My Dachshund Barks All the Time

Richard Thomas
Over 15 years handling, testing, and restoring pocket, fixed-blade, and Damascus steel knives across hunting and everyday-carry disciplines.

My Dachshund Barks All the Time: 5 Tips!

If your Dachshund Barks All the Time, don’t panic — he’s not necessarily aggressive. We’ll tell you everything in this new article!

Although barking is a natural behavior for our dachshund friends, it can be very annoying for humans and get on their nerves, but above all… their ears 😜

The following tips helped us stop our dachshund (Neo in the photos) from barking constantly.

Our little wire-haired miniature dachshund now behaves very well and is much happier and more confident.

Right away, here are the 5 best tips to calm (and eventually stop) your dachshund’s barking!

1. Stop Excessive Barking with a Consistent Sound Command

No punishment!

The best way I’ve found for my dog when he barks is to stand up and shake an (empty) bottle a quarter filled with coins or other metal objects inside. It’s very effective.

Also, I’ve noticed that gently spraying him with clean water grabs his attention and distracts him from whatever was making him bark!

At the same time, I follow up with a “QUIET” command in a firm but not shouting voice.

A behaviorist will always advise you to stand up, to be physically dominant, and to always teach him the same command and the same firm tone to get him used to it.

Your dog will probably pause, then start barking again; you’ll repeat the same process, namely shaking the can and giving the “QUIET” command while standing up.

Bravely praise your sausage dog only a few seconds after he’s stopped barking (remember to reward him with treats like kibble hidden in your pocket).

Dachshund toys >

2. Stay Calm When Your Dog Yaps

Dogs tend to mirror their owner’s energy.

So it’s important to stay calm even if you’re frustrated and angry about his barking.

At home, when you leave him alone, try to keep him away from outside stimulation — for example, away from street sounds and noises, or even close the curtains so he can’t see too much outside and get overly curious.

While I’m away, I also leave the television or radio on with some nice relaxing music to help keep him calm if he has to stay alone.

He needs to learn to stay well-behaved and cultivate his calmness even if another dog, or even a cat, makes him bark. 😜

3. Remove the Stimulus, or Your Dachshund From the Stimulus

Sometimes I find myself in a situation where I can’t apply the 1st tip, so I use my body as a wall between my dachshund and whatever is making him bark.

DOMESTIC LIFE HAS A LOT TO DO WITH YOUR DOG’S BARKING!

Yes indeed… domestic life can be very boring for a dachshund.

It’s not enough to let your dachshund run around on the terrace or in the garden… Go out and have fun with him, and never forget that your dachshund is an athlete!

Continuous barking is often the result of pent-up energy or boredom.

So it’s an excellent idea to exercise with your dachshund every day if you can, to avoid unpleasant noise nuisance.

During your walks, change your routes or direction. Find unusual or challenging spots and routes if you can, such as a hill or a hike in the woods.

If your dachshund barks enthusiastically on the balcony or terrace (because of the neighbors), bring him back inside immediately and only let him back out once he’s calm.

Repeat as many times as necessary, and never leave him unsupervised for too long.

Dachshund harnesses >

4. Don’t Reinforce Your Little Companion’s Barking With Displays of Affection

It is also VERY IMPORTANT not to reinforce barking with signs of affection.

If your dachshund barks all the time, don’t pick him up — this is absolutely not the right moment.

Also, avoid making a big fuss over him when you leave or come home (we know it’s hard…). You need to avoid these displays of affection to make progress when you get home.

That way, you won’t be positively reinforcing their barking and jumping.

I know it’s incredibly hard and seems mean not to greet your dachshund back, but it’s not natural and will only make their behavior worse.

Without realizing it (and it’s not your fault), your dachshund may be barking excessively because you’ve unintentionally trained him to do so.

A few examples:

He barks and you open the door to let him out for a walk

He barks and you respond by paying attention to him

He barks and gets a treat

He barks and you open the door again to let him in

He barks and you give him a belly rub, a pat… you can easily picture the situation…

… So your dachshund has learned to get attention by barking.

The dachshund’s strong personality can easily lead you into this trap, since the very nature of barking is to hold your attention.

5. The Dog Barks and Temporary Separation Anxiety

If your dachshund barks all the time because of probable temporary separation anxiety (when you go out), it’s best to get help from a dog trainer (behaviorist), as it can be very difficult to change such behavior without professional help.

It’s worth knowing that 90% of the training work is done with us, the owners, and not with the dog.

If your dachshund’s excessive barking has already become a habit, don’t expect him to be completely under control overnight…

Behavioral problems are one of the main reasons pets are abandoned, and that is absolutely outrageous and unacceptable!

If we want to save as many of our four-legged friends as possible, we must learn and get help if needed, in order to train them properly.

Tip: Mentally Stimulate Your Dachshund to Reduce His Barking

Providing stimulating mental activities is also very useful for releasing your dachshund’s energy and keeping him occupied.

For example, work on obedience, offer him games, activities that stimulate his sense of smell: tracking, dog enrichment games, or search games 😊

Also, have him meet other dogs at the park or elsewhere so your dachshund can play with his fellow dogs in a pack! They may obviously yap a bit while greeting each other: that’s normal!

Just be careful with big dogs… We’ve noticed that our dachshund prefers small dogs, and of course he especially prefers other dachshunds.

Try organizing dachshund Meetups with people you know. It’s just as fun for the owners as it is for the dogs. Socialization is very important for your dachshund and for your own well-being, since they, like us, are social beings.

A Final Paw-Note

All dogs are different, and they all bark. It’s in their nature.
You need to understand that even though you can control your dachshund’s barking, don’t dream too big — you won’t be able to completely stop your companion’s barking, but you can reduce it through dog training 😃

You’ll need to be patient with your whining dog (several weeks of training) to replace old habits with new ones.

Dachshunds bark and use their vocal cords for several reasons:

In response to other dogs barking
As a warning
To get your attention
Out of excitement
Out of anxiety

So it’s important to identify the triggers before trying to apply any anti-barking training method with your dog.

One last thing… As you’ve understood, the muzzle, shock collar, or anti-bark collar option won’t fix the barking at all (does shouting, in humans, always have to be resolved by gagging them…?)

“A barking dog needs Exercise, Discipline, then Affection, in that order.” – C. Millan

The DoxieLife Team
💚 – Last updated on 26/03/26

Check out our blog post on Dachshund Hair Loss »