# New behavior -- perplexing -- barking at me to throw the frisbee



## chelle (Feb 1, 2009)

My dog Bailey is a nutcase about Frisbee. Just loves it. He can catch any reasonably thrown frisbee. (I try very, very hard to throw level so no jumping.)

Over the past couple of weeks, he's become even more intense with the frisbee. Before, when I had the frisbee in my hand ready to throw, he'd be in a very alert stance, totally focused and ready. Lately, though, he's barking at me very excitedly as I prepare to throw it. He's never been much of a barker, so this is kinda wierd. 

I'm not necessarily worried about it, but wondering why, at just over a year, he's ramping it up to this level.

Most of me wants to allow it, even encourage it, and a small part of me doesn't, as he's getting pretty ramped up for me to throw the thing. 

Is this "drive" ?


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## BlackthornGSD (Feb 25, 2010)

He is doing it because it has, to some degree, been rewarded. Also, it's a release of drive, expressing frustration and trying to push you into throwing.


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## sashadog (Sep 2, 2011)

chelle said:


> My dog Bailey is a nutcase about Frisbee. Just loves it. He can catch any reasonably thrown frisbee. (I try very, very hard to throw level so no jumping.)
> 
> Over the past couple of weeks, he's become even more intense with the frisbee. Before, when I had the frisbee in my hand ready to throw, he'd be in a very alert stance, totally focused and ready. Lately, though, he's barking at me very excitedly as I prepare to throw it. He's never been much of a barker, so this is kinda wierd.
> 
> ...


Honestly, I do not allow my dogs to do this ever. In my mind, this is being pushy and demanding. Not to mention, it drives me crazy because I will play with them when I feel like playing with them. Just because I'm holding a ball or frisbee doesn't mean that I'm going to throw it for her. 

If you want this intensity/behavior from him and can stop him when you want to, then I would say it's your call. What does he do if you don't throw it?


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## chelle (Feb 1, 2009)

BlackthornGSD said:


> He is doing it because it has, to some degree, been rewarded. Also, it's a release of drive, expressing frustration and trying to push you into throwing.


So.. is this a bad thing?  This is a new behavior, but yes, I have thrown the frisbee when he was barking. I can easily NOT throw it when he barks. He has shown some soft tendencies in his past, so to see him actually be so enthused at something is why I'm questioning if I should discourage it.



sashadog said:


> Honestly, I do not allow my dogs to do this ever. In my mind, this is being pushy and demanding. Not to mention, it drives me crazy because I will play with them when I feel like playing with them. Just because I'm holding a ball or frisbee doesn't mean that I'm going to throw it for her.
> 
> *If you want this intensity/behavior from him* and can stop him when you want to, then I would say it's your call. What does he do if you don't throw it?


Honestly I don't know. It is the only situation where he barks at me. He isn't aggressive as he does it, he just wants that frisbee so much. He is completely focused, tail wagging and just waiting so earnestly for me to throw it. Just very excited and happy and can't wait to catch that frisbee. 

What does he do if I don't throw it... I don't know -- I always throw it. This barking stuff only happens once I take my throwing stance.


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## zyppi (Jun 2, 2006)

Not a 'bad' thing, just demanding.

Use this frisbee obsession to train.

When he barks for frisbee, get him to sit, stay, or whatever you want to work on, and when he complies, _then_ throw the frisbee.

Love of a toy is perfect training tool.


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## KentuckyGSDLover (Nov 17, 2011)

I think it depends on the dog and your interaction, and barking isn't always a bad thing if you set the limits. Buddy waits until I throw, staring at me intently. But Rey - I had to teach her to play. She had no clue about interaction in play and when she finally got that it was fun to chase a Kong or frisbee and if she brought it back I'd throw it again, she'd tackle me for it. So I had to teach her that tackling me wasn't okay. Then she'd bark at me. I didn't want to discourage her too much but wanted to direct it, so I didn't respond to the bark, but instead starting saying, "Are you ready?" when I wanted to throw. At that point, she makes a noise that is hilarious, almost sounds like a gruff "yeah." Sometimes it's a bark. But it's around the keywords, "Are you ready?" Barking before those words were met with being ignored, trying to make me play when I don't want to are met with the word "no." Now we're into a play pattern that is predictable. Your dog is just excited and trying to engage you in play. I don't think the bark itself is harmful, as long as you focus it.


