If you possess both an Echo device and a smart security camera, you can use our cool security trick to frighten away potential intruders. It’s the capacity to program your Echo to bark furiously like a dog at precisely the appropriate moments to defend your house. Here’s exactly how to set it up if you’re interested!
Step by step guide: Configure Alexa to detect sounds
Go to Routines in the Alexa app on your phone in the first step (tap More to reveal the Routine option).
Tap on the + button to create a new routine
Tap on Sound Detection (public preview)
Tap on the sound you want alerting for:
To listen for alerts, tap on the Alexa you want to use.
Now that you can select a time range for alerts, you can have it only notify you during specific time windows, e. g. 8am to 8pm.
The next step is to choose the action you want Alexa to take. You can go to Messaging and choose Notification to receive an alert on your phone or you can ask Alexa to send you an announcement.
By adding extra steps, you can also tell Alexa to turn on or off a smart plug. g Tapping the Add action button (+) will turn on a smart plug.
Save the routine and that’s it.
When your new puppy first begins to bark, you can set up a routine to play soothing music and send you a text message alerting you to how much barking is occurring while you’re away.
Pro tip: Alexa will respond again after 5 minutes if you leave her alone. Therefore, if your dog barks once and then does so again after a minute, nothing will happen. At the same panel where you set the dates and times (see step #6 above), you can also customize this. In my case, the signal is suppressed for 15 minutes before Alexa responds once more.
With Amazon’s new Sound Detection feature, you can program routines to respond to four different sounds in addition to voice commands, such as a barking dog, a crying baby, snoring, or a cough.
You have a baby monitor, of course, but worried parents always want a backup. You can instruct Alexa to notify you when your child cries. You’ll receive a backup notification on the Alexa app on your phone in the event that you don’t hear the monitor for some reason.
Step 1: Sign up for Alexa Guard Plus
There are two versions of Alexa Guard: the free version and Alexa Guard Plus. When activated, the free Alexa Guard can listen for smoke alarms or glass breaking and send you alerts or flash any connected smart lights as a deterrent. It serves a purpose in its own right, but it can’t really take the place of a security system.
You get access to an emergency helpline, the ability to listen for human activity inside a home, and the ability to sound a siren or bark like a dog in the appropriate circumstances with the subscription-based Guard Plus. Guard Plus comes with a free trial and costs $4. 99 per month after that. If you already subscribe to a service like Ring Protect Plus, Guard Plus is included in that plan. This will also be the case for many other security plans, such as Abode, Scout, Wyze, and Resideo, in the near future.
You must go to the Alexa app, select Settings, Guard, and upgrade to Plus if this is your first time using Guard Plus. You must then add emergency contact information and complete your subscription. Check to see if the field Dog Barking Sounds is active and selected.
FAQ
Can Alexa recognize dog barking?
A wide range of sounds, including snoring, coughing, dogs barking, babies crying, beeping appliances, and leaking water, can be detected by Echo smart speakers and displays.
Does Alexa have a dog mode?
Alexa communicates with your pet by acting as a virtual cat or dog and meowing or barking. When your pet responds, Alexa can begin the “conversation” and will then continue to make animal noises. Your pets will be entertained all day long if you simply tell Alexa to enable Meow or Bark.
Can you use Alexa as a dog camera?
To keep your dog secure and content, Furbo Dog Camera can be a fantastic tool to integrate with your Amazon Alexa device. Enable the Furbo Alexa skill once you have a Furbo to begin.
Does Alexa have sound detection?
You can ask Alexa to listen for the sound of beeping appliances using the Sound Detection feature, which can result in a variety of visual notifications.