Getting a puppy, decisions decisions

Females are usually held in the smallest of cages, live in their own filth and are only used to breed. Hardly any interaction, socializing takes place. The puppies are shipped off to the nearest pet shops at the earliest convenience, and many die on the way.

 

It's sad to "like" something like that, but I'm sure you get the gist. That I appreciate the info. So yeah, it's a brethel for dogs in effect. Whether it's animals or humans, sex trafficking is sick and so I just found something new to outlaw (Or at least, very heavily regulate.) Wish me luck .

 

It's never the dog. It's always the owner. There are plenty of BAD owners, unfortunately.

 

SiNNiK, I hope you understand well the huge importance of socialization of puppies!!! It is especially important with big dogs. I volunteer at the local Humane Society where I work with problem dogs to modify behavior problems to make them adoptable. And we see way too many dogs that weren't socialized well.

A puppy has about a year-and-a-half to overcome fear of people through socialization with people. And a dog that is fearful of people is a dangerous dog, as the fear quickly and easily changes to aggression toward any unfamiliar person. Probably the best way of socializing a puppy to people is to take the new puppy to a dog park when lots of people are there. The puppy's feet should never touch the ground while there. That's not why you're there. You're there for the people. Approach them and they will comment on your cute puppy. At that point you ask one of them if they would like to hold the puppy to help socializing him/her. If the puppy is already fearful but under 18 months old, there is basically zero chance of the puppy biting anyone, so just have the person reach out and pet the pup until the pup begins to accept it and is comfortable with it. Then hand the pup to the person to hold and to continue cuddling. Then do the same with another person, and another. Try to get the pup exposed to at least a half dozen people per day.

To socialize a puppy with dogs, you can put the pup in an enclosure or yard with a well-behaved friendly adult dog or two. Adult dogs, -unless they are mean tempered, -won't harm a pup. They instinctively know the pup is innocent and harmless. If the pup is being a pest to the dog, the dog will typically snap at the pup to correct it but with no injury art all. This is important training for the puppy. Do this with several dogs often and then you can begin at age 2 to introduce the pup to dogs in a dog park. But beware that many dogs in a dog park are not well trained and their owners are clueless, so be careful.

Socialization to dogs and people is the basic and most important part of raising a puppy. Teaching it to have a "soft mouth" is probably next, and other training to follow. A dog that has been trained to sit, lie down, come, stay and such is a dog that is happy and appears intelligent.

Best of luck with your puppy!

 

Congratulations on your new puppy! Puppies are awesome.

 

YOU have a real and serious need for desensitization to dogs! Let me give you an example of what is possible. I work at the local Humane Society. One day I went in to the inside dog kennels and as I walked along I found a mature pit bull who was cowering in the back of the kennel and glaring at me as I went by. THAT is an attack waiting to happen! So I watched and evaluated her behavior and saw she remained fearful, and that remains dangerous. So I went into her kennel without looking directly at her but I knew where she was and her body language at the same time. When I got in there I turned my back to her and crouched down near the gate and remained quiet as I began munching on some chicken bits I brought. After about 5 minutes I saw out of the corner of my eye that she had relaxed just a little and was sniffing the air, so without looking I tossed a bit of chicken her way. She cautiously stretched out and took it off the floor. I repeated that and then just sat there, not looking at her.

Then I dropped some chicken on the floor beside me and kept looking out the gate. Slowly she came over but kept up tight against the opposite wall as she sniffed the air and looked at the chicken. I spoke very quietly and soothingly and after another minute she relaxed and took the chicken off the floor. So I held out some chicken to her without looking at her. She took it. So I looked at her but I kept slowly closing my eyes in a peaceful, relaxed, slow blink. A constant stare tells a dog you're looking for the dog to drop its guard in order to attack. That's what dogs do. But a slow blink mean you are harmless.

I held out another piece of chicken and when she took it I reached out one finger and stroked under her chin.

