The growl and bark of a dog



As I lay sound asleep on a very cold morning I was slowly awaken by a deep grumbling.  Luke was growling, a rare occurrence these days.  I listened and smiled; it makes me happy to know that he thinks he is still the man.  He growled for a long while; deep and very scary, he was bothered by the sound of my son moving about.  I don't know why he felt the need to growl this morning, he hears it every morning.  But growl he did, never lifting his head but it was steady and it made me happy.  Standard Poodles are amazing guard dogs; most people don't know this fact.

So, what was Luke saying with his deep and low growling?  He was sounding a warning and letting us know that he thought something was not right.  A vocalization from a dog is a communication and can sometimes grow out of control.  Annoying barking should be stopped; it can become a bad habit.  They can learn that a few barks is all that is necessary to give you the required information.  But a communication from your dog is important and should be listened to.    When a dog has something to say, they should be allowed to say it.  This gives us a means to understand much better than if they are silenced.  Many people have told me that they don't allow growling or barking in their house.  This silencing can do a great deal of damage.

A dog who loses their ability to communicate can become unpredictable and dangerous.   When a dog growls at a person, dog or object it lets you know how they feel at that moment.  You can then take that information and deal with what you now know.  Maybe your dog doesn't like people wearing hats and growls when someone with a hat approaches.  With the information given you can now deal with creating a positive association to people wearing hats.  At our party on the weekend Elsa was running around having fun when she was stopped in her tracks in the dining room.  She started barking and as soon as I saw what she was barking at I asked the guy to take his antlers off.  :)  Yep.  He had forgotten  that he was wearing them and thought that Elsa was barking at him.  "Oh, sorry" he said.  As soon as he took them off she was fine.  Elsa is very, very aware of everything and she knows that a guy wearing this on his head is not right.  :)

If you take away your dogs communications, you take away your access to information.  Luke use to bark at people who approached our car.  He was fine if they walked by but if they walked directly at the car  he wasn't comfortable.   He let us and everyone else know that they were not welcome in the car, that is unless he knew them.  Dogs can become more vocal in a car or small area.  They cannot move away from someone or something so are more defensive.  It is also his car and he will defend it; after all it is a really great red Xterra.  :)

When your dog talks, listen.  There are dogs that talk too much just like there are people who talk too much.  But if you know your dog like you should, you will know when they are just jaw wagging and when they are saying something serious.  These days Luke likes to go in the back yard and let the neighborhood know that he lives here.  It makes me smile.  The bark is loud and non threatening; there is a good amount of time between the barks as he once again shows that at 12.5 years old, he's is still the man.

 

9 comments:

  1. That helps me a lot, I am going to change tactics with Hattie. I do have one question tho should introduce her to people in our neighborhood or not. I know her barking is an alert as she is a Pyr and to let us know there is someone she doesnt know

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  2. Poodles are excellent guard dogs. My daughter's poodle slept with her every night. In the morning we would wake her for school. We had to announce ourselves to the dog (Yimkin) before entering her room. Otherwise she would launch herself from the bed to the door to protect her.

    This continued even after she went blind and deaf. We would stomp on the floor to announce ourselves then open the door. There she would be: Standing over her sleeping form in protection.

    I never feared an intruder when she was there. She also had an 'indoor' voice and an 'outdoor' voice.

    I also find poodles have greater discernment than other dogs as to what is scary and what is not.

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  3. I can understand what you are talking about, my std female barks at everything but it's more of a hey there is someone in the street bark, and I smile inside because I know she is protecting us. I also have a very very vocal doberman male who barks to hear his own voice, I've had him almost a year and a half and I still don't really know which bark is which, it is annoying at times other times I smile because he is protecting us again. Someday I hope I will understand the differences in his barks, but for now, I just smile and love both of them because no one comes near my yard because of them being so vocal

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  4. Luann, I need a bit more background as to what is going on?

    Sherri

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  5. When Russell (a standard Poodle) sits on the outside stairs and barks, I generally go outside, check to see what he's barking at. If there is nothing visible, I will tell him OK, that's good, but enough barking or you'll have to come inside. (He's a poodle, he understands) Is this the right thing to do? Or am I stifling him?

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  6. When Russell sits on the step outside and barks, I will go outside and see if there is a reason for his barking. If I see nothing, I will tell him "that's good, but enough barking or you'll have to come inside!(He understands, he's a Standard Poodle)I hope this is not stifling him.

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  7. Cheryl, it sounds like the perfect thing to do. I too go out and see if Luke is barking at anything or just enjoying hearing himself. Then I say "thank you, enough" and we go in.

    Sherri

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  8. We are alerted to squirrels, stray cats, a fox or deer - and I believe he thinks that is his job. When I had 2 dogs, he would do the alert bark and my lab would run to the window - if she felt there was a need then she would bark, if she didn't she returned to her position on the sofa and all was well. And Sherri - I love this shot of your guy Luke!

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  9. Thanks Candy, he is as much a doll as he looks.

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