Hi, Shadow again. Why do dogs bark, because they want to of course! Thomas wrote this article a few months ago and Chris removed it from the site. I really have to keep his paws off the keyboard. I think this is the last of the old articles to repost.

Shadow the Alpha Dog

Why Dogs Bark

By Thomas Hardee

Dogs bark for many different reasons. For example, a dog that wants to go outside may emit a short, high pitched bark.

Why do dogs bark when a stranger goes by? It’s because it is guarding its territory. It could also be a scared dog.

The truth is, we wanted dogs to bark. Whether it was to help herd animals or to scare off strangers, we bred them to bark. Without dogs barking, how would we know if they had to go out? Dogs bark when they’re happy, sad, in pain, and even when they want attention.

A dog’s relationship with its owner may be ended prematurely because of the dog’s barking. This may result in the dog being sent to a shelter or even abandoned. Eighty percent of dogs bark for some reason and 47 percent of those are sent to shelters for barking at excessively at night. In conclusion, dogs may bark for many different reasons, so don’t get mad just because your dogs barks it could partially be your fault.
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I started digging through the archives (I love the feel of soft dirt in my claws) and found this old article written by Chris. I remember this night well. That Husky is SO lucky he didn’t mess with me! Anyways, it appears that this one, and a few others, were removed a while back by mistake. While I chew a good bone, enjoy the article!

Shadow the Fearless

The lone dog.. The scared dog.. Will he attack?

A few nights ago, Shadow and I went on our evening walk before bed. About halfway through our walk, we spotted a Siberian Husky about 30 feet away from us in the middle of the road. Fortunately, it was late and there weren’t any cars, so the dog was not in danger of being run over. The Husky simply stared at us and didn’t move. I had never seen this dog in our neighborhood and wasn’t sure how he would react. Over the years, I’ve learned a few of the visual cues that people can use to tell if a dog is likely to be friendly, but while this dog did not show aggression, it wasn’t being very friendly either.

As we kept walking, I tried not to stare directly at the dog, because I didn’t want to be outwardly aggressive toward it.  However, I wanted to keep it in sight. When we passed the dog, he started to follow us.

Shadow is an 11 month-old lab that weighs around 50 pounds. He’s very friendly with other dogs, but I wasn’t sure what the Husky would do once our backs were turned.

After we turned a dark corner, the Husky was gone. This, however, made me start wondering what I would have done if the Husky had been aggressive. Would I have stepped between the dogs or let them work it out between themselves? My wife and I have had to pull fighting dogs apart before and it took both of us to do it.

Body Language

In hindsight, did I read the situation wrong? According to Paws Across America’s article on “How To Interpret Your Dog’s Body Language, Facial Expressions, and Vocalizations, the Husky appeared to be in an anxious state with its ears partially back and tail lowered. He was completely silent , but was watching us intently. I could see tags on the dog, but didn’t want to approach it in fear of scaring the animal or causing it to be aggressive.

How do you know if a dog may be aggressive?

The Dog Owner’s Guide has an excellent page on types of dog aggression and how to prevent it. According to their site, I was fortunate and did the correct things:

• Stay on the road to avoid invading the dog’s territory.

• Keep an eye on the dog, but not make direct eye contact.

• Keep still and remain calm.

I was lucky because, while I believe this was a scared dog, he did not appear to be aggressive. I hope his owner was able to find him and return him to his home.

It was almost dark when the door bell rang. Fred  ran to the door wagging his tail and waiting impatiently for someone to open it. However, when the door opened, small children yelled, “Trick or Treat” in strange clothes and wearing masks. Poor Fred was scared by all of the noise and confusion.  He immediately barked and then ran to the couch, not to be seen until a few minutes after they left.

After the third time this happened, Fred stayed on the couch until long after the doorbell last rang.

Halloween can be a scary time for dogs. The normal looks and smells of people they know can be altogether different.

On the other hand, it’s a great time to pick up candy off the floor! Unfortunately, as you probably know, chocolate is toxic for dogs.

Shadow and Abby will be spending Halloween in a room by themselves with a bone or two so they can have some peace and quiet.

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