One of the most common questions about dog behaviour is, “What can I do about my dog barking at people passing my house?” Some may not like my response – “DON’T LET IT HAPPEN!”.
At best, window/gate/perimeter barking ( we will call it perimeter barking from here) is an annoying, inappropriate pastime. At worst, it can transfer over to other areas of a dog’s life from my experience meaning some dogs will take it to the street. Let’s look at why;
there are many issues with perimeter barking. For starters – it “works”. Think about it – a car, dog or person passes your home, your dog barks, and the other dog goes away. Or better yet, how about the scary man that comes daily carrying a bag and making noise on your front porch? That’s right – postman. Your dog barks, the postman goes away. As humans we know he wasn’t staying, but your dog doesn’t. When he barks and the postie goes away, the barking behaviour is being reinforced. This also teaches the dog how to deal with scary things or things he’s unsure of in his world – bark and they go away.
From my experience, perimeter barking can also lead to frustration, leash reactivity and even more inappropriate behaviours as the dog becomes frustrated and aroused whenever they see a human or another dog and can’t get to them. That reaction can become more intense over time. Also, barking and over-arousal at the mere sight or dogs or humans can keep the dog in a constant state of arousal. This is bad from a behaviour and a health standpoint as it can stress your dog’s life.
When a dog runs to the window or gate in anticipation of a threat or trigger, the amygdala, the brain’s emotional centre, immediately sounds the alarm and then activates the flight or flight response. The adrenal glands prepare the body for an encounter. That stress response releases a cocktail of hormones. As we all know this cocktail of chemicals, known commonly as the fight or flight system, prepares for a bear in the woods or other high-stress event. Adrenaline can keep us alive in the face of danger. A certain amount of stress is good and helps us survive and thrive especially in the face of danger. However, at the perimeter there is no bear. It’s just the postie or the neighbour, however the body’s system, chemical reaction, and emotional response are the same as if it were a bear.
Not only is your dog now flooded with a cocktail of hormones, but we also find these hormones can be addictive. Have you ever known anyone addicted to stress? Or have you seen someone after the thrill of a roller coaster ride, sky diving or another high arousal event chock full of adrenaline as they say “LET’S DO THAT AGAIN!”. It’s the same thing for dogs. Dogs can become addicted to that arousal at the perimeter and doing it daily, keeping the dog in a constant state of arousal and full of the cocktail of stress hormones. Also once we become used to that arousal and stress rush, the brain may actually seek it out much like an addiction. This can happen with window barking, fence running and even playing fetch. Yes – some dogs are addicted to fetch. That’s for another blog on another day.
Many dogs practice barking daily or, worse multiple times a day. Like humans, the more a dog does a behaviour, the stronger the pathway to the brain for that behaviour, and the more a habit is formed. It’s not different from you or I playing tennis – practice improves and perfects the behaviour.
Also when the fight or flight system designed for survival is repeatedly triggered by chronic stressors or arousal daily, it can become overactive and produce an exaggerated response to things in the environment. The mind and body can respond as if everything is the bear. In other words, now your dog is overreacting to a noise outside, a dog barking or a person on a walk.
So how do you handle perimeter barking? First, if possible don’t let it start. Keep in mind creating those pathways to the brain for behaviours and how we get better at behaviours we repeat or frequently do. Ensure this behaviour is not on your dog’s “to-do” list…EVER!
If perimeter barking is already a habit, how can you train your dog to give it up?
- Block the view. The first step in any behaviour modification program is to set your dog up for success by managing the environment and preventing him from responding as he is used to. You can put a baby gate over areas with windows and passers-by. Use a crate when you can’t be there to manage your dog’s environment. Block your dog’s view by closing the blinds or putting decorative window film on the lower part of the window that can still let in light. Put up a better fence and don’t allow your dog free access to areas where he can perimeter bark.
- Train your dog. Training your dog basic behaviours occupies his mind, helps him look to you for direction, and provides a healthy outlet for his energy. Also, once you’ve trained an excellent recall/come, you can use it to call your dog away from the perimeter. Many people skip the little steps in a dog’s life like training “sit” and “come”. I call these behaviours “basic manners”. If we can’t get our dog to sit, come, and exhibit basic manners in everyday life, how will we ever manage our dog’s behaviour when he’s aroused and barking at the window? In other words, we have to complete basic learning before we can move on to high school education. Learning the basics sets the tone for learning other, more advanced behaviours. Also, all dogs should have a training foundation to help them live in our world full of human rules.
- Teach your dog the “Quiet” cue. First, teach your dog to bark on cue. That’s right – teach your dog to bark! We will put the behaviour on cue so you can control it. Give your dog the cue to “speak”. Let him bark 3 times and then pop a wonderful treat in front of him as you say “quiet”. Practice this in a quiet area with no distractions. Once your dog is doing well with this new cue, gradually add distractions like the doorbell, a knock and/or visitor. Once the dog is doing well, I also like to add some distance and another cue between the bark and “quiet” by walking into another room and asking the dog to do a behaviour like sit. This will help prevent you from teaching a behaviour “chain” of “I bark, I’m quiet, I get treat”.
- Replace perimeter barking with more enriching pastimes. Keep your dog busy through more appropriate daily activities. Dogs need exercise, mental stimulation like food toys or frozen Kongs, and hunting games. By keeping your dog busy with healthy alternatives through physical and mental wellness, he won’t have the time or desire to use his energy in inappropriate ways like perimeter barking.
- Block sounds that might trigger barking. Soothing music like harp or classical music can calm your dog and block outside noise that might cause him to be aroused. Studies show music can have a relaxing effect on dogs and can drown outside noise at the same time that might cause a dog to bark excessively. Having a talk radio, such as Radio 4, 4xtra or 5 live, desensitises dogs to ‘strange’ human sounds.
- Ignore the behaviour. That’s right: many dogs get a LOT of human attention for barking. Often, when the dog starts barking, their human joins in and barks along with them by yelling “NO!”. Your dog thinks you are in on the fun and drama, increasing the arousal. Also, studies show that just yelling “no” at your dog can increase anxiety and aggression by 15%. It’s adding fuel to the fire. When your dog barks, try ignoring your dog, or even leaving the room immediately. Without an audience, some dogs will stop barking on their own.
Take window barking off your dog’s to-do list today. You will both be calmer and happier!