How Do You Teach Your Dog To Bark?

[Genabee]

It may sound like a silly question (especially if you have a yapper!), but how do you teach your dog to bark?

I would like for Genevieve to bark when she wants to be let outside. At the moment she paces in front of the door, which is great if I am in the room to see her. Not so great if I'm not.

The only time she barks at the moment, is occasionally when she is playing - she will look up at one of us, tilt her head back and let out this tiny (very cute - make you want to laugh) bark. Otherwise, she is quiet. Even when people come to the house or she hears something, she gets up to investigate it, but doesn't bark.

I know that by nature, Cavvies aren't the barking type. But does that mean we can't teach her to bark as a form of saying 'please... let me outside'?

[Nekhbet]

If she's a pacer why not put a hanging bell or a little toy piano next to the door and let her ding that then open the door.

[Michelleva]

As the proud Mum of a barker, I'd be hesitant to encourage barking. I like the bell idea.

[aussielover]

If you want to teach her to "speak" there iis some good info in the training forum, I think in the dog tricks sub forums there is a detailed method on this, which I have used successfully with Mindy.

Basically, you just have to work her up enough to bark, I used a clicker to teach this, so as soon as Mindy made even the tiniest noise i would click and treat.

I then added in the hand signal and command.

Mindy does a "quiet speak" and a "loud speak" now whicih is quite cute.

Is Genevieve actually toilet trained? Because if she is, doesn't she come and get you anyway or start whinig at the door to be let out?

[wuffles]

I agree on the bell suggestion, it's quite easy to teach!

Personally, my dogs don't really need to ask to be let out because we are in the routine of letting them out frequently. Sometimes they go and sit at the door if they want to go out (usually to play or bark at something rather than toilet), which we usually notice as our house is small.

There's no way I'm going to teach my girl to bark on cue as she loves to graciously offer behaviours in the hope of getting rewarded and would probably drive me and the neighbours insane

[aussielover]

Yes, If you want to teack speak, also teach quiet or you will have some problems!

[Parkeyre]

Oh god! dont teach to bark!

Use a bell.

[Genabee]

Haha! The bell option is good for home, but what about when you are at someone else's house? Perhaps you're right, I will give it a go. And thank you for the heads up on the training/tricks forum, I will have a look there.

We are in the habit of taking her out regularly, so we tend to not have many accidents inside. And she is pretty good at holding on when she is confined to one room. However, I have noticed in the last few days, while I have been at work, my husband has got slack and not been keeping such a watchful eye on her! Like a toddler, she fidgits and paces a bit and I know to take her outside. He hasn't quite worked that out yet! Sometimes I feel like I am training the OH more than I am her!

[Parkeyre]

Haha! The bell option is good for home, but what about when you are at someone else's house? Perhaps you're right, I will give it a go. And thank you for the heads up on the training/tricks forum, I will have a look there.

We are in the habit of taking her out regularly, so we tend to not have many accidents inside. And she is pretty good at holding on when she is confined to one room. However, I have noticed in the last few days, while I have been at work, my husband has got slack and not been keeping such a watchful eye on her! Like a toddler, she fidgits and paces a bit and I know to take her outside. He hasn't quite worked that out yet! Sometimes I feel like I am training the OH more than I am her!

I really recommend a bell..

And you can set the bell up on a stand type thing rather then hanging form the roof or shelf.

That way the stnad would only have to be small and the bell at her "handshake" height.

You could take it with you then.

[Guest]

Wizzle maybe when she does look up at you and barks that is when she needs to go for a wee, when our dog barks at us I always put him out to see if he wants to go anyway ,and most times he does., worth a try.

lablove

[Guest]

Wizzle maybe when she does look up at you and barks that is when she needs to go for a wee, when our dog barks at us I always put him out to see if he wants to go anyway ,and most times he does., worth a try.

lablove

[Genabee]

Wizzle maybe when she does look up at you and barks that is when she needs to go for a wee, when our dog barks at us I always put him out to see if he wants to go anyway ,and most times he does., worth a try.

lablove

She doesn't bark, that is the problem! She often paces and that is when I take her out. And usually she goes. When the weather is nice and I can leave the door open, she trots in and out all day and we don't have accidents inside, so I am reasonably confident she knows that she is to go outside.

I have noticed in the last couple of days she has started to scratch the door and when I open it, she runs out! So I am happy with that. But I am still going to find a bell and give that one a go!

Thanks everyone for your help!!

[koalathebear]

Elbie would usually sit by the door or stand by the door waiting expectantly when he wanted to be let out. We decided that if we were in the other room, we'd prefer to have him make a noise so we taught him to bark by doing a little 'talk' gesture with our hands and making a woof noise. After a couple of times, he caught on.

We let Elbie out pretty regularly anyway but if he wants to go out, he'll stand by the door and let out a quiet woof. It doesn't seem to have made him bark crazily. Alas, we haven't quite got him to master the 'quiet' command yet but as mentioned, he actually doesn't bark that much. Even when the neighbours two dogs are barking like absolute crazy, he'll stay quiet.

What's very funny is that Elbie can have a VERY loud laugh, but when we do the 'speak' gesture, he lets out the most feeble and pathetic bark ever on the first go. His first bark will usually be silent - just a kind of smacking of his lips. It takes him a bit to wind up to a proper bark. We still haven't figured out why that is, but in any case the bark is loud enough for us to know to let him out.

Edited July 12, 2010 by koalathebear