We are all familiar with the fact that dogs bark and that this is one of their main ways of communicating. But have you ever thought about what a dog’s barking actually means?
In some situations, you may be able to understand very easily what your dog is barking at, while sometimes you will have difficulty understanding why your dog won’t stop barking.
Also, the way a dog barks is not always the same. Sometimes it can be a loud bark. Sometimes it can be much quieter, and sometimes it might be accompanied by howling or growling.
You may have thought that you know a lot about dogs and that you have a pretty good understanding of why your dog is barking at a certain moment.
However, things can actually be much more complex. The type of dog barking can directly show us the emotion present in dogs, that is, whether the dog is happy, nervous, excited, or scared.
Excessive barking is something that can seriously irritate you, not to mention the people around you! Sometimes it may seem to you that this problem has no solution, but there is a specific reason why every dog barks.
It is up to each dog owner to establish the exact reason why their dog is barking too much and to find a way to prevent this behavior.
So, let’s find out a little bit more about dog bark meaning.
Dog Bark Meaning: Three Main Factors
You must have noticed that your dog does not always bark in the same way. Sometimes his barking is so loud that you can’t hear anything but it.
In some other situations, the barking is much quieter. Sometimes the barking lasts a very long time, and sometimes it stops after two or three barks.
Stanley Coren, the famous psychology professor that has studied dogs’ intelligence and mental abilities for many years, states that there are three basic factors of a dog’s vocalization: the pitch, the frequency, and the duration.
A dog’s bark can vary in pitch, and sometimes our dogs will bark louder and sometimes they will be quieter. Also, dogs do not always bark for the same length of time or with the same frequency.
Let’s see why these three factors are important.
1. Pitch
Human tone changes based on our emotions. For example, we don’t talk the same way when we are happy and when we are scared or excited. Sometimes we use a higher pitch, while sometimes we produce low-pitched sounds.
It’s the same with our dogs. The tone of their bark can tell us how they are feeling at that moment.
If you have just arrived home, and your dog greets you with a high-pitched bark, he is probably very happy to see you. He is excited and invites you to play with him by barking.
If the dog’s barking is low-pitched, this may mean that the dog is alert. Maybe he’s trying to warn you about an intruder on the property, or he’s noticed something unusual. Watch dogs use this barking tone when they want strangers to leave their territory. This bark is quite frightening and may be accompanied by growling.
So, in general, it can be said that a high-pitched bark is a sign that the dog is happy, and a lower-pitched bark indicates a certain alertness and restlessness in the dog.
2. Frequency
When you hear your dog bark a few times and then stop, you usually won’t worry.
Sometimes it seems to us that our dogs are barking at nothing, but maybe they heard the sound of a car or motorcycle somewhere in the distance, and they are reacting to it. Or maybe a dog in the neighborhood barked, and then your dog barked too.
When the dog quickly stops barking, you can conclude that it is not an alarming situation.
But things are different when the dog does not stop barking, or rather, starts barking more and more. When the dog’s bark can be described as a rapid bark, the dog is barking out of excitement or fear.
You will probably have to go outside the house to see what has upset your dog. No dog will bark that often without a specific reason.
3. Duration
The duration of the bark can indicate whether the dog is startled, or ready for a conflict with an intruder in its territory, whether it is an animal or a human.
If you notice a lower pitch and/or longer-lasting bark, this indicates that the dog is not afraid and that it is ready to react to the threat.
On the other hand, a short bark, or a single bark, usually means that the dog is startled and is likely to retreat. Also, if you hear a fast bark sounding like a yip, maybe your pooch was surprised by something, but the phenomenon did not interest him enough to continue barking.
6 Reasons Why Dogs Bark
So, by the pitch of the bark, its duration and frequency, we can roughly estimate the emotion present in our dogs.
Now, let’s see what are the common barks and how we can recognize the type of barking in our dogs.
1. Happy Dog
The happiest moment in every dog’s day is when he sees his owner coming home. Your furry friend, knowing your common routine, is aware that some of his favorite activities will now follow.
In this situation, you will hear a sound like Harr-ruff, which is known as a let’s play bark! Playtime, a short walk, or any other type of exercise is something every dog is excited about.
Among all types of dog barks, this stutter-bark is the one you have nothing to worry about! This is what a dog sounds like when he is happy.
In addition to barking, you will also recognize a happy dog by observing his body language: signs like tail wagging can also show that your dog is satisfied or excited about something. Learn more about dog tail positions that can clearly tell you how your doggy is feeling.
2. Attention-seeking Dog
You are currently doing something else and not paying too much attention to your dog. On the other hand, he is full of energy and ready for some activity!
In these situations, the dog will probably bark a bit more softly, and his bark will sound like woof. If your dog is trying to get your attention, he will bark once, then wait, and then bark again. He will also be staring at you all the time.
In his own way, the dog is trying to show you that he wants you to look at him. He might even try to bring his favorite toy or ball to let you know it’s time for you to play with him!
3. Alert Dog
You are resting in your home, enjoying the silence, after a very busy day. That wonderful silence is suddenly interrupted by the harsh, loud barking of your dog. The dog’s yapping does not stop and now you are already sure that this is actually alarm barking.
Maybe it’s just the mailman who just happens to be outside your door, or maybe your alert dog has actually noticed a potential danger. In any case, you will have to get up and go out to check the seriousness of the situation yourself.
