How to teach the "Speak" command?

[evybear15]

I tried barking at him from my hands and knees (I'm so glad the neighbors can't see me). He didn't know what I was doing, so he kept going through all of his other tricks to figure out what I wanted. In the end, he accidentally clubbed me in the face by doing "wave" instead of "speak."

So far, taking advantage of him being on edge from someone being at the door, or playing youtube videos of other dogs seems to be the best route for him.

I honestly have a hard time not laughing when watching his expressions as I try to get him to figure it out. He looks SO puzzled as to why I'm being so ridiculous and barking at him. He'll look confused, tilt his head to the side, and hesitantly do a different trick as though to be like, "Uhm...okay...you're being kind of weird, Mom. I don't really know what you want...Uhh...this? Should I do this? No. Uhmm..how about this?"

We'll get there! In the meantime, it makes for a good laugh.

[Stella's Mom]

Originally Posted by Kac46047

My pup contintly watches the window and wait for people to knock or ring the door bell. Both send him into a barking frenzy. I could use my actuall doorbell to get him to bark because he would just run to the door and get really excited. So I downloaded a door bell app and took him into a different room and shut the door. The app made him bark then i rewarded with a hannd motion and speak. We have only been working at it for a couple of days but I think he's geting it! I only need to use the app once before he knows the handsignal for the rest of the time I ask him to speak

I am going to try that method.

Yesterday I played youtube videos of dogs barking and if she would occasionally bark with the video I would treat her, but she still has not gotten it.

We also tried the doorbell thing and treated her, and just when I think she got it, nope.

Maybe if I can do it more consistently with the doorbell app and quickly treat she will get it.

I thought my girl was smart, until trying to teach this command. I have tried so many methods already.

[Stella's Mom]

Finally Finally Finally my girl got the speak command. The decoy at Shutzhund held the treats in his hand and kept saying speak while I held her back on the agitation collar.

She did do quite a bit of air biting too, but I worked with her again this morning with her in a sit while telling her to speak and she is finally getting the hang of it. She did some airbites today too, but I don't reward her for those, only mouth motion with sounds.

[Superscout]

Have been trying to teach this speak command to Scout...he just usually looks at me like, "duh". He will sit, lay down, shake or whatever but never speak. Nothing like a doorbell triggers his bark, just the neighbors or a cat or something when out back.

I have had my 10yr old daughter sit next to him and tell her to speak then give her a reward--he watches but i am sure he is just laughing inside...

[Anthony8858]

I taught Kira how to speak on command.

Here's how I did it:

You can do this 2 ways:

I put her in a position to bark. I know that a knock on the door would generate a bark from her. Of course, I would either have someone knock, or do it myself, then just as she was about to bark, I would say "speak", and the first sound would have a treat stuffed in her mouth and praise.

I enforced it by chance:

Kira would always sit near the kitchen sink, and give a little bark when she wants water. I would see her make her way to the sink, and just as she was about to alert me, I would say "speak", and give her the water immediately.

Now she speaks on command.

FWIW...... I'm not too sure I like that command. Since teaching her this, she's become a PIA. If I'm eating a snack, she'll stare at me. I see this from the corner of my eye. If I as much as glance in her direction, I'll get her little speak bark. It's her form of begging.

[robk]

I think some dogs are more genetically inclined to be good barkers than others. I have had dogs that would rarely bark. When I think back about it, One reason I picked them out because thier mother did not bark at me when I came to visit. (I know, this is a terrible way to pick out a litter). My current dog is a very hard barker. When I visit his breeder her dogs never stop barking. She has to put no bark collars on them so we can chat!

[holland]

It took me longer to teach my dog that likes to bark to speak-maybe because she was older-don't know-after that its fun to teach whisper

[Stella's Mom]

Stella "finally" learned the speak command after working with the decoy. I held her back and he would hold the treat in his hand and use the hand gesture to speak and say speak.

After a few rounds of air biting she put 2+2 together and she now speaks on command.

Now if we could just get her to be bit more quiet during other times of the day that would be great!

[Anthony8858]

Sure you want this?

You Tube

You Tube

[k_sep]

I tried to teach Luna "speak" by barking at her, but she just turned her cute little GSD head to the side. Then she thought I wanted to play, so she'd pounce on me, then I'd have to put her in a sit, stay again. That method never worked for me. My trainer suggested that I "frustrate her" into speaking and learning the command and I felt bad doing it to. She was about three and a half, maybe four months old when she learned the command. She wasn't big on barking at the time. Anyways, I'd either put her in her little pen, or get up on my bed which was too high for her to get on and tell her "speak". She'd either try to get out (or on the bed), but she she realize she couldn't, she'd get frustrate and bark. After about ten times or so, she associated the "speak" command with the barking and got it without having to frustrate her. Took a few days to fine tune, but ultimately worked out.