How do I stop a barking dog so i can sleep in peace? Your dog barking could earn legal complaints from your neighbors for the noise at night. Let’s fix this…
Dogs are adorable animals and are known for their loyalty to their owner.
However, since we do not have the same medium for communication, we can develop problems when our dogs keep us awake with unnecessary barking.
Even though your dog is meant to bark, this might start problems with your neighbors.
Your dog barking could result in mild to severe problems, both psychological and also social.
Why is My Dog Barking and Keeping Me Awake?
In most cases, your dog will bark to communicate their needs to you. As a dog owner, you should be able to tell why he is barking unless it is excessive.
If you recently adopted a puppy, there is a likelihood that he will keep you awake for the first few nights.
This is because of the change of environment, from a shelter to a new household. Most dogs are afraid because they are unfamiliar with you or your house.
However, this should not be a problem for long, as long as you make him feel comfortable in your home.
He should be alright after a few days.
To make your new dog feel at ease, you may consider bringing him with you to your bedroom at night.
This way, he will feel your presence and help calm him down. A new dog requires massive attention and care before it can ultimately settle down.
Barking Puppies
Even puppies adopted from another household may bark at night as they might be homesick.
For instance, if he is crying and sounds disturbed at night, you can take them to your bed.
However, this should not last for a long time as he might get used to it, and thus you will face difficulties when trying to get him to sleep on his bed.
You should be able to make him get used to your home by playing with him often and walking him in the mornings and evenings.
This way, your new puppy will be calm at night from the energy released from his body earlier.
In most cases, he will fall asleep, and so will you.
If your dog does not stop crying and barking at night, you should monitor him and find out what motivates him.
Your dog may be trying to express his needs to you through barking, which you can always control by ensuring all his needs are taken care of.
You have fed him, provided him with water, and gotten enough rest. It would help if you also kept his sleeping place clean and parasite-free.
My Dog Keeps Barking When I Do Not Exercise Him
Your dog might be barking because he has so much pent-up energy in his body.
He uses barking to release the extra power from his body if he is not exercised.
Naturally, your dog would be roaming in the jungle and not watching TV with a family.
But due to domestication, we have learned how to live with dogs happily in one household.
To satisfy his need to walk and be a scavenger, we walk our dogs in the parks and neighborhoods so that he can experience new surroundings.
This way, your dog will spend energy walking around and playing, reducing the chances of barking all night.
It is essential to create a feeding schedule for your dog to develop a routine.
Avoid feeding your puppy right before bedtime to avoid indigestion problems.
Instead, you should provide him 3 hours to sleep.
Regular Exercise
Exercise for your dog is not just something you do for fun but is very important in terms of health.
Like humans, some dogs are prone to obesity when they are not exercised enough.
Obesity will lead to limited physical activity for your dog and decreased speed and stamina.
When your dog is well-fed and exercised, it is doubtful he will keep you awake with his barking noises.
This is because your dog has used up all his energy and got rid of boredom following exposure to different environments.
What is he barking at?
This is one of the most common questions among dog owners, as they have encountered the problem at some point in life.
Some dogs bark excessively at night and remain calm during the day, which can be problematic in the neighborhood.
Now, why does your dog bark at night? Could it be that he is lonely or he enjoys barking?
Your dog might enjoy barking, mainly if it is meant to cope with an underlying disorder.
This makes it a compulsive behavior that can be hard to correct.
It is hard to point out why your dog is barking at night, as there could be various reasons based on his breed, health, and training.
Reasons Why Your Dog is Keeping You Awake
Other dogs
This is quite a common reason behind dogs barking at night, where your dog will bark in response to other howling dogs at night.
You could say it is some type of socialization among dogs in the neighborhood.
Since dogs live in packs, they are often intrigued whenever they hear another dog barking, especially if he is under-socialized.
This could turn problematic every night your neighbor’s dog barks as yours will react by barking at the noise.
This is a common reason behind protective dogs barking at night; some do not stop all night.
For instance, if you keep a dog that is primarily bred for security purposes, you might have problems trying to keep him calm every time another dog barks.
Noises
Dogs will bark at any outside noise to communicate to their owner that danger might be approaching.
