Many dog breeds have different characteristics, sizes, colors, and levels of intelligence. We choose to keep dogs in our homes with the benefit of social interactions, multiple health reasons, among other reasons. Among the best dog breeds, we can choose a poodle because of its numerous advantages. Generally, poodles are intelligent, playful, friendly, and can interact with cats. However, we should also understand that these dogs can have certain drawbacks depending on the owner and the environment.
This post will provide more insights into poodles and learn if these dogs breed bark a lot. With that, please see the brief to understand why do poodles bark a lot.
Is it Normal for Poodles to Bark a Lot?
Like other dog breeds, poodles bark as a way of communicating. Though poodles don’t bark a lot, sometimes, these dogs bark a lot if triggered by people or the environment. It can be annoying if our dogs bark continuously due to specific triggers. This is because poodles are intelligent and can observe what is going on around them.
If poodles develop a habit of barking a lot which can be annoying, we should train these dogs only to bark when required. If we lack the skills to train poodles when to bark or stay quiet, we can employ an experienced trainer to help our dogs to stop barking often.
Toy poodles are yappy and bark a lot compared to standard poodles. This is because these dogs need to play more when younger than when older. Thus, we realize that standard and older poodles aged 18 to 24 months are calmer, relaxed, and bark less.
Types of Poodle Barks
Poodles are prompted to bark by several triggers, such as loud noises. It’s normal for poodles to bark a lot, especially if a visitor comes into our homes or in the presence of other pets such as cats or another dog. So, these dogs can take either bark to alert us of an intruder or a sudden feeling of happiness. Hence, we shouldn’t be worried if our poodles often bark because sometimes these dogs are happy to have company.
Poodles of all sizes and ages are known to bark often, and it can be challenging for most owners. However, we should be cognizant when our poodles bark continuously since there could be an important reason behind the barking. Therefore, we should respond as soon as our poodles’ bark to help these dogs feel relaxed and satisfied.
These dogs have different types of barks and bark loudly to hear the barking voices from a distance. Poodles’ barks can be categorized into three main types:
- Alarm barks
- Fearful barks
- Happy barks
Therefore, we should recognize the types of barks and help our dogs to feel relaxed. Notably, toy and miniature poodles have a different barking pitch from standard poodles because of the size of the voice boxes.
If poodles are excited, we can hear happy barks, which are of two types including;
Excitement bark: Poodles bark at a high pitch and non-stop when happy or excited about anything. Again, we can see these dogs jumping or spinning all over the place despite their size or age.
Playtime Bark: If poodles need to play, we notice the high pitch barking, which is repetitive and followed by low-intensity barking. Our dogs also display various body movements, such as raising the bottom in the air. If we aren’t busy, this means that it’s time to play with our dogs. If we are unavailable, we should give our dogs toys to play with to help divert from a barking habit.
When anxious and scared, poodles bark with fearful barks, including;
Fear barking: Our dogs produce high-pitch and constant barks after seeing someone or hearing loud noises because of fear. Thus, we can see our dogs lying flat on the ground, drooping ears, or even urinating.
Growling: If our poodles growl, we should understand that there may be intruders in our compounds. Our dogs only growl when in need of attacking someone or something.
Low bark: Poodles are always cautious despite being playful. That’s why our dogs give a low bark after seeing a new object before deciding whether to touch it or not.
Yelping: Our dogs will always yelp if lonely or anxious. If we are absent for longer, our poodles’ yelp until we show up from work. Therefore, we should avoid leaving our dogs alone if we know that we’ll arrive home late.
Territorial Bark: Poodles give a territorial bark to assert ownership and leadership. This is especially if a stranger or another dog enters our homes. If the person or animal walks away, these dogs can calm down and stop barking. However, if the visitor keeps approaching, the territorial bark becomes extreme, forcing us out of our houses to see who could be in our compounds.
Reasons Why Poodles Bark
Poodles have many characteristics, including high sensitivity. Therefore, we should understand that every poodle’s bark is reasonable. Below are reasons why poodles bark a lot.
Loud Noises
Just as we get uncomfortable around loud noises, poodles are also sensitive if there is an irritating noise. These dogs bark non-stop after hearing noises such as gunfire, a motorcycle, an ambulance, thunderstorms, among others. So, we should respond quickly and move our dogs to a quiet area to feel safe and stop barking.
A Stranger in the Compound
Poodles also bark a lot if a stranger shows on the doorstep. This is because these dogs need to alert us that there is someone in our compounds. Therefore, we should show up to see if the intruder is a person we know or an unwanted person. Again, these dogs are small in size and bark loudly to keep away any intruder trying to break into our homes.
