All dogs, with the exception of a few unique breeds, bark.
Despite this fact, many people tend to get irritated when dogs vocalize by barking, usually because they have little understanding as to why and when dogs bark. Many interpret barking as a negative sign- that a dog is dominant, aggressive, is poorly behaved, or lacks training.
Because barking dogs are so often misunderstood, the human reaction to a dog’s bark is often irritability, anger, nervousness – all reactions that are not only counterproductive to silencing a barking dog, but that can actually make problem barking worse.
In order to effectively address a dog’s barking, owners must first understand why it’s happening.
Table of Contents:
Barking is a Form of Communication!
How Dogs Communicate
When Barking is Problematic
Understanding Your Dog’s Barking
The 6 Types of Barking (and how to deal with each)
1. Excitement Barking
2. Warning Barking
3. Fear Barking
4. Guard Barking
5. Frustration Barking
6. Learned Barking
Beyond the Bark: Other Vocal Expressions
Things to Remember
Barking is a Form of Communication!
Like most animals, dogs use vocal sounds (usually barking) and body language to communicate what they need and what they are feeling. In order to interact well with a dog, it is necessary to understand what they are trying to communicate. Communication in dogs is similar to that in humans in that they tend to yell louder when they feel that they are not being heard.
It is essential that people educate themselves in “listening” to the messages their dog is trying to convey. Become aware of your dog’s body language and look for cues, including calming and stress signals.
How Dogs Communicate:
Dogs express themselves in different ways, depending on what they are trying to communicate. Fortunately, most dogs have similar ways of communicating and can be easily acknowledged by other dogs and by people that understand their dog’s body language.
All dog owners should be aware of the many different ways their dogs communicate, including:
– Dogs may display subtle cues when they’re uncomfortable or stressed, including looking away, clenching their jaw, lip-licking, yawning, panting, holding their head low, displaying a short, rapid tail wag, etc.
– Dogs may show their aversion and need to distance themselves from a person, animal or thing by barking showing their teeth, lunging forward, snapping, biting, or growling.
– Dogs may show they’re at ease by relaxing their body, ears, and face.
– Dogs may show fear or that they are in defense when they crouch, hide their tail between their legs, back up or take flight.
– Dogs may show happiness and joy when they wag their tail in large sweeping motions, lick, jump, wiggle their body or show a positive, happy face.
– Dogs vocalize using barking, growling, whining and howling.
All of these (and more!) make up the language of dogs. And, when combined with barking, give an excellent indicator as to what a dog is trying to communicate with his voice.
When Barking is Problematic:
Barking is a dog’s main language, much like a cat’s “meow” and a horse’s neigh. The difference is that people tend to react negatively to barking.
It is important to understand that barking is a language and that expressing a language requires sound. However, it is also notable that a dog’s bark has a different effect on people and may cause problems to other people nearby. As a dog owner, you’ll need to learn to recognize if the barking has escalated to an exaggerated point. This means that the dog is seeking attention, is already stressed or has barked louder because he was not able to get his message across in a normal volume.
Regardless of the cause, it is necessary to note what kind of barking the dog is doing so that you can find a solution to it. The aim of understanding the cause of the barking is not to stop your dog from barking forever, but to minimize barking to a level and intensity that is reasonable.
Understanding Your Dog’s Barking:
There are 6 different known types of barking in dogs. They are excitement barking, warning barking, fear barking, guard barking, frustrated barking and learned barking.
Recordkeeping is an excellent way to understand what your dog is trying to communicate – the most important step in solving problem barking. Dog owners that are concerned about excessive, uncontrollable, or repetitive barking, or those that have received complaints from neighbors, should immediately begin documenting exactly when, why, and how their dogs bark.
In a notebook, keep a record of each time your dog barks. Record notations on the length of time the dog has been barking, the circumstances as to why the dog is barking, the object or person that the dog is barking at, where the dog is at that moment and all other details relevant to the event. Also note the sound of the bark itself – is it high pitched or deep, are there several short barks in succession, is the bark accompanied by growling or snarling, etc. Make note of any additional body language or behaviors present immediately before, during, and after the barking episode.
If you receive complaints of your dog barking during the day while you’re not at home, set up a recording device or video camera to capture the behavior. Most pet parents that take the time to track their dog’s barking are surprised at what they discover. In many cases, a neighbor will report that “the dog barks all day long,” when, in fact, he only barks for a few minutes total.
