Do French Bulldogs Bark A Lot [10 Bark Triggers]

People ask do French Bulldogs bark a lot in online forums and groups, so I took my time to study French Bulldogs and why they bark, so in this article, you will find out why people think Frenchies bark a lot.

French Bulldogs are adorable, lovable, cuddly dogs which is one of the reasons why they are extremely expensive to buy and maintain.

But what do they do when they are not playing or snuggling? Unfortunately, they do bark when they are bored and lonely.

Do French Bulldogs bark a lot? 

French Bulldogs are not known to be excessive barkers, though they may bark to communicate when necessary, such as when someone is at the door or when they feel threatened.

They are not typically considered to be a “yappy” breed.

However, like all dogs, French Bulldogs can bark more than usual if they are anxious, scared, or in distress.

It’s important to identify the cause of excessive barking and address it appropriately.

Training and socialization can also help minimize any excessive barking behavior in French Bulldogs.

Reasons Why French Bulldogs May Bark

Here are some top reasons why French Bulldogs can result to barking which are as follows;

Out of Excitement

French Bulldogs may bark out of excitement because they are a highly energetic and social breed.

They thrive on attention and love to play and interact with their owners. When they get excited, they may bark as a way to express their joy and enthusiasm.

It’s important to note, however, that excessive barking can become a problem, and it’s important to train your Frenchie to limit their barking.

Giving your Frenchie plenty of exercises and mental stimulation can also help reduce their need to bark out of excitement.

Additionally, it’s important to establish rules and boundaries for your dog and to train them to understand which behaviors are acceptable and which are not.

Learn more about different ways to care for your French bulldog.

Separation Anxiety

Separation anxiety in French Bulldogs describes a condition in which Frenchies exhibit distress and behavior problems when separated from their owner.

Separation anxiety in French Bulldogs typically manifests within minutes of the departure of the owners.

It is not fully understood why some dogs suffer from separation anxiety and others do not.

This is one of the biggest issues most dog owners face, and most times is attributed to a lack of proper training.

However, Frenchie that suffers from separation anxiety ends up being aggressive and then results in unnecessary barking.

Do French Bulldogs bark a lot…. Separation Anxiety is the main answer to that.

How to handle separation anxiety in French Bulldogs

Here are tips to solve separation anxiety in French Bulldogs;

• A second pet should come in as fast as you can
• Lots of new treats and interactive toys
• Provide lots of hanging out or exercise
• Start a new proper crate training regiment.
• See an animal behaviorist
• Hire a dog sitter
• Train them to stay alone without following you around while you’re at home.

Presence Of A Stranger

If you live in a busy city or area, there may be a reason to believe that French Bulldogs bark a lot.

Let’s get a few things clear that French Bulldogs are not very good guard dogs, but they are definitely one of the best watchdogs out there.

This means that you will often encounter these barks if you do not practice and socialize them well!

The unsocialized French Bulldog would keep barking at the postal operator whenever he was around.

French bulldogs will always hang around telling their owners about strangers, even if they may not attack, but you will hear them if there are strangers around.

French Bulldogs Bark Because They Know You Hear Them

Your Frenchie’s bark will wake you up at night because he knows you always wake up.

A dog who barks for fun or to get attention, or a dog who barks to alert you, will probably wake you up.

If the dog is barking to keep you from leaving or barking to alert you to a pest on the porch, the barking will likely keep you up as well.

Barking can also be the last thing you hear at night. Maybe a dog or other dog is barking at the window for you to come outside.

And maybe a dog is barking to warn you that he sees someone at the door. Or maybe a dog is barking and chasing a squirrel.

Or maybe a dog is barking at the possum in the tree behind the yard.

Maybe a dog is barking at another dog or a bird or a raccoon. That’s why French Bulldogs bark.

Out of Fear

Every living being lives in fear until a thing or two helps it overcome it. Even humans fear too, so why would Frenchies not fear?

Things differ slightly from the French Bulldog perspective, in that they are a small breed that is afraid of anything larger than its size.

Let’s look at an example, you failed to properly socialize your Frenchie with other dogs.

Then you have a neighbor two blocks from your house, that has a German Shepherd (GSD), your neighbor walks around your house with GSD every day.

When your Frenchie sees the GSD, how do you think they would react? This is solely on you as the owner who failed to do his or her work.

Common things that may instigate fear in your French Bulldogs are as follows;

• Fireworks
• Thunder
• Darkness
• Gunshots
• Loud noises
• Movements at night
• Bigger dogs

One of the simple ways to help your Frenchie overcome fear is early and proper socialization, as well as introducing your French Bulldog to its object of fear.

To Protect Themselves From People

French Bulldogs may bark to protect themselves from people, but this is not their main motivation for barking.

French Bulldogs are generally not aggressive dogs and are not known for being good guard dogs.

However, they may bark to alert their owners of potential threats or strangers entering their territory.

This is more of a natural behavioral instinct than a conscious decision to protect themselves from people.

It’s important to note that excessive barking can be a behavioral problem, and it’s important to train your French Bulldog to bark appropriately.

Consistent positive reinforcement training can help teach your French Bulldog to bark less frequently and more selectively, so they only bark when necessary.

Seeking Attention

Let’s face it, every dog ​​barks or bites when they need attention, and the Frenchies are no exception.

French Bulldogs were primarily and selectively bred as companion dogs that stay with their owners throughout the day.

Thus, they depend on their owners for everything, such as love, food, water, medical care, and more.

If you’re not very careful, trust that the cute little puppy you thought you knew would change overnight, these changes most often result in barking, chopping, or jumping at you.

Just create a daily routine for them in that way they get what they need before asking or in your absence.

Or they may not start unnecessary barking when in need of your services.

