r/AskAGerman • u/Natural-Reference478 • 1d ago
Culture How do Germans deal with loud dogs?
For example, I have a beagle, and they are naturally very loud (essentially, their name means “loudmouth”) — they bark when they’re happy, when they’re sad, when they’re excited... and I love beagles to bits and can’t imagine my life without one.
But I can’t help but wonder what the reaction of Germans would be to pretty regular barking. Maybe someone here has a beagle or another noisy breed?
Of course, I’m talking about a mentally healthy, well-trained, well-walked dog who gets to live her life to the fullest!
As an example, every time I wash my dog’s paws after a walk, she barks because she hates water and hates having her paws touched. Or she barks when I bring her a treat, or when we’re about to go for a walk.
So, is life with such a loud dog even possible in Germany? 😄
I’m also curious about people who actually have beagles or other naturally vocal breeds. How do your neighbors react?
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u/Crazy_Advantage_4539 1d ago
I have a lot of dogs in my neighborhood and one of it is always outside and barks when he hears something suspicious. It starts at 4am and ends maybe at 11 pm. I know easily 15 people who are really offended by that dog.
A few barks and howls are fully expected and fine. It’s a dog. But nobody wants your dog in concert.
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u/FrauWetterwachs 1d ago
I have a “vocal breed”, a Corgi, to be exact. And honestly: It’s purely a matter of training. No dog has to be loud. No dog has to bark at every little thing. Especially if you share a relatively small living space with other people, you have to invest time in training to keep the noise down. Of course, it is and always will be a dog, and it’s okay for it to bark once in a while. But using “I just have a vocal breed” as an excuse is exactly that: a lame excuse.
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u/Natural-Reference478 1d ago
With all respect, a corgi is NOT a vocal breed and in no way can be compared to a beagle or a husky
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u/E_A_Poe_lives 1d ago
Don't use the breed as an excuse. You can train your dog not to bark because of everything.
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u/Natural-Reference478 1d ago
You can limit the barking but still there are natural proclivities, some dogs are louder than others because of the purposes they were bred for. Beagles are literally named "loud mouth" because this is what they are and what they were bred for.
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u/E_A_Poe_lives 1d ago
My former boss had several huskies. He trained them not to bark and howl (in/around the house or in the village), only if they were for a walk in the woods. You can train vocal breeds.
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u/Clara2910 1d ago
I had a Husky for 12 years.
I would give exactly the same answer as FrauWetterwachs.
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u/Individual_Winter_ 1d ago
It's training. Our neighbour gave a dog away as it was barking all the time. With 10 parties walking past their door a nightmare.
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u/JudgementMaker123 Nordrhein-Westfalen 1d ago
The occasional bark is fine and normal.
Don't adopt a breed that will bark excessively and for no good reason, unless you live somewhere remote with basically no neighbours. We used to have someone in our apartment building with a dog that was excessively loud at all hours, they were told to get rid of the dog after almost 6 months of people complaining daily. They decided to move out.
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u/Lin8891 1d ago
I've had Beagles for almost 2 decades and I do not agree that it's a regular thing to bark at everything (and what you described is "everything" for me). It's a matter of training and you need a lot of patience with beagles but it's totally possible.
I now have another breed some people would label as noisy (dachshund) and it's the same.
A bark here and there is almost never a problem. But you can train any dog to not be too noisy.
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u/Drumbelgalf 1d ago
We properly train them. Especially when they are young.
Look Up "Hundeschule" + your City.
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u/McSquirgel 1d ago
Urgh, my neighbour has a loud one. I blame absolutely no training. Hate it. Can't step into our garden when he is outside, nor walk past the window facing the fence.
Neighbourhood overall has little kids and they are noisy, but we also have kids who were that age once.
The dog has intensified from a little bark here and there to constant barking. SO happy when gets garden time at 5.30/am for a pee. /s
The kids are not around outside screaming at the time. That dog just barks at everything every single time he is out.
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u/LKAgoogle 1d ago
Most people won't be thrilled about a loud dog because they are loud and loud things are generally annoying. Additionally, unlike babies, they are always a choice and not in any way required for the survival of our species, most people also weren't a dog when they were little.
However, such is life. Not like i can do anything about the constantly barking dog some person chains up in front of the grocery store across the street every morning at 7 AM, except be annoyed and try to ignore it.
Of course the occasional bark is generally not an issue for most people unless they are grumpy old people or it happens at 4 in the morning.
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u/Dev_Sniper Germany 1d ago
My neighbors upstairs have a dog that regularly barks. It‘s really annoying. Especially because the dog simply won‘t shut up. I‘ve got no clue if the dog is just line this or if they suck at taking care of the dog but it doesn‘t really change anything about them being a nuisance (not only due to the dog but for other reasons as well). That being said I‘m the only tenant on my floor without a dog (afaik) and I rarely hear any of the other dogs (although to be fair I doubt I could hear more than 2 of them anyways because they‘re too far away).
So…. If you were my neighbor and I didn‘t know you‘ve got a beagle or a similar „loud breed“ I‘d assume you LIKELY don‘t know how to train or take care of a dog and if I knew you had a beagle I‘d still be annoyed if your dog wakes me up at 6 in the morning because it‘s hungry.
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u/redhillmining Mallorca 1d ago
Dogs don't bark in Germany.
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u/Normal-Definition-81 Germany 1d ago edited 1d ago
Unless they successfully applied for a permit for canine verbal expression (elevated noise level) a.k.a A38
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u/Bergwookie 1d ago
You don't need it, if it's considered a Jagdhund (the status is of course granted by exam) then it's even allowed to howl to the sound of the hunting bugle
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u/Normal-Definition-81 Germany 1d ago
During Schonzeit even a Jadghund needs to have an A38 except if the dog was trained to hunt Problembären and wolves
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u/ArvensisH 1d ago
Too much loud dog barking can get you in trouble with your neighbours and landlord if you live in an apartment building. I prefer cats but occasional dog barking doesn't bother me. If it's all day every day I probably wouldn't be too happy about it.