May 17, 2011
I have a 9-month-old GSD that doesn't bark. I've tried to get her to bark but she just whines. Have you experienced this before and have any idea?
Full Question:
I wonder whether you could help me out I have a nine month old German Shepherd bitch but unusually for a German Shepherd she doesn't bark now. I've tried to get her to bark when I give her her food or before I sent her off for her ball but all she does is whine. I can't seem to get her to bark at all. Sometimes she does have the odd outburst of barking when she is playing with my mum's pup, but when that is is when I'm not about or when you go to the back door to praise her for barking she shuts up. She hasn't played with the pup for a while as she was only 5 months old when I bought her you see so she has matured a little now. I wondered if you had experienced this problem before and do you have an idea on how to get her barking. Thanks alot. Patrick
UK
p.s. I like your work with protection and shutzhund. I think it is amazing and I've read all your points on different dog drives i.e. prey drives defense drives fight drives and avoidance drive. I think im just getting the understanding of it as I've read it over and over again about 20 times.
Cindy's Answer:
She may be too young to display territorial barking. I wouldn’t worry about it too much at only 9 months old. I have had good luck teaching dogs to bark by putting them behind a fence and teasing them with a ball or toy they REALLY like, if they even make a small noise I say YES, open the gate and play with them using a lot of praise. You can also use food for a very food motivated dog. If you don’t have a fence, you can tie the dog by a harness and restrain them that way. Do the same as I wrote above, if the dog makes a ‘woof’ (no matter how small) then say YES and go to the dog and play (or feed). They get the hang of this really quick. I hope this helps.
Cindy
Cindy
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