Dogs Barking in the car.

Noise in the car can be very distracting to the driver (as well as being unpleasant to sit and listen to), so today I’m going to look at some simple ways to improve this situation, and teach your dog that being quiet in the car is a Good Plan.

The main causes of barking and whining in a vehicle are fear and excitement, usually excitement. But we do need to mention fear before we begin.

Fear of cars

Some dogs that are afraid of cars will suffer the journey in silence. Others may whine and even bark, continuously throughout the journey. Sometimes the fear develops because the dog suffers from motion sickness. Sometimes it’s a general fear of the vehicle, and everything associated with it including the noise of the engine.

If your dog suffers from motion sickness, do talk to your veterinarian. There are travel sickness drugs that can really help dogs adjust to, and get over, the strange sensation of riding in a vehicle.

Unless it’s an emergency, it’s best to avoid putting a frightened dog into a car and driving around in the hopes that they’ll just ‘get over it’. They’ll actually get over it much quicker if you break the process down for them. So feed the dog next to the car for a few days, then in the car with the door open, then in the car with the door shut. Then in the stationary car with the engine running. Followed by a few short journeys with a meal at the end of each one.

Excitement 

Riding in the car can be very exciting to some dogs.  This is most likely to happen with dogs that are taken by car to a place of exercise.

As their excitement levels rise, many dogs are inclined to become noisy. Typically this starts as quite a mild problem with a little whining and maybe a little pacing. But unfortunately, it’s a problem that often escalates very quickly to the point where the dog is barking hysterically for much of the journey. The reason this happens is because the dog is given a massive reward (exercise) at the end of the ride. And like all rewards, this massive reward reinforces the behavior that preceded it.

Are You Reinforcing Noise?

It’s pretty easy to see that being let out of the car while you’re barking is rewarding to our dogs, and makes them more likely to bark next time.

But did you know that lots of other things we do while driving are reinforcing to a whining or barking dog too?

Accidental Markers

In training we use a clicker, or the word ‘yes’ to mark a behavior, and predict a reward. But other things can predict rewards to our dogs too. Some signs that they are going to have an awesome walk in their favorite place in a minute might include:

• Turning off or slowing down at the usual points on the journey
• Stopping the vehicle
• Turning the engine off
• Getting out of the vehicle
• Approaching the back door of the vehicle
• Opening the door
• Opening the dog crate or reaching for the dog’s car harness

All these things predict a lovely walk to your dog. And so each one that happens while he is barking, reinforces the barking, and makes it more likely that they will bark next time.

One strategy for dealing with this problem is for you to control those ‘predictors’ so that the dog only hears or sees them when they are quiet.

Control The Outcomes

Each event that predicts that a walk is going to happen soon, is a reinforcer – so try to make sure to only offer those reinforcers when he’s being quiet!

This can be easier said than done with things like taking the correct route, or stopping the car – so do make safe decisions, first and foremost! But if your dog is whining loudly at the usual turn off, and you can do so safely, consider going around the block and turning in when he’s quiet. If you can drive very slowly around and around the car park until he’s quiet, mark that silence with a ‘yes’ and then quickly park, that’s great too!

Once you are parked up, you have a lot more control over the outcomes of your dog’s noise.

Leave the engine running. When your pup has been quiet for a second or two, mark the silence with ‘yes’ and then turn off the engine. This could be a long wait – sit him out. If all he learns today is to stop fussing to get out the car, this will have been a successful trip!

Once the engine is off, if he starts to whine again, wait for another pause. Then when he’s quiet, say ‘yes’ and open the door. Don’t get out until/unless he stays quiet. And so on. It’s a little like a child’s playground game – you freeze whenever he’s noisy!  Eventually he’ll work out how to get you moving again!

Over time you can build up to him staying quiet while you get out and head round to his door, and release him.

The Journey Itself

These tricks are great for parking and getting out the vehicle, but not much help for barking en route. We often need to be a bit more cunning to cure barking during the bulk of the journey.

If your pup starts barking as soon as they’re in the car, don’t start the engine til they are quiet. If they start when you’re pulling out the drive, stop the car. If they start while you’re near home, consider just going home.

Dogs who only get in the car for walks, and get very excited when that happens, sometimes benefit from regularly being put in the car to drive around the local neighborhood, and then returning home without doing anything fun.

In fact, the more pointless and boring car rides you can arrange for your dog, the better!

If you have a family member who can sit and treat stream to your pup while they are quiet in the car, or who is happy to drive while you do the same, that can really help. (But if you are on your own, don’t try to treat stream while you are driving.)

Give It Time

Habits are not easy to break so this kind of training can take time and persistence. Be prepared for your dog to escalate the bad behavior when you first stop rewarding it. That’s normal and it will pass.

If you focus on these three things

1. Exposing your dog to more boring journeys
2. Ensuring you don’t reinforce noisy behavior in the car
3. Arranging to reinforce quiet behavior in the car

Then over time, you’ll see your dog’s behavior improve.

Do Your Best

This isn’t ‘perfect’ dog training. We can’t be excellent trainers and safely manage a vehicle at the same time. And safety has to come first.

But every little helps. And driving while your dog shouts excitedly isn’t a great safety strategy either.

So if your dog is a car barker, have a think about what triggers your dog’s car noise, and how you can teach them that their noise does not predict a Good Thing. And their silence, does.

Don’t forget your dog is getting SMARTER