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ForumsGerman Shepherd Dog > working dogs good in the house? (29 replies)
working dogs good in the house? by troubles on 26 February 2011 - 02:24 |
| just curious do many of you have dogs from working lines that make great house dogs that are calm and easy going in the house? I have heard some gsd have to be in a kennel when not working man that would suck! Does energy level or drive have anything to do with a gsd's ability to be good in the house? |
by jmopaso on 26 February 2011 - 03:13 |
| I have 8 GSD's, 6 of them are imported Euorpean, working line dogs, titled, etc. They all come in the house and are perfectly well behaved. My male, from Holland, IPO1 is laying at my as I type. He has perfect house manners, even with the 4 cats. I do have to rotate some of the females through the house as some of them will fight if out together. I have one very dominant female, I call her 'the mean girl" who can't be ot with any other females, but she is great when it is her turn in the house. |
by GSDPACK on 26 February 2011 - 04:27 |
| The first two years is hell... well it slows down after about 14 months. then they are perfect! |
GSDPACK by Toffifay on 26 February 2011 - 04:40 |
| My high drive WL GSD is perfect in "almost" every way, regarding house manners. Her one hang-up is my cat. She is obsessed with him in such a way, that it is ridiculous. She is not a danger to him, but follows him and waits near him when he is resting, and always has one eye and ear tuned into him. It's kind of cute when she licks his face, but it's not so cute when he runs around and she wants to chase him. If I did not own a cat, she would truly be the perfect house dog. She also is a fearless and wonderful sport dog and LIVES for our PP training days! I forgot to add that I have another smaller house dog, a Standard Schnauzer, also a female...only 5 months older than my GSD, and they get along famously! They are the best of friends, the Schnauzer is the dominant one, but it is difficult to tell, they play constantly, they never fight, even over bones and antlers. They sleep next to eachother and my GSD loves her big sister even though they were not raised together. In my experience WL dogs make great house dogs! |
by alkster2002 on 26 February 2011 - 11:51 |
| Just as GSD Pack said my experiences over the years with many dogs .... the first 2 years are "hell" .... after that they seem to be OK ! For right now I leave him out at nite when I am home, but when gone at this point ..... he gets crated ............... Regards ..... Greg |
alkster2002 by BoCRon on 26 February 2011 - 14:12 |
We currently have 7 GSDs, 5 are WL, 2 are Highlines. Of the 5 WL, 4 are great in the house, the 5th is just too busy and makes the other dogs a bit antsy. When it is just him in the office with my husband he is fine. The 2 Highline dogs are total house dogs and have been totally reliable in the house since 8 weeks of age  .We have always had ours as house dogs, even the dogs sold to police departments. They do take a bit more supervision through the puppy/adolescent stage but totally worth it. Here's a typical scenario from last week. My newest pup is a 10 week old WL bitch. She is doing pretty well in the house already. The other night we sat down to dinner and I went to check on Uma (the pup) to see if I should put her in a crate while we ate. When I checked her she was passed out on the master bathroom floor with my male Highline, Ron (her favorite toy). Since the master bathroom is on the same floor as the kitchen I decided to leave her be and eat dinner with the family. About halfway through dinner I hear a squealing and think that maybe she's pissed off Ron and he's given her a correction. I go running back to the bathroom and see Ron sitting on the floor perplexed and Uma is tangled up in a bra hanging on the doorknob  . With intelligence and curiosity you get trouble sometimes...I untangled her and put her in the crate and went back to dinner, sigh. Annette |
BoCRon by SYNNI on 26 February 2011 - 14:23 |
| REAL working dogs good in the house? ............................ABSOLUTELY NOT! |
by wlpool on 26 February 2011 - 14:45 |
| There are a few factors to consider before answering the question. Are the WL pets? Ment to have a job? If so what kind? My own experience is I hear TONS of people that are very happy with thier WL in the house. I have had several WL GSD and several Mals that I tried to have in my home. About 5 total throughout my history with dogs. I have not once been impressed or very happy with them in my home. With my SL I have been extremely happy with them as indoor dogs, BUT if I am trialing or working them they are NOT kept indoors unless crated, but most of the time they are kept in kennels until we get the title then I bring them in the house. Hope that helps. |
wlpool by animules on 26 February 2011 - 17:47 |
| As others have said, perhaps a bit more work to start with but mine have all done fine in the house. They settle down nicely on their beds and at night are lose. The caveat is I do not leave them lose if I am not home, those times they are either crated or outside. |
animules by Red Sable on 26 February 2011 - 20:01 |
I agree the first two years are a trial, but that is pretty much with any dog, is it not? All puppies like to chew and get into things. |
