When you think of dogs one of the first things that you think of is barking. Everyone knows that dogs bark, but how many people know why dogs bark?
Here are 7 reasons why dogs bark and how you can solve them.
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Reasons Why Dogs Bark
The main reason why dogs bark is communication.
A dog has a limited ability to communicate because they cannot talk.
But, they use what they have by moving body parts or even barking.
Yet, there are still several different emotions or reasons your dog might be barking.
Use this list as a guide to the possible reasons your dog is trying to convey when they bark.
Territorial
If a stranger comes into an area your dog considers as their own.
Your dog might begin to bark as a result of feeling like the stranger is an intruder.
They think they have to protect their land and owners.
As they get closer, your dog might get more aggressive or begin to bark louder as an attempt to make them go away.
If your dog is barking at people that are walking by a way to stop that kind of barking is to limit their vision.
You can achieve this by having fencing your dog can’t see through or limiting access to windows.
If your dog is barking at you or your friends, you should make your dog feel comfortable with them like they do with you.
If your dog doesn’t see your friends as a threat to their territory they won’t try to defend it.
Separation Anxiety
Separation anxiety barking in dogs is like barking when they are lonely. If your dog has separation anxiety they get nervous when you’re gone.
This leads to barking when you are gone to entertain themselves. Also, this can be a destructive behavior and should be handled sooner than later.
How should you fix separation anxiety in your dog? This is a tough one if your dog has separation anxiety you should get advice from your dog’s veterinarian.
This can be a serious issue and a veterinarian will be able to give you the best solution for this issue.
Loneliness
When you leave your dog alone with not much to do they might start barking. This is because they are bored and are trying to entertain themselves.
Think of it like this, do you sometimes sing when you are alone and bored? Dogs do the same thing, but they can only bark.
So, what are some solutions to this problem? The first thing you could try is giving your dog some more things to do when you are gone or busy doing something else.
Try giving your dog some toys before you leave the house or buying them a new bone to chew on.
Dogs are not very hard to entertain, but when they don’t have anything to do they can get noisy.
Another great solution is to get your dog a dog walker or someone to play with for a little bit while you’re gone.
It doesn’t need to be all day, but even a little bit of activity will keep your dog from going on a barking rampage.
Play
You’ve played with your dog or seen them play with others, they usually start barking when they get excited.
This is another happy bark that your dog does, they have good intentions when they bark during play.
Ways to stop this behavior is to tell your dog not to bark when they begin to bark during playtime.
Also, you need to reward your dog when they play and don’t bark. Positive reinforcement is a great way to teach your dog better behaviors.
Attention
This is a very common behavior problem when your dog is bored and wants your attention.
If your dog wants to play or wants to be pet they will try to bark until they can get you to notice them.
You should definitely not acknowledge your dog when they do this. This could lead to the repetition of this bad behavior for the rest of their life.
How do you go about solving this issue? Ignore your dog when they bark to get you to notice them.
Ignoring your dog will teach them that barking won’t get your attention and they will stop.
Ignore them even when your dog barks to get something from you.
If you acknowledge them, it teaches them when they bark they get what they want to bark to get what they want.
If you want to avoid your dog barking when they have to go outside, try bell training.
Get a dog bell, put it on the door you use to take your dog outside, and teach your dog to ring that bell when they need to use the bathroom.
Fear
Dogs are like humans they can get scared or startled by things around them. If something happens and your dog gets startled they will bark out of instinct.
If your dog is afraid of someone or something they will also bark, it’s a natural reaction for dogs.
This solution is like a territorial solution. Which is to make your dog comfortable with your friends or people that often visit your home.
To stop barking at people passing by, limit your dog’s access to places where they can see strangers.
Greeting
This is one of the happiest barks your dog will do, this is a way of saying hello to the people they like the most.
It’s as simple as that, your dog loves you and your friends and wants to show you love as soon as you walk in the door.
The best way to fix this issue is to teach your dog better behaviors when you or other friends come into your house.
Then, when your dog does what you teach them instead of barking reward them. This builds positive reinforcement when they do the right thing.
Also, when your dog acts out and doesn’t do as you say when someone walks in the door, don’t reward them and ignore them.
This will further teach them what to do and not to do. This helps stop barking upon greeting along with jumping on people when they walk in the door as well.
Resources:
https://pets.webmd.com/dogs/guide/understanding-why-dogs-bark
