Why does my dog lunge and bark at cars?
Khalid Welch
2025-07-17 01:27:28
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Cars’ sudden and fast movements inspire many dogs’ inner prey drive. Alternatively, the sound or movement of the cars can be upsetting, so some dogs may begin lunging at the vehicles or chasing them. Dog breeds developed to chase, such as Sighthounds, may often want to chase moving vehicles. Herding breeds also often struggle with this behavior because they were bred to have sharp, attentive vision. Similarly, terriers (bred to have a high prey drive) can also be driven to chase moving vehicles. But lunging and trying to chase moving vehicles is a behavior with which many dogs, regardless of breed, struggle.
Jordi Parisian
2025-07-04 00:24:14
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The three main reasons dogs bark in the car are: anxiety, barrier aggression, and excitement.
Dogs are usually anxious in the car because they’ve developed a negative association with driving.
Maybe you’ve noticed that your dog barks at certain stimuli that pass by the car, such as other dogs or people.
If so, it wouldn’t be surprising if they bark at the same stimuli while walking on a leash in the neighborhood.
We call this barrier frustration.
A dog that barks at certain objects in the car or on a leash is either excited or frustrated that they can’t go say hello or fearful or aggressive toward this object.
Some dogs bark because they just love going places.
These excitable dogs can be difficult to manage as they tend to move around a lot in the back seat.
Junius Sporer
2025-06-26 09:13:59
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Most dogs who do this are trying to scare the traffic away, because there is a big element of fear involved. Not only is there the size to consider, but the noise, vibration, and the diesel fumes at dog height make these vehicles a very unpleasant experience for the dog as they go by. And of course the traffic does go away, so your dog thinks her actions have succeeded, which is rewarding her. Her imagined success brings with it a big rush of excitement hormones, which are highly addictive, and so prompt her to repeat this behaviour for the thrill of it. Thrill and fear are very closely linked in the mind. If your dog is a herding breed, then she is also genetically programmed to dive at moving things and get them moving faster, so there is yet another huge reward in this. Every dog has a reaction distance.
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