Barking at people

Yeah, instead of ignoring his barking, I would make him stop barking whenever you tell him to, and to be sure that he stops, so he knows his Quiet command ( or whatever it is). It might be out of fear that he does bark at people even though they've been there for a while, but I really don't know. I guess my advice would be to firmly tell him to stop ( I use 'Hush'), but not to yell at him to stop. Then if he continues barking, to give him a collar/leash correction, or something like that. When he stops praise him and maybe give him a treat.

I'm not saying that you haven't taught him to be Quiet already, but to reinforce it, then evenutaully you could probably just tell him Quiet and he'll stop.

I hope that someone else can help you more![]

Try a squirt bottle.
 
Ceasar Milan would say he needs more walks, lol!

Has he been to puppy class, or socialized at dog obedience school?
 

Sounds like a fear based issue to me.  How is his obedience training?  What kind of exercise does he get? 
 
Teaching the dog to just be quiet is a lot less effective than giving him an alternative command.  If my Mal heads to the door to make some noise, I call him to me, have him sit, down, stay, and then hand him a toy.  With a little practice this works every time.  So when my guests come in he is laying politely chewing on his favorite toy as opposed to annoying to me.  He is now to the point that if someone walk by, he barks once, runs to me, goes through the motions and waits on the toy with out a single command.
 
Your dog barks because he doesn't know what else to do.  You need to add some structure.  This will cut down on the dogs fear (anxiousness), because the rules are more cut and dry. 

I agree with the concept of making the situation a positive thing. If you want your dog to start feeling secure with himself when people come over, your dog has to learn that the situation is safe, and teaching your dog to focus on you and your commands is a huge step in this direction.

Last week, one of my co-workers left her two (in)famous "Brat" Terriers (her description) at our animal hospital to be boarded for 3 days. She asked me to work with them, and I met the two dogs in front of the hospital the day before they left. They were very friendly, HOWEVER, the next day, while they were in the kennel, they went into Kujo-mode as soon as I lifted a blanket which had been put over the front of the kennel door. I also found out one of them had "nibbled" on the shoe of one of the caretakers as she was leaving the cage after setting down some water.
 
I was fortunate they both had a high food drive, so I pretty much bribed them into trusting me and feeling secure with my presence, with treats and while using my clicker (which I'd started using with them the day before.) I also spoke to them with a high-pitch tone to my voice and gave very little eye to eye contact. 30 minutes later, I was in the cage. Once they were secure with me being inside the cage with them, I started going inside and outside of the cage over and over again, and rewarding them for not barking/growling. I then asked someone to walk up to the cage with me, and when they growled, I got them to REfocus on me by either making familiar positive sounds or by calling their names, and rewarding them for GOOD behavior, which essentially was my rewarding them for looking at me. This was the beginning of my teaching them that they should look to me in order for them to decide what I wanted them to do next. I also took off the covering over the cage door in order to start desensitising them to activity from the people working around the kennels.
 
During their 3 day stay, I would go up to their cage or inside their cage at any given time, i.e. I randomized the times they would see me, thus they were learning that someone walking by or up to their cage could be a reward. The lesson being taught was that anticipation can be a good thing, as opposed to something stressful or to be feared. By the time "mom" and "dad" came back to pick them up, I was able to go in and out of the cage without any "bribery," some of my coworkers were at least able to get their food and water bowls in and out, and the dogs cared a lot less when there were people walking by or up to their cage. The key lesson they were learning was that they were safe while inside the kennel.
 
So how does this relate to your dog? As you know, canines are very intelligent. They are thinking animals who protect you, find ways to solve problems, lay ball with you, etc. etc., but their decisions stem from two things - what's safe and what's dangerous. What your dog needs to understand in order to start feeling secure:
 
1. You are the Alpha, the pack leader a.k.a. the rimary decision maker. Focus on the Alpha in regards to making decisions.
 
