2 year old

Question
QUESTION: Hi, we adopted a beautiful american cocker a year ago now. He barks a lot!!!!!! He barks while playing, he barks when startled, he barks at the door. This behavior doesn't bother me so much but the neighbors are starting to complain. He is in the house most of the time, but plays out in our screen porch when we are in the pool. He has other little quirks, but the barking is our top priority right now. We do exercise him, but not enough.

ANSWER: Hi Johna,
Part of the answer you already know "we exercise him, but not enough". :)

Now, I have a few questions before I give any training advice.
-Why is he in the screen porch while you're in the pool?
-How much exercise does he actually get?
-How much is he left alone?
-Are you doing any training?

-Exactly how is he bothering the neighbours from inside the house?

I need to understand the whole picture before trying to come up with something that will work.
Delores

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Our pool is screened in so he is out there with us but does not jump in the pool. As far as excercise goes, when it is too hot, he gets one walk a day. in the fall and winter, we go twice
we rarely leave the boys alone, if so it is for a few hours only. And only during the day. we are home bodies by nature. As far as formal training, no, we havent . but i agree it would probably help. I cant understand how he is bothering neighbors from inside, you can barely hear the dogs barking when in the house, unless you are in th house with them.

Answer
Johna,
How long are these walks?  10 minutes isn't going to do it.

That aside, constant barking is plain bad manners.  I take it you have two dogs and the other one isn't a barker?

If he has no other bad behavior, then I think I'd use the water bottle technique.  Get a plastic spray bottle and set it so it's a "spray of mist"..not a stream of water. You don't want to hit his eyes with a "stream".   When he barks, say NO and spritz him.  Of course, this will only work if he knows the word NO.
Delores