You might be the last person to know that your dog is barking excessively when you leave it alone. If your dog is barking, whining or howling for long periods it may cause a problem for your neighbours or show that he is in distress.
Why dogs bark:
A dog makes noise to communicate with its family. Listening to dogs can help us understand their emotions and why they are making noise. There can be many
reasons why a dog barks:
- it doesn't like being separated from its owner;
there has been a change such as moving house or someone
returning to work;
it is scared of something;
to warn intruders or passers-by to stay away;
it wants attention;
it has got older and its hearing or eyesight is failing;
it is playing.
How can I know what my dog is doing while I'm out
- Often you will know what the problem is like when you are home but not what is happening when you go out and leave your dog. You can find out what is happening by:
leaving in the normal way and sneaking back to have a listen outside; setting up a web, video or security camera where the dog cannot damage it;
recording any noise on a tape recorder; or
asking a neighbour to keep a diary.
What do I do if I find my dog is causing a problem?
If a neighbour has complained to you, try to keep them on your side. Let them know what you are doing to try to resolve the problem and see if you can adapt to their routines to minimise noise problems.
First, try short-term measures to reduce the problem while you decide what to do more permanently. Consider:
- managing your dog, for example, by avoiding letting it outside unsupervised, keeping it away from the windows where it can see people passing (keeping the curtains closed may help), and keeping your dog in areas of the house that will reduce the noise for neighbours (for example, away from the party wall, if necessary using a training cage);
using friends, neighbours, relatives or professional pet sitters to look after your dog while you are out at work; taking the dog with you if you go
out, if this is possible; using a citronella anti-bark collar.
To decide on a long-term method to resolve the problem, you may need to first look at why the dog is barking. Consider:
- if your dog is seeking attention from you, do not respond to this behaviour. When it is noisy, look at the dog and then look or walk away from it. Give your dog attention when it is settled or if it has fetched a toy.
