Often dogs exhibit some behaviors when they see strangers, which may expose their owners to embarrassment, for example, they walk in a street, and the dog begins to bark when they see a person, and this may indicate the dog’s willingness to attack or defend, or it may be An expression of concern, what are the reasons for barking dogs? The answer can be summed up in several points, according to the Bright Side website.
1- Fear of the unknown
The most common reason for a dog’s aggression towards specific people is simply its fear of the unknown, if the dog is not used to mixing with others, and it sees a strange person, carrying an unfamiliar smell and therefore it will look at it with a look of suspicion, and start barking.
Even after training a dog to socialize with others, he may find himself in an unfamiliar situation that makes him nervous and anxious. There are certain features that dogs consider a source of threat, as people differ among themselves in terms of size, features, and the way they move, and all of this may frighten the dog.
Among the things that may excite dogs:
- Accessories, such as a hat and sunglasses, prevent the dog from seeing your face.
- Beards, tall people.
- Certain body language signals, especially direct eye contact or a stare.
- Strong smells such as cigarette smoke, and the dog also hates the smell of shampoo, perfume, or deodorant.
2- Bad memories
When dogs notice something associated with a bad memory they have, they take a defensive stance towards it, and for this reason, the dog may be afraid of some people just because their smell or appearance is associated with bad memories, if the dog has been previously injured or ill-treated, it will bark at people who They remind him of those who offended him, and he may generally lose confidence in those who carry a specific characteristic.
3- Protecting their owners even if there is no need for that
Dogs tend to defend their territory and their owners, especially guard dogs, so dogs may deal aggressively with anyone who invades their space, or behaves in a way that looks like a threat to their owners.
4- Dogs see people for who they are
Dogs are good at judging people, and many studies have indicated that dogs can determine whether a person is trustworthy or not. Dogs are also always observing social interactions, are aware of how other people treat their owners and are likely to show distrust and start barking at people.
Dogs can distinguish odors associated with feelings of fear, tension, enthusiasm, and anxiety, due to the hormonal changes accompanying these feelings on our bodies, and given the dog’s ability to sense these different sensations; This may make him feel uncomfortable, so he starts barking.
How do you avoid this happening?
To avoid troubles of this kind with your dog, you must train him from a young age in the correct way to mix with others, and try to gradually expose him to more smells, sounds, and new people, so he will get used to it, and it will not surprise him when he grows up, and when your little dog is exposed to different experiences, he will grow and gain more flexibility and mental fortitude.
But if you have a dog that barks at others, you must train it not to take defensive positions towards everything that surrounds it by training it using some basic commands, such as sit down or calm down.
It is advised to repeat this process until the dog learns this behavior and gets used to implementing it on its own.