Out of Pain or Illness

Remember we said that French bulldogs are not known to be aggressive, but could become aggressive if need be!

So pain and illness are one of the needs that should force your French Bulldog to bark unnecessarily, however, this can be controlled by regular medical check-ups.

Therefore, always check out unnecessary pain or illness when your French Bulldog starts barking unnecessarily.

Or look out to see if your French Bulldog ate the wrong food.

To Protect Themselves From Other Dogs

Barking is also a good way of protecting your dog from other dogs.

He might be barking at other dogs for fun, but if he is barking at dogs because they’re coming into his yard to bother him, you might yell at him to let the other dogs know to stay out of his yard.

If other dogs don’t understand you’re shouting at the dogs, they’ll try to get into your yard, and your French Bulldog will bark to keep the dogs away.

Some people might get mad at dogs for barking at them.

A few might even call the police to report dogs barking, or even to tell the police to come to their homes and yell at the dogs or get into the yard.

But most people will just want to yell at the dogs to keep them from barking or attacking, as some people do with dogs when they get angry.

So bear in mind that the presence of other dogs might influence how often your French Bulldog barks.

Learn more about how to stop dogs from barking at other dogs.

Due To Loneliness & Boredom

Your Frenchie may resort to barking out of boredom because French bulldogs are highly social and thrive on human touch and care.

When alone for long periods of time, they get anxious and can bark as a sign of unhappiness.

Imagine sitting at home all day long doing nothing. French Bulldogs also feel the same when they are bored.

How To Stop French Bulldogs From Barking A Lot

Barking is a big problem for most French Bulldogs owners, so here are some tips that will help you control barking in French Bulldogs;

Always Remain Calm When Your Frenchie Bark

Calling or shouting at your Frenchie to stop barking all the time sends the wrong signal, and that means you are telling your French Bulldog to keep barking.

Calmness, love, compassion, and trust are the basics you need to grow your Frenchie. Your French Bulldog will stop barking once you calm down.

Provide Lots of Exercises And Stimulation

One of the main reasons French bulldogs bark is a sedentary lifestyle and boredom.

Give your Frenchie something to handle and they’ll be too busy to remember to bark.

A 10-minute walk a day is fine, but not in a hot environment, holding it in or just playing an extraction game for a while, will drain the energy.

Too much energy in French Bulldogs will force them into unnecessary behavior and encourage barking, so take it or borrow it.

There are tons of toys out there that will mentally stimulate your Frenchie, so be sure to check them out.

Ignore Your French Bulldogs When They Bark

French bulldogs always like to bark because they want your attention.

When they finally get the attention they need, even when told to shut up, they have succeeded already.

As a result, they bark for attention as often as they want and can get out of control from time to time.

So try to ignore them when they bark for attention.

Remove The Sources or Causes Of Barking

You can always get rid of the bad things that drive your Frenchie people crazy or introduce them to the things that drive them crazy.

Suppose your Frenchie goes crazy at the sight of the postman, then call the postman and introduce your Frenchie.

This way your Frenchie can see that the postman is not a threat and feel comfortable with the postman.

Use the same steps for other things that will set your Frenchie to fire up.

How To Train French Bulldogs Not To Bark

Here are tips on how to train a French Bulldog not to bark which are as follows;

Proper Obedience Training

Whenever your Frenchie is barking, and you want them to stop, the first thing you can do is to use a “quiet” command.

Remember this involves waiting for them to stop for a moment and then saying “quiet”, then “good boy”, then rewarding them with a treat.

A quiet command with a reward will help you train your French Bulldog to stop barking.

Be Sure To Always Provide Exercises And Stimulation

One of the main reasons French bulldogs bark is a sedentary lifestyle and boredom, so always give your Frenchie something to handle, and they’ll be too busy to remember to bark.

A 10-minute walk a day is fine, but not in a hot environment, holding it in or just playing an extraction game for a while, will drain the energy.

Too much energy in French Bulldogs will force them into unnecessary behavior and encourage barking, so take it or borrow it.

There are tons of toys out there that will mentally stimulate your Frenchie, so be sure to check them out.

Provide And Maintain The Same Daily Routine

Maintaining a daily routine is a simple key to achieving most of the training and path you want your French Bulldog to take.

The importance of maintaining a daily routine is that at every point in time, your Frenchie has something to do to keep him busy.

Always stick to what is working for you on a daily basis. Feed when it’s time, play when it’s time, sleep when it’s time, etc.

Provide Early And Proper Socialization

Do you want a service dog that can handle other people or animals? Then it starts with the initial socialization.

The main benefit of early French Bulldog socialization is that it brings calm, confidence, and love to your Frenchie.

When you have a French Bulldog who socializes well, then you have a dog that is around with other dogs, as well as a dog that greets visitors.

Ways of Socializing French Bulldogs

• Visit other dog owners with your Frenchie as often as you can.
• Take your French Bulldog to dog shows
• Visit dog parks
• Invite your neighbors who own other pets
• Go camping with your Frenchie
• Take your French Bulldog to puppy classes
• Watch your favorite TV shows with your Frenchie
• Play records of dog movies for your French Bulldog.

Do French Bulldogs bark at strangers

Yes, French Bulldogs will bark at strangers if they are not properly socialized with humans or other animals, French Bulldogs can bark at strangers for different reasons such as fear, distress, anxiety, threat, seeking attention, and alarming the owner of a stranger.

French Bulldog barking at night

Yes, French Bulldogs can bark at night for different reasons which are as follows;

• Poor socialization
• Fear
• Total darkness
• Loud sound
• Illness
• Hunger
• Presence of a stranger
• Presence of creepy animals (snakes)
• Another dog barking
• Seeking attention
• Lack of enough exercise during the day
• Boredom
• Separation anxiety