Considering a coonhound puppy, but my landlord is unsure about vocal dogs...

I'd like to get a coonhound puppy, but I know they can be very vocal and my landlord has two small children living downstairs. If I can train a coonhound not to bark or howl inside (or at least not at night) I think it will be fine. I was wondering if anyone has any experience with this. How difficult is it? How much noise do they usually make? Do they make a lot of noise at night, or just during the day? I don't mind a different breed, if necessary, but I'd like to know if there's a chance at living comfortably with a hound without a lot of noise.

I've met some hound that are very quiet. And then there are other, typical hound lol.

There is a change you get/create a quiet dog. But what you have to consider is what will happen if the dog doesn't turn out quiet? Are you willing to move?

If I was you I'd look for a breed known to be less vocal, or find an adult dog that doesn't bark much. Your landlord is making it pretty clear from the beginning what they are not willing to live with, so it makes sense to stick with those guidelines.

Also keep in mind, coohounds get pretty large by rental standards. It can be extremely difficult to find a place that will let you rent with a larger dog so unless you plan on buying a home or staying in the same place for the next 10+ years I'd recommend sticking with breeds that stay in the lower size range.

A lot of sight hounds are very quiet. Whippets, italian greyhounds, afghans, rhodesian ridgebacks, borzoi, and basenji would all work. Especially the whippets and basenji, as they are pretty sturdy guys that fall into most rental weight ranges. They are pretty chill indoors too. We have two borzois and they pretty much sleep unless we want to play with them or take them outside. They also never bark unless there is a good reason (like a coyote is in the yard or something.)

I'm not worried about the size. I've already made sure there are places available that allow dogs of any size in the summer. Small dogs are not an option for me, so I'll make it work when I move, regardless.

As for my landlord, the only thing she made clear in the beginning was that I was allowed to have a dog, she gave no restrictions. I was the one who said hounds were vocal and how did she feel about that. She said she was "iffy" if I thought they'd wake the kids at night, but that she might be ok with it if I could try it out first or something. Essentially I'm left to use my own personal judgement about the dog I get.

That's why I want to know if there are any reliable training techniques for training excessive barking out of naturally vocal dogs. If any one has any suggestions as far as that goes, I'd really appreciate it. Also, if there's no way to train a hound when it's appropriate to be vocal and when it's not, let me know that, too. As far as other dog traits, I'm pretty set in stone about wanting a puppy and one that will be medium to large in size. You can make all the suggestions you want, but this is an upwards of 15 years commitment so I'm going to get the dog that's right for me.

I have a counhound. He rarely makes noise at night since he sleeps like a chunk of granite. However, he is very vocal, with a wide repertoire of different howls. I do not expect I would have much luck getting him to not howl, since he feels that is what he was intended for and he is right.

A coonhound's howl is meant to be heard from a long way off on the night air. It is a work of art, but LOUD.

You can get him to bark less, but they have been bred to have loud voices. With a loud distinctive bay, hunters can tell which dog is on the scent. A big dogs bark/bay will wake the dead.

A friend of mine has a redbone coonhound. She is not an overly noisy dog. Really you can train any dog to hush on command, so there is no reason it should be an issue. Even better if you get a pup and properly train it from day one that running his mouth is not acceptable.

I know a few people with coonhounds and they are quiet indoors. As long as you train it well, and give it a good amount of exercise to get out energy, it should be fine. Just know that if/when it does bark/howl, it will be very loud.

I mean it's possible you'll end up with a quieter one, and it's possible to do some training to stop barking. BUT what if it doesn't work? Is this pup gonna land himself in a shelter or need to be rehomed? Is he gonna have to wear some sort of bark collar which punishes him for doing exactly what his breed has been hardwired to do for hundreds of years? The reason we have different breeds of dogs is so we can choose one that fits everything we want and NEED. In this case you need a quieter dog, hounds are not quiet. So you have a few options:
1)Get a Coonhound and hope it all works out, if not, something unfortunate will happen to you (eviction), the Coonhound(re-homed, shelter, bark collar), or both(evicted together).
2)Start researching other breeds, plenty of breeds are not known for their voices and I'm sure there are plenty you'd like that would fit in to your household.
3)Move into your own house or a rented house and then get a Coonhound. Obviously way easier said than done.
4)Adopt and adult dog from a rescue/shelter. Adult dogs (around 3 years) have their adult temperament. Preferably choose a dog who has been fostered, some dogs don't bark in the shelter but do in a home. So a foster should have seen the dogs true colors.
5)Try and find an adult Coonhound at a breeder's. It's possible they have one who doesn't make much noise, though I don't know if they'd be okay giving their dog to someone who's landlord will not allow a barking dog.

It's not that I think this WILL go south if you get a coonhound, but it is a possibility with a bad outcome for the dog. That said I've never really interacted with a Coonhound, only Bassets and a large hound mix down the street, and they bark and howl when they are excited (feeding time, leashes come out for a walk, they are playing), see someone outside, someone comes to the door, etc.

Totally agree with Maxy!

If you have your mind made up that you want a coonhound, I'd look at finding an adult dog whose temperament is already known, and then make sure you have a back up plan for where to move to if the dog ends up being loud.

having two hound mixes, both adopted as adults--I can say that the amount of barking with my guys is minimal. They do get excited, but I don't tolerate alot of carrying on. It can be done, and they are wonderful companions. But it is work--and everyone must be consistent with the expectations of dog. of course, I let them howl when it's ok--when we are outside playing, etc. But let them know inside that it is "enough", and they stop.
The one thing I would worry about with any dog--adult or puppy, is if it had separation anxiety. That would be difficult in your situation, as then there would most likely be alot of barking. But that is possible with any breed.

:hail:

What will you do if the dog turns out to be a howler??? Remember it is their instinct to do so...You may want to consider a breed that's much more likely to be quiet especially during the night.
It will be problematic if the dog is not and you may be forced to move or get rid of the dog.

Good luck!

At 3:00 in the morning, when there is a noise outside (raccoon knocks over garbage can, neighbor opens and shuts car door,...) your startled hound reacts by waking up and giving a big "Awroooo!", then stops because you have trained him to bark less. You wake up from a sound sleep, the people downstairs wake up from a sound sleep, the next door neighbor wakes up from a sound sleep. I just don't see this working.

I have a black and tan coonhound. He is pretty much mute.

^^^ That (highlighted)

Your best bet is to look for an adult dog to adopt ... one that's already known to be the strong-silent-type.

Although it IS possible to train a dog to accept a "quiet" command ... the problem with getting a puppy (or a non-quiet adult) and training a "quiet" command is what about when you are not at home to give the "quiet" command? You're just in a much too precarious situation to risk a dog possibly barking or howling it's fool head off when you're not there.