Does Not Bark

[fiona-bea]

Hello,

I am a new cairn owner and Betty is a cute, frisky little puppy about 11 weeks old now. We are working on the potty training and general behavior and for the most part it is going well. But, the more I read about cairns, the more I wonder about one thing. She does not bark at all. I don't know whether to be happy or be concerned. She is very frisky and plays and seems altogether normal. But she doesn't make a sound except she will whine a little when she first gets out of her kennel...or she wants something (like to get into our laps) and she growls a bit when she plays tug of war with her rope playtoy. But no barking? What do you all think about this. I would love to hear your opinions. Thank you Maria

[CathyAnn]

Welcome!

It will come.....yes, it will. My puppy didn't bark much for several weeks and now he is VERY vocal. And, I have yet to hear of a quiet Cairn after 13 years of owning one.

If, per chance, he never barks, I would be glad. That is unless you are wanting a watchdog? Both of mine are when it comes to barking but still couldn't count on them to be a watch dog, though.

Cathy

[wags]

Just be happy while you can.

Wes didn't bark until he was a little older. Now he sounds like a lion- no one can believe all the noise is coming from a little dog.

Last week when he was barking, some baby put her fingers in her ears!

[wags]

Cathy, why not a watchdog?

No one can sneak past our dog. He even barks at us!

[CarCarDawn]

Hi! Like everyone else - - Riley did not bark until he was a much older puppy. I too was concerned - - not anymore. We have an hour round of barking late in the evening - - I long for those days when peace and quiet was a regular thing!! And the things he will bark at!!!! - - - I swear - - when he sees a mosquito - - - there is continuous barking!!! But he is still adorable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Iagan's Mom]

I would love to have some peace and quiet for one day!! Though I must say that Iagan is tolerable unless he sees a cat! That is then all Cairn breaks loose!

[LORI]

When we first got Brandy, my husband wanted to teach her to speak. This is his first terrier experience. I told him firmly no, she will be doing that and you won't be able to make her stop . He is quite happy and now realizes that the speaking trick was not necessary to teach.

[CathyAnn]

Sally,

My two bark at EVERYTHING and EVERYONE! They even bark at plastic grocery bags blowing thru the yard.

I guess what I meant to say....because they bark so frequently, I would never be sure if it was for 'real' if an intruder came in. When a stranger comes into the house, they both just greet them with wiggley butts and tail wags !

Cathy

[bradl]

fiona-bea -- I remember having the same thoughts with our first. She was so quiet for so long I thought we had hit the jackpot and got the rare Golden Silent Cairn. When she started barking I still held out hope -- it was just a tiny, cute little 'chuff' rather than a bark. Oh, to hear that 'chuff' at 5:30 in the morning now, nine years later.

[wags]

CathyAnn.

Wiggley butts and tail wags! How cute.

That's what Wes was like too. I miss that!

Ever since our plane ride he's become picky. And when we were away he found another dog to bark at. He THOUGHT it was another dog, but he was looking in a full length mirror that reached all the way down to the floor.

I thought Wes would make a good watchdog until one day last month. I fell asleep in the car, sitting beside him, with the window open. I figured if anyone would come by he'd bark a warning.

Hah! My son stuck his head all the way into the car and into my face. He scared the bleep out of me but Wes kept right on sleeping. I guess he assumed I was protecting HIM!

[Scully'sMom]

We brought Scully home at 10 weeks and the very first day this tiny bark came out of her which was so funny.

She barks "just enough" and for some reason is particularly scared of trucks of any kind. I had to laugh at the dog that barked at flying plastic bags. Scully does too!

[fiona-bea]

Thanks for all the responses. I feel better that Betty is "in the norm" I will enjoy this quiet period. This is a great website! I really enjoy reading all of the comments and questions about the cairns. maria

[Melanie]

Ok, after reading all the other posts I have a bit different situation. I have also written many times abou how quiet Maxwell is. He will do a play bark when my husband has him in a wrestling mode. During the day or night he will never bark at anyone or anything. I even started going outside and knocking on my front door to get him to become alert to the fact. NOTHING!! He just wags his fuzzy butt and tail and envites pretty much anyone in to HIS home to play. He has no idea that there are times when BARKING is a good thing. He is 1 1/2 yrs old now and I am pretty sure "it" the barking won't be coming anytime soon for him. I am not use to having a dog around that doesn't alert me to things. Oh well, I love him to death and know I certainly wouldn't ever have to worry about him turning on anyone, that is one nice thing!!

Melanie

[wags]

Melanie, I'm jealous!

I would love to go one day without apologizing to someone about our dog's bark.

Wes is so little that people think he is just a puppy. They want to hug him and he gives them a big WOOF

[CarCarDawn]

Hi! Riley - - who is 9 months old - - is actually a pretty good watch dog - - very, very protective without being aggressive. He does sometimes bark at silly stuff but he is the first one at the door when someone knocks. I don't mind staying home alone with him - - he makes me feel secure - - I am sure he would put up a good fight if an unwelcome stranger approached - - all 12 pounds of him!!!

[Eliz222]

I have a quiet Cairn too! Scout does not bark at all. I think someone could come into the house and take everything and she would would just stand there and wag her tail! Every once in awhile she will bark at a strange noise in the house and when she is outside she will bark at the occasional dog that passes by, but this only happens every once in awhile. I had Cairns all my life and I know how much they can bark! I'm blessed to have a quiet one, but she sure is not going to save me from harm!

[Melanie]

I am glad to hear my little guy isn't the only quiet one. I agree it is rather nice sometimes but totally agree about the protecting thing. I had a repairman arrive at the house this week that Max has never seen before and he was licking the heck out of him. The guy couldn't believe how friendly he was. Soooo even though it is nice as I have posted in the past, I always feel the need to protect him instead of the other way around. Anyone could walk past our yard and very easily snatch him up. I can never leave him unattended for more then 2-3 minutes without checking on him. In that sense it is a big nerve racking.

Melanie

[LORI]

Today I was putting stuff into the frig breakfast was over, carrots were passed out to you know who and Brandy started barking at the frig. Now is that scarey or what?

[LoriJ]

Hi everyone. This is my first post on this forum. I saw this topic and had to respond. I thought I was the only one with a barkless Cairn! Ralph is 2 1/2 years old. He did bark as a puppy, especially when he wanted something. But that didn't last long. All of a sudden he just stopped barking. Now he doesn't make a sound. I guess I'm lucky.