Dog barking whilst waiting for food.

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Hi everyone, does anyone else have this problemswith their ever hungry cockers!  When we start filling her bowl at feeding time she gives off her little barks and get's impatient. We don't have a problem with this necessarily but it is not that good for her to be barking too early at breakfast as we don't want any complaints from the neighbours. I know that some say just to stop the food preparation and start again when she's quiet. But this is not always pratical especially when pushed for time. I guess we we just wondering if anyone else has this with their cockers. We're hoping she will grow out of it when she realises that we ARE going to feed her and she doesn't have to treat every meal as though it's her last ever!                    

[Katherine]

Can she see the food while you are preparing it?

Barnaby is ok when he can't see the food, but as soon as it comes into view he starts making whiny barks and running through all the tricks he has learnt, in the hope that one of them will be good enough for me to give the food to him!
You could also try shutting her out of the room as you prepare it although this can sometimes make them bark more! :roll: !
I know how annoying the barking can get! How old is she? She may grow out of it. Barnaby is six months and he's not getting much better :roll: but he does love his food.

Hope some of this works! :wink:                    

[Sheila]

Yes, we have the same thing.....Lottie actually gives a sort of scream with barking. She is only a pup though and as she was the little one of the litter I think she is making up for lost time
I'm hoping she will learn from our lab, who just sits and waits quietly and patiently.
Lottie is improving, she used to jump up at our legs when we prepared the food. I have been working on her sitting and she now sits and waits usually, although she still makes a racket :roll:

I'm hoping she will grow out of it.                    

[Michele]

All I can say is I hope you have better luck than me. Getting food ready for 3 of them with Neneh (who is nearly 5!!!! :shock: ) twirling round like a lunatic on speed is no joke. :?
What I do now is, when they're having their breakfast (a handful of dried Nutro) I get the Nutro for teatime into their bowls, this at least saves a bit of time later when they all seem to think their throats have been cut  :roll:                    

[Sheila]

Is this something that cockers particularly do??

Our lab has always been a piggy for food, I think all labs are , but she has never acted like Lottie. I get quite embarrassed, I'm sure the neighbours think I am killing her :shock: Mind you, I think she is quite a little actress!

I try to get the food ready, whenever possible, when she is engaged in play or asleep.                    

[lizzy]

Molly has always been sensible around food! As a puppy she always sat patiently while I got her food ready , I suppose I just took it for granted really!! :wink:  But with Evie it's a different matter, at first she would scream and bark and twirl around like a maniac, now we are just about sitting and waiting, ( with paws twitching around) she is totally different to Molly and needs a firmer hand!  

If she is particularly noisy and not siiting still I just gently hold her collar and keep her sitting ! They certainly make life interesting don't they!?

Lizzy Molly and Evie                    

[DIANNE32]

all these stories made me chuckle, my Bailey is the same and he's six months.  The one thing that drives me mad though is he can see through the neighbours fence so when they are having a barbi he sits and barks for food, its very embarassing, i bet they think i dont feed him.  When we shut him in the house it makes him worse :twisted: so it looks like a new fence is in order                    

[Katina]

Mine would never whine whils waiting for food, they know better .
I never give my dogs their food untill they sit patiently and wait quietly. They aren't aloud in the kitchen so they wait outside, sitting and staring trough the doorway. But they are quiet  .                    

[TOPAZ BILLY]

Billy has always been really relaxed about food and just sits and waits until I say go then he starts to eat, Abby is only 9 weeks but she has already picked up that if she sits quietly the food comes quicker,I won't put it down until they do even to the point of doing something else in the kitchen until they sit  she even does it automatically now for treats, I will post a picture later of her copying her big bro :roll: very funny the little and large of cockers

Michelle                    

[JoHarborne]

Woody does this too - the puppy barking and whining thing.  We've put it down to excitement and we don't mind too much - after all, our cats miaow like mad when it's their turn!!   In fact, we do "use" the sound of putting his food into his bowl to call him to dinner so it's not all bad.  

I think there are some things you just have to accept are behavioural in all animals and we shouldn't condition them "out", that wouldn't be right.                    

[lizzy]

Hi Jo,

I don't think it's a case of conditioning them " out " of screaming and jumping around when we are preparing their food, it's teaching them good manners and that they are not the boss and can't demand everything they want!

I would'nt want two adult cockers spinning and barking around the kitchen every meal time, it would drive me potty! :roll: So a little training from puppyhood does them no harm whatsoever!

Lizzy Molly and Evie                    

[Sheila]

Well I'm hoping that the message is getting through to Lottie...she actually sat reasonably quietly while I just got their lunch. Unfortunately she blew it when I was putting both bowls down...she almost leapt into her bowl :shock: ....I had no idea a little pup could jump in the air so far.

I did teach Goldie to sit and to wait for her food. She also was taught that she waiting until told "OK" before she could eat. I remember once my husband putting her dinner down and the phone ringing. Ten minutes later he returned to the kitchen to find Goldie still sitting looking at her bowl, drooling madly...the floor was really wet :shock: He felt awful and she got extras that night

Anyway, I live in hope that Lottie copies.....although I have already realised that she is a much more determined character.

Good luck to all of us with our mad cockers                    

[Sandie]

Oh no, not another mad cocker! I thought only Wesley did this barking mularky at food times. He goes mad and uses the kitchen cupboards as springboards!

Aimee on the other hand sits behind me waiting patiently for her food. Many a time I have tripped over her as she has sat too close to me waiting. Not a murmur to be heard! Funny, my other bitches were quiet too, maybe I just have a loud dog!  

Sandie, Aimee and Wesley xx                    

[Katherine]

Barnaby is the same with treats and footballs. hold one above him ready to give it to him and he goes crazy. He'll lie then sit then lie again then roll over then sit then stand until he gives up and starts barking his head off! :roll:                    

[JoHarborne]

Hi Lizzy!  It's funny but at lunchtime today I tried the method of waiting until there was the tiniest silence from Woody before I gave him his lunch!!  Must have been something I read on the forum eh?!   :wink:   I'm not sure he'll ever progress onto sitting patiently but I'm willing to try it for the sake of good manners.  Good to know he likes his food though!  

Now ... any advice on training those cats of mine?!?!