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by LadyFrost on 08 October 2012 - 18:10
newgsdmom....please be prepared and aware that in next few months your puppy with start teething...nipping...and playing rough with your kids...you will have to teach not only your puppy but your kids a lot about not running, not being overly excited because all that will stimulate your pup and even though I am a 100% for animal discipline regardless of whats arround be aware that to punish a pup at that age for everything that comes natural to him holds a strong possibility of turning your pup into insecure, unstable fear biter...
Be aware of a balance between kids and dogs, you cant restrict one and allow free range to the other w/o paying for it later... use common sense...and most importantly make sure whatever rules you implement for the puppy everyone in your household follows...
If pup is not allowed to be on a couch by you than no one should invite him to be on one, otherwise you are no longer authority figure....if there is confusion or mixed signals a dog he will make his own judgment call, he does not know what is wrong or wright he just knows what is allowed and what is not, stick to it and it will make your life a lot easier with him and your family because when a 75 pound dog wants to lay on the couch that your boyfriend allowed and you walk in and demand he gets off it, he will tell you what HE wants to do...and those teeth can be very convincing.
as for now, make his crate a good place to be...put toys in there, give him a bone to chew on....give him a treat when he gets in w/o fuss....my dogs race eachother into a kennel every morning not because they want to be in there for 8 hrs but because its a place where they get treats, bones, chew toys. I say "cage" and its a race.
Be aware of a balance between kids and dogs, you cant restrict one and allow free range to the other w/o paying for it later... use common sense...and most importantly make sure whatever rules you implement for the puppy everyone in your household follows...
If pup is not allowed to be on a couch by you than no one should invite him to be on one, otherwise you are no longer authority figure....if there is confusion or mixed signals a dog he will make his own judgment call, he does not know what is wrong or wright he just knows what is allowed and what is not, stick to it and it will make your life a lot easier with him and your family because when a 75 pound dog wants to lay on the couch that your boyfriend allowed and you walk in and demand he gets off it, he will tell you what HE wants to do...and those teeth can be very convincing.
as for now, make his crate a good place to be...put toys in there, give him a bone to chew on....give him a treat when he gets in w/o fuss....my dogs race eachother into a kennel every morning not because they want to be in there for 8 hrs but because its a place where they get treats, bones, chew toys. I say "cage" and its a race.
by susie on 08 October 2012 - 22:10
hundmutter!
by EuroShepherd on 09 October 2012 - 01:10
1. A reputable breeder would not let a puppy go at 6 weeks old, 8 weeks is the appropriate age. Imagine, at this age in a puppy's life, it's like cramming 2-4 months worth of human baby developement into 1 week.
2. Get a giant size dog crate that comes with a divider (large size will be sufficient too, but I like my dogs to have giant size crates) with the divider, give your pup a space that is just big enough to curl up and sleep in (as he grows, you'll have to move the divider to give him more space.) If you wish, you can make a hole in the divider, so the pup can get to the other side of the crate, put pee pads there. This is the poor mans version of the puppy apartment www.modernpuppies.com
3. Make a designated potty area outside, DO NOT play with puppy until it goes potty first! Pup will soon learn that it should go potty, and then it will be rewarded. If you distract a puppy with play, it will hold itself until it absolutely has to go...then it goes right where it's standing. So potty time first! Say "go potty" when you want him to potty, and when he does, praise him! (note, never praise him for going potty on a pee-pad in the house or crate, if you use this method you need to work on eventually weaning him off of this before he's 6 months old and really big.) At this age, he should have 1-2 potty breaks during the night, every 4 hours.
4. Feed 3 regular meals, potty time before and after each meal. Past 6 months old you can gradually take away one meal and increase the other 2 meals so that he's just fed twice a day.
5. Highly recommend you do not let your puppy have free range of the house or be left without supervision in the house (unless he's in his crate) until he's 2 yrs old. Even after he is well potty trained, he's still a "child" or "teenager" up until around 2-3 yrs. And, as kids go...they do immature things and get in trouble when left to their own devices. Expect a lot of chewed up stuff if you let him loose in the house while he's still a youngster. Also, don't spend a lot of money on dog beds while he's growing up, you're better off buying super cheap blankets at the thrift store, so it won't hurt so much when you clean up the shredded remains.
