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Do I Start Obedience Or Puppy School Now?


Chiwogabull*
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Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forum and we have just purchased our first mains reg puppy a Miniture Bull Terrier named Quatro.

My dilema is I know Bull Terriers are dogs aggressive and because I would like to show him I thought he should be socialised from an early age,

I have contacted Puppy pre school run by my vet and they don't take them until 12 weeks which I consider to be a little late.

However the locally run dog obedience will accept him because of my concerns on dog aggression and will help with socialization and show training, he is 9 wks and has been vacinated with protech C3 and isn't due for his next until 12 wks...

I would really love some feedback I know there are pros and cons to every decision but is the risk that great?

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Welcome. I know not much about your breed-

No way would I be taking a 9 week old baby to a dog obedience class!!

he is no way protected by vaccination... and if this session is held in a public place- you have no way of knowing what nasties are on the grass/soil :laugh:

You would be better placed finding friends with gentle,tolerant dogs/pups, and letting him play with them.

What did his breeder suggest? is there a lot of aggression in his bloodline? How do they train their dogs/pups?

You may want to pop into the bully thread HERE

they will have lots of sound advice for you :(

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Shop around for puppy schools at vet clinics or other privately run puppy classes as most will take pups from 8 weeks as long as they have had their first vaccinations. If you ask in the training forum for recommendations for a class in your local area you might get a few possible places. Good on you for planning ahead to give your pup the best start in life.

I agree with what Persephone said about obedience as most clubs are run in public locations and it's a bit risky to take a puppy out to those sort of places.

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Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forum and we have just purchased our first mains reg puppy a Miniture Bull Terrier named Quatro.

My dilema is I know Bull Terriers are dogs aggressive and because I would like to show him I thought he should be socialised from an early age,

I have contacted Puppy pre school run by my vet and they don't take them until 12 weeks which I consider to be a little late.

However the locally run dog obedience will accept him because of my concerns on dog aggression and will help with socialization and show training, he is 9 wks and has been vacinated with protech C3 and isn't due for his next until 12 wks...

I would really love some feedback I know there are pros and cons to every decision but is the risk that great?

Just because its a bully breed it dose not mean his going to be automatically dog aggressive.

socialise him and train asap and you should have no worries.

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I wouldn't be taking your puppy out until he's had his second shot. Nine weeks old is too young for any formal training. I've never taken my pups to puppy school they don't appeal to me and when I start taking them to our obedience club I'm very careful about who they socialize with. If you intend on showing your pup I'd be training him to ignore the other dogs and focus on you not lets go and play with everyone, you can start doing this by rewarding eye contact when he's around other dogs. I like Ceser Milan's expression that the breed is just a suit. Relax, enjoy your puppy, teach hime everything good comes from you and don't rush into training. Sorry for the ramble.

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Thanks everyone for the great tips.. It can be soooo confusing with lots of advice.

I don't mean all Bull Terriers are aggressive... I should of stated that I want him to be non dog aggressive as his parents are the most happy loveable friendly dogs I know!! and I'd love him to be like that also.

I will be keeping away from other dogs until his second vacc......

Again thanks to all for thier insight as I am a novice to the showing side of dog ownership...

Quatro's proud mum

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I welcomed my new pride and joy Connor (baby Whippet) in July. I drove down to Victoria to pick him up said hallo to a few friends down there and then we travelled home slowly having a holiday and bonding session - me, baby Connor and Clancy my 4 yr old Whippet.

As we were in the 'house on wheels' young Connor had to be let out to exersize frequently - in places that were as safe as I could manage, not that I had a great deal of control over that.

Results: one well socialised baby in very good health - just have to watch him around caravaners and motor homers as they all wanted to give him and Clancy treats everywhere we stopped and I am concerned that he may enter any RV vehicle he finds open looking for treats!! lol

When we got home I decided upon puppy play school first, I have never done puppy school before with my dogs we have always gone straight to Obedience Club, I am now very much in favour of play school 1st.

I did pretty much the same thing when I got Clancy as a 3 month old boy too and as long as one is careful about where one takes ones dog socialisation over immunisation every time for me - of course they have all their shots at the right times too I hasten to add.

Good luck with your baby Bully anyway!

Annie

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A HUGE Thanks for all,

It is a great relief to have like minded people for support!

I'm sure I'm not the first person to feel overwhelmed with the resposibility of bringing an obedient, well socialised puppy into

our communities.. I just want to get it right..

Prevention Better than Cure appoach..

