[cminnick2]

Hello Everyone! I have seen this video on you-tube for a button the dog pushes to communicate with you. It's call ed the Bow wow Button. I went to the website BowWowButton.com, and it looks pretty cool. Has anyone ever used this? My dog has bells at the back door that he paws at to go outside, so I'm sure he could do it. They claim that the dog will associate the different buttons with the locations that they are placed. (i.e. one at their food bowl, one at the front door, and one at the play toys) I'm curious to know if a dog can really associate different buttons with different activities. It looks pretty sweet if they can - please let me know.

[Lunareclipse]

Dogs have varying degrees of intelligence, like humans. Some dogs will pick it up after a few tries. Some dogs will take forever to get it. And some dogs won't get it all. There are some breeds that would be smart enough to for that type of training. Border collies, poodles and australian shepherds would have a better time than shiszus, or greyhounds.

[reeskujo]

As Luna said it really depends on the dog...My Akita Seigi has devised his own way of letting us know precisely what he wants..First he'll come and lay his head in my lap which is my cue to follow him into the kitchen..If he wants to go out he stands by the back door..If he wants a treat he stands at the counter that has his treat jar..If he's hungry he'll lick his food bowl etc..

As a trainer I've had a lot of students who have had success using the bell on the door and some who's dogs wanted no part of it and it really wasn't dependent on the breed but more the dogs preference as to what method he/she preferred..Some dogs are very good about letting you know when they have to go out and some will leave it up to the owner to figure it out..As Luna said they're much like humans in the sense that while there are certain characteristics every breed has in common it is more dependent on the dogs individual personality as to what works for them training wise.

[akismaster]

Training a dog to listen to you isn't simple if you don't have any "command presence" in front of your dog.

Your dog senses when you're scared of them and when you aren't assertive on what you want them to do.

In terms of stuff like your dog is jumping on you, chewing off your stuff, it means that he doesn't see those things as your possession.

There are dogs that will claim what they think is theirs. So you need to assert your authority by stepping in front of the object and projecting that you claim it.


Additional information: if you're dog is persistent, be persistent on claiming the object. It's always the battle of will.

Try observing a small pack of dogs. It's better if you can find stray dogs to watch and learn what they do for the lower members of the pack to listen.

Hope it helps.


-Eric

[cigwyllt]

My dogs are very clear about telling what they want and have no need of any gadgets. I am perfectly well trained without them! They don't tell me when they are hungry - I tell them when they are being fed. They show excitement when I get the bowls together or open the food bin but not otherwise. They only have one toy that they are allowed without us interacting with them although Ojo knows where the others are. If they were to start pawing at the toy box it would be moved out of their way.

The only thing that I could see would be useful is signalling that they need to go to the toilet but as we have a dog door ours take themselves out anyway. Our old dogs would sometimes bark at the door but that wouldn't necessarily indicate that they needed the toilet - it was just as likely that there was a cat in next door's garden.

To my mind the gadget would cause more problems than it would solve - imagine the dog constantly pressing the button to say "feed me"!

[lange]

Kuma has signs. When she needs to potty she'll sit right in front of me facing me, back straight, ears up, looking straight into my eyes at full attention like a soldier. When she wants to play or attention she will sit or stand in front of me and look at me but her ears and eyes are soft and her body isn't stiff. When she wants belly rubs & if I'm on the floor, she'll turn her back to me and try to sit on me, if I'm up and she's lazing around she'll roll over when I pass her by, and if we're both up and about she'll come over and start pawing the air in front of me.

Wrigley barks a quick high pitched sound when he needs out to poopy. If he wants pets he'll jump on me but I won't pet him. lol When he wants to come inside from outside he will sit and stare at the backdoor or look at the house and bark.

I actually love getting to know each dog and getting used to their signs. It's so individual and fun.

btw: it was fun reading about every one else's situation. We should start a thread on something like this where people can post some things their dogs do to get their messages through.

[cminnick2]

Hello All, and thank you for your replies. I want to make clear that I understand my dog, and I pick up on his signals, but I just thought it would be cool to hear it in English. (Maybe this Bow Wow Button iis more for the dog owners than the dogs.)

In fact, thats what the web site says too. - Obviously the dog won't understand the actual phrases being recorded and played back. It's more the association with location I was wondering about- but I'm pretty sure my dog can do IT!!

I went ahead an ordered mine, I think they sound like fun, and I got two for $15. I figure I waste a lot more than that on toys my dog won't even play with or trying some new brand of food. I'll keep you posted, when they arrive

[akismaster]

Alright. Goodluck and let us know alright?

Have a nice day.

-Eric