2. Look to the Alpha in regards to how to act in the presence of  designated "strangers," i.e. your house guests.
 
3. Feeling safe in the house when "strangers" are inside, via learning that designated "strangers" are positive things.
 
 
 
Lessons for you:
 
1. Be calm, relaxed, patient and confident when working with your dog.
 
2. Teach your dog to focus on you whenever his name is called.
 
3. Lead your dog. Take charge and make the decisions. Be the Alpha Wolf.
 
4. Reward positive behavior.
 
5. Have friends over to help you train your dog and reward positive behavior. This will make having people over a treat to be anticipated.
 
 
Hope that helps.[sm=wink2.gif]

Thanks for the advices.  I will definitely try them out.

He was in a puppy class when he was younger, but never went to an obedience class.  I already knew how to train him from going to obedience classes with my first dog, so I dont think that would be much help.  He knows his basic sit, down, stay, come.  I always have him down stay during dinner time, he has stayed up to 45 minutes without moving.  We go to a dog park every weekend unless the weather is bad.  He only barks when he first enters the park, but will let people pet him and plays very nicely afterwards.

Another interesting thing is that he only barks at certain people - the ones who won't play with him and are scared of him - which only makes them even MORE scared of him.

How do I make him focus on me when people are over?  Just keep working with him?  Even when we're walking, if he sees other people or other dogs, I know his attention is NOT on me, and it's really hard to make him focus on me.

I always have him down stay during dinner time, he has stayed up to 45 minutes without moving. 

That is excellent! Do you use a specific command, and have you ever tried that when people are over?
 

We go to a dog park every weekend unless the weather is bad.  He only barks when he first enters the park, but will let people pet him and plays very nicely afterwards.

Another interesting thing is that he only barks at certain people - the ones who won't play with him and are scared of him - which only makes them even MORE scared of him.

How do I make him focus on me when people are over?  Just keep working with him?  Even when we're walking, if he sees other people or other dogs, I know his attention is NOT on me, and it's really hard to make him focus on me.

Your goal right now is to teach your dog to focus on you, so your first priorty is to establish that your dog knows his name and responds to it when called. Does he always look at you/respond when you call his name, or just sometimes? Do you ever use his name in a negative way (for example: "Rover!Stop barking!" or "Rover!Don't chew!" or "Dammat Rover!" etc.?) Is he more responsive inside the house than he is outside?
 
  

He can sit stay while people are over, but he'll move if they try to approach him.  For the down stay I just tell him "Down" then "Stay".  Sometimes he doses off while he's on a down stay, but I can get his attention back with a quick "good stay".

Your goal right now is to teach your dog to focus on you, so your first priorty is to establish that your dog knows his name and responds to it when called. Does he always look at you/respond when you call his name, or just sometimes? Do you ever use his name in a negative way (for example: "Rover!Stop barking!" or "Rover!Don't chew!" or "Dammat Rover!" etc.?)

He knows his name, he will turn his head towards me or at least glance at me if I call him.  But I have used his name in a negative way(I think).  I'm teaching him "quiet".  So when he barks I usually say "Haygl, Quiet".  Then praise him.  And when we're heeling, sometimes he'll pull ahead so I'll call his name with a quick correction on the leash.  Do these count?

Is he more responsive inside the house than he is outside?

Definitely.  He always obeys commands when he's in the house.  But once he's outside, he only sometimes obey them, depending on the distraction.

He can sit stay while people are over, but he'll move if they try to approach him.  For the down stay I just tell him "Down" then "Stay".  Sometimes he doses off while he's on a down stay, but I can get his attention back with a quick "good stay".

May take a little time before people can approach him. I  personally have known many canines who were either afraid of people or afraid of men specifically. I've been able to approach each one. As a vet tech, I have to do it quickly. If I walk towards an animal facing completely forward, that can be perceived as confrontational. If I slowly approach AND do this in a "side-step" manner, i.e. my body is parallel to the direction they are standing, it's far less confrontaional because it appears less aggressive or intrusive.
 