Red Sable by VKGSDs on 26 February 2011 - 20:34 |
| My working lines are my best house dogs. In fact my new puppy who overall has the best working pedigree and the best Schutzhund prospect has been by far my easiest, most well-behaved puppy and house dog. He is very mild-tempered and well-mannered in the house. When we go to my parents, he gets invited along and my mom doesn't even like dogs. I have no patience for dogs that are neurotic, working line or not. I'm not interested in a dog that can't settle in the house, wants to chase and bite anything that moves, can't learn basic obedience and manners without risk of being "ruined" for sport/SchH. A solid-tempered, high drive working line dog does not have to be neurotic. |
VKGSDs by destiny4u on 26 February 2011 - 20:37 |
| nice what is everyones house dogs energy level like? high energy dogs? yet good in the house sounds perfect. |
by Red Sable on 26 February 2011 - 20:44 |
| I'm curious as to what SYNNI considers a real working dog? |
by Felloffher on 26 February 2011 - 20:55 |
| There will always be exceptions, but there is no reason a "real working dog" can't be taught to live in the house. |
Felloffher by Fenrir on 26 February 2011 - 21:02 |
| I have a 13 week old West German Working line puppy and she is a little terror, especially since she will be doing Schutzhund ergo there not really any correction going on. That said we can generally keep her pretty entertained, we keep EVERYTHING off the floor and out of her reach which seems to help. She tires out pretty quick and spends a good portion of her day asleep Anyone I know with working dogs though has no problem with them in the home and they are saints whenever I go to visit |
Fenrir by destiny4u on 26 February 2011 - 23:27 |
| i had an american backyard bred dog that would mess stuff up in the house and pee on walls while we were in the house he was 3 and acted like a little puppy and was well trained had his cGN lol was very strange i think that was a genetic issue maybe? had to be on leash in the house at all times at 3 years old |
by Mindhunt on 27 February 2011 - 04:36 |
| Used to have 3, now down to 2 working line dogs that are working dogs in my house. Until they reached 18 months each, it was lots of time, hard work, and wanting to shoot them at least a couple times a day. Now they are awesome as long as I remember the saying "a tired dog is a good dog". They have to get exercised or worked so they burn off their energy, then they are great. |
Mindhunt by TingiesandTails on 27 February 2011 - 04:49 |
| I agree, Mindhunt, they absolutely need to be exercised a lot more than SL or companion dogs. My 9 months old WL is good in the house, but she is exercised outside at least 2 hours - no matter what weather or how cold .....and she is crated at night.... |
TingiesandTails by ALPHAPUP on 27 February 2011 - 15:14 |
| First comment ... ?? as usual .. what is meant by working dog ???? do you mean sport dog ?? a dog that will be watchful to your home and family ?? As i usually state .. dog conversations should not be categorial and we should discuss concepts in specifics .. So: most topics are multi-factorial / depends on a number of factors .. but sometimes there are generalities ... If you want a dog to be more watchful [ which is a different trait than guarding and protecting] a dog that lives in the house will be more watchful [ or guarded/ protective] .. ok, some of you so called experts here will disagree . but for novices .. get into the mind / spirit / heart/ motivation - where does the dog's own interest lie ?/ the place where the dog eats and sleeps and has refuge !! naturally by instinct -- and that is : in the house !! ditto for a kennel dog .. the kennel becomes it's place of vested interest if housed all the time in a kennel .. OK .now for sport dogs : raising or keeping a dog in the house may or may not make for a better sport dog ... depends on several factors , such as [ for a few ] on the temperament of the dog , how you raise the dog , what you teach the dog... for example .: a really good working dog that i raise , i keep the pup crated [ limitted freedom in the house ] unless i can directly supervise the pup . i teach exactly what i expect , when the pup is under my supervision .. i do not continually take things from the pup or do i verbally nag or dominate the pup ... best way not to be scolding the pup or be taking things - don't let the pup get into things to begin with .. as the pup learns and matures then i extend liberties and freedoms unsupervised in the house. . So .. i never snuff out the insticts , motivations , [drives] of the pup but more so i channel them .. most of my efforts are TEACHING self -control , calmness , poise, rules and in play sessions ,, there i develop basic skills whether sit, down , hopping, biting [ or not biting] , entry , scenting, send -oust .. etc etc. -- so in life ... as stated many things hinge on- " depends" on your dog and/or what YOU choose to do ... |
by starrchar on 27 February 2011 - 20:09 |
| MY WL GSD boy did great in the house after he was beyond the puppy stage. My daughter had a Dutchie and he was also a great house dog. |
starrchar
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