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ForumsGerman Shepherd Dog > Raising a pup... (17 replies)
Raising a pup... by Blkdog on 23 September 2010 - 15:51 |
Hello, I recently acquired a new puppy and she is so full of piss & vinegar!! I love it btw!!! Anyways, I was wandering how you all raise your pups for work, show, protection, etc... I would love to work this pup or do some personal protection with her as she gets older and just looking for pointers on what to do and what not to do?? For example, do you keep your pups indoors or outdoors, allow them on the furniture, ever tell them no when they bite?? I was just wandering how everyone raises their own pups? From the time you get them on... Just curious of different techniques... Thanks... Liz |
Blkdog by LadyFrost on 23 September 2010 - 17:47 |
| Liz, have you raised a puppy before? I am just asking, because most people I know including myself have had our first "experimental" puppy...trust me no one gets it right the first time around...by the time second time comes you know what you don't want..and still trying to figure out what you do want...and even thought we see a clear picture ahead it changes daily because all of it is not up to you, your dog must have drive, want, need, will and support for you to succeed.... some questions are a bit off...regarding indoor/outdoor and on furniture...what do you expect from your dog? what do you want?.... |
LadyFrost by KYLE on 23 September 2010 - 19:19 |
| The only thing 2 trainers agree on is that the 3rd trainer is doing it all wrong, lol. If you don't want them on the furniture as an adult, don't start now. Don't give them an old shoe to chew on because they don't know the difference between an old converse and a new cole haan. When my pups are mouthy I give them a lil shake like momma would with the back scruff of the neck and give a growl type no, then transfer the grip to something acceptable to chew ie. boda or kong. I don't like the bell inside toys, they can rip them open and swallow the bell. At this stage you are teaching manners not obedience. Obedience is a more formal term for training. Everything is about routine and having fun. Enjoy your new family member and start looking for a sport club to join. I would also avoid dog parks and pet stores. People let their dogs dominate other dogs in those places. If your pup has a bad experience while young he may never forget it. Which could lead to fearful behavior or dog aggression. Good luck, Kyle |
KYLE by Blkdog on 23 September 2010 - 22:30 |
| Hi, Yeah I have raised a few pups, still have them, but my last pup I raised and still raising (16 months) seems to be very spoiled, of course he is still young... We have done training and bitework with a couple of our dogs, not competiion, mostly for fun. I was just wandering if you want more of a working dog should you not spoil them so much? All my dogs come in and sleep with us and lay on the couch like couch potatoes, this new girl is so drivey and confident, I just don't want to lose that, not sure on how I should correct for biting, right now I am replacing body parts with toys vs telling her no. lol I will be honest she is a pup with alot of potential, and I really want to do personal protection with her. But I have never raised a personal protection dog before so I am looking for pointers. Like should I let her play and run around with my 16 month old male, or should all the fun and focus be on me? I have been around shepherds all my life, pups to adults, I just really want to do something with this pup and was just curious how others raise their working pups up. Thanks... Thanks Kyle, I wasn't sure if I should be teaching her no yet or not... |
by Incavale on 23 September 2010 - 22:58 |
| Blkdog for someone who claims to have raised a few pups IMO you don't seemed to have learned all that much. If you take the time to read through articles on this forum & plenty of other dog forums you will have read that you start training a dog EARLY in its life. So far as personal protection is concerned if you haven't worked out if a dog should be on your furniture or not & you admit to have a spoilt 16 month old & I assume you mean a somewhat out of control dog, the personal protection avenue is one you shouldn't contemplate until you get your act into gear |
Incavale by Sugarplum on 24 September 2010 - 00:51 |
| Liz, Hope you're enjoying the new family member! I'a bit bemused by your questions given your experience of so many years. Could you be more specific as your OP is too wide to answer directly. As with previous answer, I can't believe you don't have an opinion based on experience re dogs and furniture for example. I assume you do, but the post doesn't read so well for me. JMHO. |
by micheleambernick on 24 September 2010 - 05:43 |
| Patience, Don't let mistakes go uncorrected, Repetition of tasks until interest wains..... Play time and work time should be at least equal, Involve the whole family in training and play, Pick a favorite toy and buy several, Play tug of war to keep teeth, jaws and neck strong, Teach hand signals with verbal commands, Plenty of non-material reward for good behavior, etc. |
