Episode #215 The BIGGEST Mistake People Make When Their Dog Barks

Is your dog barking non-stop, and you find yourself yelling back—only to make things worse? You're not alone! Many people make the mistake of reacting instead of understanding why their dog is barking. In this episode, I’ll break down:

✅ Why dogs bark (it’s not just to annoy you!)
✅ Why yelling doesn’t work (it might actually make barking worse!)
✅ The different types of barking (alert barking, demand barking, anxiety barking, and more)
✅ The right way to stop barking using simple, effective training techniques!

💡 Instead of yelling, learn how to understand your dog and fix barking behavior the right way. Trust me—your dog (and your ears!) will thank you!

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

I'm going to talk to you today about barking, why dogs do it and how to change it without all of the yelling. Welcome to the Puppy Training Podcast. I'm Amy Jensen, founder of Baxter and Bella, the online puppy school. Here we are all about helping you create the best possible experience raising a puppy, from training tips to practical tricks, all aimed at fostering a happy, well-behaved dog who truly feels like part of the family. So if you are ready to enjoy the journey and strengthen the bond with your dog, let's get started. Hello, I'm so glad you're here. I hope you're having a good day. If you need a little help with barking, then you're in the right spot.

Speaker 1: 0:44

I recently published a YouTube video on the biggest mistake people make with dogs barking and I'm going to share that with you today. So enjoy this clip that's coming up. You're going to hear dogs barking in the background and some sound effects. So if you want to see the full video, you can find it on my YouTube channel at Baxter and Bella. When we yell, we think we're telling our dog to stop, but they're thinking she's joining in on the fun. So instead of yelling at your dog, let's figure out why they're barking and then work to fix it right away.

Speaker 1: 1:13

First of all, let's talk about why dogs bark. I promise you they're not doing it just to annoy you. They're actually trying to communicate. There are five main types of barking. The first one is alert barking. Maybe my dog sees somebody out in my yard, or they sent somebody at the door and they want to alert me that someone's here. The second is demand barking. Maybe Baxter wants another treat and I'm not giving it to him fast enough, or he wants me to play with him and I'm busy doing emails. He might bark at me to say, hey, I want to play. So that's demand barking. Another one might be fear or anxiety barking. So if my dog's fearful of something, maybe we're out on a walk and little Bella sees, or here's a big scary truck or a garbage can or something that startles her and she barks at it out of fear. Another one would be a boredom barking. So sometimes my dogs get bored. Maybe one is wanting to play and the other one's doing this right, so one of the dogs might start to bark at the other dog to say, hey, let's go play, I want to have a good time. And the fifth one is frustration barking. So maybe Baxter's ball gets stuck under this table and he can't get it out and he's barking at it because he wants me to come get it for him. So, with those five types of barking, if we can identify which one our dog is doing, we'll know appropriately how to handle it. Identify which one our dog is doing, we'll know appropriately how to handle it.

Speaker 1: 2:26

Let's start with the classic alert barking. Somebody knocks on the door, the doorbell rings and the dogs are like, hey, somebody's here and they start to bark. What are you going to do? The first thing I like to do with alert barking is desensitize my dogs to the sounds that are their triggers. So if your dog barks at the doorbell or they hear somebody knocking at the door, I'm going to desensitize them to those sounds. There's a few different ways you can do this. First of all is just walk around your house and knock on random walls. Knock on cupboards, knock on cabinets, knock on walls. Just get your dog used to randomly throughout the day, hearing knocking and nothing exciting happens. Because that's what they're anticipating. Is that, oh, I hear a door knock, Somebody's here. That's exciting. And because they're anticipating is that, oh, I hear a door knock, somebody's here. That's exciting and because they're excited they start to bark for the doorbell. Record what your doorbell sounds like on your phone and then put it on repeat and just play it throughout the day so that again, your dog's hearing the sound, nothing exciting is happening.

Speaker 1: 3:18

The next thing to do is teach your dog what you want them to do when they hear a doorbell or a knock. So I teach my dogs the place behavior where they go to a mat or they go to a bed or they go to a rug anywhere that works for you and your dog at your house. You can send them to that spot when they hear the sound. So the cue to go to that spot is the doorbell or the knock. We condition them that when they hear that sound that they're supposed to go lay on the sofa. Teaching your dog what to do is a great way to train better behavior, and then we eliminate the barking in the first place. You can also teach them a quiet cue During the training process. If you can anticipate when people are going to come and ring your doorbell, that can be super helpful. So you can even just put a sign on your front door that says hey, puppy in training, please text me when you're here. That way you have time to put your dog on a leash, grab some training rewards and be ready for when that moment comes. For when that moment comes, as soon as your dog hears the knock or the doorbell, then you can guide them to their spot, where you want them to go, and reinforce that by feeding them food rewards. It's going to take a while to train this, but that's where we start. I like to have my family practice with this, so I'll have my kids go outside and take turns ringing the doorbell or knocking. But because I know it's about to happen, I can set my dogs up for success and we can practice good behavior when those sounds go off.

