Random barking...help

[PetraDelphiki]

So 9 month old puppy has started barking lots and we can’t work out why. Including for 2-3 hours in the middle of the night. He does it even if I’m there - he will be fine then suddenly look up and start barking.

If I let him out he runs into the garden barking like a mad thing, but I can’t see or hear anything that could be setting him off. He can’t see out from the room he sleeps in so it must be something he can hear... or something else :-(
.
As far as I can tell he’s not thirsty or desperate to pee...

Any suggestions how to work out the problem and stop him before I collapse from exhaustion and/or the neighbours kill me?

It might be useful to see if anyone you knows has a night-vision camera (e.g. a security camera) that you could borrow and point out into the garden. That way, you can check footage if and when barking happens. My best guess is that your garden is visited by something like foxes and they scarper long before you get there but the scent remains to make him bark in the garden.

If it is foxes you can either:

a) drown out their noise by playing some soft, gentle music all night long

or

b) desensitise the dog to fox noises by getting a recording of them and playing it at VERY low volumes through the day - low enough that he doesn't react. Increase the volume each day a little bit (so long as he doesn't react) until they are playing a normal volume. Pairing the noise with a tasty treat, like a kong, will also help.

I use a white noise machine at night which helps mask outside noises otherwise mine would be barking at any little sound.

Seemingly was either planes or my husband being away....has now stopped! Will see what happens when either happen again!