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training the "inside voice"?

Around The Farm
#1

so this morning i was a bad dog mom. :no:

i have a 2 y/o standard poodle, and this morning he saw something outside that required him, in his little curly brain, to bark like a maniac at it. at 7:30 am, this is not a desirable behavior. it’s not really desirable most of the time, unless it’s 3:30 am and he’s barking at a burgler.

my brother’s whiny attempts to get him to stop amounted to “luuuke shut upppp” which obviously, was ineffective. i got annoyed, both at dog and brother, and walloped dog on the butt, telling him ‘no.’ THAT he understood. he stopped barking.

but now i regret having whacked him for it. it was probably not the right way to handle it. so i want to train him to use his “inside voice,” (he does have a very low-volume bark that comes out sometimes) or at least train a semi-reliable cue that will get him to silence the alarm on command when he starts barking (and he’s LOUD) at a really inopportune time. like 7:30 am.

i just can’t figure out how to train that.

i’ve done all the rest of his training myself, he knows come, sit, stay, down, heel, drop it, leave it, wait, get a toy, can be directed anywhere just by pointing. he’s smart. he likes to learn. but how do i install the “use your inside voice” button?

help me COTH dog people.

#2

First of all, BAD DOG MOM. Your dog doesn’t know the difference between burglar and random stray cat he hasn’t seen before. They’re all “interlopers” and he is doing his job, letting you know. So whap to you. That said, I didn’t whap hard, as I too have resorted to the whap method. :sadsmile:

What we did with our dog is teach her the command “enough”. When she barked at something we checked it out or acknowledged her with a “good girl” and then the next bark “enough”. If she didn’t stop, she was corrected (sharp tug at collar, or if we weren’t near enough, the dreaded “ACHHHK” sound) and we said “enough”. The minute she was quiet she got lots of praise and attention (basically distracting her from barking and setting her up to want to stop at “enough”). Added to this, we taught her to speak on command. Let her speak several times, treat, treat, then “enough” and walk away. She got the picture. Hope that helps!

For what it’s worth, animal behavior experts say that if you yell at your dog when it’s barking furiously at something, they just think the pack is joining in and it encourages them to bark more. Hence, I’ve found that “SHUT THE HELL UP” does not work. Nor does adding non-nice words and yelling louder. Just saving you some trouble. :wink:

1 Like
#3

We never had, over many years, but one sheltie we could not get to shut up reliably and that dog was a puppy mill dog and had several other mental problems, like running barking and hitting the side of the house like it was not there.:eek:
Every time.:eek:
That dog we trained in obedience, but was never reliable.

Other than that little dog, every other dog we had we put barking on command and so also stop barking.

For alarm barking, you can do best by acknowleding the barking and praising the dog, go see why it is barking and if you don’t think the dog should keep barking, thank the dog for alarming you and take the dog back with you, so it doesn’t keep the barking up.

After a few times, every dog we had caught up to that and they just barked minimally.
We had some breeds of dogs that were especially bad about barking for other people.
The dogs we had, including some shelties, toy poodles, my current rat terrier, that are known for over the top barking, bark rarely.:slight_smile:

Give that a try first, when your dog barks, hurry to see what it is, thank your dog and call it back to do something else.
It works for most anyone that don’t just lets the dog bark and bark and bark at most times and then tries to shut it up only when annoyed.
Consistency will get you a dog that only barks when it has a reason.

When a dog doesn’t bark as a default behavior, you will notice that he has different barks for different things, like my dog barks with an odd sound about snakes, her bark is different if someone drives up to the house and only barks until I come see, then she watches to see what I do.:yes:

Dogs start barking to communicate and if not trained about it, they become barkers out of frustration and eventually so much of their barking is just out of habit.

Sounds like you have an otherwise well mannered dog, something to expect of the nice, polite standard poodles any way.
I bet once you communicate better about the barking, you will have your quiet dog back.:slight_smile:

#4

Poodles are notoriously easy to train. :yes: So there’s the good news!

The bad news is…we have to actually train them. :wink:

I find it easiest with a poodle to train the “speak” command first, with treat rewards. (poodles train well with treat rewards) Usually within about 15 minutes they have that down pretty well. Keep going with the “Speak!” and let them bark…good boy…pats…treat and then “Enough!” while they’re still quiet…then good boy…pats…treat. Repeat a few times so they connect the quiet part after barking with the command “enough” (or use ‘quiet’). Then advance it to asking them to speak, as soon as they start barking just state a fast “good boy” only and then command “enough” and wait to see if they stop barking. Good boys and treats.

