Bark, Bark, Barky Bark...

"Stop Barking, be quiet, shhh." Barking. It's a thing that most dogs do. If your dog doesn't bark, well, then you might want to skip this one. But for those of you with barking dogs, read on.

So we have a saying at BrightDogs, we DO NOT chastise the bark, but we do encourage them to wrap it up. Immediately yelling at a dog to stop barking or growling isn't a good idea. Now I do realize that an excessive barker can drive you crazy, believe me, but this is how a dog communicates. Not only to you, but to other dogs. Sometimes it's to say "Hey, I am over here, look at me, don't freak out. I'm a dog too." They may also be warning the other dog to stay away from their people or their property. They may also be scared and just yelling incoherent things at the other dog. I'm not 100% sure. But they are communicating. So just telling them to be quiet isn't advised. Let them get it out. When you feel that they have had enough time to chat, rein them in with a Good Job, now Sshhhh.

I know I compare dogs to kids and kids to dogs quite often, but really can you blame me. The kids run around yelling and squealing all the time. Sometimes they need to get it out. Sometimes the yelling gets obnoxious and I ask them (in my best mom voice) to take it down a notch. Same with the dogs. We let them go for a bit then ask for a return to quieter moments.

People come into BrightDogs and are shocked when it's noisy and shocked when it's quiet. Some days, it's both. We don't necessarily control the volume, per se, but we control the energy. When the barking is playful and fun, that's fine. If it turns, and we hear the change, we will react. Sometimes, when we don't react, the dogs stop and go about what they were doing.

People find it interesting that we can tell a dog by it's bark, or can hush the dogs with a quick rap on counter. But they know the rules. We have established what is acceptable behavior.

And much like my kids, sometimes, they don't listen even when I tell them to stop. So if you come in on a crazy, loud, bark day; Please understand, they are playing, they are excited, they are chatty and you are in their playground.

Oh, and if we don't answer the phone when you call, THIS may be why. We won't be able to hear you anyway! So feel free to leave a message, text us, use Facebook messenger or email us. Because it may be a loud day and we are okay with that! Because they are #Yourslikeours even when they are loud and crazy!