Why is my dog howling all of a sudden

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Dogs howl to attract attention, announce their presence and communicate with others. While howling is often done for a specific reason, it can sometimes be a way to simply express excitement.

Howling is ingrained in the behaviour of dogs. Similar to a wolf's howling, it can often be loud, drawn-out and mournful — and will sound very different to a brief bark. As dogs have grown closer to humans over the years, their howls have evolved to mean a whole host of other things.

Are you wondering why your dog howls? We asked the experts to find out everything you need to know...

Are dogs sad when they howl?

"Howling is a form of dog communication, in the same way as barking, whining or any other sounds your dog makes," Carolyn Menteith, a Kennel Club Accredited Instructor, tells Country Living.

While howling is normal for dogs, it can sometimes be a sign that they are hurt or scared by something sudden. A sad, mournful howl can be a form of crying. If your dog is howling regularly, and for prolonged periods, try to understand what the root cause is.

Caroyln backs this up, adding: "Some breeds or type of dog howl more than others and there are numerous reasons why your dog might howl. These include but are not limited to: excitement, communicating with other dogs, responding to noises or other external stimulus, and sometimes even just for enjoyment. It can however often be a sign of distress, and so it's not uncommon for dogs to howl when they are left on their own for a long period of time."

“Sometimes dogs howl if there is a particular song on the radio and may react to a pitch or a note and the dog responds with a howl.”

My parents’ German shepherd would let out a sustained, forceful howl whenever the doorbell rang, and then it was followed by a series of guard-dog-like barks.

Remer adds, “Some dogs howl because they’re lonely.”

In my parents’ neighborhood is a husky that’s often left out in the yard for many hours on end all by itself; this poor husky has howled incessantly and sounded like one miserable animal.

The howling was nonstop and it was a wonder this stately husky didn’t damage its vocal cords.

My mother finally put several complaints into the homeowners’ association and the howling has since ceased.

No pet should be left outside alone for literally eight hours, like this lonely husky was.

“Some dogs howl as part of locating their prey,” says Remer. “Certain hound breeds will howl as an indication of locating their prey. Some hounds such as treeing hounds and coon hounds howl to let the human hunter know its location.

“Bassets, beagles and fox hounds have a howl-like noise known as a cry when they are hunting and will also make the sound in an aroused state anticipating hunting.”

And sometimes, it’s just not clear why a dog will start howling out of the blue. My parents’ German shepherd, as mentioned, normally let out a single howl whenever the doorbell rang, followed by aggressive barking.

But not long after being diagnosed with a brain tumor, the German shepherd began howling while in the car, even though there were no apparent auditory stimuli around, or people around, while the car was parked in the lot; or while I was driving the car.

The German shepherd had been in cars since puppy-hood, so it was a mystery why one day he began emitting a more passive, and very prolonged, type of howl; it was a very charming howl that I enjoyed listening to, yet at the same time, it made me wonder if the disease was affecting his thinking, even though he seemed to be improving from treatment.

This magnificent German shepherd not long after made his journey to the Bridge.

In conclusion, howling is definitely a communication device among domestic dogs. 

Mary Remer is founder of What a Good Dog, a dog training and behavioral facility.

Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.