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## VChurch (Jun 14, 2010)

As zyppi said, I would use it as a tool to train. Minna has been known to bark _at me_ if I take an absurd amount of time before throwing her ball for her, and I tell her to 'no' and then go about my business until *I* want to throw the ball. I also make her do other things (sit, lay, touch, stand, get me that thing over there, etc.) before I'll throw her ball for her -- not everytime we play, just sporadically throughout play sessions. At least for Minna, I think it's good for her training....since she's in such a high-drive/alert state when we're playing with her favorite toy.


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## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

Totally normal for a dog that's nutty about the frisbee to bark at you to get you to throw it. Yes, it's drive, yes, it's pushy. If you don't like it, don't throw it when he barks at you. He'll learn very quickly what does and doesn't get him what he wants.


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## Lilie (Feb 3, 2010)

Question: Would her dog also learn to become 'pushy' with other things as well? Like would he be conditioned to bark when ever he gets to that drive level with something else? (Like going for a walk, or getting fed etc.)


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

By boy use to be pushy with my husband when he wanted his ball thrown, he wouldn't bark but would plop the ball down & start to paw at the floor...one time clunked him on the head with his deflated basketball while he was sleeping

I started to not leave his toys out, he got them when it was time to play. I am ok with him initiating play but on my terms, sit/wait for me to start the game. 

Interesting, my SIL also has a GSD and he's obsessed with frisbees and will carry on until it's thrown. When she puts them away she has to do it out of sight of the dog because then he will obsess about that spot where he know's the frisbee is. Now she also doesn't do any sort of training with him too and he gets away with alot.


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## susan.msp (Apr 30, 2012)

I just began having a similair issue. My 3 year old female GSD loves to chase a ball, she will do it until she drops. A few weeks ago my 16 year old son was kicking her volleyball for her, he did it 10 or 15 times. When he was done he had the ball in his hands and came up on the porch to talk to me and my husband. Santana came with him and as we were talking, she reached up and bit him in the thigh!! I said "was she trying to grab the ball???" My son said he didn't know but then put the ball up. The next day she did it to my 14 year old son, this time she bit in the butt. He immediately put the ball up. Neither boy will play with her now. My husband was kicking the ball and when he went to put it up she jumped up and grabbed the fleshy part of his arm. Knee jerk reaction of course, he kicked her. The ball hasn't been out since. He was wearing a light jacket and she punctured his skin. So about a few weeks later me and my 16 year old were wrestling around on the porch, he got a little to rough so I jumped out of my chair like i was going to get him and he started laughing and took off running across the yard. Santana dashed after him, grabbed him by the back of the knee and knocked him down!! I stood there with my mouth on the ground. I know that to her, he is just as good as the ball. Over the next week or so I kept her on leash and had my son(s) run so I could correct her. They can now run with her off leash, but they won't. Cant blame them really. I can tell she wants to chase him but she doesn't. Thank god we live in the middle of nowhere and I have never seen a jogger or bike rider. I'v had her since she was 12 weeks old and this behaviour just came out of nowhere. They are excercised daily, twice a day they go into our large pasture with us to count heads and see if there are any calves. They run all over. We play ball with them ( except her lately) and we spend 80% of our day outside and they are with us. She is very well mannered and has never bitten anyone, she doesn't even bark at strangers! Now we are all just kind of looking at her and going hmmmm......bad bad bunny


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## susan.msp (Apr 30, 2012)

And you know what else is odd? Up until about 3 mos ago, she wouldn't chase a ball. Had absolutely no interest. One day she just went after it, then became obsessed with it. We use a volleyball and kick it, and she was too excited and getting in the way to where you couldn't kick it so I began by making her sit down before a kick. She complies perfectly.


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

I saw this on Cesar.

A lab would just go ape-coocoo over a ball in a Chuckit, to the point of being nuts, jumping and slobbering! Cesar had the lady stand like a tree and ignore the dog until he calmed down and sat. He said the dog's focus needs to be on the handler, not on the ball, and it gets thrown at the handler's discretion. Dog has to know that he gets to use toys that belong to you.

So he had her wait (and it was a while, let me tell you) until the dog sat and made eye contact, and *then* the ball got thrown. 

This helped me a lot because Hans would bark, get excited and actually snap at the air while looking at the ball. When I began to put the ball behind me and do the "sit...watch me..." he stopped. Also a great way to get dog to focus on you.


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

KentuckyGSDLover said:


> I didn't respond to the bark, but instead starting saying, "Are you ready?" when I wanted to throw. At that point, she makes a noise that is hilarious, almost sounds like a gruff "yeah."


Ohhh please, please make a video of this and post it!


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## chelle (Feb 1, 2009)

Lilie said:


> Question: Would her dog also learn to become 'pushy' with other things as well? Like would he be conditioned to bark when ever he gets to that drive level with something else? (Like going for a walk, or getting fed etc.)


