Your Dog Barks At People Going Past your House
This is another form of the alarm barking we were talking about earlier.
It’s your dog’s way of making sure you are aware there is a possible danger – and their way of telling that danger to go away!
Some dogs who bark at passers by do it through fear, boredom and even anxiety.
It can be difficult to tell whether your dog is acting from anxiety, as it can manifest in different ways. If you think your dog could benefit from help with anxiety or fear, try contacting your vet and asking for a referral to a dog behaviourist. Your vet will be able to give you some tips and advice to help in the meantime too.
So, if your dog just sits on the windowsill and barks at everyone, the first thing to do is block their view.
I’m not saying sit with the curtains closed all of the time, but if you know there’s a certain time people will pass in front of your house, you could pre-empt the barking and close the curtains.
For example, we live by a school and so our dogs know that twice a day there will be a crowd of kids coming past to and from school – our Evie and Peanut have been guilty of barking at the groups of teenagers lingering outside of the house, so we had to try and sort this out before it got worse!
Again, when our dogs are barking when we don’t want them to, we try the distraction techniques.
Distract them with a toy or game.
Call them to you and praise them if they come.
Send them to their bed and then praise them for doing it.
If the dog is in the front garden and barking at someone passing by, do the same distraction techniques.
If your dog stays in the front garden on their own and barks a lot, the best thing is to make sure they are supervised every time they are out until they realise they are not allowed to bark.
Once you have done them a few times and praised and rewarded your dog for stopping barking, they will react to your distraction quicker and easier. Making life much less stressful for you!
Some dogs will even stop barking completely at people passing by or cats in the garden once they have been distracted enough times. It takes time and patience to get this training to work – luckily, it isn’t difficult, they are simple techniques, but they work!
Just have patience and perseverance and you will get there. Remember, don’t shout at your dog, and never smack them!