Keep a record of your dog’s barking for at least one full week. Then, use that data to determine the type of barking and to plan a course of action to stop it.
The 6 Types of Barking (and how to deal with each):
1. Excitement Barking:
Excitement barking is the type of barking a dog uses to express positive emotions. It can range from happiness up to anticipation of something good that is about to take place. Excitement barking is a sign of a very happy pup and doesn’t necessarily need to be discouraged and should never be punished.
Some examples of excitement barking are when a dog owner comes home after work, when the dog is aware that he will be going out for a walk to the park, or seeing another dog and anticipating getting to play.
Excitement barking is usually higher-pitched, somewhat frantic or chaotic, and the dog may make a series of barks with a little break or a little bit of whining in between. Excitement barking usually comes with activity patterns such as jumping up and down, spinning, running or all of these actions at the same time.
Overly-excited dogs might add behaviors such as hysterical barking, jumping up, biting their leash or the pants and legs of their owners, running around while knocking things over, pulling their leash or lunging at other objects, dogs or people. While a dog should not be reprimanded for such behavior (as it is a result of positive excitement), he also should not be rewarded. The dog should be taught that the reward (getting to go for that walk, being allowed to greet a guest, etc) happens only after the dog has stopped barking and calmed down.
How to stop excitement barking:
Because excitement barking occurs in a variety of scenarios and circumstances, there is no one-size-fits-all solution to stopping this type of barking. Instead, consider the scenario, what is exciting the dog, and reward him for calming down.
A few examples:
– When an owner comes home and is greeted by his dog’s excitement barking, the owner should show calming signals such a quietly patting the dog or even give the dog some time to calm down. It is important to give an excited dog attention but it shouldn’t be an exaggerated response such as immediately playing with the dog or fussing.
– When a guest arrives and the dog becomes excited, the owner can place himself between the dog and the door and wait for the dog to calm down before letting the guest inside. The owner should also advise the guest to greet the dog only when he’s calm. Do not reprimand your dog if he gets excited when a guest arrives as this can put the dog on defense and potentially develop into reactivity or aggression toward guests as he learns that a guest arriving at the home leads to punishment.
– Dogs get excited to go on car rides because they anticipate that they are heading off somewhere fun. You can reduce this type of excitement barking by taking the dog on short and boring trips on a regular basis.
Important reminders:
Don’t reward the wrong behavior. Be mindful of the type of attention you give to dog that engages in excitement barking. Giving the dog immediate attention can teach him that he is being rewarded for barking. Instead, wait until he calms down before rewarding.
Never reprimand or punish a dog that is barking due to excitement as this could inadvertently teach him that whatever it is that’s exciting him is leading to his punishment. (And a good way to turn a happy dog into a fearful or reactive dog.)
2. Warning Barking:
A warning bark is one of the more rare types of barks heard by pet parents. It is typically a single short, sharp “woof” meant to give warning about a particular threat, most commonly followed by the dog retreating or leaving the scene if they are able.
Unfortunately, humans very rarely understand this communication from their dog which often leads to the dog becoming frustrated and, in turn, continuing to bark more, particularly if they are on leash or contained in the home or yard where they cannot escape the perceived threat.
How to stop warning barking:
Because a warning bark is typically a single bark, and your dog’s way of announcing a perceived threat, it’s not necessarily a bark you want to stop. However, you should acknowledge this bark and deal with the threat to avoid it evolving into the problematic fear or aggressive barking that most commonly follows.
Do not punish or reprimand a warning bark – this is very important. If a dog learns that a warning bark is not allowed, he’ll skip the warning and go straight to reacting to the threat. To address a warning bark, the owner should show the dog that he understands the message by taking responsibility in dealing with the threat.
Calmly place yourself between the dog and the source of the threat. This action is a visual cue to the dog that his warning bark was understood. Then, quickly remove either the dog or the source of the threat to prevent it from escalating into something more serious.
3. Fear Barking:
Just like with humans, dogs’ fear levels range from just being slightly worried to full-blown panic. When a dog feels fear but is not in the position to cope with it, the emotions can be translated into barking. Fear barking is characterized by a long series of high pitched barks, similar to excitement barking, but the barks will usually end with a long drawn out bark or howl. During fear barking, the dog also becomes restless and may begin running back and forth, scratching on doors, looking out windows, chewing on something or on themselves, or in some cases they can act apathetic.
