It's so weird sometimes, isn't it. There's probably tons of dog owners out there who would pay NOT to have their dogs bark and you're actually trying to get yours to do it
I guess as long as you have a dog that goes gaga for food or toy, anything can be taught with time and lots of patience.

I'm not a fan of clickers, simply because I lack the coordination and memory muscle to always have it handy and use it correctly, so I use a word instead (Good). I can actually simulate the clicker sound just clicking my tongue, but that just makes me look and sound like a raving lunatic, so I prefer using a word I train them on the word just like you would a clicker, which allows me to zoom in on wanted behaviour as and when it occurs and reward it. That's always worked well. With Jake not woofing at all, I would probably get someone to ring the door bell for me to trigger it and reward from there, I'm sure he'll click very quick!

Well I don't want him to bark for nothing. It's a cute trick is all. And as for cutting the dogs cored to keep them quite ,grrrrr lets not go there.
Off to brush new clean fuffy pup x

you hardly ever hear mine bark, if the front door goes, Lona will look at it and then look at me, Cariad does a quick short sharp 'Wuff' Mabs and Keshi just look confused. I much prefer it like that, can't be doing with 'gobby' barky dogs. Mine will sing, so it sounds like the Yukon, neighbours say thats OK they like it when there's been a particularly long sing a long, but I don't push my luck on that score and tend to shush them after the first few bars. Clicker training?? i'm like yerself, WW, haven't the co ordination or memory for it, did start my girls on different whistles for recall but forgot who had which whistle, so they have a communal recall whistle or I call their name and they do know which name they have thank goodness

In some situations getting your dog to bark on cue can be very useful.
As a woman on my own, I can definitely see the benefit of teaching my dog to bark when I say "protect" and having it kick off on command when I perceive someone as a threat. The other person won't know the dog wouldn't hurt a fly and is just barking because I told it to, especially with a command like that
Usually this was not something I had to teach any of the GSD's I've owned, they needed to be discouraged from barking at strangers rather than encouraged!

I really love reading about your dogs June, that's exactly how I'd want my dogs to be. And there is nothing more beautiful to listen to than a good howling session! You are lucky in having neighbours that don't mind! I'd be like you though, I'd be too worried they would do it if I wasn't in, so I'd shush them before they started to enjoy it too much

Thing with my dogs is that they haven't got the guarding and protection instinct in them really. They are protective of me in their way, as in they stand across me and in front of me if anyone is talking to me and watch the person intently which I understand is pretty nerve wracking from people who have experienced it. Everyone has said the same thing to me, including the police, no one is even going to try anything because they look the part and aren't going to risk themselves. They are bigger than a lot of the GSD's at training, and I have to be honest here, the constant barking of some of the shepherds there, and their need to guard when it is totally unnecessary, gets on my nerves some weeks, imagine doing an hours training with one dog barking non stop and another doing star shapes the minute you try and walk past, I do get frazzled, then again it is more probably a handler situation thats got them in that mindset in the beginning, mine aren't ever given the cue that it is wanted.

For Helen with collie pup. Thought it was here.