Laurie4b Posted December 6, 2014 Share Posted December 6, 2014 Yes, you read that correctly. Our dog doesn't bark I would like her to bark when someone comes up the driveway/to the door as a warning system since we are pretty isolated. i just want to know that ahead of time and I want the person on the other side of the door to weigh what a barking dog might mean. I would also like her to give a bark to let us know that she wants to come back in if someone has let her outside and forgotten. (She currently jumps up on the door and it's a muddy mess.) She's about a year old and a mix of some kind of hound (probably Plott, maybe greyhound) and "other" (shepherd, maybe lab since she has an overcoat, but Plotts can have overcoats.) She is the sweetest most friendly thing, overjoyed that someone new might be at the door. She uses her voice to communicate quite a bit, but she whines. She is really cute and I am starting to learn her different whines. She also works hard to understand what I'm saying. Without being taught, she will go off to find her "ball" or a "bone" if I say, "Whare's your ball/bone?" She seems to key in on the noun. She has only once barked--with her previous owner, she was going to the bathroom outside and a deer walked by and she barked. At our house, dh said she made something like a barking noise when I left one day. She also made barking type breaths ( almost silent, breath but not voice) once when we were in the car in a parking lot and across the street people were jogging. There was a wall between us, so she could only see their upper halves. I wondered if it looked weird to her. So I'm not sure how easy it will be to shape the behavior. I don't want more whining (sometimes she overdoes it) but I would like her to bark. Any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted December 6, 2014 Share Posted December 6, 2014 Leave her for a few days at a kennel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted December 6, 2014 Share Posted December 6, 2014 The only way I know to teach a dog to bark is to say bark and reward them when they do bark appropriately so that they learn that it is a command to be obeyed when told, then you can teach them NO bark but I don't know how to induce a dog to bark in the first place. I have one that came as an already barking model (Pom-Chi) and the other who rarely barks and almost always appropriately. The method above is generally used to teach little dogs not to bark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trulycrabby Posted December 6, 2014 Share Posted December 6, 2014 Leave her for a few days at a kennel.Brilliant! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datgh Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 Be careful what you wish for. I have a golden who is a phenomenal watch dog but she barks at every single car, truck, person, squirrel, leaf falling off tree, plane going over head............ I don't want to break her of the habit because my dh travels several days most weeks and I would be nervous with out her. I just wish I could get her to recognize what she doesn't have to let me know about like the poor people who walk for exercise every day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenrae Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 I'd say spend some time with a friend whose dog does bark, and she may pick it up. Maybe reward the other dog when it barks and then try to encourage your dog to bark. My dog's have certainly learned skills from each other, so this may work with barking as well. I've never had a dog that didn't bark though, so it's just a guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
applethyme Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 I had a chocolate lab that NEVER barked. Except for the day when some man was trying to break into the house, she not only barked but would have bit him if he hadn't closed the door quickly. There was only one other time and that too involved someone she didn't know getting in the house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 For alerting you that she wants to come in, hang some bells on the doorknob and teach her to swat at those. Anne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mabelen Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 It could be the breed. We have a friend with a Lab and he won't bark for anyone. Our dog, a Chihuahua-Italian Greyhound speaks Chihuahua and she is a wonderful watch dog, she will definitely let us know someone is coming to the house. She would be terrible at protecting us though! She is small and a bit of a coward, but we love her! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 Some dogs, even within breeds known to be barky . . . aren't. And some breeds (like Greyhounds) are well known for being non-barky. I don't know, but my guess is that it would be quite a challenge to teach a naturally quiet dog to bark an alert. I'm not sure how you'd go about teaching that specific skill. I tend to believe that watchdogs are born, not made. As far as teaching a general bark -- I'd get something that motivates her (I recall you said she loves balls) and wave it around in front of her. Up and down and all around. Try to get her really revved up to elicit a bark. If she does, then label it ("good bark!"), reward and build on that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 Leave her for a few days at a kennel. This. Our dog never barked until we went on vacation and she was at the kennel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trulycrabby Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 Leave her for a few days at a kennel. Of course, the dog has to realize that it is a dog for this to work. We had an Aussie who was Not A Dog and she never ever barked, kennel ir not. She was always horribly offended when we made her stay with those loud four-legged creatures with appalling manners. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 When I'm outside and one of our dogs barks at someone/something in the street, I praise them. When I leave or arrive, I tell them, X+Y+X "you are in charge of security, please watch the house, good dogs!" The new puppy that my Stepson and his wife rescued when someone threw him out of a (moving) pickup truck a few weeks ago is included in this. He is a Rottweiler. I'm hoping he will love us and protect us. He is going to be huge and I hope he will also have a huge bark. Praise your dogs when they do what you want them to do, which in this case, is barking if there is a security issue. Normally, none of our dogs barks just to bark, which is a horrible thing. When they bark, we pay attention... GL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 We have had an Aussie mix for about 5 years now. She came as a rescue at about 3 years old. She has only barked a few times. I think I can remember about 3 times that she barked at guys who she didn't like. She put herself between me and them and barked. 