micheleambernick by KYLE on 24 September 2010 - 17:03 |
The dogs toys are YOURS. You allow them to play with them. If you let them lay about they will play with at their leisure and bore of them. You want the dog focused on you. Easiest way of doing this is to keep the dog kenneled and let out to play and train with YOU. Can you let the pup play with other dogs...yes, only supervised and for controlled periods. If the dogs bond with one another they will seek leadership from other dogs not you as the pack leader. If the dogs run with each other all the time the weaker ones take on characteristics of the pack leader, which may not be condusive to being a working dog. The whole family involved in training...to a point. I cannot expect my 5,3 or 2 year old to command or control the dog during security situations. The dog MUST know its place in regards to all people in the house of course. Old school way of training ppd's, don't let strangers pet your dog. Theory being you want them wary of strangers. But as others have said you have to figure out what you want to do with this dog. We have one house dog for security. The others are kenneled and spend time with ME training. Bonding time, they are rotated, spending time in the yard or on the deck with us during leisure periods. You also need a club/mentor that has been down this road. If you do the trial and error method you will have a lot more error than succuss. |
by Blkdog on 27 September 2010 - 18:27 |
| Simple, I have raised mostly family dogs... not working dogs... I got lucky with my older male who was basically a natural and loves to work, but I want to do some more serious type training with this pup. I am careful as to what I say on here because everyone is so quick to judge... I have always let my dogs be a part of the family, I was wandering how everyone else did the basics with their pups. I think I have done very well with my dogs, except for my young male is a big poo boy!!! =) They are all nice, well mannered, and great family dogs... I want more with this little girl... I want her to stay in with us due to my husbands traveling job, I live out in the country and it is hard to get up with a club, but I am looking. I have checked out some of the local clubs and it is all macho BS... you know my dog bites harder than yours! Ugh... Thanks Michele & Kyle, some of the things you listed I have already done wrong!! =) I thought my question was an easy one... How do you raise your working pup?? |
by OGBS on 27 September 2010 - 19:43 |
| And...the correct answer is, "It depends on what you want to do with your pup when it becomes an adult." You answered: "I want it to be a personal protection dog." The answer is: "Go find a reputable personal protection trainer near you." Excellent advice because you can not do that yourself. More excellent advice: Don't do most of what is written above, except for Kyle's second post. The rest of it is a bunch of PetSmart advice for, "how to raise your family pet." |
OGBS by micheleambernick on 28 September 2010 - 14:49 |
| Blkdog I am very happy I was able to help you. Good luck and have fun with your new puppy Warm regards, Michele |
by judron55 on 28 September 2010 - 14:52 |
| I just purchased a new pup....I raise all my own.....my bitch latches on to my pant leg....jumps on everything....plays ball....eats...enjoys puppyhood. She is 4 months....I've had her 2 weeks....walks around the block....just started the find command....to introduce her to tracking.....feed her from my hand....teaching sit....down.....come....stand.....hold....her new name.....barking...letting her know all her fun comes from me.....bonding...that is it for now....I teach them to carry dumbbells now....lots of socialization.....everything through play |
judron55 by GermanShepherd<3 on 09 October 2010 - 21:45 |
| Hi! This is my advice. I never had a puppy, and have been waiting for my dream shepherd. But the time is near when I will graduate high school, and finally college and I will be the happiest person on earth :) But here is how I would raise my puppy. First off, it depends what you want to do with your pup..either way whatever training I will do is with positive reinforcement and clicker training. I am a huge fan of it, and i know there is a lot of contraversey about it, but I disagree and think it's a great way to reach the animal mind in non forceful ways. look it up for more info..i suggest clickertraining.com its the founder of clicker training on that website. Also, I would start with socialization the minute I get my pup, because shepherds are working and protective dogs and without proper socialization can become the opposite of what the breed was meant to be. A puppy that I will acquire will have 50+ positive encounters a day, ranging anywhere from petting, to meeting people, basic training, etc. GSD's are also very smart; you give them a finger they take the whole hand! :) Meaning, if you do not want them on the furniture at all then don't let them do it now. My suggestion is though, that you allow your dog on the furniture if you don't mind vacuuming the hair, but teach them the command off everytime you want them to get off. You are the leader and dominating the couch or bed can become a