Fear barking is loud, repetitive, and penetrating and this is the kind that most dog owners punish. However, it’s important to never reprimand a dog for barking out of fear. Punishing a dog for being afraid does nothing to help him overcome his fear and can often make it worse.
What do Dogs Fear?
Fear is not an inherent emotion in dogs, but rather it is something learned through associations during past experiences. Because of this, dogs can potentially be afraid of basically anything.
Most commonly, dogs fear sudden or loud, startling noises. They may fear other dogs, people they don’t know, or new places and things that they are unsure of. Dogs’ fears vary greatly depending on their past experiences, their level of confidence, and their ability to cope and work through a situation.
Luckily, since fear is a learned emotion in dogs, with patience and persistence, it can also be unlearned.
A Step-by-Step Method for Dealing with Fear
According to researchers and animal behaviorists, the best way to address fear is through systematic desensitization and counter-conditioning.
Training a dog to overcome fear starts by exposing the dog to his source of fear from a safe distance. Or, if the fear is of certain sounds, like thunder or fireworks, exposing him to those sounds at a very low, almost inaudible volume. Then slowly and systematically moving step-by-step towards the dog’s object of fear, or increasing the volume of a sound fear. This process can take several weeks, months, even years, depending on the dog’s level of fear.
This is done in a careful manner so that the dog is not exposed too quickly to the point that he will feel uncomfortable. The dog is rewarding (either with praise, play, or food rewards) during every step of the process to assist in replacing negative associations to his source of fear with positive associations.
Quite often, however, fear barking occurs when a dog is left home alone. This type of fear must be dealt with slightly differently than other fears.
Fear of Being Home Alone
It is important to teach a dog not be afraid of being left alone at home. Your dog should view his home as a safe place.
Puppies or newly adopted older dogs should not be left alone at home for long periods of time, very suddenly, to avoid becoming fearful at home alone, particularly in the beginning. If a dog has already developed a fear of being alone, consider hiring a dog-sitter or taking him to a doggy daycare until this fear can be overcome.
A more long-term solution is to train the dog to visual cues using the hands. Choose a hand signal that you use every single time you leave the house, such as a thumbs-up or an “ok” sign. Show your dog the hand signal every time you exit the door, even if it’s just to check the mail or to step outside for a moment. Use the hand signal, exit the door for a few seconds, then return. As long as your dog has remained calm and not begun barking, reward him. Next time, use the hand signal and leave for a few minutes. If your dog has not become fearful or begun barking, reward him when you return. If he has begun to bark, return to the home, remain calm, but do not reward him. Instead, revert back to the last successful length of time and start again, increasing the time away in smaller increments so as not to elicit a fear response. Remember to always use the hand signal as an indicator to your dog that you will be returning.
How to stop fear barking:
Avoid exposing your dog to his fears, especially in the early stages of training him to overcome them. Teach your dog to cope with whatever he is afraid of one step at a time using the methods explained above. Do not force your dog into facing a threatening situation too quickly. Be aware of his body language and recognize signs and signals that he is becoming uncomfortable.
If a dog is showing fearful behavior, remain calm and act as a barrier between your dog and his perceived threat. Immediately remove your dog or his source of fear to prevent the situation from escalating. Counter-conditioning, or rewarding the dog in the presence of the threat, can be very effective but it should be practiced carefully so that the dog doesn’t think that he was rewarded for barking in fear.
Once you’ve determined what is making your dog fearful and helped him to overcome those fears, fear barking will cease.
Until your dog has overcome his fear, you can put a stop to fear barking by limiting access to his source of fear, or distracting him with play and fun activities until his source of fear has passed.
What NOT to do about fear barking:
A fearful dog should never be punished for expressing his fears. Do not use electric or shock collars, penny cans, or squirt water at a fearful dog to stop him from barking as these punishments will only serve to strengthen his fear by association. Punishing a fearful dog can also lead him to develop aggressive behavior because his fear and stress has increased to a more dangerous level.
4. Guard Barking:
Guard barking is commonly misunderstood as aggression or a dog showing dominance. However, it should be noted that when a dog is aggressive or dominant, he rarely shows it through barking. Guard barking happens when a dog feels the need to defend himself, his belongings, his home, his owner or his pack. Guard barking is a survival skill and it is more inherent in some breed than others.