Speaker 1: 4:39

Number two is demand barking. This is the hey, pay attention to me bark. And if we immediately look at them or give them attention for that, guess what? You're teaching your dog that barking at me works and they'll continue to do it. Demand barking is an example of when extinction works or ignoring the behavior. So if my dog is barking at me, actually I just want to turn the opposite direction, possibly even walk away. I do not want to look at them or talk to them or give them what they're wanting for the demand barking, and then I can show them what I want them to do Again. Set your dog up for success. So if you see your dog walking towards you, you can anticipate they want something Instead. Guide them into a sitting position. I call it sit to say please. And when your dog's in a nice sit to say please position, then you can look at them, Then you can talk to them and figure out what it is they're wanting. It's probably they want to play for a few minutes. Maybe it's been a little while. Maybe you've been busy at work or in the kitchen or helping your kids with homework or whatever it is that you're doing around the house. When you're busy is probably that your dog's coming to you to seek some sort of attention. So once they do that nice bit to say please, yes, good dog, what do you want? You want to go play for a minute and give them five or 10 minutes of undivided attention.

Speaker 1: 5:47

Number three is anxiety barking. This is when your dog is stressed or maybe fearful of something. So this has nothing to do with demanding your attention. This is literally just about being stressed or scared. If your dog struggles being left alone, then teach them how to be alone. Here at Baxter and Bella, we teach you how to get your puppy to like their crate and their exercise pen, and then we practice leaving them for small, short amounts of time and building up to longer periods of time when you're absent. This can really help them feel calm and safe when they are alone, versus always trying to be with you. If you're out on a walk and your puppy sees something that's scary and they bark at it, I don't force my dogs to go check it out. Instead, we turn and walk the other direction and create distance between us and what my dog is scared of, and then over time we work to decrease that distance as my dog feels comfortable.

Speaker 1: 6:37

Number four is frustration barking. This happens when our dogs are stuck. Maybe they can't get to something they want to get to because they're on leash, or maybe their toy rolled under a table and they are unable to access it without our help. One of the best solutions for frustration barking is teaching your dog patience and impulse control. Dogs come with zero. They see something they want and they want it right away. So instead, play some games with your puppy that will teach them how to wait for things and that when they wait, good things happen. One of the ways you can build patience in your dog is to teach a basic stay. Now with puppies we start with they hold still for one second, then two seconds, then five seconds, then 10 seconds, and we build that up till our adult dog can wait honestly for an hour or two. So teaching or training that basic stay can really improve your dog's patience and eliminate a lot of the frustration barking.

Speaker 1: 7:25

Another great tip you might know what I'm going to say is set your dog up for success. Show them what you want them to do when they're frustrated. So if there's that toy and it's stuck under the table, instead of just letting them bark at it and then responding to that and in doing so you're rewarding that behavior right Show them that, hey, your ball is stuck. So as soon as you see your dog looking at that stuck ball under the table, go to them, lure them away, help them come to you and sit. Or maybe they come to you and bump your leg, or they touch your hand or they bring you another toy right. You can pick whatever you want that behavior to be. But when you see your dog is frustrated, immediately interrupt, redirect them by showing them do this behavior? Oh look, then I go and I get your toy out from under the table. Make that a pattern and next time your dog's toy gets stuck under the table they'll come find you and alert you that they need some help.

Speaker 1: 8:15

Number five is bored and barking. If your dog is just barking to bark, they probably need a little more mental exercise. Try feeding your dogs out of puzzle bowls instead of their food bowls. This requires more mental stimulation than just eating their food from a bowl. It's more fun for them and it entertains them for a good 20 minutes instead of just letting them gulp their food down in 30 seconds.

Speaker 1: 8:36

The next time your dog barks, follow these three steps First, stay calm and don't yell. Second, identify why your dog is barking. And third, use the appropriate technique to find the solution. Remember, dogs learn best with clear, consistent communication. If you're frustrated, your dog's likely to be more confused. If you'd like more help with this issue, check out our website, BaxterandBellacom. We have a barking class you're welcome to attend. You can view it on demand or come to it live when we teach it next, and you can also come to our three weekly Q and a sessions or set up a live call with our trainers. Have a great week, you guys. Thanks for tuning in to the puppy training podcast. I hope today's tips help you feel more confident and excited about raising your dog. Remember, with a little patience and consistency, you can create a loving bond and a well-behaved pup who's a joy to have in your family. If you found this episode helpful, be sure to subscribe, leave a review and share it with fellow puppy parents. For more resources, visit Baxter and Bella online. Until next time, happy training.