Barking can be quite irritating, but the truth is that it is very useful to have a dog that will guard you no matter what.
There are excellent big guard dogs, but also small guard dogs that do an equally good job. Trust us, when you have one of these dogs at home, no intruder will be able to access your property!
4. Lonely Dog
You have started leaving your dog alone outside, and now you are hearing him barking. You hear single barks, with spaces between them. This kind of bark means that your dog is lonely. Together with barking, you might also hear your dog yelping.
When they are left alone for the first time, many dogs will suffer from separation anxiety. This is not easy for pet owners, either, since it is always hard seeing our dogs in distress.
There are many good reasons why every owner will decide that their dog needs to be left alone at certain times.
Eventually, all dogs will get used to spending time alone. Moreover, some dogs will even want to be alone sometimes. Some dog breeds get used to being alone very fast, while for some it will take a little bit longer.
In any case, your dog barking or whimpering for being left alone will stop with time. Just make sure to give all of your support to your best friend, and to not leave him alone for too long.
5. Sick Dog
If your dog barks and whines, and you notice that he is also very nervous and restless, it is very likely that the dog is in pain.
He may have experienced an injury, and you might be able to help him. Check his body for any wounds or cuts. If you haven’t noticed anything unusual, it may be a health condition that will require a visit to the veterinarian.
6. Bored Dog
This type of barking is the one that dog owners will have the most trouble with. A dog that barks constantly – at you, at cars, at birds – at anything in its environment, is very often a dog that is bored. Pay attention to whether your dog is getting enough exercise.
In addition to physical exercise, dogs also need mental stimulation to occupy themselves and expend their energy. Maybe your dog has been without some activities for a certain period of time, he is bored, and he is slowly becoming frustrated.
Many dogs bark quite often, but it is important that you recognize in time whether there is a deeper cause for the dog’s excessive barking. In some cases, it may even be necessary to enlist the help of a dog trainer to correct this dog’s behavior.
How To Silence A Barking Dog?
If anti-barking devices, such as anti-barking collars or ultrasonic anti-barking devices are something you are not ready to try yet, is there any other way you can make your dog bark less?
Unfortunately, our dogs don’t get tired of barking, so we have to find a concrete way to train them to bark less.
If your puppy just recently arrived from the kennel and barks a lot, you may have decided to tolerate this behavior, and you are sure that, as the puppy grows up, it will bark much less. This approach is wrong.
A small puppy should be taught from the beginning of your cohabitation that excessive barking is not desirable behavior. Never reward the dog when it barks. Try to immediately identify the exact cause of your dog’s barking.
First of all, it is advisable to start with dog training as early as possible. When the puppy has learned the basic commands, you will be able to easily let him know that he should not bark.
In some cases when dogs bark excessively, owners try to silence them by bringing them a favorite treat or toy. On the other hand, there are also owners who yell at the dog to stop or even physically punish it. These are the wrong approaches to the barking problem.
This reaction can even support excessive barking since the dog has seen that it has attracted the owner’s attention and so it will continue to bark in the future. This applies especially to those dogs that bark to seek the owner’s attention and dogs that are lonely or lack activity.
The ‘quiet’ command will certainly be necessary for training a dog to stop barking, but first of all, you need to know the exact causes of barking in your dog to find a way to prevent this from happening.
The dog should be rewarded when he is quiet, and when he obeys your command to stop barking.
FAQs
Why Do Dogs Bark Three Times?
When dogs bark three times in a row, this can be understood as alarm barking. So, something caught the dog’s attention, and he called you to show it to you.
When a dog barks several times in a row, something is happening that he has marked as important at that moment.
What Does It Mean When A Dog’s Bark Is High-pitched?
High-pitched barking in dogs usually means that the dog is happy or excited. This is the barking tone with which the dog invites the owner to come and play with him. However, high-pitched barking can also be present in dogs that are frightened.
Contrary to a high-pitched bark, a low-pitched bark can indicate that the dog has sensed a threat and is ready to fight. It can also indicate that the dog wants to be left alone.
What Is The Difference Between A “Warning Bark” And A “Playful Bark”?
If your dog is trying to warn you about something, he will bark multiple times, pausing between barks. The bark’s pitch will be low or of medium range.
On the other hand, if your dog wants to tell you that he wants to play, the sound you will hear will be the stutter bark or the Ha-ruff sound.
Together with other signs of a dog’s body language, you will easily be able to distinguish these two types of barks in your dog.
Conclusion
So, there are certain dog bark meaning every dog owner should be able to recognize.
Barking is one of the ways a dog communicates with us.
Although excessive barking can often throw us off track, it is important to understand that a dog is always trying to communicate something with barking. Maybe he’s lonely, maybe he misses you, maybe he’s in pain, or maybe he’s just bored.
In some situations, many people will have trouble understanding a dog’s bark and its meaning. We hope our explanation has helped you a little in understanding dog barking and the situations that cause dogs to bark.
We suggest that you carefully listen to your dog’s barking, and in addition, follow your dog’s body language and connect these two factors with current events in the environment. You will immediately see what message your dog is trying to convey to you.
And don’t forget, any dog can be obedient and stop barking excessively, with adequate socialization, and his owner being patient and training him in a proper way.
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