You walk in the door after a long day at the office with the hope that your cute new puppy is going to help you unwind after a long, hard day; but instead you walk in to a puppy that is barking his cute furry head off at you.
I imagine that you might be a bit confused and overwhelmed by that. And it happens again and again.
So why does your puppy bark at you?
Dogs bark at their owners for a number and a variety of reasons. Keep in mind that barking for puppies is the way of communicating that is most obvious to them, so if your puppy is barking at you, he is trying to tell you something. It is up to you to figure out what it is that he is trying to say.
Here are a few of the more common reasons why puppies bark at their owners and some tips to stop excessive barking.
Attention
Your puppy might be barking at you for because he is feeling a bit neglected.
He needs your attention for some reason or another. Perhaps he is hungry and wants you to give him something tasty to eat, maybe some of his food, or maybe he sees something that you are having that looks good to him.
After having spent the afternoon staring out the big plate-glass window in the living room, admiring what a beautiful day it is, he may be ready to go for walk, and he isn’t concerned that you are tired from a long day at work.
The best way to help him is to give him that attention on a regular basis, whenever he is calm and behaving himself. Sit down with him and give him some tummy scratches, play a game with him, or just pet him and tell him how much you love and care for him.
If you have a puppy barking for attention, don’t give in to him at the time or you’ll reinforce this unwanted behavior.
Boredom
He’s had a long, boring day.
While you have been working hard at your job, your puppy has been at home well… not working hard, so when you get home, he starts barking because he is bored and wants you to play with him or engage him in some other way.
Perhaps he wants you to take him for a walk around the neighborhood, or maybe he wants you to take him to the park to chase a ball or a frisbee, or maybe he wants you to sit with him on the floor and have a good conversation with him (dogs are great listeners).
Regardless of what he wants to do exactly, he really just wants some engagement because he is bored. You should take a few minutes to sit down with him or take him for a walk or to the park so that he can get some playtime.
Defensive
Like most animals. puppies can be defensive and territorial.
Defensive barking usually occurs to a perceived threat. That threat may be from another dog, or it may be from some other person from whom he is not getting a good vibe (dogs are much more perceptive and in sync with their instincts than we are).
Another reason that a puppy may get defensive and start barking is that he feels trapped. I’m sure that you’ve heard that the response by a trapped or caged animal is not something that you want to experience.
If your puppy is barking while you are walking and he sees another dog or he is barking at someone who he is watching, the best thing to do is to get a tight grip on his leash and hang on to him because he is undoubtedly going to try to leap at the dog or the person that is causing him to be anxious or nervous. Maintain positive control over him so that he does not injure himself, another dog, or someone else.
You definitely want to train this out of him with a technique called desensitization. Brain Training For Dogs can teach you how to do this.
Excitement
Lots of dogs are easily excited, especially puppies.
When you walk in the door from having been someplace other than at your house with your puppy, does he start barking and wagging his tail fast enough so that it looks like it is going to either fall of or he is going to take flight? If that is the scenario, then that is a bark of excitement.
Remember that dogs are pack animals, they love people and they don’t like being alone. Lots of dogs get separation anxiety – some worse than others – so when you are gone, they can become quite lonely and bored.
When you come home, they are so glad to see you that they may start barking and whooping and hollering. In addition to barking, your puppy may bend his front legs in an almost bowing movement while keeping his backside in the air or he may start spinning in circles.
When you see this type of body language, he is trying to communicate to you that he is excited, and he is ready to play. When you see your puppy behaving like that, because he is obviously glad to see you, you should immediately grab him and give him a big hug and tell him that you’ve missed him too.
You can train your dog to stop barking with excitement when you come home if it bothers you.
The following video shows the method for a dog that jumps because she is excited, but you can use exactly the same technique to stop your dog barking too.
Surprise
As with most people, your puppy may not like being startled.
If you walk up on him while he is lost in his thoughts or he is busily watching the neighbor’s cat stroll through the backyard as if she owns it, then he may bark at you.
This is a very simple bark that will be one or perhaps a couple of barks at most. It really is like him simply telling you that you startled him. Depending upon how deep in his head he was, he may even jump like we humans do when someone startles us.
Because this really isn’t a bark at you specifically, the only thing that you can do to prevent this type of bark is to not sneak up on your puppy.
Possessive
Some dogs can be very possessive.
If you try to take his favorite toy (or anything else that he finds that he has become attached to), he is definitely going to let you know that it is his toy and you cannot have it. Like a small child with his security blanket, the child will protest if you take it away.
