courtnek

OH!!! What an angel - such self control around a baby with food!!! :angel: Is she a Lab? she looks like one... she would be one of the ones truly "good with children"... You have obviously raised and trained her well!! :D

Nadooshkinz - ok, I'm language illiterate - how do you pronounce that name????? :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops:

Hi Cyber! welcome! let me help you if I can. Before you decide on EITHER of these dogs, please do some research into the alpha position in the household, for both training and safety. Dobies and Rotties (I personally prefer Rotties) are guarding dogs, which genetically means they are very dominant and need a STRONG hand in raising and training them. If you will be the dogs primary caretaker, there are some things you need to know during training. These dogs can become VERY alpha in a short time if you do not make yourself the alpha from the get-go. Alpha means YOU RUN THE SHOW. The dog has to obey you, every command, every time. Some more tips: Do NOT let this dog sleep on your bed until it has accepted you as alpha. (or anyone elses bed for that matter, or the couches) Do NOT let this dog eat before you do, even if that means you have to sit down and eat some crackers while he/she watches. YOU eat first, always. Do NOT let this dog go thru doorways before you. Make him wait until you are thru. This is what the pack lead would expect. If you have stairs in your house, do NOT let this dog lay down at the top of the stairs and look down on you. That is the alpha's position. And you are reading this and saying to yourself "This woman is a nutcase - why would I need to treat a puppy this way?" Because if either of these dogs is allowed to be alpha, yourself and your family members could be in jeapordy. There is a LOT of work required to raise a guardian breed dog. The dogs who are not "put in their place" are the ones you hear about on the news; the ones who were not trained and socialized properly, and bit someone because of it. Please dont make that mistake. I have 30 years of dog training experience behind me. If you need help, let me know. and Welcome to Dogo!!!

Freebee stalks and points at the birds, but would rather chase, corner andcatch squirrels. You cant really take the hunting instinct out of them. Anything that runs, (or flies in this case) is fair game... just hope the birds stay away...

You wont be able to stop her from wanting to get under the shed...the hunters instinct is too strong..... you could try putting black pepper around the area she is trying to get at - one strong sniff and she'll have a sneezing fit and that may discourage her (it wont hurt her, trust me) but sometimes the instinct will even get around that. You can even try to put the black pepper under the shed, and maybe it will drive out the intruder. Moth balls under the shed might work too, but put them far enough in that the dachsund cant get them. other than that, you may need to get animal control out to get whatever animal is under there out of there. Alex tried to dig up the whole area around the shed to get under it at some animal.....I think he scared it, cuz it left on it's own.

couple of things: Melatonin and an old, UNWASHED t-shirt - so it smells like you - that's more comforting. When you see the storm approaching, make her go to her bed, give her a treat and then ignore her. This takes awhile. At the FIRST sign of calmness, or less fear, treat her and tell her she's good. The less anxiety, the better the treat and petting. This too will take a while. They can be desensitized, but in the long run it;s possible nothing will work. My golden used to climb into the sunken tub and just hide til it was over... Do you have a basement, or a small enclosed room without a window? Sometimes that helps too. Best of luck

Interesting - I did NOT receive a reply - maybe my letter upset him? or pointed out the fallacies in his statements? Although all the letters I saw posted did the same thing.... hmmmm..... :)

[quote]AWWWWWWW (in a girly way ) I would of payed good money to see that! _________________ [/quote] ME TOO!!! ME TOO!!! Enjoy her Rott!! they are often easier than children!! Your little girl will grow up with the dogs around her, she will be a good dog owner when she grows up, too!! :angel:

Here you go Rott - hope it helps - and I hope he does bother to look up what "Alpha" means....I doubt it tho.... Well, Travis, you're last name belies you. Have you ever owned a dog, "mean" or otherwise? We have a Golden Retriever here who bit off half of a childs face, but they are known to be "good with children", "very tolerant", etc.... There is no justice in what you are trying to do. Dogs who are not raised, bred and trained properly - ANY DOG - can become dangerous. The only reason that the Pit's GSD's and Rotties get the brunt is because they are large, powerful animals, and their bites inflict more damage. Also, bad breeding is a real reason for a dangerous dog, and has been for decades. The unscrupulous breeders get wind of the popularity of the dog, and throw all the proper breeding protocols out the window to make a fast buck. Do you really believe there is no greed in the world? Also, in regards to the cases you mentioned..... WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD LEAVE A DOG, ANY DOG, ALL ALONE WITH A SMALL CHILD????? Breeders, trainers, behaviorists will all tell you the same thing. NEVER leave a small child alone with a dog. Their screechy little voices, and the fact that they wail when they cry and wave their arms, will often frighten a dog. Also, if the owners are not the alpha presence around the dog (look it up if you dont know what it means) and they leave the room, when the child cries the dog will feel it's within it's right to stop the child. In a pack, a cub causing trouble will be punished by its parent wolves. However, human children will not back down the way a wolf cub will. They dont understand, and will continue to fight and cry. This is a dominance issue that cubs understand instinctively - babies do not. A dog properly socialized and raised as a non-alpha in the household, would never even consider disciplining someone else's cub. A dog who thinks it is alpha will. People need to realize that dogs are ANIMALS - NOT people. They dont respond to the same rules, they live by the instincts that God and nature gave them. I believe that people who want to buy/adopt/raise dogs, should be tested about their knowledge, and if lacking, should be required to have those dogs (and themselves) trained by a professional. There are millions of Pit Bulls, German Shepherds, Rottweilers, and Dobermans and Chows in the US....why is it that every badly trained dog that attacks someone makes the whole breed bad? I have a Lab. She doesnt like small children, she doesnt like strangers and she cannot be allowed off lead in a dog park. But wait, Labs are great, right? They never hurt anyone....they like everybody, right? NOT..... The owner is responsible for recognizing the idiosyncracies of the dog, and being responsible enough to handle and control them. Period!!!! Your ban on the dogs you believe are "vicious" will no more stop the bad owners/breeders from creating bad dogs then prohibition stopped alcohol. Katy Courtney Chicago, Illinois

Thanks Shannon and Michele for the prompt replies. We're back from the vet - she may have a mild case of kennel cough, but her physical came up clean - doc couldnt hear anything bad in her lungs, and since she's eating and everything else normally they decided to put her on a special cough syrup with expectorate. They said to just watch her, and if the cough gets worse or anything comes up they'll do an x-reay and antibiotics. So far so good! I was so worried!!! Alex's blastomycosis started out as a cough..... thanks for all the support! :D

The gentle leaders I have heard tend to fit a little better, and also they can be adjusted to completely close the dogs mouth if you are using it for training. I would not suggest doing that unless absolutely necessary, but I have been told that they can be used that way for agression training, although I would use a muzzle. I have a gentle leader for Freebee, and I only had to use it a few times (she didnt like it) to get her to stop pulling on lead. Now she is back in her no-pull halter and walks just lovely. They are good for training.

can cats get it too? That's the only other pet I have..... thanks Shannon, very much

A halti wont prevent her from biting - A gentle leader might, but even then unless you watch them constantly they can slip off. I bought them for Freebee and Alex, and Alex never accepted his, Freebee doesnt like it, so she went back on a no-pull collar instead.

Is anyone familiar with what kennel cough sounds like? My girl is coughng today, bad this morning and although toned down now, still coughs. I had kenneled her while I was in Portland, and she did have her kennel cough shot first, but I'm really worried.....Alex's illness started out as a cough as well, and he's gone now.... I have a vet appt at 4:15 today, but I'm really worried....

[quote]The dogs of the past were bred expressly for dog-dog aggression and we didnt have the problems we are now. so now that the dogs are being bred for other things the problems begin to surface, so do i think that by removing a magic gene from them you will change anything... no. its not the dog aggression that has the bully on the ropes. its bad socialization, bad training and worse treatment and that gene is going to be a tad hard to find dont you think[/quote] and on that note - to find, isolate, and eventually remove the gene from the gene pool could take 50 or 60 years, and a number of generations of dogs bred specifically to "lose" this gene. That's assuming such a gene even exists in the first place. I doubt sincerely that the government who wants to ban these dogs will wait that long for all of them to become "tame"....They will use the discovery of this gene to ban the dogs once and for all. Then they will probably have GSD's, Rotties and Dobies added to the list, because they all have the rep of vicious untrustworthy biters, too..... I'd be interested to find out who is paying for this study.....Uncle Sam, perhaps? (for the non-USers...Uncle Sam is what we call our Federal Govt...in case you didnt know already)