By the time I finished with her she was in my lap and licking my face.

She turned out to be a good dog that continued to need time to accept people and she was adopted by a family who understood her and was ready to give her what she needed.

Your fears are not without foundation, but they are based on incomplete and uneducated concern. Some people with such fears really want to overcome it, and one of the best ways of overcoming it is to visit your local Humane Society frequently, or even volunteer to work with the dogs. You will learn so much in 40 visits that you will think you're an expert.

 

It's not really a brothel. A brothel is there for prostitution, not producing more people. Calling it sex trafficking is just silly. It is simply inhumane treatment of animals. It's almost impossible to outlaw. The main thing is education, and trying not to buy from one. That's why I would never buy a puppy from a pet store. I will only buy a puppy if I can meet at least one of it's parents, and see the way the puppy was raised. That's part of why I'm leery of puppies from the pound. I have no clues to their ancestry or their treatment prior to my buying them. My current dog I bought from a neighbor who owned both of his parents. I had been admiring the puppy's parents for years, and was so happy that they bred them. My dog (now 7 years old) is a great dog (boxer)--great disposition, and just fun to have.

 

My children? They're grown. Don't fret.

You seem to have a picture of my life in your head and it's in no way accurate at all. smh.

Here's a video of my RR going from zero to 100 real fast.



This is what I made her do afterward for getting all crazy.



I hope she learned her lesson. Bad dog.

 

Beautiful! Many dogs LOVE snow!

 

I hear ya, and all of the breeders I'm talking to, in regards to RR's, are members of the Ridgeback Club of the United States and are listed in the club's breeder directory. It's hard to get any more high fahlutin than that. Definitely not puppy mill material.

And I've had shelter dogs before and probably will again, but I'm not going to plan on ALL of my dogs being rescues.

 

All good advice, but to be sure just know that Izzy impresses wherever she goes.

I listed some of her traits earlier in the thread somewhere, fabulous dog.

 

Here is the sad truth. The Humane Society where I volunteer is a "no-kill shelter", but there is not such thing as a no-kill shelter. We get some dogs that were so badly mistreated that they cannot be trusted and will always pose a threat. We have access to arguably the top dog behaviorist in the state. It's AMAZING to watch her work. When we have a dog that we assess to be a dangerous and hopeless case, we call her and another expert too for final evaluation. They typically agree and such dangerous dogs cannot be placed in adoptive homes. The liability and plain danger is too high.

To meet your fantasy and mine, of all dogs being adopted before more are bred, we need to require prospective new owners to undergo training and prove they are ready to meet the challenge, and enforce it. That is my second fantasy.

 

Silly idea, unless you want all of the current purebred lines to die off...... I don't. Dogs are bred for certain purposes, and they need to keep those bloodlines going. That said, I also think that if you are not planning to breed purebred dogs, you should have your dogs spayed or neutered. If most people did that, we wouldn't have too many dogs in shelters.

 

What did I say?

 

Yup!

Did that myself and they are great dogs to have around. They are friendly, curious, healthy and affectionate. Yes, they do bark at strangers but I have never seen them bark at a child or even a bird unless it is after their food.

 

I disagree entirely. Dogs are naturally pack animals and making yourself, or a family member, the leader of the pack the dogs will become part of "your pack". Shelter dogs are actually more appreciative of a nice "family pack" to belong to than dogs who have never experienced rejection IMO.

 

It varies per dog, but usually it does take a long time for an adopted adult dog to adjust to a new home. They seem to keep in mind that they once had a home and they were abandoned, and fear it might happen again. My adopted Scottie (see my avatar) accompanied me to the Humane Society where I volunteer. We were standing outside talking to someone and I noticed she was shivering and shaking. She was afraid I was going to leave her there! I picked her up and snuggled her and walked to the car and she stopped shaking. But she is the best, sweetest little girl anyone could want. She's adjusted now after 5 years and just does everything right and trusts us completely.

