One dog howls at ambulances while another dog ignores sirens entirely
Chicago native wholeheartedly agrees with a New Yorker complaining about ambulances being too loud
Four people interviewing one person is chaotic, and I would never recommend it. And watching Trevor Noah’s friends interview New York Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani was about as dizzying as I expected it to be, especially with his friend/guest host David Kibuuka who had plenty to say about all things New York. (Watch the lower third — the caption identifying a host or interviewer — change as Kibuuka talks.) But this interview was so funny that I watched it three times.
While I chuckled at most of guest host Kibuuka's points on Trevor Noah's podcast (with his usual co-host Eugene Khoza), the query about ambulances being too loud blindsided me. It wasn’t just that it was a random complaint for the New Yorker to ask the mayor-elect; it was that this Chicagoan absolutely agrees and wonders if anybody ever asked Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson the same thing.
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As soon as I hear the startling loud sound of an ambulance, the first thing I do is whip my head around to glare at my dog to make sure she doesn’t start a duet. I give my Hound mix a free pass to throw her head back and howl away on the street, which she does every single time and causes anybody near us to turn around and see this commotion, but I trained her early on and often to never howl like this inside. My neighbors would hate me, and I don’t want to be the noisy neighbor with the dog. Plus, this duet sounds two times as loud within condo walls.
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What’s up with dogs howling? Why do dogs howl at all?
According to the American Kennel Club, the domesticated descendant of wolves has something in common with the wilder pack. For wolves, howling is a way to communicate over long distances. Pack members might also howl to each other before hunting together.
It’s also a warning signal to unknown wolves to keep out. But dog owners often notice that if one dog howls, almost certainly another dog will howl too. As with wolves, one wolf’s howl will set off a chain reaction for other wolves. While a wolf may howl in the woods to be found by its pack, a dog may do the same if she has separation anxiety in hopes that her owner will not leave or will return home soon.
So why do dogs howl at ambulances?
Triggering sounds may cause dogs to howl too. If a human being like Kibuuka is so annoyed by the volume of an ambulance that he asked Mamdani to figure out a way to change the volume for the level of an emergency, dogs may also think ambulance sounds are a bit much.
High-pitched wailing noises like sirens can also be misunderstood as howls. When a dog hears the noise, dogs like Junee may think that she’s responding to another dog howling — even if she can clearly see this box-like white truck coming in her direction. When I walk past a fire station, I can see my dog on high alert as soon as she sees the large red truck. (Arguably, it could be that she associates the truck with that time my electric baseboard heater was on fire.)
While she freezes, she doesn’t let out a howl yet. But I can tell from the way she’s stiffening up — and especially if the hair right above her butt stands up on in a spiky patch — that a howl is coming the millisecond the fire truck (or a nearby ambulance) turns those sirens on. Her eyes are glued to both.