6. If you catch him chewing on something that he shouldn't be chewing on, teach him to "drop it" or "leave it" and then give him something that he is allowed to chew on. Do not let him chew on tennis balls or smoked bones that break into chokable pieces. Good chewy toys are Kongs, Orbee-Tuffs, Nylabones, cow hooves, raw beef soup bones (these are the best.) Some of these can be filled with goodies like peanut butter or small treats to hold his interested even better.
7. To teach him his name, play the calling game. Have your family sit in a circle and one person at a time calls his name in a happy, fun voice, you can include the word "come" or "here" too. When puppy goes to the person calling him, they give him about 5 seconds of praise, cuddling, and then they go quiet...once person goes quiet, then it's someone else's turn to call the puppy. This should teach him his name and to "come"....you may want to practice this with just you and your husband first, make sure the kids don't get over-excited and confuse the puppy.
8. Teach puppy to sit before each meal and to sit before receiving any treats, then teach your children to do this for him too. Kids should be involved in feeding the puppy. There are some really good books out there on teaching kids to respect puppy and puppy to respect kids, get those books, I think of all the dog books you can get, these will be the most important.
9. Most veterinarians are trained to spay/neuter puppies at an early age, they will give you a speel about why this is "important". However, this is not in the best interest of a puppy, it's only in the best interest of the vet because they want to make sure they secure your money first and not risk you going to another vet later on. There are more health problems with neutering a large breed puppy before maturity. Do not neuter him before he's 18 months old. In fact, I have 3 unneutered male German Shepherd dogs in my household, between ages of 3 and almost 9 years, they have NO health problems and NO temperament problems, even when one of my females is in season (which one of them is now.) As long as you are responsible and do not allow him to escape, wander loose and breed someone's female, then it can be better for the dog's overall health to never neuter him.
10. It's imparative to not let your puppy get overweight while he's growing, puppies who are too heavy for their growing bones will cause damage to their joints that will affect them later in life. When your pup reaches 3-4 months old, from then on you want to be able to see the last 2 ribs (if he's shorthair) in a GSD, when just the last two ribs can be visually discerned, he is at an appropriately lean, healthy weight.
11. It's also imparative that pup should not be running or playing on hard, slick surfaces, force-exercized or allowed to jump until he reaches maturity, these can cause injuries to the joints and growth plates. Some owners don't even let pups go up and down stairs, instead they carry the pups. Hip dysplacia is very often caused by injury, diet or excess weight.
12. Having a puppy is having another child, they need structure, they need boundaries, they need "education" and mental stimulation to learn, the more you teach him, the smarter and easier to live with he will be.
2. Get a giant size dog crate that comes with a divider (large size will be sufficient too, but I like my dogs to have giant size crates) with the divider, give your pup a space that is just big enough to curl up and sleep in (as he grows, you'll have to move the divider to give him more space.) If you wish, you can make a hole in the divider, so the pup can get to the other side of the crate, put pee pads there. This is the poor mans version of the puppy apartment www.modernpuppies.com
3. Make a designated potty area outside, DO NOT play with puppy until it goes potty first! Pup will soon learn that it should go potty, and then it will be rewarded. If you distract a puppy with play, it will hold itself until it absolutely has to go...then it goes right where it's standing. So potty time first! Say "go potty" when you want him to potty, and when he does, praise him! (note, never praise him for going potty on a pee-pad in the house or crate, if you use this method you need to work on eventually weaning him off of this before he's 6 months old and really big.) At this age, he should have 1-2 potty breaks during the night, every 4 hours.
4. Feed 3 regular meals, potty time before and after each meal. Past 6 months old you can gradually take away one meal and increase the other 2 meals so that he's just fed twice a day.
5. Highly recommend you do not let your puppy have free range of the house or be left without supervision in the house (unless he's in his crate) until he's 2 yrs old. Even after he is well potty trained, he's still a "child" or "teenager" up until around 2-3 yrs. And, as kids go...they do immature things and get in trouble when left to their own devices. Expect a lot of chewed up stuff if you let him loose in the house while he's still a youngster. Also, don't spend a lot of money on dog beds while he's growing up, you're better off buying super cheap blankets at the thrift store, so it won't hurt so much when you clean up the shredded remains.