This kind of barking is characterized by a shorter but deeper kind of fear barking, oftentimes accompanied by growling. It is also commonly accompanied by a lunging, defensive body position. The dog may also bare his teeth. If a dog’s guard barking is not acknowledged, he may take further steps to protect and defend himself.
How to stop guard barking:
To address guard barking, do not reprimand the dog as this will usually just aggravate the barking. Because guarding barking and behavior can very quickly escalate to a dangerous situation, immediately remove either your dog, or the person or other dog he is guarding.
If your dog is guarding resources, like food, toys, bedding or other items of high value to him, he will need to learn to tolerate people and other animals near his things. This can be taught using the desensitizing and counter-conditioning methods described above for fear barking, but may require the assistance of a certified trainer or animal behaviorist due to the risk of aggression.
5. Frustration Barking:
Frustration barking is caused by long-term stress often brought about by boredom, desperation, and loneliness. It is characterized by repeated, endless, static barking that often ends in a howl.
During frustration barking, the dog may also exhibit behaviors such as digging, chewing, licking, or chasing objects, all of which are self-calming behaviors that help the dog expend excess energy, ease boredom, and keep busy.
How to stop frustration barking:
Frustration barking is the simplest type of barking to put an end to. The dog’s owner should spend more time with the dog, avoid leaving him alone for long periods of time, and give him something to do to stimulate his mental and physical senses. Because this type of barking stems from boredom and loneliness, provide an appropriate amount of exercise, spend time bonding, build his confidence, and provide mental stimulation.
6. Learned Barking:
Because dogs naturally repeat behaviors that have been rewarding for them in the past, learned barking is barking that a dog has learned will elicit a specific response, usually as a result of reinforcement from their owner.
Some examples of learned barking include attention seeking, barking at the back door to be let outside, barking at their food bowl to be fed, or barking at the dinner table to be handed a snack from your plate.
How to stop learned barking:
Learned barking should not be reprimanded. Instead, you should reinforce a more positive behavior to the dog, something that does not involve barking.
To stop learned barking, you’ll need to teach your dog to use more appropriate ways to communicate. For example, if your dog is barking as a way to attract attention, rather than respond to his barks, ignore them and only give your dog attention when he’s not barking.
If your dog has learned to bark at the door to be let outside, teach him an alternative behavior instead, perhaps just sitting quietly by the door or ringing a bell. Only open the door to let him outside when he’s giving an appropriate behavior and never in response to him barking.
Likewise, if your dog barks at his food bowl, or barks at you while you’re eating, ignore him until he’s calm and quiet, and then reward him by providing what he’s asking for.
In the same way that you may have inadvertently taught your dog to bark to get what he wants, you can teach a more appropriate behavior. It will, however, require being observant and consistent and no longer giving in to your dog’s barked commands.
Beyond the Bark: Other Vocal Expressions:
Dogs use other forms of vocal expressions beyond just barking. These can include howling, whining, and growling.
Dogs usually howl when trying to communicate with other dogs or when they call out for help or company. Howling can also be done in response to hearing certain high-pitched sounds, like sirens or music.
Dogs whine for a number of reasons, including when they are hungry, thirsty, need to relieve themselves, when looking for attention or when they are excited.
Dogs most often growl when they are scared, threatened or in pain. Although, growling can sometimes occur during play, as well. Growling often occurs when a dog feels very uncomfortable and can be a warning signal. Dog owners should never reprimand a dog for growling but should instead remove whatever is causing the dog to be uncomfortable or nervous.
Things to Remember:
– Barking is a form of expression and and communication that can be self-rewarding to a dog. A dog should never be reprimanded or punished for barking as this can only lead to more serious consequences.
– Barking can be minimized to tolerable levels with proper management and training techniques. Dog owners should recognize the kind of barking that their dog is doing, whether it’s a single type of barking or a combination of different types.
– Keeping a detailed record of the dog’s barking is the first step in understanding and managing problematic barking.
– In cases of chronic stress related barking, the dog’s owner should understand the trigger so he can address it. Stress can come from the environment but it can also mean that the dog might be in pain or ill.
– Once a dog owner understands the type and reason for barking, he can prevent the dog from being in a situation that triggers him to bark.
– Using distraction and time outs can be effective strategies to address a dog’s barking, if used properly. Improper use of both can be translated by the dog as attention and can prompt him to bark more.
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