Listen:

Barking dogs

Dogs bark. It's natural and it’s how they communicate. Some barking is acceptable and normal, e.g. the dog barks to let you know someone is at your front door. Barking becomes a nuisance when the barking is persistent, continuous or repetitive. If your dog is barking excessively, it's important to find out why.

Dogs bark for many reasons, including:

boredom, loneliness, lack of enrichment
unsuitable yards, enclosures or kennel locations
noises like fireworks, thunderstorms, sirens
lack of food, water, exercise or training
neighbourhood disturbances like garbage trucks, post officers, delivery drivers, people passing by
need to protect property or their owner’s family.

Barking is very normal behaviour for a dog, however there are times that barking can be increased by the environment the dog is kept in.

Excess dogs can lead to excess barking. Local Laws guide how many dogs you can keep on your property.

What is considered excessive barking?

Our Local laws state that dog barking is considered excessive when a dog barks, howls or whines:

for 6 minutes in an hour between 7:00am and 10:00pm on any day, or
for 3 minutes in half an hour between 10:00pm and 7:00am on any day, or
if an authorised person reasonably considers that the duration, time and intensity of the barking is excessive.

How can I tell if my dog is a nuisance barker

You may have been unaware that your dogs’ barking is causing a nuisance, especially if you are not at home. If you don’t know why or when your dog is barking, think about ways to identify why your dog may be barking when you are not home.

You could achieve this by:

Keeping record when you are home to record the possible trigger that may cause your dog to bark, the times they occur and how long your dog barks for.
Asking your neighbour to keep barking dog records for you as well.
Asking other neighbours if they have noticed excessive barking.
Pretend that you are going out. Follow your normal routine when leaving but park your car down the street and quietly walk home. Listen from outside your property to see if your dog starts barking.
Use a barking monitoring app on a mobile device that you can leave at home to help capture any potential nuisance barking that may occur when you are not there.

What can I do to help stop my dog from barking?

Some things you might like to try include:

using enrichment, exercise and training to reduce barking behaviour
don’t yell at or punish your dog as this may cause other behavioural problems
talk to your neighbours to find out when and how long your dog is barking and if they might have noticed what causes your dog to bark
walk your dog every day, especially before you leave in the morning, consistent exercise may reduce your dogs need for barking. A tired or content dog is less likely to bark
try training activities like sit or drop at regular intervals during your walk. This will exercise your dog’s mind, increase obedience and help tire out your dog

If your dog is barking at people walking past:

modify your yard to stop your dog from accessing the front fence so it can’t see people or other animals walking past
erect a sightscreen so the dog can’t see through the fence, this could be as simple as attaching material to your fence, like weed matting.

If your dog is bored try:

using chew toys like a KONG. These toys contain food to keep your dog distracted, you can give it to them before you leave home
scattering food around your dog’s yard will also help keep your dog busy
give your dog a chew toy in a comfortable single room like a laundry or garage
leave the television or a radio on.

Changing your dog's environment can also help reduce barking:

restricting access to areas where they would usually bark
using visual barriers
allowing your dog inside the house
creating 'chill out' zones
crate training, safe space
exercising your dog in the morning including brain training, lots of sniffing can be calming and tiring.

We can offer suggestions and provide information to reduce barking but as the dog owner, it is your responsibility to find a resolution that will work for you and your dog.

There are also many other professionals who may be able to help.

A list of reputable dog trainers are on the Association of Pet Dog Trainers website
RSPCA or Animal Welfare League are also a great source of information.

What do I do if I receive a barking allegation about my dog?

We encourage neighbours to talk to each other to resolve barking dog issues.

You may be approached by a neighbour about your dog barking. Please ask your neighbour for more information like when the dog is barking and for how long. This may help you understand when and why your dog is barking so you can take action to reduce barking.

If we contact you about your dog barking, please don’t jump to the conclusion that we will remove your dog. We will do a lengthy and thorough investigation before any enforcement takes place. We understand that you love your pet and we will work with you to try to resolve the issue.

It can be helpful for you to find out what is triggering your dogs barking. If you can take immediate action to remove or reduce what is causing your dog to bark, this may help to improve the situation. If the barking continues, your local vet may be able to offer some guidance. The issue could be due to a behavioural or health concern.

What can I do if I am affected by a dog that barks excessively?

Many owners don't know their dogs bark when they're not home. We encourage you to speak with the dog's owner first to let them know what is happening and how it is affecting you. If you don't feel comfortable talking with the owner, why not write a friendly note and put it in their letterbox to let them know about the issue.

In most situations the cause of barking may be easily identified, but there are times where it isn't as easy. Sometimes, the wrong dog may be identified, the complaint may be due to a neighbourhood dispute or sometimes one neighbour may be overly sensitive to barking while other neighbours hardly notice at all. It's important to understand that each situation is unique.

If you can't resolve the problem yourself, you can contact us to make a barking dog request.

How to report nuisance barking

To report nuisance barking, please call us on 07 3412 3412 or email us at council@logan.qld.gov.au.

You will need to give us the following information:

your name, address and phone number
the address of the property where the dog lives
a description of the barking dog.
the days/times the dog barks and for how long.

What happens after a report is made about excessive barking?

When we receive a barking dog request, we:

will write to the owner of the dog to tell them we have received a barking dog request and give them information that may help reduce nuisance barking
write to you to confirm we have received your request. If the dog is still nuisance barking after 21 days you can call us to lodge a follow up request
if you call to make a follow up request, we will start to investigate. This may include noise monitoring using barking recording devices or a neighbourhood survey
if noise monitoring confirms:
- no excessive barking the investigation will be finalised
- excessive barking we will issue a compliance notice advising the owner to take action to reduce the dog barking. We may also ask the owner to get training for their dog, at their own cost, along with other methods to help find a solution.

If the dog owner fails to reduce the barking and we identify further breaches, we may:

take further enforcement action, including issuing a fine
remove the dog/s from the property.

We may not be able to solve every barking complaint, as the evidence we collect may not reflect a breach in the law. We will continue to support and educate pet owners.

How can I tell if my dog is a nuisance barker?

It’s possible your dog barks when you’re not home. You can try to find out if your dog is barking by:

Finding out what makes them bark when you are at home. Removing the causes could help when you aren’t there.
Ask your neighbours if they have noticed your dog barking and find out when and for how long.
Try pretending you have gone out and listen from outside your property to see if your dog starts barking.
Use a barking monitoring app on your mobile device that you can leave at home to help record any barking when you are not there.

Top