The realisation that “yelling – like spanking – does not teach the child anything about how to behave appropriately”1, applies just as much to dogs. A raised voice does not teach your dog what you want them to do. It simply leaves your dog with a negative emotional memory.
As silly as it might make us sound, that high pitch is a cue that dogs listen for. Scientists have found again and again that how people say things to dogs is just as important as what they say.
The connection, described in a new paper published in the journal NeuroImage, means that dogs don't only benefit from interactions with their owner, they get a reward from just listening to their voice too.
During a series of tests, dogs were spoken to in a high-pitched voice and again in a normal adult voice. Researchers then monitored which speaker the dogs responded to and wanted to interact with. PhD student Alex Benjamin said it seemed dogs were more likely to favour the speaker who used a high pitch.
Your pooch needs to be trained with love and compassion. New research suggests that adversely training, e.g. yelling at, your dog could cause long-term psychological harm. Dogs that had undergone adverse training methods were found to have higher cortisol levels in their saliva and displayed more stress behaviors.
There's almost never a time when screaming and yelling at your dog is acceptable. 'Unless your dog is about to run into a busy road and come to serious harm, I wouldn't ever use any form of harsh voice,' she added. 'Instead, it's about rewarding good behaviour, not punishing the bad. '
Yelling or raising your voice
Dogs are very sensitive to human tone of voice; it doesn't take a lot to effectively communicate that you are unhappy with their actions. This means that yelling or even raising your voice at your dog is not only unnecessary, but it can have unintended negative outcomes.
A little more surprising is that the dogs liked hearing their favorite words and the baby talk voice together best of all. Especially puppies! So the next time you feel a little silly talking to your favorite four-legged family member like they're a baby, be proud instead. It's science.
Using baby voice with your dog is totally fine and can even boost your bond with new puppies.
Do Dogs Like When You Talk to Them? Yes! Research published in Animal Cognition found that both puppies and adult dogs are attentive to the high-pitch voice we use with babies and the more even-toned language used with adults.
It comforts them to hear your voice, and you can use singing to relax your dog when they are feeling some stress. To start serenading, get your dog's attention if your dog enjoys eye contact. Start with a gentle, soothing volume, not too loud as that is no fun for these masters of hearing.
That said, most researchers believe dogs can remember important people and significant events in their lives for years, perhaps until death. So, yes, your dog remembers your scent, your face (especially your eyes), and your voice and associates them with happiness, love or snuggling, or maybe just with food.
But, dogs generally tend to be more attracted to a specific set of behaviors that are exhibited mostly by adult women. It's not that dogs are exclusively attracted to female adults. It's that dogs like particular things adult females do. Dogs like women's softer voices and smaller figures.
There is nothing wrong with using the word “no” properly when training your dog. “No” should be said calmly and should mean, “That is not a behavior that I want.” “No” can also be a “no reward marker.” It can just mean that the dog will not get a reward for that behavior.
Dogs are good at reading us, and they usually know when we are being affectionate, such as when we kiss them. Because they love affection from us, most dogs do like being kissed. However, they don't like the act of being kissed but rather that we give them attention and show affection.
Well, turns out, dogs love that! Studies show that dogs bond easily with humans who form high-pitched speech patterns. Just like babies, pups respond to easy and positive language interactions.
As mentioned, pet-directed speech and baby talk have a lot in common. They both are slower, more melodic and of a higher pitch than adult-directed speech. What this means is that humans might naturally adjust their way of talking when they know that the person or animal they're talking to doesn't speak your language.
Soft and reassuring (low volume, high pitch) – A soothing tone of voice expresses affection and caring and is often used when bonding with your dog. Think of how you sound when trying to comfort a baby.
He's Scared or Stressed Out
Dogs occasionally get scared too. Fireworks, trips to the vet, raised voices and other triggers can make your pooch feel unsafe, causing him to tremble with fear or stress.
We know that even if we are frazzled or agitated or raise our voice on a bad day, our dogs will faithfully cuddle up against us that evening, content just to be by our side, forgetting the stress of the day. Dogs forgive us quickly, and recently, it was found that they forgive one another as well.
Yelling or pushing your puppy away may cause it to think that it's playtime, which will encourage even more biting and nipping. Reacting to its behavior with attention may cause the puppy to misinterpret you, which is why it's better to quietly and calmly remove yourself from the situation instead of yelling.
Losing your cool when training your pup is not only mean, but it can also affect your pet.
Unprovoked aggression, whining, or whimpering. Overly submissive (rolling onto back, tail tucked, urinating) Suddenly avoiding any physical contact. Attempts to bite or scratch when petted.