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For many of us, singing carols is one of the happiest parts of the holiday season. This year, why not have your dogs join in the fun by teaching them how to sing-along to your favorite Yuletide melodies? Your four-footed friends might not be the next Pavarotti, but with a little coaching and training, they can provide you and your family with some warm holiday memories as they "sing-bark" to classics like Jingle Bells.
Teaching your dog to "sing" with you isn't as difficult as you might think. As descendants of wolves, who often communicate with one another by howling, our canine friends have a tendency to respond to us when we sing, according to dog trainer Bash Dibra. "Your dog regards you as part of his pack." Dibra tells us, "so when he hears you sing, he's going to want to say something back to you."
Dibra, who has worked with the pets of many celebrities, has seen dogs harmonize with some famous human singers. "I trained Carly Simon's French Poodle, and this dog would start howling whenever Carly sang" he said. "Freank Sinatra also had a dog (a Cavalier King Charles spaniel) who would bark along whenever the 'Chairman of the Board' sang."
You should begin your dog's vocal training by singing to your pet, advises Dibra. "Many dogs will respond by giving you a long howl-like bark if you really stretch out a note," he explained. "For instance, if you sing, 'Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, jingle all the WA-A-A-Y!" There's a good chance your dog will bellow when you stretch out the word 'way.' Then he'll bark again when you sing, 'Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open SLEIGGGH!" Of course when your dog does this, you should reward him with praise, and an occasional treat."
As you and your dog continue to practice, you can gradually stop stretching out the key words in a song. Soon, your dog will know to howl at the appropriate points in the song, without you exaggerating the words. "Once you and your dog master this trick, it will look and sound really cute," said Dibra, "because it will appear that your dog's bellows are part of the song."
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