In order to figure out how to stop a dog from barking at night, you first need to figure out the source of why s/he is barking. It could be anything from boredom to alerting you of the neighborhood squirrel on the roof.
Sometimes your dog might just need a little more exercise during the day but if s/he is a crazy barker by nature, like my Chihuahua Maya, you might have to call on the help of some good dog barking control devices.
You might be surprised to find out that dogs can sleep up to 14 hours a day! This is likely hard to believe if yours is currently up barking all night long. S/He likely sleeps while you are at work or away from the house.
Seeing this bit of information, in addition to teaching your dog to not bark at night, a natural addition to this plan of action would be to adjust your dog’s sleep cycle so that it coincides with yours.
Why Is Your Dog Barking At Night
There are many reasons dogs bark. The reason your dog barks can also be breed-specific since each breed was bred for a certain purpose. For instance, hound dogs and terriers are big-time barkers since they were bred to alert people for several different reasons that I won’t get into here.
If you have a mixed dog, you will have to find out the traits of all breeds that make up your dog since you don’t really know how to tell which parts of which breeds are present. I always find this task in particular pretty cool as all of my dogs are mixed breeds.
It really helps you to understand your dog on a more personal level as well. You start to piece together other behaviors too like why your dog might prefer one toy rather than another but I’m getting a little bit off track here.
Some reasons your dog might be barking are:
Restlessness
Regardless of the breed of dog you have, s/he needs exercise. They should be getting outside to run and play at least 20 minutes per day.
I know that sometimes this may seem like a lot on those busy days but taking a light walk will also benefit your health in a positive way as well. If you’re unable to walk your dog, find toys that get them active like a tug-of-war rope or a motorized ball.
If you have a working class dog, they will need a lot more exercise since they were bred to work. Take them outside and play fetch. This is a good way to get them mobile while conserving your own energy and they love it!
With all the extra energy burned, they will get a good night’s sleep while you get yours too; undisturbed. 🙂
Late Feeding or Midnight Munchies
At the simplest form of eating, food is energy. This is true for all living organisms including dogs so if you feed them too late at night, your pretty much revving up their energy levels.
This was happening with me and my dogs at one point as well. I would feed them too late and they would still have tons of energy come bedtime. Poop would also be on the floor since I’d be sleeping while they were ready to use the bathroom.
So now they have a food cut off time which is right after dinner. Your dogs might also get late night munchies so don’t make the cut off too early. 6pm works great for my dogs and they get their poop out too. You might have to experiment with a bit since your schedule might be different than mine.
The most important thing is not to energize them for bedtime. We want their bodies to shut down naturally just like yours does.
Outside Disturbances
Most dogs have an instinct to guard you and the members of your family. This means that whenever they hear something outside, approaching the house, approaching you, etc. they will at least alert you to it.
At night, they are aware that you are especially vulnerable since you are sleep. This makes them even more alert than during the day.
Now you and I know that MOST things outside like the squirrels and the wind are harmless but your dog doesn’t see it that way. You will have to teach him/her to stop barking at these types of stimuli.
I find it effective to have anyone coming through the door great my dogs with ‘Hey girl/doggy/dog’s name/etc., it’s ok.” I also do the same for cars driving by, squirrels running around, strong winds, etc. Anything that is harmless that gets your dog revved up.
Even though this is probably the most frustrating because it’s literally ‘everything’ they’re barking at, understand that at the root of it, they are concerned about your well-being. Knowing this helps me to deal with the irritation better and I hope that it also helps you too.
Another easy fix is to use dog barking control devices that uses ultrasonic sound to teach your dog to stop barking. The sound is only detectable to your dog so you won’t be disturbed at all and it stops your dog before s/he disturbs you!
How To Stop A Dog From Barking At Night And Waking Your Household
Now that you have an idea of why your dog is barking, you can start to address the barking itself. I’ve mentioned a couple of strategies for you to try but sometimes they just don’t work like with the case of my barking machine Maya.
If your dog doesn’t stop barking at night, we suggest that you use an ultrasonic anti-barking device. The one we recommend is perfect for night time use because it is compact and fully automatic.
All you need to do is set it up on your dresser or any furniture where your dog stays at night. Start by turning it to the lowest frequency. Gradually increase the sound as needed.
I like this device because it is not harmful to your dog but still works. Over time, your dog will learn to stop barking or it will experience something unpleasant like the high-frequency sound. On the other hand, s/he learns that when they don’t bark, they don’t experience anything unpleasant which reinforces the habit of not barking.
By using this method it ensures that you will get a good nights sleep while the device is yelling ‘be quiet!’ for you. It is also a lot more effective than your yelling (no offense or pun intended).
If You’re Ready to Stop Your Dog From Barking at Night, Click Here Now!If you have any questions or tips of your own, we’d love to hear from you in the comments box below. Look forward to talking with you 🙂
Marlinda
Dogsey – for dog news, articles, and the world’s largest Dog Forum!
Interesting. I did not know this product existed. My neighbor has a dog that gets on my nerves with the late night barking. I think it is because she leaves him outside all night and he probably gets bored along with the surrounding noises. I could imagine what it would be like to have your dog in the house doing that.
Hey Ronnie,
Most likely, if there is a lot of noise outside her dog is barking at or along with the noise. If the dog is tied up that actually adds another level that alters the dog’s psychological state completely without getting too complicated.
Having a dog inside is actually the better option of the two believe it or not. But barking is one of the biggest issues of having a dog in general which is easily solved with good quality dog barking control devices! 😉