Are you conducting a fishing expedition for the underlying causes that force your canine companion to bark when you leave the house for executing day-to-day tasks, be it grocery shopping or office? Or what out-of-the-box strategies you should put on the payroll when it comes to putting a stop to barking when your four-legged friend is left alone?
If any of the questions stumbles in your head, you’re in the right place. Here you will find not only why dogs bark when left alone but also how to stop a dog from barking when left alone.
Let’s deep dive into this all-inclusive guide on how to stop dogs from barking when left alone.
Why do Dogs bark when left alone?
To communicate with the rest of the world your four-legged friend puts barking or whining into service. It’s not a rare instance when you are heading towards the door and putting the shoes on to say adieu, your canine companion barks. If your four-legged friend barks repeatedly whenever you are about to leave the house for work, or sometimes when you’re at the office and you notice via a camera that your dog barks for an extended period of time, its an alarming signal that you should look into it and make an effort to solve the problem ASAP.
Here are the 7 common reasons that result in excessive and unrestrained barking.
Reason #1. Maybe your fido experiences separation anxiety
It’s an open-and-shut case that your dog will bark or whine when you leave your tyke alone. But when they chew furniture, scratch floors or carpets, make an attempt to escape, or show other destructive behavior, it’s a clear indication that your dog has separation anxiety. If your dog has separation anxiety, let me tell you that you’re not alone. Multiple studies have shown that around 40% of the canine population in the US experiences separation anxiety.
Reason #2. Loneliness
Being a pack animal, your dog has an urge for spending quality time with you and play with you. When you leave alone your dog for an extended period of time in your house, they become bored or sad as their mind is not engaged in doing something, and in that scenario, they find barking the sole option to describe that they are unhappy and feeling lonely.
Reason #3. Attract your attention
No matter in which place you have left your canine companion alone, be it in your house or in the yard when your tyke finds that your neighbor is spending quality time with their dog, playing interactive games in the yard, your canine companion expects the same scenario. Then when it finds that you’re not on the spot, your mongrel barks in a loud voice.
Reason #4. Fear
It’s an open secret that your rover considers the house and the yard, as its property, and whenever it notices that anyone is heading towards your property and enters into your territory, it assumes that person as a threat. When you leave your doggy all alone in a room or in the yard when any intruder catches your tyke’s attention, your pup gets startled and nervous, in that scenario, your barking friend puts an effortless strategy on the payroll where it is finished barking. When you leave your tyke in your house, make sure that the curtains are raised with the view that it will not become aware if anyone is coming or not.
Reason #5. They want to play
No matter for how long you have played with your four-legged companion, they cry out for more. When they find that you are not in their sight, and they witness that your neighbor is playing with their tyke in the yard, they look for you and want to play. If it fails in his attempt, it starts barking in a heartbeat.
Reason #6. Want to greet the passerby
There is a significant share of the canine companion who is blessed with lots of enthusiasm and happiness. And obviously, when you take a walk with your four-legged friend you may witness that they are happy to spend time with you and greet every new face that they met in the park or on the pedestrian lane. In a scenario where you leave windows open where they can see the surroundings if they want to greet the passerby or other animals, they bark while waging their tail and sometimes jump.
Reason #7. Maybe they are hungry
Do you play with your fido in the yard or jog with your tyke in the early morning in the nearby park or garden? If yes, then it’s clear as a bell that after a prolonged playing session, when you leave your dog alone in your house for an extended duration, if your dog barks, it’s highly likely that your furry friend feels hungry as it has exhausted its energy.
How to Stop a Dog from Barking When Left Alone
Knowing the underlying causes behind the barking, as a caring canine parent you should resort to some strategies that will bring beneficial consequences. To reap the benefits you should subscribe to socialization training where professional dog trainers put the state-of-the-art blueprint into practice to turn your mongrel from brainless to an intelligent and social one, or you can consult with the vet for medication when it comes to stopping a dog from barking when left alone.
Strategy #1. Ignore the barking
Although you have trained your dog to stay alone or brought a comfortable crate or bed into existence when you hear that your dog barks don’t rush back into his room in a heartbeat, instead wait for a minute or two and pay close attention to if it stops barking.
In a scenario where you fall asleep in your room, and you leave your dog’s crate or bed in another room, and when you hear that your dog barks without any reason, then at first ignore him and when it barks for a prolonged duration, keep a cautious eye on what triggers the barking and fix it. If you find that they are hungry, then offer a nutritionally balanced diet [61% Off Your First Box!] and once they consume the meal without a complaint, you should instruct your dog to sleep in its bed.
Strategy #2. Make sure your dog gets enough exercise
When you have adopted any of the dog breeds including Border Collies, Huskies, Labrador Retrievers, and German Shepherds, it’s public knowledge that these dog breeds are born to have limitless energy. As a caring canine parent, you should make sure your German shepherd has an adequate amount of exercise throughout the day. In a scenario where you do not take a walk with your puppy in the morning, there’s a lot of unspent energy within your fido, and the inability to defuse the build-up energy results in barking for an extended period of time.