6. If you catch him chewing on something that he shouldn't be chewing on, teach him to "drop it" or "leave it" and then give him something that he is allowed to chew on. Do not let him chew on tennis balls or smoked bones that break into chokable pieces. Good chewy toys are Kongs, Orbee-Tuffs, Nylabones, cow hooves, raw beef soup bones (these are the best.) Some of these can be filled with goodies like peanut butter or small treats to hold his interested even better.
7. To teach him his name, play the calling game. Have your family sit in a circle and one person at a time calls his name in a happy, fun voice, you can include the word "come" or "here" too. When puppy goes to the person calling him, they give him about 5 seconds of praise, cuddling, and then they go quiet...once person goes quiet, then it's someone else's turn to call the puppy. This should teach him his name and to "come"....you may want to practice this with just you and your husband first, make sure the kids don't get over-excited and confuse the puppy.
8. Teach puppy to sit before each meal and to sit before receiving any treats, then teach your children to do this for him too. Kids should be involved in feeding the puppy. There are some really good books out there on teaching kids to respect puppy and puppy to respect kids, get those books, I think of all the dog books you can get, these will be the most important.
9. Most veterinarians are trained to spay/neuter puppies at an early age, they will give you a speel about why this is "important". However, this is not in the best interest of a puppy, it's only in the best interest of the vet because they want to make sure they secure your money first and not risk you going to another vet later on. There are more health problems with neutering a large breed puppy before maturity. Do not neuter him before he's 18 months old. In fact, I have 3 unneutered male German Shepherd dogs in my household, between ages of 3 and almost 9 years, they have NO health problems and NO temperament problems, even when one of my females is in season (which one of them is now.) As long as you are responsible and do not allow him to escape, wander loose and breed someone's female, then it can be better for the dog's overall health to never neuter him.
10. It's imparative to not let your puppy get overweight while he's growing, puppies who are too heavy for their growing bones will cause damage to their joints that will affect them later in life. When your pup reaches 3-4 months old, from then on you want to be able to see the last 2 ribs (if he's shorthair) in a GSD, when just the last two ribs can be visually discerned, he is at an appropriately lean, healthy weight.
11. It's also imparative that pup should not be running or playing on hard, slick surfaces, force-exercized or allowed to jump until he reaches maturity, these can cause injuries to the joints and growth plates. Some owners don't even let pups go up and down stairs, instead they carry the pups. Hip dysplacia is very often caused by injury, diet or excess weight.
12. Having a puppy is having another child, they need structure, they need boundaries, they need "education" and mental stimulation to learn, the more you teach him, the smarter and easier to live with he will be.
by SitasMom on 09 October 2012 - 16:10
http://leerburg.com/housebrk.htm
by Doberdoodle on 10 October 2012 - 05:10
Nobody else thought this was a trolling post?
by Hundmutter on 10 October 2012 - 07:10
No - sadly I assumed it was all too genuine 
by fawndallas on 10 October 2012 - 13:10
I am a bit slow in this area. What is a trolling post and why do you think this is one?
by Hundmutter on 10 October 2012 - 14:10
Fawn - re trolls:http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/new/forum.read?mnr=661894&pagen=3
by fawndallas on 10 October 2012 - 16:10
Ah. (That poster. Sorry, I thought at first they were truely willing to learn. After seeing what they posted on someone else's thread.... I lost interest in whatever drival they are dishing out)
Thanks for the clarification Hundmutter.
Thanks for the clarification Hundmutter.
by Hundmutter on 10 October 2012 - 18:10
I chose that link partly because it was him, but also because he and someone else put dictionary
definitions of what a Troll is up on it [!]; suggest you read previous page too, it may help you understand
the whole syndrome ! However ... that won't help you spot such posts for sure in the future, we all get
conned sometimes - and sometimes people think they are being scammed when they are not.
definitions of what a Troll is up on it [!]; suggest you read previous page too, it may help you understand
the whole syndrome ! However ... that won't help you spot such posts for sure in the future, we all get
conned sometimes - and sometimes people think they are being scammed when they are not.
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