raineth

that's awful There's a lady around here who does that sort of training, but not as bad by the sound of it. was truly awful to see. I think the owners must feel awful afterward, I guess a lot of them don't say anything because they feel that the instructor is the 'expert'. No wonder many clubs went down the 'purely positive' route in response to such training.

This would be impossible for me. For people who own working breeds, even a 2 hour walk on the leash doesn't begin to drain their energy. I could walk all day with my dog on the leash, and when I got home, he would still be rearing to go and probably destroy my house in frustration. I know my sister's papillons are more than satisfied with a walk to the shops and back, but my doberman can do a morning of lure coursing, an afternoon of swimming and running at the beach and an evening of chasing the cat and still have energy to spare - and I imagine that a german shepherd could be similar. I do not walk my dog on the leash to drain his energy, I can't not walk fast enough or for long enough to do that. I do it for training purposes and so that I can take him with me everywhere. This is a difficult situation, but given the dog is still relatively young and subsequently energetic, I don't think leash walking will cut it. hey Jacqui, I have a very energetic dog who would like to work all the time. and I also fostered an even more super energetic dog. Instead of trying to tire and work him out, have you thought about teaching him to relax? Or in effect teaching him that at times the job is to just be chilled out? I have been really focusing on this and its made a huge difference I know she could go and go, and give and give, all day. And some days I do tonnes of stuff with her and that's not a problem. But now 99% of the time she just relaxes when we're not doing anything Just a thought Also I reccommend a backpack which you could use to use up more of his energy when going for a walk He knows how to relax - there are days now when we can skip a walk all together (which is lucky because there were a few days over winter when I could not go out because of a bad cold). But he needs a couple of days a week at least of real exercise or else he starts doing things like chasing his tail, being destructive etc and annoying with us. You know if we go for a long drive it's not like he's throwing himself around the car, he will just sleep for the most part. And he comes with me everywhere - so he can happily sit at my feet in a cafe or whatever and not cause trouble. But we can ask him to do that on those occasions because several times a week, we do drain his energy. If all we did was walk him around the block a few times a week on the lead, we would have a very frustrated and unsatisfied pooch. As you said yourself, you do tonnes of things with your dog and then they relax the rest of the time - they won't relax without that "tonnes of stuff".Also he has a backpack, I once posted photos of him racing along with his backpack carrying over 10kg - which I think is about the most he can safely carry given his weight but he seems unphased. all good then Do you love he back pack? I just love ours, i think its about the best thing I've ever bought. I will correct you on the bolded bit though as that's not quite what I meant I do tonnes of stuff with her about once every ten weeks. What I meant was that when I have the opportunity to have a jam-packed day with her she keeps us just fine. She is content with an onlead walk every day and a training session every couple of days eta: by content I mean she has learned to just relax when things aren't on... not to always be looking for things to do, getting into mischief, or trying to 'work me'

This would be impossible for me. For people who own working breeds, even a 2 hour walk on the leash doesn't begin to drain their energy. I could walk all day with my dog on the leash, and when I got home, he would still be rearing to go and probably destroy my house in frustration. I know my sister's papillons are more than satisfied with a walk to the shops and back, but my doberman can do a morning of lure coursing, an afternoon of swimming and running at the beach and an evening of chasing the cat and still have energy to spare - and I imagine that a german shepherd could be similar. I do not walk my dog on the leash to drain his energy, I can't not walk fast enough or for long enough to do that. I do it for training purposes and so that I can take him with me everywhere. This is a difficult situation, but given the dog is still relatively young and subsequently energetic, I don't think leash walking will cut it. hey Jacqui, I have a very energetic dog who would like to work all the time. and I also fostered an even more super energetic dog. Instead of trying to tire and work him out, have you thought about teaching him to relax? Or in effect teaching him that at times the job is to just be chilled out? I have been really focusing on this and its made a huge difference I know she could go and go, and give and give, all day. And some days I do tonnes of stuff with her and that's not a problem. But now 99% of the time she just relaxes when we're not doing anything Just a thought Also I reccommend a backpack which you could use to use up more of his energy when going for a walk

