giving him a treat. Then building up to turning it on, leave it, and a treat. It took about 3 weeks but now he goes off to his bed in the kitchen as soonas the Hoover comes out.

I don't think my pup was scared of the Hoover (my older dog was, he used to shake and whimper whenever he saw it) he just wanted the Hoover to play with him

I think just gradually get him used to it, like a few seconds of it being on, and a treat if he leaves it and is quiet.

Our dog didn't particularly mind the hoover, but used to go a bit crazy about brushes and clippers, barking and lunging and biting at them in a completely OTT way. He is two now and seems to have grow out of it, I used to really worry I might take his nose off if I was clipping things in the garden.

Do you think it is the sound or the action that really winds your pup up? Collies have a tendency to the slightly unhinged (our family collie used to go mad for my sister's skateboard, and his brother thought that wheelbarrows were a terrible enemy)

Have you tried having someone else distract him with treats when you hoover perhaps?

Gobhoblin, no not rescue we heard of the litter through friends of friends in Herefordshire - although come to think of it she did say she hadn't found homes for the girls last time we spoke.

Oh and the skateboard loving collie loved to be vacuumed!

It's definitely the movement that bothers him, he also does a bit of jumping about at the broom.

I will try the gradual/ treat approach and take a bit of time with it - usually vacuuming is a quick whizz around, I'll have to slow down !

My pup loved the broom as well!
Just wanted everything that moved to be his friend.

On the plus side, good reason to stop cleaning

If it's a collie, your best bet is ball distraction.

My sisters boxer used to go mad for carpet sweepers :o play bowing and barking at it. Don't know if he still does though.

You'll just have to quit hoovering, it's the only way. . . . .

I think that brooms are just a puppy thing! Ours used to lug it down the garden whenever my back was turned. There were some comical moments with him trying to manoeuvre it out of the back door.
He's not fussed by the hoover, but he seems to have a deathwish with the lawn-mower! He plays "dare" with it and lies right in front of you until the last minute, when he'll jump off sideways. He's going to end up with a severe haircut one of these days.

I think it is a collie thing. My old collie used to attack, my current one runs away (down the garden if possible) if he even sees it.

Since he is still young (mine is 4 and I think too set in his fear now to get rid of it), I think maybe having someone play with him - make it really fun while the hover is near but doing nothing. Once he gets used to that move on to turning it on for a few seconds. Then eventually move on to moving it around while turned on.

being a collie fun rather than food is likely to work best, but maybe the lab bit is strong and a tasty treat will work well to.

my pup does this, I just shut him in the kitchen while I hoover whatever room! He loooovvveeesss the outdoor broom though - can't get enough of sweeping!