GSP/Red Doberman mix

[Guest Anonymous]

Has anyone seen a German Shorthaired Pointer / Red Doberman mix before ? I fell in love with one at the pound and just adopted her a week and a half ago. I am not bragging when I say she is one of the prettiest mutts I've seen, she has a very nice temperment too. When I first saw her Aug 6 she weighed about 13 pounds, two weeks later when I adopted her she weighed 23 pounds. That's pretty fast growth right? Right now she's probably a bit heavier and a lot taller. She is roughly four months old, she's 18x18 :), she's 18 inches at the shoulder and 18 from front of chest to base of tail. Can anyone give me an educated guess of how big she might get ? I know how big each breed generally is but I have no idea what a typical size and weight at four months is. She is very funny and very good with people, she also likes to pretend she doesn't know anything I've been trying to teach her........If anyone can tell me anything about how big their Dobie or Pointer was at four months it would be fabulous. Also, do these breeds grow steadlily at an even rate or do they grow in spurts ? Does anyone know how often these crazy ten pound growth spurts are likely to happen ? Thanks for your help.

[Carolk9s]

Congratulations and hats off to you for adopting this pup! I bet she is just beautiful. Hope to see some photos of her soon.
My GSP/Aussie mix topped out at 23 inches tall and her best weight is right about 57-58 lbs. She was 8 months old when I got her, was probably 20-21 inches at the shoulder then. Cant remember her weight at that time. She once got up to about 68 lbs, was quite chubby then. Aussies are generally solid built and she gains weight very easily.
It can really depend on if the parents of your pup were big for their respective breeds, average or small! I would 'guess-ti-mate' that she will be in the 55-65 lb range full grown. More or less again depending on how big her parents were.
My BSD was 30 lbs at 4 months, his top weight was 73 but that was at hir prime and he carried quite a bit of muscle. He's now right about 63-65 lbs which is a better weight for a mostly retired but still moderately active dog.

[Guest Anonymous]

Hey Carol- Thanks for replying and for your web-site which I enjoyed looking at. It was kind of startling how similar Brittany's and my dog Dresden's markings are, they even have the same tail with a white tip, same spotty legs and muzzle too...My girl just started some serious food eating, she had only been eating about a cup or a cup and a half and the last three times she's eaten 2 whole cups, and pretty efficiently... She's also been sleeping a lot more and behaving better (lucky for both of us as I was praying really hard for patience and was about to crack). Do puppies usually go through this type of change before a growth spurt or something ? I was almost worried when she started sleeping a lot but that was before she started eating too match.......She's my first puppy in twelve years so I've kind of forgotten what to expect........

[Carolk9s]

The increase in her food intake and the fact that she is sleeping better could be related to her feeling 'more at home'. She is probably starting to settle down and realize that this is her place.
With Brittany, I was EXTREMELY glad to have had a large crate. She was a very BUSY little girl, an extreme chewer and for her own safety had to be confined when no one was home to watch her. Luckily for the first couple of months after getting her I had a roomie who worked a different shift than me. I'd put her in the crate when I left for work, he'd let her out when he got up and put her back in when he left for work. I truly don't think I could have kept her without crate training. Over a period of months I worked on giving her more freedom. Almost backfired on me one day. I left her loose in a room, nothing in the room but her water, her crate, some toys. I came home, something looked 'wrong'. Suddenly I realized she had chewed the plastic electrical outlet cover right off the wall. So glad she did not spark a fire. It took time but she finally became trustworthy, time and maturity on her part, and loads of patience on mine. I told her frequently, it's a darn good thing you're so cute!
Have you had to the vet since adopting her? Has she been wormed recently? Only mention this in case you feel her food consumption is really high as well as her sleeping. Otherwise, it's been so long since I had a really young dog in the house I'd be hardpressed to come up with anything else.

