system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Why do dogs continue barking unless told/yelled at to stop?

So during the night whenever my dog hears a noise she will start barking and continue to bark even if there are no more strange noises. If I go and yell the command that she knows to be quiet she will settle down (eventually bark again when she hears another noise) but if I don't say anything she can continue barking for 5min+. Why is this? Is she barking to let me know of something and me saying quiet is letting her know it's okay/has the behavior for someone to say something been enforced? Some nights I have had to resort to physically hitting her bottom because she would just not shut up. I don't want to get a bark collar in fear they will never bark again.
gpt
I believe it is because we have been breeding them that way for thousands of years.  Think of them as the poor man's intruder alarm.  Dogs that alert their owners to perceived danger should continue barking until told that it is okay.

I also understand that wolves do not bark (or bark much) and this is the reason why.