It is natural for us to hear the dogs bark. Because dogs can’t speak just like we human beings can, barking is their way of communicating and to express their feelings. However, when you are sleeping, you won’t want your dog to be barking during that time. Because barking is really loud, it can be disruptive to your sleep. That is especially true if you need to wake up early in the morning for a reason like going to work.
And so you are wondering about what you can do about your dog barking during you are sleeping. I am here to offer you a helping hand with how to stop a dog from barking at night. There are a few reasons why your dog may be barking during the night. So, I will get to each one of the reasons for your dog’s night time barking and then suggest the best response based on each reason.
How To Stop A Dog From Barking At Night
1. Barking For Alerting
Often times, dogs are trained by default to bark if they sense that there is a potential threat around the corner that dog owners need to be aware of. So, if you hear your dog barking at night, it could be that he/she thinks that danger is lurking somewhere nearby.
It could be something as simple as somebody walking past your home or a car cruising by. Or it could be something a little spooky like a raccoon or possum wandering in your yard.
How To Respond
By far the best strategy for responding to your dog’s alert barking behavior would be for you to make use of treats to reward your dog.
So, the next time you hear your dog barking at night because of perceived threats, head over to your dog and show him/her a treat. But, don’t give your dog the treat just yet.
That is because you want to be careful that your dog doesn’t see the treat as a reward for this barking behavior at night.
So, after your dog has already barked and you showed him/her the treat, wait for around thirty minutes or so to see if he/she has remained quiet. If your dog does stay quiet after the time period, you can go ahead and give him/her the treat.
I would go with the Canine Carry Outs Dog Treats which comes with a range of delicious flavor options including hot dog, chicken, and more.
It may be a little bit of time before your dog starts to learn to stay quiet on his/her own during the night. So, repeat the treat rewarding process for at least the next few nights.
2. Dog Loneliness
As is the case with some of us human beings, some dogs may be feeling lonely. So, that could be one possible reason why your dog is barking at night as you are trying to sleep.
One factor that could lead to your dog feeling lonely is you not being at home all day long. That is especially true if your dog doesn’t have anybody else at home to keep him/her company.
Your dog’s feeling of loneliness also depends on his/her background prior to becoming your pet. If your dog came from an environment where he/she had been around other dogs and/or people for a long period of time, such as a dog shelter, that could have an impact on your dog’s loneliness.
How To Respond
The best thing that you can do to address your dog’s sense of loneliness is to spend as much time as possible socializing with him/her whenever you are at home.
You may also want to look at letting your dog sleep with you in your bed. It is common for people to sleep with their pet dogs. So, don’t be shy about letting your dog sleep with you.
However, I would warn against letting your dog sleep with you if he/she is a puppy. That is because puppies are at a heightened risk of being injured should you roll over your dog by accident during your sleep.
Instead, you should have your dog sleep in a cozy dog bed and put it in your bedroom if there is enough space there.
If your bedroom doesn’t have enough space, just place the dog bed as close to your bedroom as possible.
I would suggest that you check out the PetFusion Ultimate Dog Bed as it is the best one out there because the material is made of memory foam and is four inches thick. That should make the dog bed especially comfortable for your dog to sleep in.
3. Lack Of Exercise And Play
Just like all human beings, dogs also need to exercise. Not only does exercising help your dog to get into better shape and health, but it also allows your dog to use up a great deal of their energy.
That will allow your dog to become tired at night which in turn will cause him/her to fall asleep around the same time that you do.
Dogs also need opportunities to play around. Not only does that give your dog something fun to do, but it will make it easier for your dog to eventually get tired as night falls.
That is especially true if the way your dog plays around involve some physical activity. If, however, your dog doesn’t exercise or play around during the day or evening, then he/she will bark at night because of being full of energy and bored.
How To Respond
The best way for you to give your dog the exercise that he/she need is for you to take him/her out for a walk or run.
One place for you to do that is at a park, preferably one that has a network of walking/jogging paths. If you live in a neighborhood that include sidewalks, that is another option for you to walk or run your dog.
When it comes to playing with your dog, one great option is to play frisbee. Just in case you aren’t sure what frisbee is, it is a game in which all you need to do is to throw the rounded disc across the air and your dog will run to grab it.
