What would you do first?? - Page 1

I need some advice as to what to do next. I have a 16 mo. old reg. GSD I have had for about 2 months. We got him from a young lady in Waco, Tx. who had some personal reasons for re-homing him. She put him on Craig's List and I just happened to find him early on. I wrote her and asked to be considered for the previledge of taking her baby.  She wrote back to me that she was most touched by my letter and would love for me to come see him. It was a 5 hr drive for us but we went the next day. She sent us pictures and just won us over. We had concerns because of our almost 3 yr old grandson and our 12 yr old cat.  We fell in love with Shush the moment we saw him. He was named Shush, meaning Bear. He is blk/tan, heavy on the black. He has been a wonderful experience so far and hopefully in many years to come. We had a GSD we got from Yellow Rose and we loved him, but he had been an "in the house" dog with YR too long to change and we carried him back. Bear has been even more a perfect dog if you can believe that. He fit in beautifully with our grandson and ok with our cat. He wants to be friends with her, she does not. We chose to go raw with him because of YR. We believe YR knows what she's doing. He was on Purina, the better kind but can't remember the name. We kept him on it for a few days just to get him settled. He would never eat it so I don't know how he was as big as he was when we got him. He was thin but she said it was because the neighbors was supposed to have been feeding him for her and wasn't. Either way he was thin. She said she had fed him raw as often as she could and Purina the rest. He would not eat the Purina for us and didn't know what chicken and raw beef bones were for. He did enjoy ground beef. We feed him the black angus ground beef. But we have not found any grain free dry kibble that he will eat, he likes yogurt, cheese, potatoes, etc. He will go 2-3 days without eating at times. It worries me but what can I do? Also, we need to get him some OB training. He loves people who visit but he is also wild. My husband had an accident Aug 9th and fractured his skull and had to have surgery. he's doing better and came home Aug 29. He's been more careful with my husband, like he senses he is ill or hurt. We are older couple, I'm 61 and hubby's 71. I feel like we are doing him an injustice, not being able to be more active with him. We were walking him everyday until the accident. Now my husband can't and I have arthritis. What do ya'll think?  I enjoy reading your advice and hints so much. And thanks to YR, I wish I lived closer to her.

 

Mental stimulation like obedience does calm them down.   How about hiring an older responsible child who wants to earn a few dollars to take him for a walk for you?