Thanks

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When you are looking for puppy pre-schools - looks for ones that are not run in public parks or run in vet clinic's.

I took my GSD pup to a puppy pre-school recently and I really think they are a waste of time if you already know something about dogs. They are really designed for new puppy owners who know nothing about feeding, grooming, training their pups.

Obedience classes don't normally accept dogs until they are fully vaccinated - so I would be using this time to look around for one. I highly recommend calling in on a training night and see how they are run and the methods they use.

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Thanks Tilly

I have already been to obedience with my late Golden Retriever but not show training of any sort.

I hadn't thought of the vet's carrying diseases but that makes sense as well as the training field hosting diseases

I'm keeping him in until after his 12wk now for sure

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Thanks Tilly

I have already been to obedience with my late Golden Retriever but not show training of any sort.

I hadn't thought of the vet's carrying diseases but that makes sense as well as the training field hosting diseases

I'm keeping him in until after his 12wk now for sure

It depends where you train..........Some obedience Schools require all dogs to be up to date with vaccinations.

But it is good to socialise.........And I don't think it is too late until after the second vaccinations, to be safe.

Also, always make it a happy good experience. But do not allow the wild chases that happen at some puppy classes.

I like to take my pups, but I actually pulled my newfie pup out of one class, because it was totally out of control. Two very strong pups just led and were allowed to terrorize all the other pups.

That said I have been to some very enjoyable sessions, where the pups were allowed contact, but the rowdy ones were controlled. it is training after all.

Having usually the largest pup, I also make sure my pup is not the one that does the terrorizing :eek:

Most of all enjoy your pup and give it lots of time and fun. The best play-time is with regular friends. Our dogs love the play-dates and obedience training we do weekly

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Do you have friends with well socialised dogs that are fully vaccinated or have had titres done (preference)? This would be safer then taking him in public before he is vaccinated. And remember you really need to wait for 2 weeks post vaccination for it to have worked or so I have always been told.

Jo

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Thanks Tilly

I have already been to obedience with my late Golden Retriever but not show training of any sort.

I hadn't thought of the vet's carrying diseases but that makes sense as well as the training field hosting diseases

I'm keeping him in until after his 12wk now for sure

Personally, especially with a breed where positive socialisation with other dogs is vital, I would not be keeping him cooped up until 12 weeks. Have a read of the puppy development calendar that's pinned on the top of this forum:

http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?showtopic=117592

Between 8-12 weeks is a crucial time for pups to learn and have lots of positive socialisation. If you go to a good puppy school you won't have a problem with your pup catching anything, and you will give him an opportunity to socialise with other pups in his most critical period.

If you don't go to puppy school you need to ensure you are taking your pup out and socialisation.

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Socialise, socialise, socialise. You only have until he is 16 weeks old to get him used to all he will encounter in his life. That includes all ages of dogs & people. Everything he will encounter in you home & backyard. I have had both types of dogs, the ones not allowed out until the completion of vaccinations & my present bc who has been well socialised & she's very friendly to people & most dogs.

www.dogstardaily.com

Do a search of puppy socialisation. You can also download the books Before & After You Get Your Puppy by Dr Ian Dunbar.

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Socialise, socialise, socialise. You only have until he is 16 weeks old to get him used to all he will encounter in his life. That includes all ages of dogs & people. Everything he will encounter in you home & backyard. I have had both types of dogs, the ones not allowed out until the completion of vaccinations & my present bc who has been well socialised & she's very friendly to people & most dogs.

www.dogstardaily.com

Do a search of puppy socialisation. You can also download the books Before & After You Get Your Puppy by Dr Ian Dunbar.

Absolutely agree :laugh:

I took Pele down to the beach the day after she came home at 8 weeks. I carried her down to the wet sand so that she didn't have to go thru dirty areas. I wanted her to socialise with other dogs and as she would be walking with our beach mates on a regular basis, I wanted her to meet them.

At the same time we worked on "Watch" and "Recall" with distractions. Pele, now 4.5 years is fantastic at both and is sociable with everyone and everything. She also now has her Companion Dog (CD) obedience title and is working towards CDX.

More dogs die before they are 18 months old due to behaviour problems than they do to Parvo, so I was prepared to take the risk.

Also this is too good to miss!! Shirley Chong has some excellent clicker training articles on her "keepers" page and now you can download 2 of her clicker training books for free!!!

Two of Shirley Chong's books Just Plain Clicker Sense and The Clicker Cookbook set in PDF format to view online or download for free http://www.shirleychong.com/myBooks.html

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