How To Stop Dog Barking
Dog barking is both natural and helpful and yet it may be the root of so many difficulties in the home and out. From falling out with the people next door to driving you silly at home, excessive barking gives dogs an awful name!
On the up-side, a lot of us are quite pleased to have a dog that barks because it makes us feel safe in the night and lets us know when someone is approaching the house.
But on the down-side, too many dogs do not know when to stop. They're kind of like a faulty vehicle alarm, virtually anything can set them off and it can take a long time to make them stop. Add into that a bit of dog anxiety and you have got some heavy dog barking problems.
Nuisance Dog Barking
In nature barking works and you do not find dogs barking without cause. Their barking has three primary functions; The first is to let the rest of the pack know where you are, the second's a to warn the rest of the pack to possible hazard and the 3rd is an agressive note to keep away.
Nuisance dog barking crops up when dogs try and apply a system that works superbly in nature, to a human world they can't understand.
Thats when virtually anything could be a threat to a dog (think postman, fone, Television, plastic bag blowing down the road...) and the more delicate the dog, the more threats it might feel the urge to bark at. And naturally they will keep barking till they are sure that the threat has gone away.
Dog Barking when Left Alone
Dogs will bark from time to time when left alone "again it is only natural as they'll react to whatever noises they can hear outside your home.
Nevertheless if a dog barks ceaselessly, especially just after you leave the house, it's likelier to be caused by dog anxiety. Unfortunately, some anxious dogs will literally bark off and on for hours.
Of course, this is exactly the kind of barking which has your neighbours in an uproar and threatening you with dog barking laws, complaint letters and council action.
In this situation the assumption is usually that dog owners are neglecting their dogs or leaving them for too long. But that isn't generally the case. When you're coping with separation anxiety in dogs, more attention and less time away won't change their anxiety as they'll feel it whether you leave for 30 minutes or five hours.
How Do I To Stop My Dog From Barking
Exaggerated dog barking when you are in the house can be stopped with only 2 short words. We already realize that screaming 'Shut Up ' won't work, but what about the words 'Thank You ' or 'Good Boy ' or 'Good Girl '?
It's may appear counter intuitive, but surprisingly thanking your dog can work! Here's why.
In nature one of the roles of a dog pack member will be to tell the pack leader to any potential threat. Once warned the pack leader would make the choice whether any action was necessary so that would mean joining in the barking if they decided there was a potential threat, or doing nothing if they thought there wasn't any threat to the pack, so the barking would stop.
Move that that into the home and if your dog is barking and you roar at them, you raise your anxiety levels, so that the dog will sense that something is truly wrong, and you sound like you are joining in, which explains why your dog will bark rather more desperately when you do raise your voice.
By positively thanking them, you can't sound annoyed, and you don't raise your anxiety levels and your dog should naturally stop. If they carry on, you can go and take a look at what they are barking at and thank them again. If continue, put them in another room alone till they stop.
The objective is to set up a system that your dog understands. They will still be the one to warn you of something first as their hearing is much better, and by staying calm yourself and thanking them, you let them know there is little to stress about.
Dog Anxiety Can Cause Dog Barking Problems
Unfortunately, its not a system that you can use when your dog is at home alone. Instead you want to cope with the source of your dogs anxiety, which is most certain to be a leadership issue.
If your dog has placed themselves as head of the pack, they've also made themselves accountable for making decisions and keeping the pack safe and they can not do that if you lock them in at home and go out.
The frenzied barking is a noise beacon to alert you to where they happen to be and where to come home to. In natural habitats that noise would carry a long way, and dogs don't know that our hearing isn't as good as theirs.
Sadly, so long as they have anxiety, they are going to have barking problems. It's their nature and the only possible way you can change their mind and stop the dog barking is to show your dog that you're leader of the pack, not them. That way they don't need to worry.
On the up-side, a lot of us are quite pleased to have a dog that barks because it makes us feel safe in the night and lets us know when someone is approaching the house.
But on the down-side, too many dogs do not know when to stop. They're kind of like a faulty vehicle alarm, virtually anything can set them off and it can take a long time to make them stop. Add into that a bit of dog anxiety and you have got some heavy dog barking problems.
Nuisance Dog Barking
In nature barking works and you do not find dogs barking without cause. Their barking has three primary functions; The first is to let the rest of the pack know where you are, the second's a to warn the rest of the pack to possible hazard and the 3rd is an agressive note to keep away.
Nuisance dog barking crops up when dogs try and apply a system that works superbly in nature, to a human world they can't understand.
Thats when virtually anything could be a threat to a dog (think postman, fone, Television, plastic bag blowing down the road...) and the more delicate the dog, the more threats it might feel the urge to bark at. And naturally they will keep barking till they are sure that the threat has gone away.
Dog Barking when Left Alone
Dogs will bark from time to time when left alone "again it is only natural as they'll react to whatever noises they can hear outside your home.
Nevertheless if a dog barks ceaselessly, especially just after you leave the house, it's likelier to be caused by dog anxiety. Unfortunately, some anxious dogs will literally bark off and on for hours.
Of course, this is exactly the kind of barking which has your neighbours in an uproar and threatening you with dog barking laws, complaint letters and council action.
In this situation the assumption is usually that dog owners are neglecting their dogs or leaving them for too long. But that isn't generally the case. When you're coping with separation anxiety in dogs, more attention and less time away won't change their anxiety as they'll feel it whether you leave for 30 minutes or five hours.
How Do I To Stop My Dog From Barking
Exaggerated dog barking when you are in the house can be stopped with only 2 short words. We already realize that screaming 'Shut Up ' won't work, but what about the words 'Thank You ' or 'Good Boy ' or 'Good Girl '?
It's may appear counter intuitive, but surprisingly thanking your dog can work! Here's why.
In nature one of the roles of a dog pack member will be to tell the pack leader to any potential threat. Once warned the pack leader would make the choice whether any action was necessary so that would mean joining in the barking if they decided there was a potential threat, or doing nothing if they thought there wasn't any threat to the pack, so the barking would stop.
Move that that into the home and if your dog is barking and you roar at them, you raise your anxiety levels, so that the dog will sense that something is truly wrong, and you sound like you are joining in, which explains why your dog will bark rather more desperately when you do raise your voice.
By positively thanking them, you can't sound annoyed, and you don't raise your anxiety levels and your dog should naturally stop. If they carry on, you can go and take a look at what they are barking at and thank them again. If continue, put them in another room alone till they stop.
The objective is to set up a system that your dog understands. They will still be the one to warn you of something first as their hearing is much better, and by staying calm yourself and thanking them, you let them know there is little to stress about.
Dog Anxiety Can Cause Dog Barking Problems
Unfortunately, its not a system that you can use when your dog is at home alone. Instead you want to cope with the source of your dogs anxiety, which is most certain to be a leadership issue.
If your dog has placed themselves as head of the pack, they've also made themselves accountable for making decisions and keeping the pack safe and they can not do that if you lock them in at home and go out.
The frenzied barking is a noise beacon to alert you to where they happen to be and where to come home to. In natural habitats that noise would carry a long way, and dogs don't know that our hearing isn't as good as theirs.
Sadly, so long as they have anxiety, they are going to have barking problems. It's their nature and the only possible way you can change their mind and stop the dog barking is to show your dog that you're leader of the pack, not them. That way they don't need to worry.
About the Author:
The author has experienced dog anxiety and dog barking problems with her recent rescue dog and used these methodologies to successfully stop hisdog barking when left alone.
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