As with any training…repetition and even more importantly consistency with all family members all the time…and they pick it up quick. :yes:

#5

i totally deserved the whap, bluey. :frowning:

thankfully the noodle brained poodle is also very forgiving as well as smart! he’s a good happy boy.

some great ideas from everyone, i really like teaching ‘enough’ after a few barks, so he still feels like he is ‘protecting’ us from the woodchuck/small child/squirrel outside, but is not totally irritating to everyone in the house. we actually already use ‘enough’ as a command to stop asking to play when we are busy with something else, or when he is bothering a guest, so that can cross over to the barking too.

the only hard part is the CONSISTENCY. with 5 people in the house who all have various ideas on how to train dogs (some of which are not very sound…) it’s difficult to get everyone to ask the same way. again, thankfully, the dog is smarter than most people so he figures things out pretty quick.

thanks guys!!

#6

I don’t know about “inside voice” but there is a very effective method for diverting the dog’s attention from the window to you, which means the dog quits barking immediately and runs to you.

Its taught by Patricia McConnell, and it’s wonderful. Start teaching the dog a cue, and reinforce it with a small yummy meaty treat, or cheese, something really very tasty and “forbidden.”

For instance, the word “come”. (That’s what I use)

Start where there are NO distractions, to give the dog the best chance for success. On a quiet afternoon in the living room, for example. Whatever the dog is doing, say the dog’s name in a brighty cheery tone, followed by the command, “Fluffy…come!” Wag the treat, tempt the dog with it, and if she makes even one step toward you, give the treat, and a hearty scratching reward.

After a few repetitions, the dog will learn that name followed by come, = yummy meaty food!

Once the dog is THOROUGHLY conditioned to this - as in, multiple sessions over several days or even a few weeks of needed - then start to add an element of distraction.

Let the dog play with her favorite toy, then give the name plus the come command. If the dog does not leave the toy to come, then start back at square one without the distraction. But chances are, she’ll come running.

Gradually up the anty with more and more distraction, until you get a stranger to walk past your living room window with a strange dog on a leash. Ask a neighbor or a friend to help with the task. When you’ve arived at the pinacle, the dog will ignore the stranger with the strange dog, and come running when you give a command. In doing this, the dog should stop barking and redirect her attention to you.

And of course, as with any training, throughout the process, you begin implementing intermitent reward - a treat every other time she comes. A treat every 3 times, etc.

But, here’s the problem with this - do you want your dog to “sound the alarm” when there’s a stranger snooping around your bedroom window, or not? :confused:

I’ve used this method to train certain things, like don’t eat the horse poop, or come out of the hay field when I call you. But although barking into the blackness at 3 a.m. is annoying as all hell when it turns out to be nothing, it “is” valuable to me. We live on a farm in the country. I WANT the dogs to go nuts when something is suspicious to them. Three big, barking dogs is going to send a warning to any possible no-gooder, that they might meet some resistance if they try to come through my front door.

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#7

I agree with Bluey. I find that my animals are always trying to communicate with me. So, if they growl I get up to see what it is, take action if needed (shoo racoon, stray male cat) and then come back in. Animals are usually trying to serve us, and I take it in that light (warning: strange animal on our territory mom). Now, I am speaking about older animals that have been around me for years. Younger animals may be more prone to excited noise making with no cause. But generally its about relaying to you something they think is important and so I check it out and come back to praise them for doing a good job.

#8

Agreed 100%. I don’t have any experience with poodles, but this has worked with my shepherds wonderfully. It sounds counter-productive, but the best way to go about it is to teach the speak command first. :yes:

#9

And before giving ‘quiet’ or ‘enough’ command check to see what they’re barking at. It might just be someone up to no good and you told the dog they’re o.k. (Nothing like looking out the window and seeing the new neighbor’s teenager casing your house-trust me).

#10

[QUOTE=JanM;4412268]
And before giving ‘quiet’ or ‘enough’ command check to see what they’re barking at. It might just be someone up to no good and you told the dog they’re o.k. (Nothing like looking out the window and seeing the new neighbor’s teenager casing your house-trust me).[/QUOTE]

I agree. Our bathroom is just past our laundry room, and my son had gone that way to use the bathroom, I thought. My dog went ballistic, and I went back to look, thinking she was barking at the neighbors in the joint driveway. Not uncommon, but not the issue that day. My son had climbed into the front-loading washing machine :eek: Tessa knew that was not right, and was completely inconsolable until kiddo was removed from the appliance.

So anyhow, when she barks, I go see what she’s looking at, tell her what it is “neighbors”, “cat”, etc. And if she keeps barking, I tell her “enough”. If the “enough” doesn’t stop her right away (usually works these days), then I redirect her with “sit” or “lie down”, and that always seems to do the trick.

