Barking

Dogs bark for a number of reasons. To reduce unwanted barking, it is necessary to understand the root cause, so it’s helpful to think about barking in terms of the dog’s emotional state.

Sometimes dogs bark because they are distressed — they want to create distance between themselves and something they find threatening. Other times they’re not distressed at all. They’re barking simply because they want something, or they’re letting you know that someone is at the door.

Let’s take a look at the different types of barking:

Not Distressed

Demand Barking

Plain and simple — the dog wants something. He barks to get your attention, to get you to throw the ball you are holding, or to tell you that he’s ready for dinner. Or he barks when you open up a can of beans because he has learned that the sound of her cans of dog food opening mean FOOD!

His body language shows you that he’s not distressed. His tail is wagging, and he’s wearing a play face with what looks like a big happy grin. ​​

Boredom

When a dog’s basic needs for mental stimulation and physical exercise are not met, he may bark simply because he has nothing better to do. Barking, itself, can become fulfilling to the dog.

Watchdog Barking

Dogs come hardwired to alert people that someone is approaching and to let the perceived intruder know that they have been noticed. A typical watchdog-barking dog will look alert with his legs spread. The barking often comes and goes in spurts, his ears will be up, his eyes wide open, his head will be up, and his tail will be too. When the dog can hear, but not see, the thing he is alerting to, he will often “bark at the universe” and pace, as if he were trying to locate the source. 

​If a dog has a fear of strangers, then barking when someone arrives may be more than regular watchdog barking. Which brings us to...

Distressed

Barking can be a symptom of an underlying problem when a dog is worried, afraid or uncomfortable. A skilled trainer can help your dog overcome the fear or anxiety behind the bark.

Let’s take a look at some of the root causes:

Spooky Barking

Sometimes, dogs bark because they perceive things in the environment (people, other dogs, loud trucks, or weird “pictures”) as unsafe and threatening. They are barking to say “Stay away!” If the dog’s vocalizations don’t work to create distance, he has two options: fight or flight. When the dog is in flight mode, he will back away, cower, hide, lower his ears, tuck his tail and make his body appear smaller. 

When the dog is in fight mode, he will lunge, move toward the threat, raise his ears and tail, and make his body appear larger. ​

Very often, dogs will display a combination of fight and flight body language at the same time. It’s important to remember that - although behaviors look very different - the underlying emotion is the same: fear and uncertainty.

​In order to quiet the barking, you need to help the dogs overcome their fear. The underlying negative emotions needs to be replaced with positive emotions. When this happens, the dog will no longer be motivated to bark. 

Separation Anxiety

Some dogs have a legitimate phobia of being left alone or being separated from a specific individual. 

Their barking is usually accompanied by whimpering; running from room to room, window to window, and door to door; urinating and defecating indoors; chewing up things in the house, including the frame of the door from which people come and go; and not eating. While each of these behaviors can point to different issues individually, when you see some or all of them happening together and only when the dog is left alone, separation anxiety could be the cause.  

Separation Anxiety is an affliction that affects at least 12 million dogs in the U.S. alone, and it tends to get worse the longer it goes untreated. Read more about separation anxiety here, or visit Separation Anxiety and Beyond for help. ​

Barking and Dog Breeds

Hounds, such as Beagles, Bassets and Coonhounds, were bred for hunting, and many of them do so by chasing and cornering prey, then “baying” to alert their handler. Baying is a distinct vocalization that sounds like a cross between a howl and a bark, and many non-working hounds do it out of excitement, or to demand or alert to something.

Herding breeds, like Shelties, German Shepherds and Australian Cattle Dogs, were bred to move livestock from one place to another. Because of this, they are often motion sensitive and may react to fast-moving people, dogs and objects by barking and lunging.

Terriers, like Jack Russells, Cairn Terriers, and Airedales, are notoriously vocal. They were bred to hunt and kill small critters, so they have propensities for high prey drive and tenacity. And with that comes - you guessed it - lots of barking at other animals.

Whether your dog is distressed or not, there are ways to reduce barking. Click here to find a qualified trainer to help.