 

Agreed!

Given that where I live is completely unfenced and yes, other neighbors have "free range" dogs this presented a special challenge for adoptees. I got them as a pair that already knew each other although they are not siblings, they are companions. I put them on extra long leashes in the back yard for about 2 weeks just to get them into the routine of feeding, sleeping, training, etc. Took them for walks every day around the "boundary" so that they would get to know their own "territory". Then I tried leaving them off the leash and just watched to see what would happen. They went exploring and came right back all by themselves. They always come when called and are always within earshot. They know that they have "family time" and that they are not allowed to beg. Overall they are as good as any dogs can be and they have adapted well to being "free range" pets. To see our pair of dogs running free and happy is something special because that is how I recall dogs in my own childhood.

FTR both are mixed breeds with the smaller being a cross between a lab and a greyhound. The slightly larger one has a lot of german shepherd in her looks but she is too small to be a purebred so she probably has some other mixes in there. Both have very nice personalities and get on well with people although there is always a certain hesitation the first time they meet strangers.

And for those posters, like Cerberus, who sees them as an attack on children waiting to happen the opposite is way more likely to happen. This is a rural community and neither the people nor the dogs are "stressed" by noise, traffic or suburban/urban life styles. We do have children in the neighborhood and some like the dogs and others just ignore them and that applies to all of the free range dogs. People and dogs are friendly and that is what matters most IMO.

 

I am personally reluctant to think that it is ok to leave your pet off the leash. You may be comfortable with that, and I trust that your dogs are friendly, but when I go outside with my dogs, and I don't know your dogs, and they run up to us to ...greet, explore, check us out...I'd be cautious, to say the least. I find free range dogs inappropriate and inconsiderate. If one likes to let their dogs roam, please put up a fence.
Think about it from someone else' pov.

 

Putting up fences is actually not really an option since the area has been declared a wild life preserve and the local animals must have access to roam freely. My dogs are not allowed to harrass the wild life so no, they won't harass you or your dogs either or anyone else for that matter. That was the purpose of the training they were given.

Yes, I know this concept is strange to those who have not lived in an area like this one but it is actually quite awesome. My dogs rarely bark at all and the same applies to those of my neighbors. The wild life is quite awesome and just living this close to nature is something I appreciate on a daily basis.

I can understand your concerns if this was a regular neighborhood where having fences would be entirely appropriate. But around here the wild life takes precedence and we all manage to coexist peacefully.

 

I understand. Just giving the pov of someone who doesn't know your dogs. It can get scary when strange animals run up to you.
Of course, living in a wildlife preserve, one would worry about more dangerous animals than dogs.

 

Yes, I too am wary of strange animals when I am in regular neighborhoods.

Since the wetlands for the lake border the property the fauna that resides in the immediate area is not a problem. However that does not mean that other animals don't come through this area but they prefer to steer clear of the homes. We don't even have any outside lights on at night and only have motion detector lights if they approach the actual buildings themselves. It happens so rarely that it usually just a younger animal that is curious and as soon as they hear the dogs they move away. Yes, the lights are what wakes the dogs because the animals can move silently in the dark. I have actually sat out on my balcony on nights when the moon is out and seen how they find their way around. It is like living on an Discovery channel special on a daily basis.

 

We have only pint size dogs at the moment. I do have to protect them, not the other way around, lol.
We have alligators, coyotes, raccoons and the occasional black bear in the area. We have even seen wild boar. I love to watch the wildlife, just not when I walk the pups.
It must be beautiful where you are.

 

I suspect that my own dog's best defense would be to run away from any confrontation! LOL!

Your area sounds pretty wild too.

With the changing seasons the sunsets are quite spectacular now.

 

We chose the home site for the scenery, mostly.
Getting back to the dogs, I guess that is a very personal decision. We all have to know what breed or mix suits our living arrangements.