Not only is frisbee fun to play, but it also gives your dog some exercise because he/she will need to run in order to grab the frisbee.
You can play frisbee with your dog in your own yard if it has enough space for it. If not, then a nearby park should do. If you don’t have a frisbee to play with your dog, you can order some here from the comforts of your home.
There You Have It For How To Stop A Dog From Barking At Night
These are the responses that you can take for how to stop a dog from barking at night depending on the reason given. So, I hope that this post will serve as a guide for you should you find yourself being awaken at night by your barking dog.
What are your thoughts? Have you had your sleep disrupted because of your dog barking at night? Feel free to leave a comment below.
Hi, I think this article is fantastic. Mert, one of my friends, has a dog. Before he leaves for work, he takes him for a ten-kilometer run. And this is the method that my friend uses to keep Max at ease. Furthermore, I will inform him that he should occasionally bring Max to our park to play with him in order to change Max’s hobby.
Thank you very much.
I am glad to hear that Mert’s dog, Max, is getting the exercise that he needs every day while spending personal time with Mert the dog owner. As for taking Max to your park, yes, that is a good advice for Mert to have. As I mentioned in this article, frisbee is a great way for Mert to play with Max. If Max doesn’t already know how to catch a frisbee, this post should help with that.
Put together, this should help to put Max at ease at night and so Mert can go to sleep without having to worry so much about Max barking while he is asleep during the night.
Over the years, I have learned when a dog barks excessively it is usually due to some sort of issue that the dog is experiencing that needs attention. Too often, owners and neighbors get annoyed with the dog and yell at it to shut up. It seems when they do this, their failure to properly address the situation has reared its ugly head and this is unfortunate for the dog.
It’s never the dog’s fault! The dog is, quite frankly, being a dog! Unable to address issues like people can (and sometimes even we struggle), the best they can do is bark. Almost always, there will be body language associated with that bark and it is up to their human parent to have enough patience and discernment to understand what that is.
I learned, long ago, and through trial and error, how to better communicate with my own dog. I’ve also learned how to do this with neighboring dogs, whom I know have human parents that fail their pets due to their lack of patience, understanding, and proper animal care.
I’m hoping more people come across this article and share it because it is well worth the read!
Thank you very much for taking the time to share your insights into how people have dealt with the issue of excessive barking by a dog. Yelling at a dog for it to stop barking is not something I would recommend as it will make the dog think that they are engaging in some kind of barking match and he will just keep on barking. So, that is certainly a good lesson to learn when you are trying to get a dog to stop with the barking.
I am glad that you have found this article and I would very much appreciate you sharing this article with those who are in need of help with getting their dogs to stop barking so that they can sleep more easily at night.
I think you’ve hit on some really important points here. I’ve been a dog owner for 40 years (not the same dog of course) and if they bark, it is for a reason. Personally, I get comfort from knowing my faithful companion is going to warn me when someone is at the gate or the door. I have one dog who sleeps in with my youngest daughter and my other dog sleeps with my wife and I in our room. Our house is up high and on a few occasions he has started barking in the middle of the night and we have found foxes in our yard trying to get into our chicken coop, so it pays to listen to your dog. I appreciate the fact you have pointed out that dogs can be lonely and anxious, just like people, so they need companionship to be happy.
Thank you for sharing your and your family’s experience with the family dogs. Yes, it is natural for a dog to bark when there is something that he/she thinks is in need of attention from the dog owner.
I am glad to hear that your family dogs can sleep in with some of you. That will help to put the dogs at ease at night since they will know that somebody is right there with them. That is important because I know it can be hard for you all to sleep if even one of your dogs is barking at night.
Thank you for this awesome article. Its really crucial for a dog to get exercise and play time. I know when I was doing meetings on zoom during lockdown my boy was very upset because he knew I am home so why am I not paying attention to him and that’s how the digging up the garden started So if its not through barking then they will find other ways to wok off the energy:)
You are welcome. I am glad that you have found this article. Yes, I agree that it is really crucial for your dog to get exercise and play time each day. That will help your dog to feel relaxed which can often translate into better behavior including not barking.
I know that it can be irritating for you when your dog is barking and/or tearing into your garden while you are trying to concentration on your zoom meetings. I hope that this article will be of assistance to you in that situation as well.