Barking in your dog's face can be confusing, stressful, or even be seen as threatening. That confusion or frustration leads to big reactions such as your dog baring teeth or trying to get away, which can be seen in many of the viral videos.
However, he may recognize the tone that you use when you bark at him. If you bark at your dog and he starts growling or backing away, the chances are that you have used an aggressive tone.
Dogs don't just bark when they are excited, although it can seem that way when they are trying to get your attention. They bark when they are frightened, lonely, surprised, irritated, and more. That means there are different barks for different moods, as well.
Best case scenario if you growl at your dog — you'll get his attention because you've made a novel noise. Worst case scenario – you'll get bitten in the face. I used another example to illustrate the fact that growling at your dog is not only silly, but dangerous advice.
In fact, punishment often makes the problem worse. If the aggression is motivated by fear, punishment will only make the dog more fearful, and therefore more aggressive. Attempting to punish a pushy or controlling dog is likely to make his behavior even worse.
Most dogs become surprised or shocked by unexpected behavior from their owners. While some dogs will tolerate this behavior, others understandably may react out of fear or discomfort by barking, lunging, snapping, or even biting out of fear/discomfort.
Because howling is a form of communication, dogs may also respond to a human's howl. If your dog howls back at you, you should know it is acknowledging the noise you are making and replying with its own howl. According to Not a Bully, dogs may howl with their owners to mirror their behavior and reinforce social bonds.
What happens when you bark at your dog. According to the American Kennel Club (AKC), the “funny” reactions are actually ones of stress and fear. Some examples include: “Whale eye” (where they open their eyes and make them extra big)
Dogs know when they are being laughed at. “Some will have a reasonably high level of tolerance for that sort of thing. You can get a dog that will love being the centre of attention. But some will feel silly.
Research published in Animal Cognition found that both puppies and adult dogs are attentive to the high-pitch voice we use with babies and the more even-toned language used with adults. However, dogs do seem to have a slight preference for the child-like talk we often engage them with. All words are heard!
Dogs are descended from wolves, so howling is an innate behavior that lends itself back many thousands of years. Wolves often howl in the wild to communicate and signal important information to the pack. So, when you howl at your dog, they may be tapping into their inner wolf and responding in kind.
For example, a dog may bark out of fear, boredom, or when they're anxious to be left alone. Again, barking is a normal behaviour and is simply our dogs trying to communicate with us.
Instead of overcoming her fear, your dog may grow increasingly anxious because she has little control over a situation that often ends with a negative consequence. Removing your dog from the situation may also increase the barking, because it teaches her that the scary thing goes away whenever she barks.
Licking is a natural and instinctive behaviour to dogs. For them it's a way of grooming, bonding, and expressing themselves. Your dog may lick you to say they love you, to get your attention, to help soothe themselves if they're stressed, to show empathy or because you taste good to them!
Excitement. Sometimes, dogs may be become so excited that they can't stop themselves from howling. This type of howling usually doesn't last very long, and it may be combined with excited barking, happy wiggling, and other signs that your dog is clearly excited and feeling joy about something.
To express emotional pain: Dogs may howl to express fear, anxiety or sadness, and to signal their desire for comfort, says Rover. Dogs with separation anxiety often howl when their caretakers leave them alone.
Dogs do not think in terms of language, such as barks or words. But they think, feel, and react to their instinctive needs and wants. Their thinking processes are more tied to visual, olfactory, sound, and physical stimuli, which motivate reactions and behavior.
Believe it or not, the main reason dogs bark is because they are afraid. He is trying to tell you he is stressed. He is looking to you to keep him safe. If he doesn't perceive you as the “pack leader”, he will assume the role himself.
Barking At You
This is known as demand barking. Generally, this behavior is a result of your dog trying to get attention or another need met. If your dog is barking at you excessively, ignore your dog's barking and reward what you do want – the quiet moments between barking, engaging with toys etc.
Methods such as alpha rolls and physical corrections (via the leash and a choke chain or by smacking the dog on the nose or by shaking their scruffs) were often recommended as a way for humans to establish dominance over their dogs.
Can Dogs Hold Grudges? Professional dog trainer and behaviorist Sally Grottini told Newsweek: "Dogs do not hold grudges because they don't understand what a grudge is. Humans, however, put what the human brain thinks [a grudge is] and attribute that to their dog's behavior."
While you're working to determine the cause of the growling, don't ignore it or it's likely to get worse. Be careful around your dog until you figure out why it's growling. Additionally, you may want to help your dog modify its behavior until the situation is under control.
A dog tilts his head to show that he is engaged much the way a human would nod during a conversation to indicate that he is listening. Social dogs that enjoy human interaction usually tilt their heads more often to encourage the continuation of the conversation and prolong the human contact.