Excessive  Barking in Dogs

Barking is a natural and important means of communication for dogs. But excessive barking can become a problem.  As with all dog training and behavior modification, teaching a puppy or young dog is always easier than changing behavior that has become a bad habit in an older dog.  By starting to train your puppy in obedience and relaxation at an early age, you can greatly reduce the chances that he will grow into a problem barker.

The first step towards controlling excessive barking is to understand the specific reasons behind it.

Why They Do It

Territorial or defensive barking
Excitement, or happiness at seeing you
Play and exercise  (Pent up energy)
To get your attention or to signal you (i.e. “I have to go potty!”)
Aggravation over not being able to attain something (such as your piece of pizza).
Social barking in response to other dogs
Separation anxiety and trepidation
To get attention
Compulsive behavior

*** Please note that there there are instances of excessive barking for which it is a good idea to seek the advice of a Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist, a Veterinary Behaviorist, or a Certified Professional Dog Trainer first.

These include:

• Over-protective behavior in addition to the barking, such as growling, snapping, lunging, etc.
• Extreme separation anxiety or fear of objects, sights, sounds, people etc.
• Obsessive/Compulsive barking which is identified as excessive barking for no apparent reason or at things that wouldn’t bother other dogs. This may be accompanied by other compulsive behaviors such as spinning or jumping.

Don’t Do These Things

Don’t encourage your dog to bark at strangers or people walking by the door. Asking your dog “who’s that?” in a querying tone will excite their curiosity. Looking out the window or door will encourage him to do the same, and once there, he will bark.  Remember that dogs mirror our energy.

Don’t yell at your dog to stop or to be quiet – to him, he thinks you’re barking, too!

Don’t punish your dog if the barking is due to fright or separation anxiety. These are real causes of his barking and should be addressed as the issues they are.  You may have the opposite effect if you do this and his anxiety will increase, and so will his barking.

Don’t be inconsistent in your rules, so as not to confuse him.  Everyone in your family must apply the training methods and rules every time your dog barks inappropriately. For example, if you yell at him for barking at some sights or sounds, like kids leaving for school and then encourage him to bark at others.

Don’t use a muzzle, either store bought or home made as a substitute for training or while you are absent.  Dogs regulate their temperatures through the mouth by panting and muzzles prevent the dog from doing this.

Please don’t use a corrective collar.  Used alone, they will not correct the problem and if a dogs barks because he’s anxious, the collars correction process may make his anxiety worse.

What You Can Do
As pet owners we tend to make a big deal out of coming and going from home (I’ve done it myself many, many times), and this puts your dog in the wrong state of mind.

If you greet your dog in an excited manner, then he will come to expect your return to be a time of excitement, as dogs are creatures of habit. While he’s waiting for you to come back he will anticipate that excitement and become frustrated and bored.  Also, if you make a big deal before you leave, you’ve left your dog in an excited state as well, and this sets up a perfect formula for creating an excessive barking problem.

Be very calm, quiet, and matter-of-fact when leaving or returning home so that your dog will also remain calm.  I learned that leaving a few treats in a room away from the door, like the kitchen, would distract my dogs while I was leaving. This would prevent the excitement or anxiety of my departure. When returning, I would walk into the house and put my purse and keys away quietly and after a few minutes talk softly to my dog and give them some snuggly love while they were still calm.  This shows them that calm and quiet is rewarded with love and attention.

Stay calm when trying to stop dog barking!
Dogs don’t follow unbalanced pack leaders, so you must remember this at all times if you want to remedy the problem. If you are frustrated, he will be, too! And, barking is a great release for your dog’s frustrated energy.

Ignore the barking
Ignore your dog’s barking for as long as it takes him to stop, which means don’t give him any attention while he’s barking.  I saw a lady with a small, excited dog that wouldn’t stop barking. She picked up the dog to try to stop it.  That is the wrong approach because the attention and affection from being picked up tells the dog, “I like what you’re doing right now and so I’ll pick you up.”

When your dog barks, don’t talk to him, touch him, or look at him.  When he finally quiets, reward him with a treat.  It may take a while for your dog to stop barking, but you must wait until he is quiet to reward him. It would work in the same way if your dog barks while in his crate. When he barks turn around and ignore him, and once he stops barking, praise him and give him a treat.  After a while he will understand that being quiet = a treat and praise.

Cesar Milan has a process where you tell your dog to stop barking (calmly) using a look, a sound, or a physical correction. He sometimes makes a sound (pssshhhh! or ssssshhh!) while quickly touching the dog in the middle of his side or on the hip.  This distracts the dog from his focusing on the barking motivation. Your dog may pause when you do this and then go right back to what he was doing, so you would do the same thing again using a sound or touch until he completely submits to your correction.  Remember, you are the alpha in the pack!

Teach Your Dog The Quiet Command

 Challenge Your Dog Mentally and Physically

Make sure that your dog is getting sufficient physical and mental exercise every day, as barking is sometimes a result of pent-up energy.  Please see my article Exercising Your Dog, posted April 11, 2016.   Depending on his age, health, and breed, your dog may need several good walks as well as games of chasing the ball and playing with some interactive toys.  I had a sweet, adorable Retriever mix many years ago named Dottie, who loved to play hide and seek games outside with my daughter.

My daughter at 4 yrs old with Dottie, who loved to play hide-and-seek with her.

Dogs need physical and mental stimulation in order to stay healthy and happy. A tired dog is a good dog, and a good dog is less likely to bark from boredom or frustration.