Devil's Food.... :lol:

This is deplorable. You dont EVER leave a dog, any dog, any breed, alone with a child, FOR ANY REASON!!!! Children's cries will upset a dog, their shrill tones hurt their ears. This was a dog that has been shown to be "not the same" since the baby came. Child jealousy is a real issue, and people need to train their dogs to accept the new baby and work with it. SOOOO... they have a dog, out of sorts and jealous about the new baby, and THEY LEAVE THE DOG ALONE WITH THE CHILD?????? WHAT WERE THEY THINKING??????? gggrrrrrrrrrr...... :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

also, she could have allergies. Dogs do develop allergies, so if you find no flea dust that may be the next avenue to investigate.

fleas leave "flea dust" on the animal. if you comb her, and it comes up a thin, dark grey almost wispy material (not like fur, but thinner and finer) then she has fleas. Flea combs are supposed to leave fur but comb out the "flea dust"....if your comb comes out with this fine wispy material, she has fleas. hope that helps. :D

sorry Aurora, but I have to disagree. Dogs are pack animals, even though domesticated, and they have to find their "place" in a household to be comfortable. I agree entirely with letting them work it out amongst themselves, but I would not favor any of them. When Alex was alive, him and Freebee argued constantly about who would be top dog under me. And yes, there were a few times I had to break them up, just to keep the noise levels down. Alex was male, and thought he should lead, Freebee was here first, and thought she should lead. I let them work it out without intervention unless it got out of control. Alex gave up, plain and simple. Freebee is very dominant, and would not give up her spot, and he eventually accepted it. Having worked it out amongst themselves, the rules were set and they both lived with it. I miss him, alot....

Cassier is correct in her statement that camping does weird things to dogs. They smell fire, they are sleeping in a tent, there are lots of other people and animals (wild and domestic) around. It's a new scenario. The one time I went camping with Jarvis I ended up having to leave him out at night, in the screened in porch portion of the camper, because he wouldnt behave. But if Dresden continues to act this way once he's home, you are looking at a dominance issue. If he's ok when home, and only weirds out when camping, it's probably not an issue - but to me he sounds like a dog with dominance issues. I'm afraid you will have to continue to reinforce your role as alpha, probably until he's up in years. I had to do that with Jarvis, until he was 8 or 9. He wouldnt give, I wouldnt give, and it becomes a struggle. You can do it, I know that, but be prepared to accept that he may challenge you on a regular basis. You just have to make sure YOU win. Freebee, with all her issues (doesnt like small children, doesnt like strangers, doesnt like other dogs, she's the most UN-lab Lab I've ever known) is still easier than Jarvis was......You tell her to shut up and she does. Jarvis would argue - make more noise just to see if he could win. You can handle Dresden!! You'll just have to keep at it, that's all! :D

Oh, I'm sure she wasnt condemning him Mary...just a little overwhelmed I think. Jack's can be a lot of work if you're not used to them. They are great dogs - lot's of fun, very intelligent - cute as a dickens too. Where (or do they) did they get the reputation of "cat killers"? I have heard this from more than one person....I know terriers were ratters, but never could figure how they became cat killers from that.... thanks.

I talked to some hunting friends of mine - they said they have seen dogs react this way when there was the smell of human blood on the bag, like a hunting accident of some sort. Maybe he cut himself and bled on the bag, may have wiped it off but the smell doesnt go away completely. If you want to try it, they suggested having it professionally cleaned by a leather restoration place. And then see how they react....

I have a friend who has one - named "Sinatra", of all things..... :lol: mixed with a beagle you're looking at maybe 20 lbs tops. Nowhere NEAR the size of a regular greyhound, which can weigh in wxcess of 110 lbs.... I think you're good to go in an apartment, but he will need exercise. Greyhounds (even the italian ones) like to run.

RIP(ieces) dear chairs.....the culprits definitely do NOT look guilty... :lol: My Golden ate my mom's grand piano bench....**gulp** I thought she would kill him on the spot.... He peed on her Xmas tree too, but she never knew about that.... :lol: If wrought iron isnt for you try bitter apple. It seems to work better than the "stay off" type stuff.... :)