hey there I think I was a bit worried about it too the first time, not 100% sure I was foing the right thing But I really reccommend you don't take him to the vet for it. The vets will most likely aim to just get it all done quickly and its usually not a great experience for the dog and there is a good chance it will make him very afraid of it. There are lots of good clips on youtube that show you how to introduce your dog or puppy to having its nails trimmed and how to do it. You want to start off nice and slowly This is a quick run through of what I do (on adults and puppies): Firstly make sure puppy is very happy about having his paws and toes handled. Practice holding his paws in the way you would hold them to cut his nails. Use treats to make it something he enjoys. If he is really fussy about it make sure you take it slowly. You want to go to the level before he starts to get unhappy and give him a treat. Bridge words work well for this Once he is happy having all paws and toes being handled introduce the clippers. Let him sniff them (but not play with them). Then take the clippers and hold them near each nail and give him a treat when you do. When he's happy with this, hold his paw like you will be when clipping his nails and then also put the clippers to each nail and reward each time. This part should really take hardly any time for him to be happy about Once he's happy with the above... its time to clip a nail I just do one nail. Clip it give him a treat tell him what a good boy he is, and leave it at that until the next day when you clip another nail. If he is relaxed about the whole thing you can do two nails at a time Just keep building it up until he is relaxed with you doing them all. You gradually phase out the treats but you can still give one at the end when you've done them all. But in the beginning one treat for one clip is a good ratio

but you could learn more about James' body labguaage. Body language isn't only relevant when its between two dogs

yeah I agree with this I think a lot of people don't even understand that dogs have body language apart from a wagging tail which they believe only means happy anyway! I think if you could teach some of the less knoweldgeable/experienced dog owners about the basics then they would at least start to take more notice and be able to read their dog and others dogs a bit better which would be good. Ofcourse different people would want a different level of depth depending on prior knowledge. I personally wouldn't neccessarily mind who ran it as even if I didn't agree with them it would make me think. Although I guess it would be a bummer to pay a lot of money for it and not get much out of it.

Of course there's such a thing. Some ANKC recognised purebreds were once crosses. The Boxers gained a bob-tailed gene from clever crossing with Corgis, and after some number of generations crossing back to purebred Boxers, they gained the title of "purebred" again. What most people have an issue with is the advertising associated with the crossbreeds and the fact that crossbreeds seem to majorily come from unethical breeders (backyard or puppy farm) who don't health test. That's the very basic jist of it. It's not all of it, but the two main ones. There is a big difference between purposely cross breeding to establish a certain breed than cross breeding (eg "oodles") just for the sake of it, mostly by puppy farmers. They are not interested in recording, establishing a new breed for a specific purpose, and wanting to have that breed recognised by canine authorities. Yes, a large number of our present day pedigree pure breed dogs come from mixtures, but that was done in most cases to establish a breed for a certain job or service, and records were carefully kept on the progress of the generations to enable registration as a pure breed. I hardly think one can compare today's mongrels with yesterday's method of establishing a breed. Um. Nobody's arguing that. She asked if there was such a thing as multi-generational crosses and indeed there are. Purebreds of today were once "multi generational crosses". Remember, it's just a label to describe crossing towards another cross of the same type multiple times in a row, nothing more. It's not comparing it to the "worthiness" of ye olde days of crossbreeding dogs compared to today's. Just a definition, don't need to get fired up A ''pure breed'' is a breed that breeds true to type everytime. Not all pure breeds are ANKC registered. Isolation will eventually produce pure breeds. Man doesn't necessarily need to play a part. The only ''designer'' pure breed I can think of off hand, bred as a cosmetic accessory, is the Bull Terrier. The Dobermann was purpose bred. The remainder, or most of them at least, are ''refinements'' of already existing types. The boxer/corgi cross was an abomination against the sanctity of the genuine pure breed dog. The progeny were crossbreeds & should never, ever, have found their way onto a pure breed register. As soon as the cross was make the line should have been terminated. Smart breeding? No way. Mongrel breeding is all. Borgis or coxers, take your pick.BTW Jack Russell Terriers aren't recognised as a pure breed by the K.C & therefore aren't listed on that pure breed register. Just thought I'd throw that in as a bit of useless information. hmmm well if you think about it mathematically there comes a point when they are back to being 100% Boxer.

thanks well if its only a month I don't think that too bad as long as you have well socialised adult dogs for pup to interact with or just be around in the meantime

But how do those 'smooth' dogs with small ears trap the scent? well they obviously do if you read the "about page" you'll see they are selected for their hunting ability which includes scenting

sounds good If this is your first puppy then it might be helpful to have someone to keep you on track from the beginning. Do you know people with well socialised and well behaved adult dogs that puppy could meet and greet with? So when does puppy arrive?

thanks guys very interesting all I was picturing were a bunch of bassets in a line with their tongues poking out :p makes much more sense now.

they look fantastic! I grabbed this of their website: can anyone say what it means? eta: well obviously the last one is self-explanatory

completely agree with this.