When I worked with wolfdog rescues, I had much more time to deal with certain fears. I used treats at first, and when they were in or outside their enclosures, I never approached an animal who was fearful - I had a treat and let them approach me. This did several things in regards to building trust:
 
1. The animal familiarized his/herself with me by way of appearance, scent, body language etc. 
 
2. The animal realized I was providing something positive, in this case, a treat.
 
3. Once the animal decided it was safe to approach, I let the animal have the treat with "no strings attached," i.e. I didn't make any move towards the animal in order to give it to him/her, nor did I try to pet the animal.
 
The behavior being taught was that I was a positive thing and that it was safe to approach me. The key to teaching this behavior successfully is patience and reserve. The animal is the one who has to make the decision to move forward, and that is how both trust and self-confidence are built.
 
 

He knows his name, he will turn his head towards me or at least glance at me if I call him.  But I have used his name in a negative way(I think).  I'm teaching him "quiet".  So when he barks I usually say "Haygl, Quiet".  Then praise him.

The name "Haygl" should always sound pleasent when you say it. You don't have to use it when correcting, and I'd try my best to avoid doing that. My substitute "break" word/sound is a sharp "Ahht!" as soon as the animal does something naughty. In the case of Haygl, Your first step should be to establish that his name is always a positive thing and that he should always make eye contact with you when his name is called - that means a glance does not count because you want more than that. 
 
Eye-to-eye contact = full attention. To teach him this, I recomend you reward him for "knowing" his name. For 5 to 10 minutes a day, have him in front of you and say his name. Reward him for looking at you, specifically, making eye contact with you. You have to be quick in order for him to understand what you want him to do when his name is called. I use a clicker, you can use "good" as a substitute, but in either case, the second he makes eye contact, click or say "good," then reward him with a treat. After doing this a number of times, there is a (next step) way to test if you are teaching him correctly:  hold a treat out an arms length away from you and call his name. The moment he looks back to your face i.e. looks to you and away from the treat/important object to fixate on, you are passing the first test in regards to his recognizing you as the pack leader and his defering the decision making to you in any given situation.
 
Continue to "test" him whenever you want. The lesson being taught is focus, and it's on you, specifically.
 

He always obeys commands when he's in the house.  But once he's outside, he only sometimes obey them, depending on the distraction

Teach him how to focus on you inside (random parts of) the house for a while. Once you feel he's getting down the focus aspect (eye-to-eye contact,) take the lesson outside only to the front or back lawn. Unfortunately, I don't know how distracted he gets. If by distracted you mean "nosey" or "curious," then you can probably work with him outside for a good 5 to 10 minutes, then go back in. If by distracted you mean he's a "spaz" or "fearful," I would keep it under 5 minutes - maybe reward him once he makes eye-contact, then go back in; it really depends on the dog and how they are reacting. No matter the case, this is where their knowing their name really comes in handy. When you start to notice him fixate on something, be ready with a treat, and reward him the very second he makes eye contact with you.
 

when we're heeling, sometimes he'll pull ahead so I'll call his name with a quick correction on the leash.

In regards to heeling, whenever I have a dog that pulls or starts to pull, I just stop. Once they realize they aren't going anywhere, they tend to look back at you. Again, their ability to recognize their name when called goes a long way in getting them to do what you want. As far as "corrections" with the lead, I try to avoid that as much as possible. I want them to perceive the lead as a good thing. The only correction I do (lead-wise) is I stop when they pull, and recall them/tell them "come to heel." 

Some gsds are very wary of strangers. And they are know to bark. My dogs are trained to bark on command (Gib Laut) (4 gsd's). To get your dog to focus on you I would put him/her in a sit/stay position and place a piece of his/her favorite treat near your face and say look (the dog name) when it looks at you give the treat. Keep repeating this but make the focus a little longer before giving the treat. Some people places the treat in their mouth and spits it at the dog. I for one use the leash correction but you can also do this every time the dog starts to pull ahead of you go in a different direction.