Bichon as Watchdogs?

[gracesong]

whenever the doorbell rings, Daisy barks, seeming to alert us that someone's at the door.
Is this behavior typical of a Bichon Frise? Also, in general, what is the bichon temperament like?
This is our family's first dog, well second, but we're very new to raising dogs.

[josie1918]

Hello Gracesong, I have never owned a bichon, but know hundreds of them from the vet clinic I work at, all the ones I have seen, are happy, joyous little dogs (I call them giggly wiggleys) They will bark to alert their owners of things not the "norm" but I have never known one who would be a "guard dog" (with a cherubic face like that ) All of them I have ever seen, are very sweet natured and I do know several that are therapy dogs at hospitals. I think for your first family pet, you have picked a wonderful breed.

[Fundog]

A couple of years ago I went to a community safety meeting put on by the local police department. The officer doing the presentation told us the best home security alarm system on the market today is a "yappy little dog." The officer said a "yappy little dog" will do more to deter home burglars than the most expensive electronic alarm system, since the alarm has to reach a company far away, then they have to reach your local police, then the local dispatcher has to dispatch a unit... by the time the police get there, the burglar is long gone. But with a yappy little dog, the burglar usually won't even bother in the first place.

[gracesong]

Oh, I didn't mean to imply she was agressive in any way. She just alerts us when people are at the door.
The bark used is usually short and sharp, but when she sees my dad (I'm saving that for another thread) her bark gets to be somewhere between a howl and an alert bark.

[gracesong]

Oh, I didn't mean to imply she was agressive in any way. She just alerts us when people are at the door.
The bark used is usually short and sharp, but when she sees my dad (I'm saving that for another thread) her bark gets to be somewhere between a howl and an alert bark.

[***Melissa***]

Dogs have different types of barks, and I know when my Bibi gives a very high pitched, short bark it means she's excited.
Depending on what type of bark it is, and her body language, it may simple mean that she's excited (I sometimes think my Striker thinks people are visiting him, not us )

[bichonlover11]

I am a new owner to a Bichon. I got her when she was 3 months old and she is now 6 months. I have noticed the same thing though except her bark has become worse and I can't get her to stop now.

[Zeldacorgi]

My neighbor has a bichon who is the sweetest dog, but when the doorbell goes off...well, she will let you know in case you didn't hear it.