problem if you don't teach off when they are young. As for where to keep the pup, definitely indoors! GSD's are pack animals and bond greatly to the person they see as the leader. They have to be together at all times...I understand letting them out a bit in the yard..but I wouldn't let my dog be an outdoor dog. I rescued a GSD and fostered him (my mom was nice enough to let me foster since I can not have a permanent dog :) and he was an outdoor dog with behavior problems because of it. It is very hard to keep a dog outisde and have it become a good dog. When we brought him indoors and he became part of the pack, behavior problems he used to have were fixed so quickly that I don't think if he were to be outdoors couldve been fixed. And last but not least you said you wanted to do Schutzhund. If that is the case, like any other sport you have to start "foundation work" as soon as possible..in your case it would be to go nutzo for tugging, as well as obedience work, the grander stuff comes a bit later. Get some books to see on Schutzhund prospects and ways to build a dogs confidence without overly doing it. You should research the topic first and find a good postive reinforcement trainer in your area, and then start out asap with the foundation work..like children, they are very flexible when the are young, but if they don't continue to do something with the flexibility most likely it will die out when you get older. same as with a dog with schutzhund potential, if you don't continue to encourage tugging and other foundation works they can die off and will be harder to get a really good dog in schutzhund. some really great articles about schutzhund is on the breeders website vonlotta.com well have fun with your pup, they don't stay young like that for long. enjoy and cherish every moment you have together, and remember training= fun! |
by mirasmom on 10 October 2010 - 00:17 |
I raise my pups to be and act like a dog, they do not sit on my couch, I supply doggie beds, they are not allowed to use me as a chew toy, or I give them a squeeze on the mussel like mom does when she weans them. I also never get down on the floor & roll around and play with a young pup, my dogs have very serious temperaments, they are looking for me to ok what their next move should be, and if I screw that up for them, than they will become confused & lost, it's kinda like they rely on me to point them in the direction for the job at hand, whether it's protecting me, or just plain doing what they are told, they want to please you, just make sure you don't give them mixed signals  |
mirasmom by Don Corleone on 10 October 2010 - 00:58 |
| Awesome thread! Confusing. You've done bite work, but not personal protection. You've never raised a working dog. If all you are doing is PP, I wouldn't worry about anything. As long as you're not going to beat the dog, I wouldn't worry. You don't have to worry about points, the dog being flashy, driven or have a full calm grip. Besides, when you get sued, do you think the judge will care if your dog bites shallow? |
Don Corleone by starrchar on 11 October 2010 - 02:13 |
| I am wondering why you want a personal protection dog. Do you live in area where you feel that you need one? If not, my suggestion is to have fun with your dog and join a Schutzhund club. You will likely get plenty of good advice and guidance at the club and have a good time with your dog too. Having PPD can be a real liability so you need to be aware of the consequences. If you are determined to have your dog trained for PPD, seek the advice of a good personal protection trainer now, so you can start him off right. BTW, some insurance companies will refuse to insure you if they know you have a PPD. I'm not saying it is right or wrong, but it is a fact. |
starrchar by Jeff Oehlsen on 11 October 2010 - 06:27 |
| Quote: The dogs toys are YOURS. You allow them to play with them. If you let them lay about they will play with at their leisure and bore of them. I do not have that experience. I do not allow toys in the house because the dogs go buck wild chasing each other about, or if only 1 is out, I get tired of getting battered with the toy. Nothing like dog spit all over your leg. I have had dogs that will dunk the toy into the water dish, and get my attention that way. No toys in the house for me, but not because they will get bored with them. Soda is the destroyer. We named her Upchucky on her paperwork because she can take a kong toy down way to fast and then she will barf up the little slices that she grinds off. Nasty. No toys in the house. : ) |
by ShadyLady on 11 October 2010 - 14:52 |
| I have a bitch like that too with the Kong or any other toy. She smuggled in a rubber ball the other day, that she found outside, that wasn't put up. She is not allowed to have anything like that, unless we are playing with it.. I agree, toys in the house can be annoying as well. Constanly pushing the toy into your lap, "Here, let's play, here let's play, here let's play". Undestructible toys? Dogs like this will wear their teeth down on them, they are such voracious chewers. I have to be careful with raw knuckle bones as well. |
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