Why do people think it's okay to let their dog shout at people who walk by?

[Anonymous]

I had no idea people were so annoyed. I view it as a dog’s instinctual behavior and if they are inside their home who am I to judge?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is the strongest instinct in a dog to guard it's people and the hardest to train out.

Just ignore them. They aren't biting you, following you off leash through town - so who cares.

We pass a house (walking our dog) where 2 dogs throw themselves at the glass and bark. I just find it funny. My dog doesn't care and often pees on their lawn while watching them go insane. It is irrelevant.

I disagree. It depends a lot on the breed. Rottweiler, German Shepherd, Doberman, Pit Bull, sure... But, then you better be on top of training if you want to own a protective breed like that in DC. People who own breeds like that know you can't let them aggressively bark at the window or door, unless you want them to bite people who come into your home.

It's not commonly those people who seem to be the problem though.

In my neighborhood, it is often doodles. Those breeds are not supposed to have guarding instincts (golden retrievers, poodles, labs, etc). On the guarding bell curve, these breeds are definitely on the low/no guarding side. So, that's not the dog's instincts, that's just not training the dog.

You sound really relaxed, which is nice. And, you obviously have a trained dog and are not the problem.

I would gently point out though, that you say your dog "doesn't care." But, peeing after a threatening situation is a way that dogs diffuse stress. It's the same reason that very little puppies pee themselves when greeting dogs/people that they think are intimidating. Your dog does care, he/she is actually quite diplomatic, your dog is trying to calm the other dogs down and make it clear there's no fight. Instead of barking back (fighting), your dog is redirecting (Here, smell this and get to know me a bit! Everything's okay dudes)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had no idea people were so annoyed. I view it as a dog’s instinctual behavior and if they are inside their home who am I to judge?

+100
The dogs are protecting their territory.
The right answer here is to walk on by and then the dog is a good boy who defended his turf. That’s his whole raisin d’être. Stop making this about you, Barb.

[Anonymous]

OMG dogs bark get over it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had no idea people were so annoyed. I view it as a dog’s instinctual behavior and if they are inside their home who am I to judge?

Because you can hear it loudly outside their home. And, it's never just inside their home. The dogs who do this inside their homes are the same dogs who do it at windows, doors, and fences.

[Anonymous]

I don't mind one little bit, I'm just relieved it's not my dog!

I would hate to have a habitual barker - you don't understand how impossible it is to train them out of it, OP! My dog is not a barker, but he has other issues that we haven't been able to correct, so I am humble and I know changing dog's behaviors is sometimes impossible.

Also, the dogs you see barking from a window are probably alone in the house - there is nothing the owner can do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had no idea people were so annoyed. I view it as a dog’s instinctual behavior and if they are inside their home who am I to judge?

+100
The dogs are protecting their territory.
The right answer here is to walk on by and then the dog is a good boy who defended his turf. That’s his whole raisin d’être. Stop making this about you, Barb.

Is he? Or is he a dog who is a stressed out mess?

Imagine if you felt the need to aggressively defend your home from every person who walked by on the side walk. That's not a great quality of life.

I don't want my dog to feel like he has to aggressively defend my home from people who walk by. People breaking in? Sure. That's stressful and he's doing a good job.

A stroller walking by on the sidewalk? Nope. Not a threat. And, if he feels threatened by that and barks, I'm going to teach him it's NBD. That way he can relax when the dozens of weekly strollers stroll my our house.

I get that it's convenient for your to believe your dog is a "good boy who defended his turf," since then you don't have to put in any effort to teach your dog or care for his mental health, but sorry, you're wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I don't mind one little bit, I'm just relieved it's not my dog!

I would hate to have a habitual barker - you don't understand how impossible it is to train them out of it, OP! My dog is not a barker, but he has other issues that we haven't been able to correct, so I am humble and I know changing dog's behaviors is sometimes impossible.

Also, the dogs you see barking from a window are probably alone in the house - there is nothing the owner can do.

Yep, actually, I do. My dog is a natural barker. He's tried to bark at anything and everything since birth. It's not that I don't let him bark, I do. But, I don't let him do that aggressive, threatening barking at people/dogs who walk by or up to our home.

Dogs are individuals, and my dog will never be a "quiet" dog. But, he will also never be a nuisance.

