18 month old Irish Setter barking at everything

[BathshebaAndGabriel]

I am at the end of my tether with all the barking.

18 month old Irish setter is barking at everyone and everything on walks. Bikes are the worst trigger for her but also leaves in the wind, daffodils, humans, dogs…
She was neutered in Jan and seems to have got worse since then.
She’s not at all aggressive but it’s driving me to drink.

What to do?? Help!
We are seeing a trainer next weekend.

Thanks.

How you treat this all depends on what's causing her reactivity, and only an expert who can see her in person can really assess it properly.

Most reactivity is rooted in fear but as nobody here can see your dog behave and how you react, it would be hard to say for certain and give you decent advice.

Personally I would look for an accredited behaviourist with qualifications from either the APBC or the ABTC and go from there. They can then see your dogs' behaviour for themselves and decide the best course of treatment.

Good luck!

Thanks. I suspect fear is to blame.

Hopefully the trainer will help us.

If this is new behaviour since the spaying then it would suggest that hormone levels are causing it. Studies show that spaying can cause reactivity and increased fearfulness in bitches.

Hopefully it may settle down but you do need a qualitied trainer/behaviorist to assess the situation.

In the meantime give your dog plenty of distance from all triggers walk in quiet places or even have a time off from walking if this is the major trigger to your dog.