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 disadvantage, too many dogs just don't know when to stop. They're a bit like a defective car alarm, just about anything can set them off and it can take a long while to get them to stop. Add into that a little bit of
dog anxiety and you have some significant dog barking problems.
Nuisance Dog Barking
In nature barking works and you rarely find dogs barking without cause. Their barking has 3 basic functions; The initial one is to let the others in the pack know where you are, the second is a to alert the others in the pack to potential danger and the third is an agressive warning to keep away.
Nuisance dog barking arises when dogs try and apply a system that works very well in nature, to a human world they do not 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 that is only natural as they will make a response to whatever noises they can hear outside the home.
Nonetheless if a dog barks incessantly, particularly shortly after you leave the house, it's more likely to be triggered by dog anxiety. Sadly, some anxious dogs will literally bark on and off for ages.
Of course, this is exactly the sort of barking which has your neighbours in a state and threatening you with dog barking laws, complaint letters and council action.
In that circumstance the thinking is sometimes that dog keepers are neglecting their dogs or leaving them for too long a period. But that is not typically the case. When anyone is dealing with separation anxiety in dogs, more attention and less time away won't dissolve their anxiety as they'll feel it whether you leave for half an hour or five hours.
How Do I To Stop My Dog From Barking
Unnecessary dog barking when you are in the house can be stopped with only two little words. We already know that roaring 'Shut Up ' doesn'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 is usually to warn the pack leader to any possible risk. Once warned the pack leader would make the choice as to whether any action was needed, so that would imply joining in the barking if they believed there was a genuine threat, or doing nothing if they decided there wasn't any threat to the pack, so the barking would stop.
Translate that into the home and if your dog barks and you scream at them, you raise your anxiety levels, so the dog will sense that something is actually wrong, and you sound like you're joining in, which is why your dog will bark even more frantically 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 aim is to set up a system that your dog understands. They will be the one to advise you of something first as their hearing is miles better, and by staying calm yourself and thanking them, you make them aware there is nothing to fret about.
Dog Anxiety Can Cause Dog Barking Problems
However, it is not a system which you can use when your dog is at home alone. Instead you have to to deal with the source of your dogs separation anxiety which is most likely 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 frantic barking is a noise beacon to tell you where they are and where to come back home to. In natural settings that noise would carry a good distance, and dogs do not know that our hearing is not as good as theirs.
Unfortunately, as long as they have anxiety, they're going to have barking problems. It's their nature and the only way you can change their mind and stop the dog barking is to show your dog that you are leader of the pack, not them. That way they do not have to worry.