If the owners out, they can put the dog in a bark collar, they can crate the dog, they can put the dog in a bedroom, they can play music/TV/fan so the dog doesn't hear people passing. There are a million things they can do instead of letting their dog stress out and freak out at passing people and dogs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I had no idea people were so annoyed. I view it as a dog’s instinctual behavior and if they are inside their home who am I to judge?

+100
The dogs are protecting their territory.
The right answer here is to walk on by and then the dog is a good boy who defended his turf. That’s his whole raisin d’être. Stop making this about you, Barb.

Is he? Or is he a dog who is a stressed out mess?

Imagine if you felt the need to aggressively defend your home from every person who walked by on the side walk. That's not a great quality of life.

I don't want my dog to feel like he has to aggressively defend my home from people who walk by. People breaking in? Sure. That's stressful and he's doing a good job.

A stroller walking by on the sidewalk? Nope. Not a threat. And, if he feels threatened by that and barks, I'm going to teach him it's NBD. That way he can relax when the dozens of weekly strollers stroll my our house.

I get that it's convenient for your to believe your dog is a "good boy who defended his turf," since then you don't have to put in any effort to teach your dog or care for his mental health, but sorry, you're wrong.

Wow, you are projecting and making assumptions.
This is how I REACT to those dogs when I’m walking my dog. We hustle on by since it is the dog’s territory. I don’t psychoanalyze the dog. But I have a convo with my dog (he’s very smart) and say let’s keep going, and get off this doggos turf. And my dog agrees and complies.

[Anonymous]

I see you have it all backwards.

Normal behavior = not stressful. Barking at people walking by or the mailman is normal dog behavior. Some do it more or more aggressively than others but for a dog that is what they are made to do.

NOT barking = stressful. If a dog really has a drive to bark but knows their Alpha will be displeased with them if they do, this is stressful for them.

It is funny my dog barks at the mailman when he puts Mail through the slot. If we see him out on our walk he is a love bug to him. Has zero to do with the mailman and 100% to do with his instinct.

[Anonymous]

I Love the fact that dogs barking IN their own house if someone walks by are now called a nuisance. WTF?!?!

[Anonymous]

It's guarding behavior and it's stressful for the dogs and owners. It means the dog is scared, and punishing them will make it worse. If you try to correct for barks and growls you can get a dog who is aggressive without warning. We try to distract and treat for not barking but we can't sit by the window by our dog all day. Pulling the blinds down doesn't help because our dog can sense it. Our dog only does it for a handful of dogs he doesn't like.

[Anonymous]

#1 reason I can't stand dogs. Most people are way too lazy to train them well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: I see you have it all backwards.

Normal behavior = not stressful. Barking at people walking by or the mailman is normal dog behavior. Some do it more or more aggressively than others but for a dog that is what they are made to do.

NOT barking = stressful. If a dog really has a drive to bark but knows their Alpha will be displeased with them if they do, this is stressful for them.

It is funny my dog barks at the mailman when he puts Mail through the slot. If we see him out on our walk he is a love bug to him. Has zero to do with the mailman and 100% to do with his instinct.

A low-pitched, rapid, aggressive bark is defensive. Defensive behavior only exists in the presence of a perceived "threat." Perceiving threats on a daily basis I would argue is stressful.

Not barking is stressful the way you described, which is one of many ways that a dog could not bark. There are dozens of other not stressful ways a dog can stop barking. A dog whose owner gives clear and consistent boundaries (which I guess you would call an true Alpha, though that is extremely outdated terminology) actually relaxes and feels no stress at people passing by. They know they do not have to defend the house, their owner will do it.

The nutty barking dogs are the dogs without "alpha" owners, who feel like they have to take control of the situation because they are dogs and not sure what is happening and their owners are inconsistent and unclear.

If you're dog is not barking at the mail slot in an aggressive/defensive way, then maybe he is just excited to see the mail! That's different than aggressively barking at the door or fence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's guarding behavior and it's stressful for the dogs and owners. It means the dog is scared, and punishing them will make it worse. If you try to correct for barks and growls you can get a dog who is aggressive without warning. We try to distract and treat for not barking but we can't sit by the window by our dog all day. Pulling the blinds down doesn't help because our dog can sense it. Our dog only does it for a handful of dogs he doesn't like.

Why don't you block your dog's access to the windows?