I have the Weirdest Cairn

[Darc]

Prior to Piper coming to live with us, I went back and read all the old posts. Very funny stuff. But having had a terrier mutt before, there were somethings that you just have to understand. THEY ARE TERRIERS.

THen came Piper. He is now 21 weeks old. He is weird. We have yet to hear him bark at anything. He makes strange quiet groanie noises but no barking. And he is SO CALM. Definitley has not read the CUR manifesto. Has not destroyed a toy yet, has not destroyed anything in the house, and he has the run of the kitchen/livingroom when we are not home. Once in a while he does the RUNAROUNDALLCRAZY thing. Its kinda like he is already 7 yrs old or something.

I think this strange behavior comes from our senior citizen dog that also lives in our house. He has learned our old guys manners. Serenity and Dignity in all things (most of the time), including playing. In fact, the only time he does the RUNAROUNDALLCRAZY thing is when the old guy is outta sight. Embarassing behavior!!

About the only thing that he is true to form in is potty training and recall. His attitude is "whatever" and "whenever" and the fact that EVERYTHING off the ground needs to be eatten. Rotter

[bradl]

Heh. Bookmark this post. Barley didn't make a sound louder than "Chufff" for six or nine months. Enjoy the calm.

[Eliz222]

Brads right, enjoy the peace.....for now!

Finch didn't bark at all either when she was a puppy. I miss those days! LOL!

[Tracy A.]

I agree with Brad- & Mett & Bratt didn't start 'oh a blade of grass moved- Bark at it" unti they were around 6-9 months old. Your elderly dog has shown the youngster the ropes in the house.... the do's and don'ts.... but give it time... Every Cairn has a little devil and a little angel on its shoulders..... At some point the little angel is going to loose it's voice !

[goforette]

Brystal didn't bark at all until she was 13 months old.... Hollie on the other hand was a barker from the start

[sheila and Misty]

wow! sounds like your describing Misty. shes 9-10mo and she is only beginning to bark and it doesnt last long. she did the low growl noise but shes a talker-constantly for everything. which is kindof cute most of the time untill your trying to concentrate on something. she still has an occasional accident too-usually our fault.

she never chewed anything up as of yet just steals gloves and papertowels but doesnt make much of a mess- she even gathers her toys sometimes.but hey thats a good thing -my neighbors were so use to scruffy barking his head off when they came out or tried mowing the lawn-Misty pshaw! she could care less ,so they asked me..doesnt this dog bark???? I said not much but I can teach her to if you like-shouldnt be hard. oh and I'd use the word unique! not weird. lucky you...soooooo far. Maybe he just wants to sneak it in all at once, so you can be surprise and oh soo proud.

[Amber and the zoo]

Ellie didn't bark until we got Gracie! What a bad influence. Now Gracie and Ellie will bark at anything that is in motion...darn that wind!!!

[Darc]

Too funny Brad. THat is exactly the sound he makes. A chuff. And no - my dog will be perfect in all things. No bad behavior. Yes I am delusional.

[bradl]

My dogs are perfect too. I just redefine what perfect means

[Scruffys Mom]

Glad to hear we all have perfect dogs, I was beginning t think I was the only one... Sparky truly is the definition of Puppy Love. He has never destroyed so much as a squeeky toy. Never any of our personal property. He will bark on occassion if Scruffy is really wound up. He malkes the cutest noises. He moans and groans and turns his sounds into a song that just sounds so cute you fall in love with him all over again. Now so far, he may sound a little wussy, but he is not, he is rough and tough and fights with Scruffy like a trained gladiator. Scruffy is the better athete and always prevails (not to mention she is twice his size). This is my first year with these 2. I convinced my husband no vacations as I can not leave them. Too many things have to be monitored daily and I can not trust anyone to do that. We will take a road trip so the pups can come with us, but this has not been the norm.

[toomanypaws]

Having three Cairns, they all are so totally different. Kiara (almost 6) only barks for a reason, like a good watchdog should. I can tell her that it's ok and she quiets back down. Outside w/ her is a different story. She is obsessive about me throwing her ball and drives me crazy w/ it. Abbey (3 1/2) came out of the womb barking. I can open the door to let her outside, and she charges out that door barking just in case there might be something to bark at. As far as being a "high alert dog", she's off the charts. Hannah (3 this Sun) was an extremely quiet pup. All she did at first was yodel. She now will chime in w/ Abbey, but quiets when corrected by my voice. Abbey needs me to smack a rolled newspaper on the counter to quiet her. Besides the three Cairns, we added a male Westie who is 7 mths now and really had no reason to bark being he has Abbey to bark for him. He has this cute little howl that he does and this little rrrrffffff sound when he has to go out. He's a bit spoiled and is just now getting vocal for attention.

Forget to mention, the only destructive one of my group is Abbey. She's better now, but as a pup, she chewed through out kitchen wall. We still have to keep an eye on her. She lives by the rule that if it's on the floor, it's hers. I always tell her that her "cuteness" saves her.

[Pepandfriend's mom]

Darc, my Cairn (a rescue) IS older at 8 and doesn't do a lot of the running around BARKINGHISSILLYHEADOFF. And I love his little groans, usually they happen when he is being petted or getting tummy rubs. However, I have a feeling that he was not quite as peaceable when he was 1 or 2! Enjoy the little groans for now.

pam

[Barney's Mom]

Barney was another one of those Cairns who was born barking! And it's not a little whoof either! His barks can be sharp and ear piercing (the "don't leave me") bark, or the go-berzerk bark which is so loud that you can't imagine it is coming from this little dog!

My daughter and I have been working with him on teaching him to "speak" and to "quiet". He learned the speak in about 4 tries, and the quiet, well, that's pretty easy. Now today we said "quiet" on a few occasions and he came over looking for a treat! We learned in the book "The Culture Clash" that this is the best way to teach your dog not to bark. You teach him to bark, then what the command is to NOT bark. My daughter is even teaching him to bark a certain number of times. For example she will say, "speak 3" and after three barks she gives him the treat. He is actually kind of getting it!!! These dogs amaze me with their smarts! Now if I could only teach him to keep everything out of his mouth and not destroy whatever he sets his mind to!!

[Cairnmania]

Abby is the most laid back dog I've ever owned. She never destroys toys, ever. She does bark, but very selectively and when she's in the mood. She is a chatterbox though and will "talk" (more like nag) Rudi and me if she wants something.

Rudi barks so loudly and shrill that sometimes I feel like my eardrums will burst. He only barks at birds and other critters. When Abby barks (at the mailman, a squirrel in the windowbox) he either joins in or howls. We have a lot of critters in our garden - so there is a lot of barking.

If Rudi is interested in a toy, he destroys it. Stuffed toys last about two minutes with him before they are gutted. Abby likes to shred paper - Rudi eats it. :-)

They have very different personalities. Rudi would happy live on our laps (or anyone's for that matter). Abby will only sit on a lap if she's grabbed and it's not her idea.

I think that's what makes owning dogs so interesting - even within the same breed there are huge differences in character.