Barking - When all you want is for it to stop

​Recently I posted on Facebook asking people what they would like to teach their dog, if they had a trick they wanted to try teaching their dog and I got several responses back saying "I want my dog to stop barking" so I thought I would look at that issue.  The thing is, it's too big a topic for a short Facebook post.

The first question I have when someone approaches me with a situation like this is "When does it happen?"  Why?  Because dogs will bark for a wide variety of reasons, and information about the situations in which the dog is barking helps determine a training plan.

Situations in which dogs bark can include:

• Seeing something outside the window
• Seeing something on a walk
• Hearing particular noises
• Sudden changes
• When people are at the door
• During training
• As an attempt to communicate 
• When left alone

​Next question:  "What do you want your dog to do instead?"   While this may seem like an obvious question, there are sometimes subtle differences - for example some people don't mind if their dog barks when someone comes to the door as long as the dog will stop when asked.  But the main reason for this question is that it is challenging to train for a "don't".  It is much easier to train for something.  So what might that look like?

​I want my dog to:

• Watch birds outside the window quietly
• See other dogs on a walk and continue walking quietly
• Hear a car door slam and remain quiet
• Stop barking on cue
• Participate in a training session quietly
• Wait patiently and quietly during food preparation
• Relax quietly when alone

Now we have a behaviour we can work towards!

But we're not done yet.  The next thing to consider is the underlying emotional state of the dog.  Strong underlying emotions such as fear can impact the training plan.  For example, a dog that barks at people that come to the door, then continues barking as the people enter the home while backing away and possibly trying to hide behind his owners is a different situation than a dog that barks at people that come to the door, then stops barking as soon as the people enter and approaches the people in a relaxed and friendly manner for attention.

For the dog in the first scenario, barking at people at the door is just a symptom of the real issue, the dog is afraid of people entering the home.  Teaching that dog to stop barking on cue won't address the underlying issue of being afraid of people, and therefore likely won't work and will be frustrating for the owners and the dog.  Pursuing a behaviour modification program to address the fear would provide better results.

On the other hand, the second dog is likely barking out of excitement or a desire to alert their owners to something that he feels they should be aware of.  I've owned several dogs that fall into this category, including Destiny, a boxer who felt that it was her duty to alert us to any thing that changed in our environment.  Given her breed heritage, that's not a surprising trait for her to have.  In these situations, since the dog is happy to see the people once they enter the home, the issue is the arrival itself.  So we can devise a training plan to teach the dog to stop barking on cue and it will likely be successful. 

What other emotional states may be involved with the different scenarios?

• Seeing something outside the window - fear, excitement
  • Similar to people arriving at the door
• Seeing something on a walk - fear, excitement, frustration
  • Some dogs are afraid of other dogs/people/unknown things and don't want to get any closer so they may put up a big display to keep the scary (to them) thing away
  • Some dogs are very excited to see other dogs/people so they may lunge, pull and bark in an effort to get closer.
• Hearing particular noises - startle, fear, excitement
  • Some dogs startle and bark the way some people startle and jump.  
  • Some dogs have associated certain noises with other events (i.e. car door closing = someone coming to the door)
• Sudden changes - startle
• During training - frustration, over-excitement
• As an attempt to communicate  - frustration, boredom, excitement
  • Some dogs will bark if their toy rolls under the couch or if they don't understand what you want.  Frustration plays a roll in this type of barking.
  • Some dogs will bark to communicate that they want something - your attention, for you to throw the ball, etc.
  • Some dogs will bark out of excitement or anticipation.  For example while you are preparing their food or about to throw a ball.
• When left alone - fear, boredom
  • Vocalization when left alone can be a symptom of anxiety at being separated from you.  It is important to investigate whether or not this is the case for your dog, and if it is, treat the underlying anxiety.
  • Bored or under stimulated dogs are more likely to try to find their own fun by barking at things or to try to communicate that they are bored out in the yard by themselves by barking.

​Now you should be able to reflect on your own dog and answer the following questions:

1. In what situation(s) is my dog barking?
2. What do I want my dog to do in those situations instead?
3. What emotional state do I think my dog is in during those situations and why?  

Next time we'll look at putting together a training plan.

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