Barking

Ask around and the number one complaint from neighbors of dogs is nuisance barking.  But what is considered excessive barking?  Normally it can be considered as any barking, yelping, howling or crying that happens during normal sleeping hours, that happens frequently or habitual.  Imagine your phone ringing... how many times can it ring before you become annoyed?  A few phone calls in a day and your probably not bothered... 2 calls twice an hour all day... and well, you can see where I'm going here.

But why do dogs bark? 

For Attention.
Humans have bred dogs to bark for a number of reasons, and yes we have even encouraged and praised barking.  How else would we know if there was a stranger lurking about?  Or where the rabbit had gone?  This would be good attention.  But because dogs are social animals they will bark for bad attention too.  This means if the only time a dog gets any attention, even if it's a punishment, is if it barks, then it will do so.

To Communicate
As we know from countless documentaries on wolves, dogs are social creatures.  Naturally they choose to communicate mainly with body language and other audible communication.  Just like for attention some dogs bark just in effort to communicate with their humans... even if the human is yelling for them to be quiet.

Out of Boredom
Like a child who will talk to themselves when left to play alone, a bored dog will bark just for something to do.


What can be done about nuisance barking?

• Spend time with your dog everyday.  This not only ensures that their social needs are fulfilled, but also keeps down on boredom, desperation and anxiety.
• Train your dog.  You cannot correct a behavior if your pet does not know the right behavior to begin with.  Contact our trainers for more tips on training both the "Quiet" and the "Speak" command.
• Problem solve.  If your dog is barking out of boredom, try new chews and toys to occupy their time if you can't be there.  See if you need new privacy fences or plants to protect your dog from taunters such as neighborhood children or passing dogs. 

These are all just a few basics to help you start.  Remember barking may not bother you, but bothers around 95% of people around you.  And the best time to solve nuisance behavior is to keep it from starting!  Keep your pets happy, healthy and well trained.  For more information please contact one of our trainers at http://www.gatewayk9training.com/ .