Why Has My Dog Suddenly Started Barking At Our Mail Basket For Nothing?

[winkyridg]

Hi, we have a Border Terrier who is starting to show, to me, some odd behaviour, he is just over a year old, he started ripping the mail to shreds from an early age so we got a mail basket, just under a year ago, he obviously barks at the basket when we receive mail, but the past couple of weeks he's started barking at it for absolutely no reason, we find that baffling, also, in the morning he'll go into the garden, scratch the door to come back in, eat a few biscuits, wait at the door to be re-let out, as soon as the door is shut he'll scratch to come back in, eat a few biscuits, wait to be let out and so on and so on, he'll repeat this behaviour several times, in the end we just refuse to let him out, walking, he's absolutely fine, he gives a paw when we ask, for treats etc but he just displays some really, to us, odd behaviour, the barking's the worst, he barks at absolutely nothing sometimes, there's no noise, no cars, no-one walking past the house, it gets very frustrating, any ideas why he bahaves like this, many thanks :-)

[Sunk]

He sounds bored.
Does he see any other dogs on walks or visits ?
A ball might distract him from the mail, but that involves you playing too.

[winkyridg]

He's scared of other dogs, he sees them regularly on walks but wont go anywhere near them

[DTCwordfan]

Perhaps you have a postman who looks dead ugly and your terrier is scared - a bit like this one..... http://s2.b3ta.com/host/creative/65077/1278499132/PostmanFat.jpg

[barry1010]

Does he ask to go out when the biscuits are finished and gets more when he comes back in?

[lankeela]

Sounds like he is 'daring' the postman to post something through the letter box. The in and out of the garden thing and getting rewarded with a biscuit is a trick he has taught you!

[winkyridg]

The biscuits are his normal food, they are always there for him in his bowl, he'll have a few, go back out, come in, have a few more go back out etc etc

[barry1010]

Does he get plenty of exercise? He should get at least an hour every day to help burn off his energy and stave off boredom.

[dannyk13]

You might get a hint here:-
https://www.alphafeeds.com/spotlight-working-dog-breed-border-terriers/#:~:text=A%20Border%20Terrier%20is%20an,the%20Bedlington%20and%20Dandie%20Dinmont.&text=Although%20bred%20to%20work%2C%20these,human%20contact%20is%20a%20must.