Barking Dogs - What are you to do?

By: Dr Cam Day Consulting

Poison pen letters in the mailbox, council officers knocking at the door and irate neighbours pointing the finger over the fence - all saying 'Stop the barking!!' 

What are you to do?

Excessive barking of dogs is a very common problem and is second only to aggression in those behavioural problems for which dog owners seek professional attention.

The law is clear. It states that a dog can bark for up to six minutes in any hour between the hours of   7 am - 10 pm and for no more than three minutes in any thirty minute period between 10 pm and 7 am.

In behavioural terms, even if a dog barks for six minutes in an hour, it is still excessive and the dog needs attention.

For my clients I set a limit of two minutes barking under normal conditions and under one minute for any barking where the dog is showing signs of distress, including howling and screaming.

In the majority of cases this is achievable with simple strategies that target the underlying reason for the barking.

Why Do Dogs Bark?

Mostly, dogs bark because they are protecting their territory, they are fearful, they have an anxiety disorder such as a separation anxiety or they are seeking attention. Some old dogs bark when they have a senile behaviour disorder similar to Alzheimer's Disease and in some rare cases, excessive barking is a compulsive disorder.

Measure the Barking First

Your first step should be to quantify the barking by measuring it to determine if you are within the limits described above.

There are several ways of doing this but many involve electronically recording the barking so it can be measured. There are many options and you should contact us for more details.

How Can Barking be reduced?

There are many ways to limit a dog's barking behaviour but the most effective methods are those that treat the underlying reason for the barking.

If you are home when the barking is occurring, the therapies are usually very different to the processes you use when you are away from home.

'At Home' Therapies

The therapies for 'at home' barking mostly rely on:-

• Reducing the access to the stimuli that cause barking
• Setting a limit to the amount of barking you will allow
• Using reward-based therapies to strengthen quiet behaviour when you achieve it.

Sadly, most dog owners rely on punishment to control barking. When punishment-based methods are used to reduce an unwanted behaviour, they usually slow down the ability of a dog to learn the alternative good behaviours. Even the most intelligent dog is still fairly dumb compared with humans! When a dog is aroused by stimuli that cause barking it quickly loses the ability to learn and to remember the new techniques you are attempting to teach it.

Punishment does not show your dog what it should do instead of barking. So, he or she is likely to then become confused. In most cases where punishment is used, while the dog may stop the barking temporarily, it often resumes again a short moment later. It doesn’t get the message.

When you change your target and focus on creating silence and rewarding that, the dog can then see the alternatives. Behaviours that are clearly rewarded are more likely to be harvested again. Rewarding a wanted behaviour is like adding fertiliser to a seed you have planted. The behaviour will grow and flourish.

Punishing behaviour is like using weed killer. That weed may wilt but will either recover or other weeds will quickly sprout and require further remedies.

Reward-based solutions usually involve pre-teaching the dog the sequence of commands and actions you will utilise when barking occurs. This pre-teaching is best done in a game-play situation inside your own home – away from the location of barking.

When the dog has learnt the sequence, the game can then be moved to the location of the barking.

For instance you may start the sequence by game-playing in your lounge room. Then in a few days, move you dog to the front or back fence or maybe your front door and use the same game-playing sequence to rehearse the words in this new location.

The sequence we often used is called the Circle of Commands and relies on a simple sequence of human words (such as “Leave –Come –Sit”) that your dog is taught to understand by using reward-based training combined with calming strategies.

In human terms, this is called Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. In dog terms this is best summarised by the easier-to-understand term Give a liver treat when your dog gets it right. 

Reducing access to the stimuli that cause barking can involve many things but in practical terms often means:- 

·         Altering the fence by changing its construction or location to stop the dog's vision of passing stimuli

·         Giving the dog alternative 'stimuli' to entertain and to absorb its interest. My No Bored Dogs Routine is particularly effective for this.

·         Treating any underlying medical disorder that is making the dog uncomfortable, such as arthritis, skin irritations and so forth.

Setting a limit to the amount of barking you will allow is an important rule.

At the start of a bark-reduction programme, deal with the first bark whenever you can, using command-based therapies, If your dog does not respond, be ready to physically intervene with its barking to limit it. This does not mean using punishment but usually involves moving the dog away from the location of barking. There are many useful strategies for achieving this.

Using reward-based therapies is very sensible.

• When your commands create silence, use pats, hugs and kinds words to reward the dog.
• In the early stages, food treats are used to create an interest in the new methods but food is replaced by pats and cuddles as the dog learns.
• Cognitive therapy achieves this easily and involves teaching the dog a series of commands in a game-play routine that, when learnt, can then be applied to the problem.

'Home-Alone' Therapies

How can you reduce barking when you are not at home to do it? Treating the underlying problem is, again, the answer. For this reason, I never recommend the operation called de-barking and I stay away from the electronic shock collars. In my opinion, such strategies don't treat the underlying malady. 

• Attention to the fence is often important
• 'Home-alone' barking is often caused by a genuine anxiety disorder, the most common of which is a separation anxiety. Because dogs are pack animals, many are not happy when left alone. 
• The treatment of home-alone barking, usually involves the provision of a rich and ever-changing lifestyle for those alone times. 
• For genuine separation anxieties, the sensible use of low side-effect anti-anxiety medication is often needed. 

Excessive barking stems from many causes and it is wrong to presume that all cases of barking can be solved with one strategy.­ However humane solutions do work.

For assistance with your dog's barking behaviour click the link below and complete the assessment form that appears.

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