Good Types of Dog Barking
20 Sep 2009
Last night I was serenaded throughout the night by my neighbor’s noisy pack of dogs. There happened to be a full moon last night, and the coyote’s of the area were howling and barking nearby, driving the dogs crazy. My dogs also barked when they first heard the nearby coyotes, but after I commanded them to be quiet, they stopped. Unfortunately for me, my neighbors must be the world’s deepest sleepers, because I have never heard them quiet their dogs at night.
As I thought about the all night barking, it was obvious that even though dogs may start their barking for a good reason sometimes, when it is out of control it is a problem just like any other form of barking.In the case of my neighbor’s dogs I blame the owners for the problem more than the dogs.
So, even though there are some good reasons for dogs to bark, it is up to us as their owners to make sure we control the barking so it does not become a problem behavior. My dogs bark for some very good reasons that I wouldn’t want to stop.
Here area some examples of acceptable reasons your dog may start to bark. These types of “good barking” examples are just forms of normal communication and are not caused by any behavioral issues that your dog may have.
- The most obvious good reason your dog will bark is when he wants to warn you that something (maybe another dog or a stranger) is approaching. When your dog does this type of barking, it is to warn his master, and this is a good thing you won’t want to stop. Having said that, your dog should be willing to stop his barking as soon as you tell him to stop. For instance, if your dog starts barking because he sees someone getting out of a car in front of your house, and you can see the person is not of any danger, you should be able to stop your dog’s barking with a simple command. On the other hand, if it is someone you want to discourage from coming onto your property (for example,maybe some over-zealous religious types), well then, you can let the barking continue a little longer. Protection barking is “good barking”-just make sure you can always control and stop the barking quickly with a command. If your dog is barking a lot for other reasons then you do have problem barking needing correction.
- Dogs will often bark for the good reason that they are happy and excited . I personally enjoy playing a lot with my dogs, and their barking at me and at each other while we play is just part of the fun. That is just the dog’s way of saying he is having a great time, and wants more of the same. If one of the dogs starts barking too much from all the excitement I will then tell him to quiet down. Some playful barking is jut fine, but when one of them gets too into the barking, that has to be stopped. Because your dog may develop a barking habit from too much excitement if you don’t limit it while playing, you need to pay attention to that.
- Your dog may start barking when you first come home. This type of excitement barking is typical, and not a problem if it is limited to a few greeting barks. My dogs always greet me at the gate when I come home, and I don’t mind a couple barks because that is all there are. If the dogs keep the barking up ,even after you’ve greeted them back, then it is not such a “good barking” anymore. That puts this behavior onto the unacceptable list because the dog doesn’t immediately stop barking after saying “Hi”.
- My female Lab will bark at me sometime when she wants to play. However, some dogs will try to use their barking as a way of bullying you into playing with them. I know because I used to be a sucker for this with my Lab, and she had me well trained to play ball with her whenever she wanted. this is not a good thing, because as the Alpha dog, you must be the one to decide when playtime starts, not the dog. If you let the dog think it is the boss instead of you, you will make all other training more difficult. You have to be the Alpha dog in the relationship between you and your dog, so don’t let your dog’s invitation to play become a bullying act.
I think you’d agree the above barking behaviors are not troublesome-unless they are out of control. However, most of the other reasons dogs bark create a disturbance and should be corrected.
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