Great question and I wondered about this as well. What's not to stop him from being pushy if allowed to be in one thing? If it "works" for him in one area, he could easily associate it to anything he wants?

So with that particular thought in mind, I decided to work on it a bit. Didn't take much, thankfully.

When he got to barking in that demanding sort of way, I released my throwing stance, stood up straight and put the frisbee to my chest. Stood there. Told him to sit. He sat. I threw it. I never told him "sit" again, but now, as soon as I stand up straight like I did that time, he instantly sits and may "grumble" a bit, but no barking. It's actually pretty funny. He got the message quickly.

PS -- I also have always used the "are you ready" question. Just after I'd ask that was when he'd get to barking. I'm going to try to get a vid of what he's doing.


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

chelle said:


> Told him to sit. He sat. I threw it. I never told him "sit" again, but now, as soon as I stand up straight like I did that time, he instantly sits and may "grumble" a bit, but no barking. It's actually pretty funny. He got the message quickly.


That is what I was telling my husband just a few minutes ago, they sure do get it quickly. I told him to turn his back on Hans, who was jumping on him and going nuts to get petted. Husb. usually says, "sit...sit...sit..." but the dog is still excited. 
This time, he turned his back, Hans sat very soon, and got petted. Continued to sit. Was calm.
It amazes me, how easy they are to work with. I had a Pekingese for almost 19 years and it took me years to teach him to sit, LOL.


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## chelle (Feb 1, 2009)

*Vids added; bad dog, dumb owner*

I thought about starting a new thread with these vids, because I know many people don't come back to a thread once answered, but don't want to make it confusing. I am really interested in what you think about the dog AND me. 

First, let me say, I'm eating crow*.* A post back or so I said he got it "figured out." *Yeah, right. *I claimed success much, much too fast.

*Man oh man he is amped up. I probably should've stopped seeing him get more amped up, but I honestly didn't see it as much as I do now that I review the vid.
* 





*Almost as bad:*






*A little better: (but not much!)*






*Finally getting what I want:*











Open to all constructive criticism for him and me... Thanks.


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## PaddyD (Jul 22, 2010)

Abby really likes the frisbee and at nearly 3 just started getting excited enough to bark and jump when I indicate that I will throw it. I don't consider it demanding, I just think she's very happy. She only barks once or twice at the beginning, after that she's just into it. If I tell her to sit and calm down, she will ... to a degree.


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## Lmilr (Jan 12, 2011)

This might be a little off topic but the squeaker commentary in the second video was cracking me up 

I'm no expert but I would say you definetely seem to be handling this really well with him. It was like watching two different dogs.


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## sashadog (Sep 2, 2011)

The one thing that I stuck out to me is when Tucker started bugging Bailey in the first video. Personally I wouldn't allow that just given some of the tension that you've had between them that could turn into a squabble. Other than that, I was curious... Were these videos shot during the same play time? Does he start over at square one the next day? I agree with the comment about making him focus on you before he gets the frisbee thrown. IMO it's not as much about the sit/down/other commands as much as its about focusing on YOU. Oh, and I love your yard


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## chelle (Feb 1, 2009)

Lmilr said:


> This might be a little off topic but the squeaker commentary in the second video was cracking me up
> 
> I'm no expert but I would say you definetely seem to be handling this really well with him. It was like watching two different dogs.


I'm trying, but thank you. The squeaking ball was Tucker's contribution. He loves that thing.. obviously. 



sashadog said:


> The one thing that I stuck out to me is when Tucker started bugging Bailey in the first video. Personally I wouldn't allow that just given some of the tension that you've had between them that could turn into a squabble. Other than that, I was curious... Were these videos shot during the same play time? Does he start over at square one the next day? I agree with the comment about making him focus on you before he gets the frisbee thrown. IMO it's not as much about the sit/down/other commands as much as its about focusing on YOU. Oh, and I love your yard


Yes, all in same session and the bad ones were the first ones... by the time we work at it a bit, he gets better. They're pretty much posted in order of how they were taken. But he just hasn't gone so far back in progress from day to day until I tried again last night. 

Yeah, the sit/down isn't the thing I'm worried about -- I'm just trying to get him to show some self-control. I was trying to just get it down to a whine before throwing the frisbee. Thanks on the yard compliment! 

PS ETA - yes, that was Tucker being Tucker and bugging him. The other dogs were getting a little wound up with Bailey's nuttiness. At that point, Bailey wouldn't have gone after Tucker, wanting that frisbee as bad as he did. It would've required at least something as good as a squirrel to break him away.


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