Barking at the door

[Michen]

My dog barks at the door, when the gate is opened, when a car slows down outside. I've always let her do it as it's only a few sharp woofs and I live alone so like to know. But when I have left her and come home she never barks (it can be heard through door), nor when I open door (where she still can't see me).

Does she recognise the sound of my car versus others? Or is just only interested in alarm barking when she's with me?

 

[CorvusCorax]

Yes they do recognise car engines.

 

[Clodagh]

When I lived in Australia our dogs could hear my OH’s motorbike turning off the freeway. It was a good mile to our house from there.

 

[AmyMay]

Yep, she knows your car

 

[CorvusCorax]

When I lived in Australia our dogs could hear my OH’s motorbike turning off the freeway. It was a good mile to our house from there.

Yep both my mother and my landlords/neighbours know when I am coming home, it's a mile or two from the main road to my Mum's house, just a short laneway to my home. They never bother with other cars.

 

[Keith_Beef]

My dog, who stayed with my grandmother when we moved out, could certainly recognize different footsteps. He would excitedly go to the back door, wagging his tail but not barking, when he hear the footsteps of somebody he knew well in the gennel and then the back yard, but would bark if he heard a stranger.

I would expect a dog to recognise different vehicle engines just the same.

 

[Equi]

They recognise cars and time. We dogsit my cousins little pampered pooch and at 5:30 every time she sits at the door and goes bonkers when mummy comes in, if anyone else comes in she ignores them.

 

[ArklePig]

When we first met, my husbands family had a lovely boxer/lab cross who was definitely NOT allowed on the bed. She would snooze happily when my car pulled up in the drive, but when his mum pulled in, she would jump off, run back to her own bed and pretend she was sleeping. To the extent she did a big yawn/stretch when his mum came in the door, as if she was just waking up. Their hearing can be ridiculous!

 

[ycbm]

I had a horse who used to hear my lorry from the main road half a mile away. I could see him stop grazing and run to the gate.
.

 

[Mrs. Jingle]

Yes both mine can hear if it is my son's car or my husband's at random times of the day before they even turn into our boreen which is one km long. The excitement is ridiculous even if they have only been gone for half an hour

 

[SilverLinings]

Dogs I've had have all learnt the sound of 'friendly' cars (ie mine and people who visited regularly and would get excited. A few years ago I kept a horse I had on a DIY livery yard for six months: my car was identical to that of another livery, same make, model, colour and spec, but one year difference in age, but my horse ALWAYS knew when I was driving up, and his horse knew when he was arriving. The car park and road were behind the stables so the horses were definitely going by sound rather than sight, and we weren't consistent in arrival times (one of us didn't always arrive first etc)- it was something the other liveries all commented on because we were the only two with apparently identical cars so it showed how good horses hearing is!

 

[Pinkvboots]

My dog can hear my oh coming down our lane and runs to the front door crying, if any other car stops at our drive or she hears the gate go she will bark so I think they can recognise different vehicles.

She also knows some of my friends cars so will cry and bark but it's a different barking compared to a strange vehicle.

My dog jumps on the sofa and then sits on the window cil waiting for my oh as she gets a great view of him pulling in.

 

[Parrotperson]

agreed they know your car. Our parrot knows the sound of the car and gets excited to see us!

 

[SOS]

My dogs and cat know the sound of our cars. However they only bark if they are home alone with me and someone comes to the door. Not when my OH is home alone or when we are together, unless they are caught by surprise.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

Bear doesn’t really bark, he can’t be bothered and I’ve always discouraged it, very yappy dog next door (not saying yours is, OP), but he definitely knows the OH’s car/bike.

When I arrived at the yard, Beau would be literally shouting whether I parked in the lane and walked 100 yards to his box or when I moved boxes, I could drive past and he’d be pacing up and do shouting. People always knew I had arrived because he’d be going crazy. I’ve had the same car for a long time.