Making Introductions

• Introduce your dog to your neighbors to help her overcome her anxiety towards strangers. Arrange to meet on neutral territory. Inviting them into your yard could make your dog defensive and hostile, while going to theirs could make him more nervous. Provide your neighbors with treats to give your dog to help the introductions go smoothly. Your dog will begin associating your neighbors with positive experiences rather than seeing them as potential threats.
  
  

Encouraging Familiarity

• Once your dog seems more comfortable with your neighbors after the initial introductions, have them visit your yard while you and your dog are both present. Ask them to call her by name. Make sure they have plenty of treats to offer her as a reward for exhibiting calm, friendly behavior. Let them pet her and play games such as fetch with her. Avoid rough play and confrontational games such as tug-of-war.
  
  After spending time interacting with your dog, your neighbors should head back to their own yard. Have them pass treats to your dog through the fence. They should also continue saying your dog's name in an upbeat voice while giving him treats.
  
  When your dog seems at ease, leave him in the yard while you go into your house. Have your neighbors walk into their own house then back into their yard repeatedly, as long as your dog stays relaxed after you leave. Your neighbors should call her name every time they step into their yard and then feed her a treat.
  
  Building familiarity happens slowly. The more anxious your dog is, the longer it will take for him to feel comfortable with your neighbors. They should be prepared to follow these steps frequently over a period of several days.
  
  

Reducing Barking

• Stopping your dog from barking at your neighbors won't happen right away. In the meantime, you can keep barking to a minimum by helping her become more comfortable in unfamiliar situations. Take your dog to a dog park to encourage socialization. Ideally, this should happen while your dog is still a puppy, but building social skills is beneficial at any age.
  
  Expose your dog to new settings and strangers. Walk her around the neighborhood frequently. Let her ride in the car with you from time to time. When you have company over, ask your guests to play with your dog and offer her treats. Only leave your dog alone in the yard for short periods of time. Give her toys to chew on or play with when she's outside. Always speak cheerfully to your neighbors in front of your dog to ease her anxiety.