The best way to approach this situation is if it is not something that could hurt him, then it is best to let him continue playing with it. When he gets tired of playing he will just get up and leave it wherever it was that he was playing with it, and you will be able to get it at that time.
If it is something that he could hurt himself with, then that is more difficult, You are just going to have to figure out how to get it without him taking your hand off (hint: distraction!).
Make sure you start training your dog to drop things on command.
Pain
If your puppy is injured, then it is not uncommon that he may begin barking. He is communicating to you that he is in pain.
A pain bark does have a specific tone to it, so that, in combination with his overall body language, should make it obvious to you that he is in pain.
Perhaps he was playing and he injured himself, but whatever the reason for the injury, he is trying to tell you that he is in pain.
You should give him a close inspection for any obvious signs of injury (i.e. lacerations, broken bones, etc.), and then take him to see your vet or to an emergency vet clinic so that he can be evaluated and the source of his pain may be treated.
Sick
Again, as is the case for when he is in pain, your puppy may also bark if he is sick.
This is especially true if he has been exposed to something that has made him very sick in that he is not thinking straight (i.e. rabies, heat exhaustion/heat stroke, infection with high fever, etc.).
If your puppy is trying to communicate to you that he is not healthy, you should immediately take him to your family vet or to the closest emergency vet clinic to be evaluated and have his illness treated.
Final Thoughts
We love our dogs and we want to engage with them as much and in any way that we can, but it can be difficult at times due to the fact that we do not speak the same language.
It can be confusing to understand what it is that our dog wants, especially if he is going on and on barking without any clear reason as to why he is pitching such a fit and making so much noise.
Keep in mind that communicating with your puppy is like communicating with a small child. The trick is for you to remain calm and be an adult.
Take a look around the environment, is there anything there that may be causing him to bark? Ask yourself if he could be feeling something such as boredom or hunger. Thinking about the situation in a calm manner is the best way to understand what he is trying to tell you.
The other way to really understand him is to know him, because the better you know your puppy, the easier it is going to be to interpret why he is barking at you.
Barking FAQs
Why do dogs bark at me?
I'm sure not ALL dogs bark at you, so you'll need to figure out what the ones that do have in common.
The most likely reasons are:
- They want attention from you: they're just letting you know they're there in case you feel like showing them some love!
- They're defending something: are you getting close to something they may feel protective of? They could be warning you off or alerting their owner to your presence. (If you happen to be a delivery person, it's almost certainly this one!)
- They smell something on you: there was a dog that would always bark at me, and only me. When this dog finally met my dog he barked at him too, so clearly my dog's scent was causing that reaction. Maybe they can smell your pet or something else on you? Remember that dogs have a much better sense of smell than us humans.
How to stop a puppy from barking at night?
Before bedtime, make sure your puppy:
- has had enough exercise so he's actually tired
- has been fed
- has been to the toilet
- is in a comfortable environment
Basically eliminate any legitimate problems he may have.
If he still barks, he probably wants attention. Don't give it to him as this will make the problem worse.
Give a stern "No. Go to bed." and walk away. This has put an immediate stop to it for me before, but it won't always work.
Only do this once and ignore any further noise. He will eventually stop for the night (barking is tiring), and for good once he learns it's pointless.
Note: if he's barking AT something, like a wall, he might be able to hear something there. Try moving him to another location (and you should probably get someone to check the wall for critters!)
Why does my puppy bark at me and bite me?
Your pup probably just wants some attention and is trying to get you to play a game. Ignore him until he's calmed down, then play with him. Going forward, start a game or show him some love more often before he feels the need to ask.
It is also possible, but less likely, that he's doing it out of fear. Consider if you've done anything to cause this reaction, and consult a professional trainer sooner rather than later.
Why does my puppy bark at me when playing?
He's just excited and enjoying the game. It's not really an issue, other than the noise. It's easy enough to stop this behavior if you don't like it: simply stop playing and ignore him whenever he barks. He'll soon get the message.
Why does my puppy bark at me when i tell him off?
Some possible reasons for this:
- He doesn't like when you're upset with him and is trying to get you back to your usual happy self by starting a game. Ignore this.
- He doesn't like being told what to do and is basically arguing back. Ignore this too.
- You were too aggressive with him and he's scared of you. Remember you should be firm but calm. Never direct anger at your dog, no matter what he's done.
Feature image by Robert Gramner
