I might have a perfect solution for you - a citronella collar. I adopted a beagle a few years ago, and she was INSANE on a walk. Whenever she saw another dog, or God forbid a rabbit, she went berserk. And a beagle's "bay" is extremely loud and crazy - it sounded like she was being beaten. It was embarrassing!

I got a citronella collar and it only took 3 times of her setting it off and she simply stopped barking. She did figure out just how loud she could get before setting it off, and made this little tiny yip sound, but she even stopped that after awhile. I used the collar for a few weeks, then didn't even have it turned on, then finally stopped using it. I only used it on walks, since I didn't care if she barked at things if she was looking out the window or in the yard.

The collar works because it startles them with the smell of the spray, the sound of it spraying, and they can also see the spray. It does not spray the dog in the face, but at an angle in front of them. It might not be 100% ideal since you will be inside a car, but it doesn't spray that much, just a puff. They're pricey at the pet store, so I bought mine on ebay. An auction is linked below - I'm not promoting that person, just found one that's reasonable. If you buy one, make sure you get the model that has an on/off switch. The batteries are expensive.

Here is a link that might be useful: clicky

Thanks weed30, I'll have to look into that. The only thing I wonder is if my other dog would accidentally get sprayed in the face if she's right there by him? He starts it but she happily joins in most of the time.

I'm so happy mine don't react to rabbits- rabbits are thick in my neighborhood. Mine seem to have even given up chasing the ones in the back yard some days. Sometimes they get frustrated and bark at the bunnies after they've escaped from our fence but they don't even seem to notice them when on a leash.

I assume the dogs are running freely in the back of the car. Have you thought about putting each dog in a car harness and attaching them to a seat belt? Not only will it keep the dogs safe, if you ever get in an accident, it will also keep them from hitting you if they become airborne. Also if you would become seriously hurt, there would not be the issue of the medics trying to help and the dogs in guard mode and not allowing them to approach. Since they will be restricted it will probably keep them from going into protection mode whenever they see something to bark at. If nothing else it will help with them feeding off of each others bad habit.

I actually use the Easy Rider Harness with a doggy booster seat. They make different brands. Just get one that is padded in the chest area and it is easy for you to operate. I would look for one that hooks into the seat belt lock. That way you could restrict movement to either sitting or laying. Mine hooks into her seat.

My pup can see out, can't pace, and I don't have to worry about her escaping when I open the door when we arrive at our destination. Here's a picture of her setup.
{{!gwi}}

Housefairy, what a beautiful pup you have!

I don't think the harnesses would work for mine. If I only had one, it would probably be ok but with 2, they both can't lay on the seat, there's not enough room. They're also pretty hard on the leather seats.

Here's where they travel, but I do have a barrier now since the boy also likes to get into the driver's seat when I'm out of the car. Sometimes he doesn't want to move which causes people to have a good chuckle as they pass by me in the parking lot while I'm trying to move his big butt!

You dont need a shock collar. All you need is a good friend and a good day for a drive.
Have your friend drive you around, and when your dog starts acting up correct him. Keep it up ad nauseum, the more you do it, the better, he will get it. At first he will proabbaly resist, but if you are as persistant as he is, you will persevere
You may want to run him really really well before you go for your drive, since a tired dog is easier to train.
Good luck

my cocker goes crazy when we pull up alongside an SUV or, heaven forbid, a truck or van.Lots of loud barking. When he quiets down, I praise him, but it doesn't help. Putting him in a harness and seat belt does help--just a lot of bother.
Would introducing him to these large vehicles (daughter's SUV or workman's truck) and have him maybe sit in one...has that worked for anyone?

Greenbean, you made me laugh, because my dog is also ALWAYS in the drivers seat if I leave her in the car, even for 30 seconds. She obviously knows she is not supposed to, because she jumps right back to the back seat when I return, so why do it in the first place?

It is nice that my seat is always warm though.

Our first dog always sat in the driver's seat. She was good and always moved. The "girls" (the sister puppies we got after she passed) were rowdy as heck at home but always well behaved in the car (one of the girls has also passed). They almost never came into the front seat (except once when I went through the car wash - it scared one of the girls so much she jumped into the front seat... she's ok with it now, we just went to the car wash last week).

This guy has actually improved somewhat in his travel behavior (he was pretty bad in the car as a puppy) but the barking, I could do without! He also parks his ~85 lb butt in my seat & doesn't always move! He's getting better about it (I don't use a barrier in the other car or the pickup and he does get in the back seat when I come back). Of course, sometimes he gets lonely in the back seat and tries to climb in front for some attention...

I can harness 2 of my dogs in the back seat of a Mini- and I have 3 huskies, a rottie, and a lab to choose from. The harness doesn't require that they lay down; they can sit, lay, or even stand while wearing it. So you should be able to harness both of your dogs too, unless you have a car smaller than mine, which would be what, a SMART car? Put a heavy blanket on the seat and you'll be fine. I never do that, but I've never had any damage done either (leather seats also). They can't be too rowdy when they are harnessed in.

My rottie sometimes barks at bikers too when we are driving, but not as much when she is harnessed. I think the harness has a calming effect of some kind. I tell her "Thank you for alerting me to the evil biker, good girl" and she knows to be quiet at that point. I do this at home too, but I call her to me, tell her to sit and stay. So she knows that phrase= be quiet.