# When will the GP's stop barking so much??



## kath2003

We have two Great Pyrenees LGDs. One female that will be 1 year old tomorrow, and a male that is 10 months old. I realize that barking is part of their make up, but will it always be from sundown to sun up?? I am not kidding, as soon as it is dark, they start, and continue untill the sun comes up and the chickens are out!


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## Songbird

They bark all night long? When do they sleep?

And what are they barking at all night long?


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## kath2003

They will sleep most of the morning on and off. They get up, check things out and go lay back down. As far as "what they bark at during the night", our best guess is that because they can't see much out there, its really dark, they are warning off anything that "MIGHT" come by.


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## thequeensblessing

Pyrs are infamous for their night barking. It is just part of their makeup. Usually, though, they just "sound an alarm" type of barking every hour or so. The kind of bark that just lets all the potential predators know that they are out there, and on the job. Constant barking at night is less common, or should be less common. Pyrs are ever alert for something out of the ordinary though. Are the dogs loose in the pasture? Do you have a lot of deer or other animals around your place? Sometime, when your dogs start barking non-stop, go out near them, and see if you can hear anything that might be alarming them. 
As I said, our two pyrs bark off and on throughout the night, but rarely ever bark non-stop. When they do the non-stop barking, we know we need to go out and take a look at things.


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## longshadowfarms

The joke around here is that our Pyr works nights and sleeps days. As Queensblessing has said, it is usually an "I'm on duty" patrol bark occasionally and not very serious. It is just letting potential predators know that they are on duty. The serious barking is reserved for something the Pyr sees that they feel should not be there. I confess I've never dealt with a young LGD though. I have heard that an inexperienced LGD will bark at a lot more than is necessary because they just have not developed the discernment yet. With two young dogs you've got double the problem. Many Pyrs end up in rescue (including ours) because people in the burbs think they are so cute but when they bark all night, the neighbors don't appreciate it. It is hard from here to know what you mean by "all night" but rest assured that you are not alone.


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## Maura

Any dog left outside at night can do too much barking. Your two are still puppies and are barking at every sound they hear. They are afraid of the boogey man. Try some nighttime training with them. Sit out on the porch (or wherever) and everytime one of them barks, reward it, praise it, and say "thank you". They will learn to stop barking after two or three barks. 

If they run toward the sound, go with them and praise and say "thank you". You don't want them to bark, then go running back to you, so you want to praise them in the spot that needs protecting. The bark will interrupt the stalking of the predator and make it go away. 

I think if you are outside with them they will feel more secure and be able to learn to discern the noises. If they respond to something that you know is nothing of concern, you can put them on a down, or tell them to "leave it" so they learn that falling leaves are not harmful, nor are mooing cows.


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## Ravenlost

Yup, our young GP mix is a nighttime barker too. He just stands at the top of the hill in back and barks...and barks...and barks. We bring him in at bedtime, but he has been known to bark in his sleep!


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## kath2003

Thats just it, they are barking at cows they hear down the road, and the horses I think. My husband thinks maybe a coyote off in the distance also.No problems with neighbors, but I was wondering when they might decide that falling leaves will not hurt their goats,LOL.
I think I will try being outside this weekend, its suppose be kind of nice. I work the overnight shift during the week, but the barking is driving my family nuts,and I hear it all weekend,lol.
Thanks for the help.


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## nehimama

Hopefully, you'll become used to the night barking. When I hear my two Pyrs barking at night, I smile, roll over, and go back to sleep. Because I know they are doing their job. 

NeHi


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## kath2003

Ok, one year later, and now they have a plan! Our male Fred, takes the night shift, and Blossom, our female, takes the day shift. Unbelievable the way they do this. I never know anymore what is a real problem out there, or just more barking. 
The night time barker barks at the deer, the dog in the distance, the black cat doing his job in the barn, and so much more.
Blossom, the day shift, barks at the sky, the cats, the snowplows now, certain sounding cars, not all cars, just certain ones, and us when we go out to feed all the animals. Whats up with that one?


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## Bearfootfarm

> "and us when we go out to feed all the animals. Whats up with that one?"


She's happy to see you...and barking is what LGD's do.

I can tell when there's a REAL threat by the tone of the bark, and most of the time I can tell which of my 4 Maremmas is barking (if it's not ALL of them ... LOL)


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## Rogo

Not a Great Pyre, but my livestock guardian even barks at airplanes. Maybe she thinks they're over-grown hawks! -G- I tell her they're 30,000 feet up and don't want her stock, but she doesn't think so!

_______________________________

However you celebrate the holidays, have a very happy season.


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## kath2003

I understand thats what they do, but a great majority of lgd's learn to sit quietly and observe, then bark when needed! These two haven't figured out yet I guess, that not all noises are going to attack their stock.


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## ginnie5

Bandit is 10mo old and so far so good. He does bark......at anyone that dares to come in "his" yard, anyone that walks up the road, and any stray dogs. The other day ds came running in to tell me there were 2 strange trucks in our drive. I went out to see what was going on...it was the phone company and they were looking for the gas lines (?). They decided that the best way to trace them was to come to our hookup and start from there. We don't use gas anymore though I do know where the line they wanted runs. But while I'm trying to tell this not the most intelligent phone man this he's LEANING on the fence with 100 lbs of dog trying to get to him. I told him he might want to move that I hadn't fed the dogs yet.


