| When your dog
barks obsessively, it can become a problem not only for you but
for the development of your dog as well. It can upset
neighbors and if you rent living space it can cause you to get rid of your dog
or leave your home. For your dog it can progress into an
obsession and can cause them to have serous emotional problems
if left unchecked. But why do dogs bark? Here are 3
main reasons why dogs bark and some ideas on how to resolve the
problem.
1.
Attention
Getting:
When an owner deliberately spoils a dog or
unintentionally rewards him for barking, the dog
quickly learns how to get attention. For example, a dog barks
because he is startled, and the owner reaches down and pets the
dog to assure him that all is well. The dog perceives the
petting and consoling as
a reward for barking. Thus he barks whenever he wants attention.
Let's create an example and the
solution to the problem it produces. This problem is
common to small dogs and their owners.
As a puppy, the dog frequently barked and jumped up on the owner
to get the owners attention. The
owner would bend down and pick up the puppy. Soon the puppy
learned that whenever he wanted the
owners attention, all he had to do was bark and jump up on his
owner.
Well, by the time the puppy reaches adulthood, the habit has
been formed and the dog constantly
demands that his owner pick him up and carry him around. The
owner finds this annoying, yet he loves
the little dog, so he hesitates to reprimand him. Instead the
owner tries yelling at the dog, but to
no avail. The dog continues to jump and the owner continues to
try various tactics to correct the
problem, yet nothing positive comes of the owners attempts.
The solution to this problem is
to let the dog know that it's fine to ask for attention, but in
an
acceptable manner. The dog must learn that, as with most things
in life, there is a price to pay for
that attention. Instead of immediately responding to the dogs
request that he be picked up, the
owner now has the dog do something to earn his attention. Once
the dog begins to realize that
attention is no longer free, he can be trained to remain on the
floor and accept attention from
there rather than from the owners arms.
2.
An Attempt to
Communicate:
The
dog, being a social animal, needs to communicate with his pack
(humans or other dogs). He uses barking as a means to gain food,
water, shelter and comfort. However, sometimes, an owner
reacts inappropriately to barking and the dog reads the owners
actions as something good that he'd like repeated.
The dog brings a toy to you and drops
it at your feet. Then he stands there barking and looking up at
you.
Without thinking, you pick up the toy and toss it across the
room. That behavior signals a message
to the dog that you're willing to play with him whenever he
asks. Of course, this will not always be
convenient, yet you've taught the dog that standing in front of
you and barking will get you to play
with him regardless of what you're doing at the time.
This behavior is usually found in a high-energy dog who is bored
and has nothing to do. At this
point, you have two choices. The first choice is to respond to
the dogs demand by throwing the toy
for him. This response will probably escalate into a whole
series of tossing and retrieving. One
toss is usually never enough!
The second choice is to acknowledge
the dogs boredom and, before you toss the toy, have the dog do
something for you. A sit or a down/stay would be appropriate.
Once the dog complies with your
command, praise him and then toss the toy. If he brings the toy
back to you and begins barking
again, repeat the procedure so that each time he demands your
attention, he must earn it by doing
something first. Very shortly he'll decide that he doesn't want
to be bothered with doing something
just so you'll throw the toy. He'll soon find something else to
do and wander off to entertain
himself.
To be fair to the dog, if he enjoys retrieving, he should be
given ample opportunities to play fetch
with you at your convenience. Once he understands that you'll
play the fetch game with him, he'll be
a lot less likely to pester you when it's not convenient for you
to play with him.
Remember a dog needs to be
walked EVERY day for about 45 minutes. If he's getting
enough exercise that in itself my resolve the problem.
3.
Excitement:
Dogs verbalize their emotions
much as people do.
They often bark during:
- Play, when they get very
excited.
- Anticipating something that
excites them, such as a game of fetch, a special doggie
treat
- Going out for a walk with his
owner.
- Frustration also can create
barking in a dog.
Let's say the dog wants to play with a
favorite toy that is in his sight
but out of his reach. He may attempt to get the toy but, when
those efforts fail, he may stand there
and stare at the toy while he barks incessantly until someone
comes to retrieve the toy for him.
If you can determine the cause of the barking, you should allow
it for a reasonable amount of time.
Lowering the level of excitement usually lowers the bark reflex,
and you usually can control this.
When you wish to quiet the dog, change the cause of his
excitement to a more calming activity. As
soon as the barking lessens, praise the dog with "Good, quiet."
In the case of frustration, lessen
his barking by alleviating the
dogs frustration or removing the dog from the cause of his
frustration.
It's beneficial to both dogs and people that dog owners
understand the causes and appropriate human
responses to barking. Often when small dogs bark they are
sounding an alarm. Big dogs, on the other
hand, bark to issue a warning and/or threat. When people respond
appropriately to barking, they
generally set the pattern for the barking to subside yet recur
when necessary. Conversely,
responding inappropriately usually escalates the barking and
thereby solicits more barking.
In short, with barking or other of their dogs behavior, owners
should recognize positive behavior
and ignore or divert negative behavior. Remember, behaviors that
bring pleasant results tend to be
repeated, whereas behaviors that bring on unpleasant results are
usually not repeated. To a dog,
being ignored is most unpleasant, so the dog quickly figures out
that, in order to get pleasant
attention, he must repeat certain behaviors (such as not barking
unnecessarily) and stop others.
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