Dog getting geeked up, barking when doing OB - Page 1

Ok, so I have had more time to be working Ob with my boy, and at times he just seems to get REALLY geeked up while doing the commands. So If I have him say, at a Sit, "wait" (stay) and I walk across the room, and after a minute or 2 ask him to "down", he'll bark, as he is downing. Then i will ask for a "sit" (in place) and he"ll bounce up, bark, sit.(pretty quickly) Then I give the Here command,BARK, he bounces up FLYS to me, sits RIGHT in front of me (he actually has to lean his head back a bit, he is so close at times) then bark. I will ask for him to go "around" (to my right, behind,) and Heel..( A sit position at my left). And he will bark when you give him the command, then bark as he is sitting. Its comical, but I want him to do this quietly, as he is now doing it quickly. We have been working on the "quiet" command... But he just seems to get all wired up, ready to go, and Bark! Bark! Bark! grrr. I dont want to have to say "quiet"before each command.... Any ideas? Or is this ok, that he barks out of excitement? Missy

Humm NOt sure. I have never had this problem. Couple questions.. Are you rewarding with something? Food/ball? Are you doing OB first in your training? Maybe you could tire him out before doing OB. Some of my GSD would be too hyped up when we first start training, I would play with them and get rid of some energy before starting the OB. This would slow them down alittle. Do they still get a reward after barking?

Ok, well he gets the reward (ie a ball on a rope) after the command is given and he does it correctly. And I interact with him, so he knows that "I" am giving him the reward for the behavior. But its a catch 22, how do reward for the "good behavior (the command)" and not the ones where he barks during the command? I have tried the no-reward for the Bark/follow command, and give the "ah ah" and go back and do it again... But the more I make him do it again, the MORE he gets geeked up. I have even tried to end the session, and come back later after 30min of just throwing the ball and running around on the 4 acres... Trust me , he is tired.. BUT still gets geeked up over the OB thing and BARK..And its like we never wore his butt out jsut a few minutes prior.. Is he just hot wired? Its kinda comical, but I am frustrated. He didn't do it at first. But now that I am really working with him on a regular basis, he is just GEEKED up and ready to go now... Excited, bouncy, and happy to do the OB. (Wish that would extend into the Heel...Happy bouncy he is not, at this moment.. But were getting there.. Trial and error on what works for him..) He actually comes full speed at the "here" command, and comes up so close nipping at my pants waist he is so excited. That I had to stop. But then he barkes as soon as he sits in front of me... Grrrrr

barking is a sign of protesting. You will have to give him a few corrections for the barking, growling or any form of noise he makes(whining too). i prefer the choke method because it cuts the air off they will stop wasting air fast by barking. I bet if you stop the barking and what nots his obedience will go to another level. ceddyg

But he is the type of dog that barks out of pure excitement. Its a "happy" bark, excited bark, and i have no problems with him doing the actual command? is that still protesting? He learned the Speak command, and the bark and hold, and now seems to like to bark out of sheer excitement. He does the command VERY quickly, so no problems with the obedience. Heck if it went any further he'd be thru the roof when you give him a command. (you tell him here, and he JUMPS up, and hauls balls to me) I dont think its a protest? I think it is just pure excitement.. He doesnt growl (never heard him growl, even while doing protection work) and wont whine either. Just a quick loud bark. He never hesitates to complete the command. ???? I have never seen this before...

Mercedes, I saw a workingline GSD bitch qualify for her Sch III while barking through every exercise. I knew her owner and she told me that she is so enthusiastic about everything she does that she has never been able to stop her. Not sure what you are planning for your dog, you said OB training. If it's for an AKC show I think barking during the exercises will not be acceptable. However, if it's for a BH, I assume the dog will still pass since my friend's GSD had no problem getting to a Sch III while barking through it all. I'm not kidding you when I say this - she did not stop barking for more than 10 seconds at any given time and she was VERY loud.

To funny, you said she was at one time quite while doing the commands. Did she start the barking after learning the bark and hold. Maybe she just loves that excerise so much she has decided to add it to the rest of her routine.

This is so funny. Our club likes to get all our young dogs into high drive and barking. The dog is vocalizing that he has got it. He is telling you to come on be quick like me. He is now working you and this is the perfect team combination people should strive for. At this point pick up your speed and do several exercises back to back before he has a chance to bark. If he is barking in the heeling do quick left turns and try to anticipate this before he barks. Finish the exercise with a fast stop ,sit and quiet. Do not reward until quiet. It is a lot more fun doing OB with a drivey dog. Nice job and good luck.

Blitzen- Ewww AKC show... lol Yeah this is for BH eventually & "possible" SchH (dont wanna go there...) and possibly mondioring/other ringsport. He learned to bark and now it seems to be with excitement. As time goes on, and he gets more, and more excited with the ob, and training, he barks more and more. He is WAY excited to do OB, and get he praise/toy. The commamds are done quickly, and mostly effectivly,(hence the training..) but seems that since I taught the Speak, and the beginings of the bark and hold, he has added the bark into the whole traiining element. Its funny. He used to not enjoy the training, and I switched "treats, to TOY", and OMG what a WORLD of difference. He will actually BRING me the toy for training, sit it in my lap, go over and SIT, and wait for me to START training. As he barks loudly the whole time. Cute. My ears hurt after the training session, but he gets the job done. Well, I guess I wont be to concerned. If your friends dog went to a SchH III while barking, I wont worry then?! 1doggie2- YEah, he went from quiet & not enjoying it, to LOUD PROUD, and IM LOVIN IT! Its quit funny to watch, and my hubby has to leave the room, or area we are in while training. Or he laughs the entire time. Kinda like the Bark and Hold... LOVES it. He cant get enough of his own voice while working, training. He will "speak" UNTIL I tell him enough. And he is VERY LOUD. Blitzen- forgot to mention, he is a workingline. DDR. Young male, neutered. I would hate to see him not neutered.. The excitement ,and drives are high now...geesh

I was pretty sure you weren't talking AKC, but when I see "OB" that's what comes to my AKC mind LOL. Another funny story about this same barking GSD. Her owner told me she needed very little formal training. She seemed to know what to do instinctively and was alwasy very obedient. She said she went to her first Sch trial, said, oh hell my dog can do all that stuff and not long after that she was ready to go LOL. If I recall correctly, her Sch III scores were respectable inspite of the barking. Not sure how she did in her other trials. I guess she was one of those what we call "naturals"; maybe your dog is too.