[corgilady]

hey CarolK9s,

I am interested to hear you say this about Brittany. I am so frustrated with my Aussie (?) cross that I have considered finding him another home!!!! Of course that was yesterday, when I was sooooo tired, and today he is such a good boy.

He chews stuff I would never even think of -- I mean destroys it in no time. He jumps up despite our work with a trainer on it. Yesterday he jumped up and smashed into my face, knocking my glasses to the ground and bending them. :x Glasses never go back the right way after that!!!
:( He is an escape artist, and recently has figured out how to get over the 5' tall fence in the back. In the car he runs back and forth, across me or slamming his head into the glass or whatever.

Of course I use a crate, I have one in the car and one in the bedroom, and a gate across the kitchen. But I hate confining him, and it seems like he ends up separated from everyone all the time. I have tried to exhaust him, thinking he'll surely LAY DOWN for a sec if he is tired, but he has lots more energy than my whole family put together :roll:

Anyway if Brittany was "busy" too, and is ok now, perhaps there is hope. I also think he is younger than what I was told, which would explain a lot of his behavior.

[deepseasnake]

we should get the hobbit on here he's a pro at these kind of dogs, I'll bet he'll know what to do

[corgilady]

ya mean these rotten, outta control dogs? :D Bring him on!!!!

[Carolk9s]

[quote name='deepseasnake']we should get the hobbit on here he's a pro at these kind of dogs, I'll bet he'll know what to do[/quote]

You mean velcro-ing them to the ceiling is not the best answer?

[Carolk9s]

Brittany has been the wildest dog in my house ever. While trying to 'graduate' her to the laundry room, I put up a baby gate to keep her in there. Hahaha, silly me. I came home for lunch, she had jumped the baby gate and DESTROYED much stuff. Jesse was on the couch with the 'I didn't do it ma' look. She had even pulled a heavy glass ashtray down and broken it. I had to call work and tell them I would not coming back to work that day, I was actually in tears at the devastation of my living room. While cleaning up, I heard a 'crunch crunch' noise. Whipped around, little miss innocent lying there gazing back at me. Turned back, heard it again. I went to her, opened her mouth, she had a chunk of GLASS that I had missed and was chewing on it. I made her spit it out, checked her mouth, no blood. I picked it up to throw it out, cut my finger. Danged dog! Good thing she's cute.
One thing that I found worked like a charm to keep her clever teeth from was Vicks Vapor Rub. If you don't mind your house smelling like Vicks, you can dab it on areas that are magnets for chewers. Alternatively, put some Vicks on a strip of paper and tape the paper to the item/area.
I had tried Bitter Apple, did not slow her down at all.
I always say tho, test your dog first, make sure they don't consider Vicks to be a condiment. Mine all make the horrible screwed up face and back away while giving me a look of disgust.
Corgilady, good luck with your Aussie mix. Like many breeds, they are high energy/low boredom threshold dogs. Is there a doggie day care in your area? Might be worth to take your youngster there at least a couple days a week so he can burn off some of that youthful enthusiasm.

[deepseasnake]

well thats what I thought......but I guess not :-?

[corgilady]

Hehehe...ok snake heading out right now to buy velcro.... :D ....why didn't I think of that!

Thanks Carol...I just got back from 2 1/2 miles of the most UN FUN walk/run we've done yet....my arms are out of the sockets....put the gentle leader on him halfway thru but he fights it so hard, it is no relief....met a man along the way with a pointer (?) mix who said that he had his on LOOSELY....hah! He thought mine was too tight I guess, but dingbat gets it off if it isn't tight! grrrrrr.

[corgilady]

OK thanks Mei-Mei :)

This man in my class kept saying his dog was on valium. I don't know if he was serious or not!

[Guest Anonymous]

[quote name='corgilady']hey CarolK9s,

I am interested to hear you say this about Brittany. I am so frustrated with my Aussie (?) cross that I have considered finding him another home!!!! Of course that was yesterday, when I was sooooo tired, and today he is such a good boy.