2 of those really were of questionable character. The last time she barked was last weekend. My husband said she was barking and barking outside his office window but he figured it was because she was outside and he was in and I had left her behind (she loves to go with us anywhere and everywhere)............well come to find out she did have a good reason to bark.........the horses were all out running loose in the yard. Now dh knows to PAY ATTENTION when she barks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 Our dog didn't bark AT ALL, like literally not at all, and I wanted him to bark some. Like you I had read how to teach them not to bark but not the other direction. He's a miniature schnauzer, so they actually can be really funny vocally if they're of a mind to. What I did, and you'll laugh, is I told him to *sing* and then began howling. And I left him at the bottom of the stairs (he doesn't do stairs), so he was motivated to communicate. So I had communicative intent on the part of the dog and then I began howling (and calling it singing) to tell him what I wanted to do. He still doesn't bark a lot, but he *can*. And if someone comes in that he thinks doesn't belong there, he totally fills the house with sound, which is really shocking for such a small dog. But he was pretty inhibited and never did that before I worked on singing with him. He thinks it's sorta funny and won't always play along. I think maybe the breeder taught him to be quiet because mini schnauzers have such a yappy reputation. He just has a reserved, quiet demeanor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TranquilMind Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 Yes, you read that correctly. Our dog doesn't bark I would like her to bark when someone comes up the driveway/to the door as a warning system since we are pretty isolated. i just want to know that ahead of time and I want the person on the other side of the door to weigh what a barking dog might mean. I would also like her to give a bark to let us know that she wants to come back in if someone has let her outside and forgotten. (She currently jumps up on the door and it's a muddy mess.) She's about a year old and a mix of some kind of hound (probably Plott, maybe greyhound) and "other" (shepherd, maybe lab since she has an overcoat, but Plotts can have overcoats.) She is the sweetest most friendly thing, overjoyed that someone new might be at the door. She uses her voice to communicate quite a bit, but she whines. She is really cute and I am starting to learn her different whines. She also works hard to understand what I'm saying. Without being taught, she will go off to find her "ball" or a "bone" if I say, "Whare's your ball/bone?" She seems to key in on the noun. She has only once barked--with her previous owner, she was going to the bathroom outside and a deer walked by and she barked. At our house, dh said she made something like a barking noise when I left one day. She also made barking type breaths ( almost silent, breath but not voice) once when we were in the car in a parking lot and across the street people were jogging. There was a wall between us, so she could only see their upper halves. I wondered if it looked weird to her. So I'm not sure how easy it will be to shape the behavior. I don't want more whining (sometimes she overdoes it) but I would like her to bark. Any ideas? A non-barking dog is a dream come true. How I wish I could live in a no-dog neighborhood, but a non-barking neighborhood would work. I can't imagine you want a dog to bark. So annoying. If you have only had her a little while, she will bark sooner or later. Many years ago, I was thrilled with my non-barking dog that didn't bark for about 6 months. When she did, it sounded really mean, and she was a tiny little thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justified Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 My dog is absolutely the best dog but I wish it would stop barking at everything. Maybe we could get our dogs together and our dogs can teach each other their good habits. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie4b Posted December 8, 2014 Author Share Posted December 8, 2014 Our dog didn't bark AT ALL, like literally not at all, and I wanted him to bark some. Like you I had read how to teach them not to bark but not the other direction. He's a miniature schnauzer, so they actually can be really funny vocally if they're of a mind to. What I did, and you'll laugh, is I told him to *sing* and then began howling. And I left him at the bottom of the stairs (he doesn't do stairs), so he was motivated to communicate. So I had communicative intent on the part of the dog and then I began howling (and calling it singing) to tell him what I wanted to do. He still doesn't bark a lot, but he *can*. And if someone comes in that he thinks doesn't belong there, he totally fills the house with sound, which is really shocking for such a small dog. But he was pretty inhibited and never did that before I worked on singing with him. He thinks it's sorta funny and won't always play along. I think maybe the breeder taught him to be quiet because mini schnauzers have such a yappy reputation. He just has a reserved, quiet demeanor. I've actually tried teaching her to howl, or bark. I've put on videos of hounds baying/barking, etc. She's very interested and is interested when other dogs in the neighborhood bark from their yards when we're out on a walk, but she doesn't do it. Now whining, she's a little too good at! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 I had a dog that didn't bark at all. I had to give him away after the divorce. His new family had a cat and the cat taught him how to bark, by meowing at him. Even though they were both adults and had been single pets, they became best buddies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ocelotmom Posted December 9, 2014 Share Posted December 9, 2014 Leave her for a few days at a kennel. That's along the same lines as what I was going to suggest (get another dog that does bark), but rather more practical if she doesn't want another dog. We had two dogs that barked very little up until we got a barker. Now they all bark, and it's a cacophony any time someone drives by. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted December 9, 2014 Share Posted December 9, 2014 Our dog didn't bark until the new neighbour's dog taught him. Be careful what you wish for. Once he started, at 9 years old, he made up for his silent years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elisabet1 Posted December 9, 2014 Share Posted December 9, 2014 Maybe you do not really want him to bark? Maybe get those security lights that turn on when something moves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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