Why do sirens hurt

This article was written by a veterinary technician, but it should not substitute as contact with your veterinarian. If your dog appears more howling more than normal, contact your local vet.

Did an ambulance just roll by, and your dog started to howl? So why do some dogs howl at sirens? There are actually a number of reasons a dog may call out when an ambulance or police vehicle drives by.

If you have a dog that is prone to howling , you know that a siren in the distance can easily set them off. A passing ambulance can have your pup bolting to the window with a loud bellow.

This often leads us to wonder what these sirens could possibly trigger in their mind. Howling is an ingrained method of communication that our dogs have inherited from their wolf ancestors.

While there are many ways our dogs communicate with us , some methods are more primal. While our pups may no longer need to communicate with their animal pack, this behavior is still seen in many dogs today. Our dogs may not be a member of a wolf pack, but they are a member of our family. There are many reasons dogs may howl at sirens and other loud noises. There are five reasons that are most common though, and we cover each of those below.

As we mentioned above, even the smallest of furry friends have wild ancestors. Our dogs are descendants of wolves, and their wild roots can peak through from time to time.

When a wolf would get separated from their pack, they would let out a high pitched howl to alert the rest of their pack of their location. While a passing siren may not be a wolf in distress, it certainly mimics the sound.

As we mentioned above, our dogs feel a need to protect their loved ones. They also want to keep us aware of our surroundings. When our dogs hear a siren approaching their home, they may process it as a possible threat that we need to be aware of.

Sirens can be loud and daunting, and our pups will often hear it long before we do. If your dog is howling in an attempt to alert you, you may notice them running to your side or even barking at you for attention.

This a very interesting article. I didn't know that wolves don't bark. When dogs howl they are sometimes happy but, sometimes mad that is interesting. Dogs hearing is more sensitive, I don't believe that when I say sit my dog just ignores me. I would like to learn more about a dog. I think that it is interesting to know that dogs howl to sirens because they either think that they are lonely or they are saying go away.

I believe that it is amazing how dogs are hard-wired to think that they should howl to annoying sirens. I believed that dogs hated sirens, but now I know that the dogs are actually just saying things to sirens. I agree with you because like you said dog's hearing is sensitive. Maybe because of that they howl "Go away" because their ears hurt too much. Dogs are responding to sirens and other things that make noise because they react to these things.

They are able to know if they are good or bad. They are always responding to this things so that they are able to make contact with the owner that the sound is a bad sound or it is good sound.

I agree with this comment. The article states that dogs are responding to sirens since their wolf ancestors used to howl not bark to communicate. Wolves are often depicted with their head thrown back in a long howl—the behavior is almost synonymous with them. This unique form of communication serves a few purposes in the wolf community, from gathering the pack to location-finding.

A recent study out of Austria attempted to learn more about the specifics of why wolves howl 1. The study set out to determine if captive wolves could control howling vocalizations or if they were triggered by emotional stress.

Researchers discovered that not only were howls voluntary, they were often a result of being separated from an important companion, like the pack leader or a preferred partner.