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## mzzlisa

Pyrs are famous for barking! Luke barks at just about anything. We live in a subdivision and while he is in at night, he barks quite a bit during the day. He barks at Bicycles of Death, Dogwalkers of Death, Neighbors of Death, United Parcel Service of Death and anything else he sees as possibly causing our demise. Today he barked at Schwanns of Death. Its funny because my other two dogs (not pyrs) look at him and you can tell they're thinking "What?? Whats out there? We're not seeing it!"


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## kath2003

Some days, I can't wait untill they get old and fat, lol.


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## Judy in IN

When I advertise Anatolian puppies, I mention that they are not night barkers. 

I don't hear a bark unless there's a problem.

Now, when I had PYRS.......


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## bigfoot2you

I have a 4 yr old PYR..........she is basically an indoor pet rather than a guardian. And about the only time she doesn't bark is when she is asleep.....she will sit on the hill and sniff the air and bark, and bark, and bark, then sniff a bit more........change positions and start all over........sigh.........but she is a great dog.........


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## cowbelle

I feel so lucky!! I have a 2 yr old Pyr, Sage, who I took as a rescue. I have about 5 acres with chickens, rabbits, cats,other dogs, and seasonally, cattle ( on the other 20 acres). She only barks when the local foxes come too close, or the coyotes cross the pasture. In the winter when the snow drifts get 4' high and only 6" of the back fence shows, she doesn't even go out of it!! I'm amazed, as I fully expected to have to put up electric, but she sits there on the drift, chews the clothes pins off the clothesline, and could step out, but doesn't. She's wary of unknown persons, which is great, but lovey to my family. Just an overall great guardian and friend. One night when she did bark all night, and I did go out, but couldn't see anything, in the morning I found a car off the road into my fence. Whoever was driving it was long gone - but it showed that she knew something was not right, and he darn sure didn't come to me for help!


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## Goatress

kath2003 said:


> We have two Great Pyrenees LGDs. One female that will be 1 year old tomorrow, and a male that is 10 months old. I realize that barking is part of their make up, but will it always be from sundown to sun up?? I am not kidding, as soon as it is dark, they start, and continue untill the sun comes up and the chickens are out!


They are doing their job. Be happy. You and your stock are safe.


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## mekasmom

kath2003 said:


> We have two Great Pyrenees LGDs. One female that will be 1 year old tomorrow, and a male that is 10 months old. I realize that barking is part of their make up, but will it always be from sundown to sun up?? I am not kidding, as soon as it is dark, they start, and continue untill the sun comes up and the chickens are out!


LGDs bark all night long every night. That's just the way they are made. Mine stop around four or five in the morning as soon as dawn breaks.


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## Lisa in WA

Our GP Guinness, is pretty good. He doesn't bark terribly often and it's definitely not all night. But often enough that the predators stay well away.
We had another that would sit on the hill and bark and when his echo came back from the forest across the river...he'd answer. Kept him busy for hours and hours and hours...He was rather annoying at night.:grin:


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## yarrow

One of our LGDs is named BOB BARKER!!!! he lives up to his name (but we NEVER have issues with predators with them on duty).. we don't even lock the chickens up at night.. they free range the woods from dawn to dusk, haven't lost a single one in the last 3 years.. we live deep in the Ozarks. with all sorts of beasties who would love to dine upon our nubian herd, the wee sheep flock and the poultry. Coyotes, bob cats, hawks & eagles galore, even the occasional cougar... Bob Barker & his sister Lola are an almost 5 year old pair of neutered/spayed litter mate pyrs.. they are without a doubt, worth their weight in gold!!! and all they ever ask for in return for keeping everyone safe? some fresh, warm goat milk, after the morning milking.

susie mo ozarks


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## linn

Our pyr barks at night off and on. This is her job as she is warning off trespassers on what she considers her territory. She also barks in the day time, but not as much. My DH did not appreciate our dog until the FedEx man told him of an incident that he witnessed during a delivery. His statement was, "boy that old white dog earned her keep the other day." Apparently he sat and watched as our dog faced off with a coyote. He said the coyote would jump one way and the dog would follow until the dog eventually chased the coyote away. 
Our dog does bark at delivery men, but has never offered to bite anyone. I think it is because we have socialized her to accept humans. She stays around the barn and house except when she senses a threat and then off she goes. She will not tolerate a strange dog even coming down the road, near her territory, so that is a problem when the neighbor brings her dog along for a walk. The neighbor knows we have a pyr and knows her nature, so I think she is pushing it by bringing the dog along. It is not for protection because our dog never bothers her otherwise.


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## Gymno

I think dogs work together best in teams. When anyone gets a LGD, hopefully they were clearly educated as to how these dogs work. They are not really attack dogs. Their bark is a low and menacing one and is a main deterrent to other dogs, people, coyotes. If they bark ALL THE TIME, i would say this is not normal. When we first got our dogs a year ago, they barked much more then ...than now. I suspect they just understand the normal noises of the night. We are able to now understand the different kinds of barks. One time, i heard them barking in a new way, and went out with my flashlight and rifle. Sure enough, outside the fence were a few coyotes.

Perhaps your dog is barking because of inexperience or fear. I was taught to help the dogs to relax. So you could go out and sit outside for a while to show the dog that all is well at this time. I know there are times when ours will bark for a while....then nothing for hours...then again....then nothing. 

During the days they like to sleep in between their rounds! 

my best,
Jim


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## linn

That is true, our Pyr barked a lot more when she was a big pup. I think it was because of her inexperience. Our grandson's coonhound barks a lot more than the Pyr does now. Let me tell you, the barking of a Pyr compared to that of a Walker hound is nothing.


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