How to Reduce the Sound of a Barking Dog

Reduce Dog Barking Noise

Dogs are a man’s best friend but unfortunately they can sometimes become your sleeping neighbors worst nemesis. Today, as more and more homeowners share their space with a four-legged friend or two (or more), it’s common to struggle with reducing their noise output and working to not to upset the neighbors next door. We have some tips about what you should do if you think your neighbors have finally had enough and are about to file a noise complaint against your barking dog.

Barking Dogs – Noise Complaints and Soundproofing Solutions

Some dogs bark for a good reason like protection or to announce an intruder, and some do so for no apparent reason at all. They might just want some attention or some food. If you’re a dog mom or a dog dad you may have tried the many bark training collars available, pet training classes or the use of treats and chew toy stimulus ideas to curb your dogs desire to speak up. It’s important to realize that barking is a dog’s means of communication and whether they’re bored, hungry, scared or playful, they want to make sure you’re hearing them loud and clear.

Quieting A Barking Dog

The first and best way to handle a barking dog situation is to aim for problem straight away. You can train your dog not to bark and it doesn’t have to cost you a dime. It’s also not as hard as it sounds.

Most importantly, always remember to stay calm and be direct

1. Dogs will naturally react the same way their leader is acting. If you are frustrated and being loud, your dog will do the same. Calm down and with a confident tone tell your dog to stop with a quick sound, look, or physical correction.
2. Be consistent. Don’t think that correcting your dog will happen overnight. Just like humans, dogs need constant practice and training to really get something down.
3. Keep your dog active. Dogs are very energetic animals so if they are kept inside all day they will store that energy and release it when it’s not appropriate, usually through loud barking and running around the house. Take daily walks with your dog. See this as an opportunity to not only improve your dog’s health but yours as well.
4. If nothing seems to work, get professional help. Remember, your little buddy is counting on you to teach them how to be a good pet!

See the guidelines from the Human Society on ways to stop your dog from barking.

Incessant Barking and How to Muffle It

Sporadic communication from your dog is common and expected. Problems tend to arise in a neighborhood or city setting where constant barking is causing a nuisance at inappropriate times of the day, when people are at rest or after dark. Many cities and neighborhood associations have laws and regulations to protect against nuisance barking. Intrusive sounds like chronic barking is referred to as noise pollution and its long-term effect can actually induce extreme physical and psychological distress, irritability, headaches and irregular sleep habits. If a dog barks once or twice there is usually no harm done. But if the noise is continual, every time that dog barks your autonomic nervous system (ANS) fires up and induces your body to release hormones that tell your brain and body to either take flight or fight in the face of a threat.

Soundproof Solutions to Calm Barking Dogs

Before complaints are made about your barking dog, be sure to take the necessary steps to reduce your noise output. The most common purchase of Residential Acoustics sound blocking AcousticCurtains™ are to deflect noise away from a living environment, but with their dual functionality and ability to block significant noise transfer in both directions, more and more pet owners are discovering the solution to their pet’s constant vocalizations. With noise traveling easiest through the windows and doors of a home, our curtains and door panels eliminate the embarrassment and stresses that chronic barking may cause to a pet-loving household by keeping the sound from exiting. If you’re looking to reduce your dog’s noise output while protecting your neighbors and yourself from noise backlash, our stylish, easy-to-install products can help.

If you own your home, you may consider upgrading your window to a double-pane, acoustically-rated window with an STC of 35+. While these may be more expensive, they are a great way to block out unwanted noise, especially if the dog has a deep bark or is situated close to the window in question.

Soundproofing for an Outside Barking Dog

If your dog likes to be outside a lot, then chances are something is gonna get them barking. As soon as they see a squirrel or even just hear your neighbor on the other side of the fence, they might start to bark. Although dogs can’t really help but bark when they’re around to many stimuli, you can make an effort to soundproof the fence between your houses to help quiet the barking for your neighbors.

Consider using a reinforced mass loaded vinyl on the adjoining fence between your properties. This material helps to diffract and dissipate sound waves that come into contact with it, and it’s often used for creating a sound blocking fence. Be sure the fence you’ll be using this on is at least 6′ tall, otherwise the barking will not be diffracted enough before reaching your neighbor’s side of the fence.

Avoiding a Dog Barking Complaint from Neighbors

Overall, you probably want to start at the root of this problem to solve it. The first solution is definitely to quiet the source of the noise — your barking dog. If that fails, try solving the problem by using a soundproof curtain or installing an STC-rated window. This will help diminish unwanted barking noise and allow yourself and your neighbors to sleep easily at night. If you need more solutions, check out our Complete Guide to Soundproofing your Apartment.