He chews stuff I would never even think of -- I mean destroys it in no time. He jumps up despite our work with a trainer on it. Yesterday he jumped up and smashed into my face, knocking my glasses to the ground and bending them. :x Glasses never go back the right way after that!!!
:( He is an escape artist, and recently has figured out how to get over the 5' tall fence in the back. In the car he runs back and forth, across me or slamming his head into the glass or whatever.

Of course I use a crate, I have one in the car and one in the bedroom, and a gate across the kitchen. But I hate confining him, and it seems like he ends up separated from everyone all the time. I have tried to exhaust him, thinking he'll surely LAY DOWN for a sec if he is tired, but he has lots more energy than my whole family put together :roll:

Anyway if Brittany was "busy" too, and is ok now, perhaps there is hope. I also think he is younger than what I was told, which would explain a lot of his behavior.[/quote]


Okay....I'm not an expert but here's a stab: first: Aussie, you do mean Australian Shepherd, right? You don't know what he is crossed with? How old is he? Is he the only dog?

A dog stays in a pen/fence/confined area because he wants too. If a dog truly wanted to get out (escape), they can and will.

Unfortunately, the more you confine him, the worse he'll be.

He sounds, without knowing anything else, like an extremely happy boy, glad to see you (I mean peeing in his pants glad to see you), glad to be alive, loves everything and everybody, and wants to see the world. He gets bored very easily and finds things to entertain himself with and not necessilary the things that you want him to entertain himself with.

Is he able to go outside and play when you are not home or is he confined all day? If he's escaping, you may think of putting up an electric fence or a top (wire) (on the fence) that slants inward.

He sounds bored. If you are feeding a dog food that is high in protein (like a performance type food), then he has LOTS of energy that is not being used because he's confined all day.

Jumping -- they jump for several reasons; acceptance, trying to reach your face (to knock your glasses off or bloody your nose...hahah just kidding), happy -- saying "look at me", "here I am", "I am happy to see you"...etc.... If all possible squat down, so he won't jump up, and greet him. Or snap a lead on him and step on the lead to keep him down -- all the time giving the command that you use for this sort of thing (down, off, be still etc...).

Running back and forth in the car: either from extreme excitement or he's apprehensive and this is how he handles the situation. I've never had a dog that was like that. We crate them or they lie quietly in the back seat. So, I'm no help on that issue. Except, crate him so he doesn't cause you to have an accident. Take him more so he'll get use to going. Wrap him in bubble wrap....there I go again...getting off the subject!

I know some people say to ignore them, fold your arms and turn your back. I've never had any good luck with that and the look of bewilderment on their face is something I don't like to see. I have three Kelpie pups that are just tickled to death to see me. They can be little buzz saws. PATIENCE and gritting of the teeth. I squat and have them going pretty good on the sit and I'll hug all of them. It took lots of repetition because of the competition. My situation is different because I live on acreage and they are confined at night and out all day with us. So, they get plenty of exercise.

Dogs are thinkers, they have different ideas, different attitudes, different ways of doing things than other dogs. Every one is different. Not all of them are intelligent, some are average, some are geniuses, some are just not quite all there. :wink: Some are better at things than others, some remember things better than other, some understand things better than others --- but they all deserve credit for loving us unconditionally.

I have had some of the "nose breakers" and it's no fun to have a bloody nose. I used the step on the lead method with the commands until they understood fully that - that kind of behaviour was not going to be tolerated. Firm, but not smacking them on the head --- that will cause them to duck and be defensive.

I am a firm believer on not hitting a dog, it really hurts their confidence in you and makes them afraid of you instead of respecting you.

Some, I used an extremely loud air horn or blaster horn (small enough to hold in my hand). I hide it behind my back and when he jumped up, I gave the command that I use (off/sit) and blasted the horn. Talk about imediate response. Lots of praise followed his obedience.

The Border Collies --- just an "off" in a monotone low voice is all I've ever had to do with them.