To get rid of barking, you should prepare a roadmap with the aim that your canine companion gets lots of physical and mental exercise in the morning where there’s no unspent energy trapped in your tyke’s inside. A significant canine parent prefers to play with their four-legged friend for an extended period of hours before they are on the move to take care of business. If you successfully tire your dog out, it will take a rest and there’s a high chance that it will fall asleep and you won’t find that it is barking when left alone.
Strategy #3. Put Counter Conditioning into play
A noteworthy canine parents witness favorable outcomes when they bring counter conditioning aka systematic desensitization into play when it comes to putting a stop to excessive barking when it is left alone.
No matter what the age of your canine companion is, be it one week or one month old, from day one by placing excellent treats in his bowl or interactive puzzle toys in his room, leave your canine companion in your bedroom for 5 minutes with the aim that it can become accustomed to staying alone in a room and enjoy its own company when it gets locked in a room where there’s no presence of family members.
Another strategy that you can apply is place some toys. You can put an earphone in your ear and enjoy the music without paying close attention to your dog. Once you notice that it is enjoying its own company, it’s time to leave your dog in a room, and shift to another room. If you find that this strategy brings fruitful outcomes then regularly apply this strategy day in and day out with the purpose that your four-legged friend assumes that everything is in order when you leave your puppy alone in a room. As a good rule of thumb, apply the strategy once your hound gets familiar with your family members.
Strategy #4. Bring the ‘Quite’ Command into the equation
No matter what the age of your puppy is, when you train your dog to bark or be quiet on your command you can expect a positive outcome. When you command him to speak and whenever it barks a few times, then throw a mouth-watering treat. Once you have come out with flying colors when it comes to showing your doggy the ropes, now it’s time to give the quiet instruction with the aim that your tyke stops barking. After your fido barks 10 times, now bring the ‘quiet’ command into play and offer it delectable treats. Repeat this process until your dog specializes in following the ‘speak’ and ‘quiet’ mandates.
Now, the next step is to put a camera and a treat dispenser in service in your house. Then, leave your barking friend alone and when you discover that your dog is barking, instruct it to go to the food dispenser where your four-legged companion will find yummy treats. Repeat this strategy until you get success. Whenever your dog barks, the state-of-the-art technology will send you the much-needed notification right on your Smartphone via the internet with the purpose that you can take the necessary steps.
Strategy #5. Bring Toys, and puzzles games into the equation
The marketplace is full of commercials, homemade, chew toys, food puzzles, and interactive toys that you can offer your canine friend with the aim that your pup remains always busy and keeps its mind engaged. When your pressing priority is keeping your puppy entertained all day long, it’s a good idea to place the items before you leave the house for the office.
For instance, when you put a kong toy into service, you’re lending a helping hand in entertaining your dog. Considering the fact that kong toys are stuffed with succulent treats, it’s absolutely likely that your dog will work hard for a prolonged duration to extract the saporous treats which will give you the much-needed peace of mind because you are fully aware that weeding the savory cuisine out can take hours.
Strategy #6. Instead of confining your mongrel in one room, give your barking friend to access the entire house
It’s no secret that when your four-legged friend gets access to the sofa which is near to your heart, your tyke can potentially mess, and in this situation, you need to clean up. To avoid the scenario, significant canine parents lock their fido in a room time and again. When you detain your hound in the same room with no exception to save your sofa, let me tell you that it fuels the negative association with that room, and in that scenario, there’s no option left for your dog other than barking.
Strategy #7. Put citronella collar into use
If all the above-mentioned tactics fail in bringing favorable outcomes, then as a last option, you can put a citronella collar into service. It’s public knowledge that citronella is non-toxic and has a pungent smell that your canine companion hates. After you take the collar into employment, whenever your dog barks, the item detects that your pet is barking. Then machine excretes a spray in the blink of an eye. Contrary to bark collars, it’s cent percent harmless, and when you rigorously employ the strategy, being an intelligent one, your dog will gain an understanding of keeping its mouth shut in a scenario where it is left alone.
Final Thoughts
It’s not an alarming signal when the dog barks every now and then, but when it barks in quick succession, it demands utmost attention. Once you apply the above-mentioned strategies and fail, as a preventive measure you should consult with professional dog trainers who know how to bring favorable outcomes where your fido’s frequent barking will be a distant memory. Other than that, you can refer to the suggestion of a vet to know whether your hound is suffering from any diseases or not.
- Read also: How to Stop Dogs from Barking at Strangers
- Read also: How to Stop Dogs from Barking at Every Noise
Hope this article has helped you to find what strategies you should put into use to bring a favorable outcome if you are conducting a witch hunt for how to stop barking dog when left alone.
Have I missed any excellent tactics that you have applied and come out with flying colors? If it comes right down to how to stop your dog from barking when left alone, let me know with the intention so that I can take in that strategy in this all-inclusive guide on how to stop dogs barking when left alone ASAP.
If you have found this resource helpful, then don’t hesitate to share the post with your friends, or colleagues who are proud canine parents and spend sleepless nights due to excessive barking when they leave their canine companion all alone with the purpose that they find the ABCs of how to stop dog barking when left alone.