Your dog has far better hearing ability than we do, meaning he might hear even the slightest noise in the compound.
If burrowing animals are in your neighborhood, it could help if you kept them out of your compound to avoid your dog sniffing and barking at them at night.
The most common animals likely to crawl in your yard include squirrels and raccoons.
Boredom
Some dogs bark all night just because they are bored and have nothing to do with the night.
While you have been breaking your back all day at work, your puppy probably had nothing to do but watch TV, play, and sleep.
If your dog is awake at night, there is a likelihood he is going to keep you awake too.
To eliminate this problem, you should consider several ways to keep your dog occupied during the day so that he can fall asleep at night.
Toys are an excellent way to entertain your dog’s mind; you may consider buying him some to play with when you are out working.
Check out these Dog Toys for dealing with boredom…
It would help if you also considered playing stimulating, both physical and mental, games with him that will leave him tired and in need of rest.
Need to use the potty
Most dog owners potty train their dogs to avoid house soiling, and the dogs obey since they would not like to annoy their owners.
When your dog cannot find his potty, he will likely bark until someone addresses his needs.
Dementia
Dealing with a dog with dementia or old age can be complicated as he might forget all the training you took him through.
He will bark even when he is not supposed to or have a disturbance in his sleep-wake cycle.
Pain
If your dog suddenly starts barking at night, you should consider monitoring his behavior as it could be he is in pain.
You may also take him to be examined by a vet for detailed diagnoses. Usually, the barking will go away as the pain does.
Barking Dog Keeping Me Awake. How To Stop Him?
Before attempting to correct night barking behavior, a veterinarian must check your dog to rule out any medical conditions causing him to bark.
If you have a senior dog, you should have the vet recommend the best care for him and how to correct barking.
If your dog has no underlying medical conditions, you may consider monitoring him daily to be able to tell why he has developed the habit.
Below are some of how you can be able to correct barking at night…
Check out for any disturbances
It is doubtful for your dog to develop a barking habit out of nowhere, so you should look keenly around your compound to eliminate any disturbances that might be causing your dog to bark at night.
For instance, your dog might be barking at a raccoon roaming outside, and he will not stop until his master checks it out.
It might be a rodent in the trash bin or any other animal, and your dog will bark at the noises until it stops.
In this case, you may get tighter trash bin lids to prevent animals from digging in the trash bin, which may cause your dog to bark at night.
However, this problem is temporary; he will stop barking when the noises are gone.
Increase training as well as exercise
Your dog might be barking because he feels under-exercised, requiring some release.
This will result in discomfort for your dog at night, which in most cases will make him bark.
It is essential to ensure your dog is well exercised every day and set some time aside to train him a few tricks.
When your dog has developed some unique skills, this will serve to keep him occupied and entertained as you lay down after a busy day.
As mentioned earlier, you mustn’t feed your dog just minutes before bedtime as he might suffer from indigestion.
My Neighbor’s Barking Dog Keeps Me Awake
Having a neighbor with a barking dog will affect you directly, especially if the dog barks at night.
Getting them to control the behavior without stepping on toes will be difficult.
However, if their dog is keeping you up, you should be able to talk to them about the problem.
However, it does not always work as your neighbor might not address the problem, which means you have more restless nights.
Before seeking a legal approach, you may try to befriend their dog and make friends with him.
This way, he will be familiar with your scent and voice, making it easier for you to train him out of the habit.
Contact the authorities?
If you fail at the above tricks, you may consider training your neighbor’s dog yourself, which you must do from your house.
You can do this by getting dog whistles which you can use to make the dog stop barking.
Since dogs have the excellent hearing ability, you can control their barking from the comfort of your house.
This is quite effective if you have a neighbor with a barking dog, especially if you live in an apartment building.
If you have a barking dog that keeps you and your neighbor awake, you must ensure that he is well trained to correct the behavior.
Through counter-conditioning and rewards, thorough dog training should help you control your dog’s barking.
In conclusion
It is a common problem to have your dog barking, but it is crucial to ensure that e behavior is controlled.
If your neighbor’s dog barks excessively, you must talk to them before seeking other legal means.
It would help if you were also sure to keep your dog in a comfortable and clean sleeping place to avoid discomfort at night.