Kick around several things to see which one he responds too. I think he is bored to death, is so very glad that someone is home to play with him and he's young and full of energy. PATIENCE, PATIENCE, PATIENCE -- firm but not abusive, and repetition.

Dogs are not one size fits all.

[corgilady]

[quote="
Okay....I'm not an expert but here's a stab: first: Aussie, you do mean Australian Shepherd, right? You don't know what he is crossed with? How old is he? Is he the only dog?

A dog stays in a pen/fence/confined area because he wants too. If a dog truly wanted to get out (escape), they can and will.

Unfortunately, the more you confine him, the worse he'll be.

He sounds, without knowing anything else, like an extremely happy boy, glad to see you (I mean peeing in his pants glad to see you), glad to be alive, loves everything and everybody, and wants to see the world. He gets bored very easily and finds things to entertain himself with and not necessilary the things that you want him to entertain himself with.

Is he able to go outside and play when you are not home or is he confined all day? If he's escaping, you may think of putting up an electric fence or a top (wire) (on the fence) that slants inward.

He sounds bored. If you are feeding a dog food that is high in protein (like a performance type food), then he has LOTS of energy that is not being used because he's confined all day.

Jumping -- they jump for several reasons; acceptance, trying to reach your face (to knock your glasses off or bloody your nose...hahah just kidding), happy -- saying "look at me", "here I am", "I am happy to see you"...etc.... If all possible squat down, so he won't jump up, and greet him. Or snap a lead on him and step on the lead to keep him down -- all the time giving the command that you use for this sort of thing (down, off, be still etc...).

Running back and forth in the car: either from extreme excitement or he's apprehensive and this is how he handles the situation. I've never had a dog that was like that. We crate them or they lie quietly in the back seat. So, I'm no help on that issue. Except, crate him so he doesn't cause you to have an accident. Take him more so he'll get use to going. Wrap him in bubble wrap....there I go again...getting off the subject!

I know some people say to ignore them, fold your arms and turn your back. I've never had any good luck with that and the look of bewilderment on their face is something I don't like to see. I have three Kelpie pups that are just tickled to death to see me. They can be little buzz saws. PATIENCE and gritting of the teeth. I squat and have them going pretty good on the sit and I'll hug all of them. It took lots of repetition because of the competition. My situation is different because I live on acreage and they are confined at night and out all day with us. So, they get plenty of exercise.

Dogs are thinkers, they have different ideas, different attitudes, different ways of doing things than other dogs. Every one is different. Not all of them are intelligent, some are average, some are geniuses, some are just not quite all there. :wink: Some are better at things than others, some remember things better than other, some understand things better than others --- but they all deserve credit for loving us unconditionally.

I have had some of the "nose breakers" and it's no fun to have a bloody nose. I used the step on the lead method with the commands until they understood fully that - that kind of behaviour was not going to be tolerated. Firm, but not smacking them on the head --- that will cause them to duck and be defensive.

I am a firm believer on not hitting a dog, it really hurts their confidence in you and makes them afraid of you instead of respecting you.

Some, I used an extremely loud air horn or blaster horn (small enough to hold in my hand). I hide it behind my back and when he jumped up, I gave the command that I use (off/sit) and blasted the horn. Talk about imediate response. Lots of praise followed his obedience.

The Border Collies --- just an "off" in a monotone low voice is all I've ever had to do with them.

Kick around several things to see which one he responds too. I think he is bored to death, is so very glad that someone is home to play with him and he's young and full of energy. PATIENCE, PATIENCE, PATIENCE -- firm but not abusive, and repetition.