1 Like
#11

Yes!!! Animals have different barks for different reasons, they are INDEED ‘communication.’ "inside voice’ does not compute (for THEM:lol:).

#12

Try getting a hound to stop howling when the phone rings. :smiley:

Seriously - when my dogs bark I tell them thank you and hush. I want them to alert me to who/what is outside.

But once they alert me their job is done. So a thank you/praise and hush is all that’s required.

I like poodles - they are real characters.

#13

[QUOTE=JSwan;4413971]
Try getting a hound to stop howling when the phone rings. :smiley:

Seriously - when my dogs bark I tell them thank you and hush. I want them to alert me to who/what is outside.

But once they alert me their job is done. So a thank you/praise and hush is all that’s required.

I like poodles - they are real characters.[/QUOTE]

Or sheltie puppies.:stuck_out_tongue:
They seemed to think that the old wall phones ringing were a game and they used to chase us down barking and running circles around our legs, to see who gets to the phone first.

Obedience training sure helped, along with growing up and lots of patience for us and the caller, that got an earful of barking puppies.:rolleyes:

Other dogs do that too, but not one other breed was set off as intensely crazy as shelties, I don’t think.

#14

Thankfully my guys haven’t been phone barkers.
Doorbell barkers though, but they’re supposed to bark for that. Well, Mals aren’t big barkers for even doorbells but they do like to go to the door, sit and glare. :lol: As effective as barking, LOL! But then Mals talk and “wooo” instead of barking. :yes:
I definitely encourage loud barking for anyone at the door or approaching the house. There’s a reason I always have large dogs and not kickables. :winkgrin: We discourage the barking at ghost squirrels though. Visible squirrels who purposely taunt through the windows…bark away! The invisible squirrels or I See Dead People barks…discouraged. But if there are people out there, or even wildlife and/or other dogs, etc…the barking is checked immediately and then a pat, good boy and “enough, thank you!” Warning is a good pack personality and it’s tough on a dog to try to train genetic predispositions out of it.
Now if I could only convince my dog that doorbells on TV don’t require me to be warned…sigh.

Hounds…well that’s a whole new noise issue, LOL! My niece just bought her first house and seems convinced that a good medium sized “quiet” dog that won’t roam is a beagle! Yeah, fruitbats are flying. Great dogs…not for beginner owners though.

1 Like
#15

[QUOTE=MistyBlue;4414013]

Hounds…well that’s a whole new noise issue, LOL! My niece just bought her first house and seems convinced that a good medium sized “quiet” dog that won’t roam is a beagle! Yeah, fruitbats are flying. Great dogs…not for beginner owners though.[/QUOTE]

Huh? I’d not recommend a beagle. Nope. Not in a million years. Their size and cuteness is deceptive. They dig, they climb fences, they are sneaky - very very sneaky. Great breed.

Beware the beagle when scenting conditions are right. You’ll know when scent is good because the beagle will be missing. :lol:

2 Likes
#16

LOL…I told her the same things. She mentioned she couldn’t wait to get a dog and wanted a medium sized short haired “non froo-froo” type of dog that didn’t roam or make a lot of noise. Then said, “So I think a beagle would be perfect!” My reply was, " :eek:. :lol: :lol: :lol: :no:!" Said she couldn’t have picked a noisier more roaming breed if she tried, LOL! They follow their nose…no matter what. Bark? Not so much. But that “Yo-ing”…LOL!

2 Likes
#17

There is a reason you hardly ever see a beagle competing in agility and not one at all in obedience.:wink:

I am sure that someone, sometime did get one trained for that, but I doubt they were very competitive.

Now, other than what beagles were bred to do, catch all those good smells and whoo-whoo-whoo about it, they really are short haired, small and sweeter than most breeds, your typical social butterfly.
Who would not fall for that?:cool:

1 Like
#18

I’m glad to hear that the standard poodles are so trainable. I’m starting to look for a breeder, preferably in the Washington, Oregon, Northern California, Northern Idaho, S. W. British Columbia region. I’d appreciate any names from anyone with experience/knowledge of any standard poodle breeders in those areas.

#19

Kestrel,

Standard Poodles are wonderful. The key to finding a good breeder is to look for someone who only has one or two litters per year, and who tests for all of the known genetic issues and has their dogs registered with Chic. You also want to check that they socialize their puppies well.

I went through the local Poodle Club to find a breeder. I called several members and asked for a well bred pet poodle.

You can see a pic of my poodle as a puppy playing with his corgi friend in my profile.

And yes, he is learning the “hush” command. Though when the two little yappers from down the street walk by, it is still often too much for him.

#20

Wanted to add that in the pic, Kobe and the corgi are the same size. Now Kobe towers over the corgi, but the corgi still rules the roost.

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