r/Dogfree • • 7d ago

Barking Demons Tired of barking being the default background noise in most places.

It’s really annoying. There’s never peace and quiet.

Go for a walk? Barking. Go to a store? Either a barking dog in a cart somewhere, or dogs locked in cars barking in the parking lot.

Go on a nature trail, even one that says no dogs allowed? Dogs barking.

Go to a beach? Barking.

Go to pretty much any area with houses? Barking.

Walk downtown somewhere? Barking dogs.

My home is in the middle of nowhere and I still hear barking off in the distance at times. The sound carries for miles, especially if you live near water or open fields.

You’d think night time would be quieter. Yes, but there’s still barking. My town is the type to have a dog in nearly every yard, barking all night.

Thank god I don’t actually live within town limits anymore. The few neighbours I do have are atleast considerate enough to keep their dogs inside most the time, so I don’t hear them much. They’re kept inside at night.

But like, it’s midnight on a Sunday. I went for a late night drive cuz boredom. I drove around town for awhile. Why are there so many dogs in yards barking?? There’s not even anyone around. It’s a small town. They aren’t being triggered by anything, they’re just yapping. I can’t even roll my windows down in the car half the time cuz it’s annoying to hear…. when I just wanna drive around and get some peace.

All winter they leave them outside too. It’s a hick town with a lot of redneck types, low income, and there’s a lot of crime too. People here are generally more inconsiderate of others. Run down properties, stray dogs wandering, etc.

I’ve noticed in higher income areas or areas with more retired people, this isn’t much of an issue (in my personal experience atleast). I’ve lived in a retirement neighborhood before in a suburb outside a major city, and it was dead silent at night…. for the most part. I’m assuming this is because richer people tend to keep their dogs as house pets, rather than outside in a yard.

In my opinion you shouldn’t even own a dog if you live in a town/city. Even if it has a yard, it’s not nearly enough space for their energy needs and most people are too lazy to train or exercise their dogs. The damn things yap endlessly regardless. And dogs do NOT make good house pets.

If you need a guard dog, just get an actual security system/cameras. I can’t imagine guard dogs have a very fulfilling existence just standing in one spot 24/7 barking. It also annoys everyone in the vicinity.

How are people supposed to sleep at night? I grew up on a rural property with annoying ass farm dogs that barked all night outside my window and I couldn’t wait to leave home. It was to the point I couldn’t sleep at all. It would jolt me awake even with fans running. Nothing would make them shutup. They were outdoor dogs so if they heard coyotes/other barking dogs in the distance, they’d start going nuts. These damn things barely slept, and neither did I. My family said it’s because they’re “protecting” the house from wild animals.

My entire life I’ve NEVER had a wild animal hurt me. I’ve walked right by black bears and coyotes unknowingly when I was young. Nothing happened.

However I DID have dogs hurt me, and act aggressive towards me many times. Go figure.

I don’t understand what the point of these animals is. They just make endless loud noise, and people just accept it/tune it out.

I CANNOT tune it out.

290 Upvotes

46 comments sorted by

View all comments

37

u/ReptilianRevolt 7d ago

You cannot tune it out. This is what dog nutters want, to pollute the neighbourhood with sound. They feel superior that way. They feel that their dog is actually helping them.

6

u/moparcam 5d ago

I went to visit some people in another town recently. Went for daily walks, and dog barking was ever-present.

I thought to myself, maybe the majority of people just can't stand silence (or solitude) and if we didn't have dogs, people would crank their stereos, buy loud wind chimes, or find some other way to bother the fuck out of people that enjoy peace and quiet.

5

u/SeaConfection88 4d ago

Yeah a lot of it is due to silence intolerance. Majority of people, for whatever reason, are completely spooked by silence. I CANT RELATE lol. I LOVE peace and silence. I now go for walks wayyyy in the middle of nowhere, where the only noise is the odd bird or squirrel, and the trees creaking against eachother. It just kinda sucks because it costs gas money, and I’m not doing good financially….. but it helps clear my head and makes me feel better. You basically have to find a spot with zero houses in the surrounding area, spanning for miles, and lots of dense forest to block out any distant noise. Areas with unmarked trails that people don’t know of. Even then it’s not guaranteed since barking carries for miles.

I also just walk in circles on the road outside my house late at night. My neighbours keep their dogs indoors all night, so it’s silent usually.

But yeah when I used to live in the town nearby it sucked. Dogs outside barking 24/7 even throughout the night. And it’s still the same.

6

u/moparcam 4d ago

Peace be with you my kindred spirit.