Boredom or Excitement
Our poodles can bark if left alone for a more extended period. Our dogs are emotional and sometimes require physical touch or to get outside and play in the compound. So, our dogs bark because of craving for our attention and will bark more if we don’t show up because of frustration.
Again, poodles can bark a lot if we get back home from work. These dogs feel excited to see us walk into the door because of our company. Our dogs can also get excited if another pet comes at home. These playful dogs feel delighted, excited and are triggered to bark.
Fear and Anxiety
Poodles can bark due to fear of unfamiliar faces or a feeling of anxiety when left alone. Our dogs are intelligent and try to act dangerous by barking to scare the intruder or because we aren’t near. If our dogs bark because of another animal or person in our compounds, we should act fast to show our poodles that everything is fine.
Home Protection
Like other dogs, poodles also feel to belong in any home, hence, barking so loudly anytime other people come into our homes. These dogs won’t stop barking and act tough to make the intruder feel intimidated. Though not all intruders are intimidated to run away, at least our dogs try to protect our homes. Sometimes, intruders can fear due to the loud and continuous barking and restrain from breaking in. This is one advantage why we should love our poodles.
Feeling Pain or Ill
Though poodles are known to bark a lot, we should check if our dogs are in pain, especially if the barking increases when touched or after making a move. This is because our dogs could be barking due to a health problem. If we ignore this, our dogs’ health can deteriorate with time. Hence, we should take our poodles to an experienced veterinarian quickly for treatment. Furthermore, who would like to have an inactive poodle loudly barking in the house?
Strange Footsteps
If our homes are near a road, people are passing by once in a while. Therefore, poodles tend to bark after hearing footsteps and bark louder as the passersby get near and the footsteps get louder. Though it can be irritating, we should understand that our dogs constantly bark to warn us of an approaching person. Thus, we should check because these dogs could be warning us of imminent danger.
Tips to Stop Poodles from Barking Often
Sometimes, it can be annoying if our poodles or our neighbors’ dogs bark all day. However, poodles are smart, and we can train our dogs how to stop barking and have better behavior. Though it isn’t a one-day process, eventually, our poodles will stop being annoying. Here are some suggestions on how to control our poodles from barking.
Socialize and Play
Poodles are playful and can get bored if left alone and indoors for long. Our dogs are active when we play and socialize, which prevents constant barking. Again, we can expose our poodles to various environments as we play, which helps to decrease triggers that lead to barking.
Provide Toys for Entertainment
We are busy at work or with house chores and lack time to play with our poodles. This can make our dogs feel lonely and anxious, hence, barking often. To prevent this, we should provide our dogs with toys to play with and learn to do new activities. As our dogs bite the toys and run from one point to another, there is an increase in activity which keeps the minds stimulated. It is also fun to watch our poodles play with pets because it is entertaining.
Reward the Poodles
It is surprising to know that poodles show appreciation after being given a reward for being quiet. Well, we shouldn’t forget to bring our poodles beautiful gifts after training to stop barking. Because these are intelligent dogs, we will be astonished at how quiet our dogs become despite seeing other pets or people in our homes.
Get Rid of Barking Triggers
Mainly, poodles bark due to specific triggers in the environment we live in, including doorbells and cars hooting. If possible, we should ensure to keep our poodles in a quiet environment far from street noise. However, if some loud noises are unavoidable, we should approach our dogs in a friendly manner to feel safe and understand that everything is alright. With time, our dogs get used to these triggers and always remain calm.
Don’t Shout When Poodles Bark
Excessive barking can be annoying, making us shout at our poodles for barking. However, our dogs may not understand us and instead bark even louder. Rather, we should walk away from our dogs because we realize that these dogs need a lot of attention. If we walk away several times, our dogs learn to be alone and stop incessant barking when we aren’t around.
Take the Poodles for Exercise
Poodles love exercising, and this brings mental stimulation. However, a lot of exercises can make our dogs overexcited, which leads to more barking. Therefore, we should watch out not to make our dogs exercise for longer hours. After exercising, our dogs feel relaxed and stop barking often. So, we should ensure that our poodles enjoy the outside environment every day or play with toys to remain entertained and fight boredom.
Teach the Poodles the Speak Command
Training our poodles to bark less often should be too difficult unless we give these dogs a message to do so. Because poodles are intelligent, we can teach these dogs the speak command to prevent frequent barking whenever there are triggers. Over time, we will be proud poodle owners because we can ask our poodles when to bark and when to be quiet.
Don’t Punish Poodles for Barking
We should understand that poodles are highly sensitive and know when we react harshly. Therefore, if we punish our dogs for barking, we can see anxiety in the eyes. This makes these dogs to bark constantly, which can be frustrating. Instead, we should approach our dogs in a friendly manner and understand what has triggered the barking.