I disagree - you should have control of your dog by now with recall but labs are hyper excited etc for longer than 17 months... I don't know, while they retain their puppy-like playfulness and enthusiasm, this is not the same as actually being a puppy and having the learning capacity and self control of a puppy. I think at this age, most labs are mature enough to contain themselves and respond to commands. They must have pretty decent self control and focus for orgs such as guide dogs, assist dogs and customs to be expecting them to be working in public at this age... that's true but not all labs have the qualities to become assistance/guide/customs dogs

I honestly don't think that being entire has much to do with it. And anyway if it did, it wouldn't stop it now, its too late, he's learnt that behaviour. However being entire other dogs may be less tolerant of him in the first place, let alone if he's humping them! in my mind you need to do a couple of things. 1. improve recall, and watch him like a hawk so you can call him off before the humping starts. 2. think of a consequence to his humping behaviour and carry it out every time he humps. Also you could maybe consider putting a harness on him that can be easier for you to grab hold of than a collar.

its interesting isn't it that how much exercise they do doesn't necessarily correspond with whether you need to trim nails or not. Digby (giant mutt) needs his done very regularly or they grow completely out of control at a ridiculous rate. He doesn't have those lovely tight toes and I think this must be part of the problem because they don't get worn down like they would if his feet had better conformation. But then again I suspect that his toes are flat from his old owners not trimming his nails. When he was surrendered to the pound they were very bad and his four dew claws were curled right around. Delta (Great Dane) needs trimming as well, but not as much as Digby. She has lovely tight feet and runs around more than Digby does too. Angie (stumpy tail cattle dog) never needed hers trimming at all, not once.

hehe that's very cute! and what a handsome boy he is!

ooh that's interesting! could you spell it phonetically for me, so I know how to pronounce it? I'll take a stab at spelling it phonetically. Bjelle-ker The BJ is pronounced like the swedish name Bjorn, you combine the BJ into one sound. thankyou I think I've got it!

ooh that's interesting! could you spell it phonetically for me, so I know how to pronounce it?

As a very young kid, my dad had a cat that made it her mission to attack me. I was constantly covered in bites and scratches; and was terrified of being left alone with her. She would wait for me behind the door to my bedroom and attack me when I went in. She would also sit underneath any chair I was sitting on and swipe at me so I couldn't get off the chair. I really think it wasn't the nicest of mum and dad to have me put up with that. But Dad was very attached to her because she would lie with him when he was suffering from gout. but they never would have tolerated something like that from a dog

yeah we have been doing Look At That

She also has really pale blue eyes which could add to the problem. We don't have any issues at club, all the dogs there are fine with her, and because of this she is relaxed. I'm thinking it must be something to do with her appearance that is then exacerbated by her stress. She is not a rude dog in that way, and she rarley gets the chance to say hello anyway because the dogs are usually anti-scoial toward her from the moment they see her unfortunately.

thanks so much for all the replies so thought provoking. I guess I'll never know exactly what's going on; but its good to have a variety of possibilities to consider As her training progresses (hopefully :p ) and she doesn't find the anti-social behaviour of other dogs as stressful, it will be interesting to see if this makes any difference. ETA: its especially interesting to hear that other dogs who are either big, or otherwise not the typical dog also get a bit of this reaction too. Like Nekhbet's DDB, and TSD's dally, and other white dogs.

so glad this has worked for you! Must make a huge difference to both of you enjoying your walks

yeah start training straight away But socialisation is the most important. So if you find you are pressed for time, my advice would be to choose socialisation over training (although they fit nicely together ) Don't forget that socialisation is also about handling pup, so that it is happy to have its nails clipped, is happy to have a bath, be groomed, and is content to be touched all over. Don't forget about vacuum cleaners and blenders etc. have fun with your puppy!