My dog barks too much
We all know that dogs bark; it is natural behavior for a dog. In some cases, however, a dog may bark excessively, which can have unpleasant consequences. The barking may cause nuisance and irritation for the neighbors. In extreme cases, a dog's persistent barking may result in animal welfare services or the police coming to your home. Naturally, you want to prevent this at all times.
Why does my dog bark?
Dogs do not bark without reason; they do it to express themselves. If you listen carefully to your dog's barking, you will hear different types of barks. By listening to the tone of the bark and also paying close attention to your dog's body language, you can determine exactly why your dog is barking. Once you have identified the reason for the barking, you can look for a solution to the excessive barking. Below, you will find various reasons/causes why a dog may bark.
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Happiness/excitement
When your dog barks because he is happy or excited, you can recognize this by the high pitch of the bark. Your dog will often bark quickly and several times in succession. In many cases, your dog will approach you or walk around you while wagging his tail vigorously. -
Attention
Your dog may also bark when he wants attention. The dog will bark a few times in succession, look at his owner (or at the source of the attention he wants), and then bark a few more times. This is a ‘normal’ bark for a dog. -
Play
In various situations, a dog may bark when he wants to play. This may happen when you throw a ball, but also when playing with another dog. The dog will stand in front of you or in front of the other dog and bark loudly several times. During play, your dog may lower himself onto his front legs (with his rear in the air), wag his tail vigorously, or make quick movements to encourage the other dog to play. -
Stress or frustration
When a dog barks because of stress or frustration, this may be related to separation anxiety or boredom. In the case of separation anxiety, the dog will bark when he is alone in a room or completely alone at home. This barking only stops when the owner returns home. The bark is often monotonous and will therefore continue until, for example, the dog is no longer alone. In some cases, the barking may end in howling. -
Defense
When a dog feels threatened, whether by a person or another dog, he may start barking sharply, briefly, and deeply. Sometimes this barking is accompanied by growling; this often happens when the warning bark is ignored. The dog will lean forward and may attack if he feels he must defend himself, his territory, or his owner. -
Fear
When your dog is afraid, this is often accompanied by clear body language. The dog will not only bark loudly and at a high pitch (often continuously), but will also try to move away from the source of fear and appear restless. -
Hunting
Hunting dogs may show their enthusiasm during the hunt by barking and whining or yelping when they see prey. The bark a dog produces during the hunt is high-pitched. -
Pain
When a dog is in pain, the animal may let out a fearful bark due to the shock. This is often followed by a whining cry and whimpering.
How do you teach your dog to stop barking excessively ?
Teaching a dog not to bark excessively starts when the dog is still a puppy. This does not mean that every bark should be forbidden. If the dog is happy, scared, or playing, it naturally makes no sense to prohibit this. Just like people, dogs need to be able to express themselves. Only when barking becomes a problem, such as when the dog has to stay alone or does not get his way, should you correct the dog. This is a matter of being consistent. Every time the dog barks without a necessary reason, the behavior should be discouraged. You can do this by stopping the barking with a verbal command. This could be “no!” or “stop,” or by making a loud noise, such as shaking a can. The verbal command must be louder than the barking.
When the dog stops barking after the command, it is crucial to reward him. This teaches the dog what the command means and that stopping barking results in a reward. It is very important to be consistent in this. Do not say “no” one time and let the dog continue another time. This is very confusing and will often produce the opposite result.
It is also important to teach your dog from an early age to stay alone. Being alone is often a cause of excessive barking. Therefore, leave your puppy alone for a few minutes and gradually increase the time; you can read about this in this blog: building up alone time. This teaches the dog from an early age that being alone is not a problem.
Please note: when your dog barks to defend himself, it is important not to punish this type of barking. This form of barking is often a warning. If the source continues to approach the dog, the dog may attack. If you punish defensive barking, a dog may omit this type of barking in the future and attack immediately (without any prior warning in the form of barking).