Dogs are not one size fits all.[/quote]
Hello Hobbit,
I do not know what my dog is crossed with. he came from the shelter. I'm gonna post a pic later today, as I finally found my camera :D :D :D
The shelter said he was a sheltie mix. He DID look like one at first, as all his hair was bleached out and matted....he had TONS of dead hair and actually had very little hair left when I finished brushing him out! Because of the coat, I am feeding him more protein than I normally would. It was very coarse but is growing in baby-soft ---and dark brown!
he is definitely a herding dog. I went to visit him 5 times at the shelter before bringing him home, as he was so terrified it took awhile to get him to come around. We think he was always tied out on a chain (probalby in the sun with no shelter, as he was so bleached out). I worked with him at the shelter until he could (sort of) walk on a leash and would chase a ball. Then I took my dogs up there and introduced them, then I brought him home.
The age is also a question. They said 18 months, the vet said "well, if that". trainer says 6-12 months.
He lives with 2 Corgis, age 3 and 4. I have had Corgis for 30 years and thought I knew what a high energy dog was! :o They go on a fast walk of a MINIMUM of 1 1/2 miles every morning, then come inside and play for an hour or two. Then they go outside and play for a couple of hours. After lunch they either go with me on a longer walk/run, or come inside. About 3:00 I put them out and go to work. The kids sometimes take him running with them, or on a walk in the evening, then bring them all back inside.
I've had him 8 weeks and he is potty trained and knows a ton of commands. That's why I am puzzled that he still jumps up, and acts stupid in the car. We were told to "fold arms, turn back, ignore" the jumping. He just jumps on our backs instead. When he's in the house, he is NEVER still. He runs back and forth and whines a lot. He doesn't need out, it's a continual thing. It seems like he is really sensitive to what's going on outside, so I lifted a blind in a front window and showed him how to put his feet on the sill so he can see out. There is constant traffic here, I thought he'd get used to it if he could see it but he still paces/whines.

I agree with you that he is bored. This morning my whole kitchen was carpeted with shredded newspaper. :lol: Maybe we could get him a job as a paper shredder. he has tons of toys and chewies but still manages to collect everything else you can think of; then he gets in trouble! :roll: I've taught him to carry things, and also to catch, so I can toss him things to carry for me, like a little job to keep him busy (the same thing you would do for your child, to keep them occupied.) I have been trying to put him on a "sit" at times when I think he might jump up. I may see a teeny bit of improvement.

My concern is that I am putting SO MUCH time and energy into him, and still I can't keep up!!!! Anyway thanks for your help.....snake said you were an expert....I need all the help I can get.

corgilady

[corgilady]

ahem.....sorry for the length of that last post :oops: ....and the quote thingie didn't work, I was quoting Hobbit.

corgilady :oops:

[Guest Anonymous]

Corgi-- I'm far from being an expert. And I never want to be, because to me an expert is thru learning and I never want to be at that stage in life.

He has so much competition (in his mind) from the other dogs. He is trying so hard to please you and make you happy. He sounds like he has a very high prey drive and is intelligent. Giving him tasks is a good idea.

The folded arm, turning your back on the dog just made my dogs think that I wanted them to jump on my back side. :-?

Not all dogs can be angels. Not all dogs are manageable to a point that we'd like sometimes. This just may be HIS personality (now, now....stop crying....it will be okay). He may settle down with age. It sounds like you are doing everything right for him. He wants to be the only apple in your eye. His personality is probably what landed him at the pound in the first place. No fault of his own, his breeding probably wasn't the most selective breeding.

Maybe he would be suited as a sports dog? How would you feel to get him into something like that, or find someone that would take him to things like that??

Dogs are like people, some are better suited for things while others aren't. He may prefer herding over flyball, or vice versa. Just a thought.

[corgilady]

Yes...I would like to get him into something....first he has to come when called... :evil: you missed this but we've been working on it for weeks. when the animal control guy was called to pick him up (as a stray, before the shelter) it took 2 guys 3 days to catch him. I think it is just a habit, to run off when someone calls him. Even when he asks to go out, he takes off as I get the leash (playing catch me if you can).
I had hoped to do agility with him, although from here there would be a lot of driving involved. I finally have pics....they aren't great but i'm getting ready to post them now, see what you think he is !? My dad says he is a coyote. :D :lol: :o