My Blog

Getting a Puppy? Thinking About Getting Two For Companionship? Read This First!

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 11:36:51 -0800

I recently got a phone call from a client who is feeling overwhelmed by the needs of his dog. He went to a breeder to pick out a dog and saw a beautiful 9 mo. old male shepherd. This was definitely the one he wanted. But alas there was a litter of puppies and a beautiful 4 mo. old female would make a nice companion.

Unfortunately, too often people choose their puppies from an emotional place of excitement and anticipation or the feeling of sadness to leave it behind. On an impulse this client decides to take both dogs.

If the breeder were a ethical one, she would have discussed with my client what his home life was like. Things such as was there anyone else living in the house? Did he work full time? Did he have a sufficient yard to hold the dogs? Has he ever had a GSD before? Did he understand their exercise and training requirements? Would he commit the time to train them? Would they be indoor or outdoor dogs? Why did he want a GSD dog.

These are just a few questions that come to mind.

But this article is not about GSD’s, it’s about whether to bring home one dog or two. Most people who have made the decision to bring home two puppies, will tell you they are not sorry they did it, but they would not do it again. They of course love their dogs, but discovered how difficult and time consuming it is to have two. Like kids it’s not double the work in the beginning it’s exponential. They feed off each other’s energy, and they follow each other’s cues. They would rather play with each other than you, and if one says let’s go, they both do.

So, if you are thinking about getting a dog, or puppy, but want it to have a companion, consider getting one and spending the time to train it and bond with it. When you have the dog you want, then find another one and work at bonding with that one. Train your dogs separately reward them apart from each other as to avoid too much competition. Build up the relationship you have with each dog apart from the other and you will have a more rewarding experience.

Playing with your dog is the best way to bond with them.

Happy dog play...

On the topic of poodle-mixes or otherwise, Doodles. (Labra-doodles, Golden-doodles, Aussi-doodles, Schnoodles, Cackapoos...

Sun, 1 Jan 2012 13:31:04 -0800

First let me say, Happy New Year to all who read my ever so occasional blog posts. Thank you for reading I only wish I had more time to write about the topic of dogs and training more often.

As you can imagine the fact that I have made my life’s work in training and spending most of my time with dogs suffice to say, I love dogs.

I see a lot of really nice dogs come through my kennel and some that have such emotional baggage one has to ask how this ever came about. Unfortunately, most of it is people induce (probably all, if we’re to look all the way back to why two dogs were allowed to breed in the first place. But most of them are wonderful and have very manageable issues.

So, on to the topic of “doodles”. Doodles are any dog bred to a poodle. This has become quite the popular “breed” to get. I put breed in parentheses, because they are not pure. I’m sorry to inform anyone who thinks they spent $1500 on a doodle puppy you did not get a pedigreed puppy.

For most that is not why they chose a doodle in the first place. Most people see how cute they are and hear they are “hypo-allergenic” or “shed-free” dogs and that makes them appealing. I’ve asked why then they didn’t just get a poodle? They are hoping it seems for the characteristics of the other dog bred to the poodle. Such as the Golden Retriever, or the Labrador, or Cavalier King Charles for example.

What the “breeder” of these puppies is not telling you is, there are no guarantees of the characteristics you will get, given they are of a mixed breed. It’s most likely you will get a little bit of both and no telling whether you will get the best of both or the worst of both or a mix of the best and the worst. It’s a crap shoot. But what is very likely, if you breed two very barky breeds of dogs you will certainly get a barky dog. If you breed two very heavy coated dogs together you will certainly get a heavy coated dog.

Another thing many people do not realize when getting one of these “hypo-allergenic” dogs is the level of care their coats require. Poodles are considered expensive dogs because they require regular grooming. Most people will not take the time to learn how to shave their poodles so they take them every 1-3 months to a groomer to have them shaved down and bathed.

In addition to the care requirements these dogs are usually very high energy working dogs. They need a lot of exercise and training.

Finally, as this breeding practice becomes more and more popular we are seeing more and more poodle mixes in the shelters. Due to their grooming requirements these dogs need homes that will be able to commit to their care and maintenance.

A good quality breeder will ensure their dogs are placed in an appropriate home and offer the option to return the dog to them if the owner can no longer keep the dog. This ensures the dog does not end up in a shelter and in danger of being euthanized. Unfortunately, due to the high price these puppies are being sold for, more and more people are breeding for the money rather than the quality. Buyer beware. Think it through before purchasing one of these dogs and ask the question, why would a mixed breed dog be more pricy than a pure breed. Most family pet quality dogs of any common breed will not cost much more than $500-$700 on average. A high quality potentially breed quality pure breed dog can go for much more. As I looked over the internet for “doodles” they were going for as much as $1700. Remember these are not pure bred dogs and you can not get AKC registration on these puppies.

If you have one do be sure to keep their coat well maintained. It’s easy for small sticks and burrs to burrow into their fur or between their feet and cause infection.

Looking to Buy a Purebred Puppy? Choosing the Right Breeder is as Important as Choosing the Right Puppy.

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:08:33 -0700

One of the saddest things I see are people who come to me with these beautiful young dogs and they have major health issues and or major behavioral issues.

I once advised a client who came to me for help picking out a Labrador Retriever puppy. I told them all the questions to ask, what to look for in the mother, the environment they were whelped in, and the contract for purchasing the puppy.

I stressed one major point...Do not expect to come home with a puppy today.

They ignored the advise I gave and chose a puppy from the first litter they looked at. Four months later they discovered their puppy had two severely dysplastic hips. Surgery was the only way to elevate the puppies pain. After surgery and an $8,000 bill from the veterinary hospital, they had a new puppy that could run and jump. Luckily for the puppy, they could afford it.

The problem I have with buying a puppy and taking full responsibility for it in this way is it supports bad breeding practices. If there was no market for badly bred dogs, they would have to find another way. So the responsible approach, in my book is to say no thank you if a litter does not meet certain standards. These are the standards I advocate and encourage all my readers to consider when purchasing a puppy. The exception to this rule may be when adopting a rescue puppy.

Questions to ask the breeder before ever going to their property to view the puppies:

1. May I come see your facility and see where the puppies are being kept? (a clean environment where there is good shelter and no stress is what you should see.)
2. Do you have both of the breeding pair? If not, can I meet them? (many breeders only have the female and hire out for the male. The female should appear friendly and relaxed and willing for you to say hello to her. If they bark your puppy will likely be a barker, if she is nervous and unfriendly or nervous and fearful, your puppy will likely have this trait too.)
3. Do you have a wellness policy on the puppies and what is it? (there should be a minimum of 72 hrs from the time you take the puppy home to determine if the puppy is well. During this time you should have the puppy into it’s first vet wellness check.)
4. What guarantee do you give on the structural health of this puppy? (If it’s a large breed dog ask about hip x-rays done on the breeding pair and the results of the x-rays as well as if they have documentation that shows it. (a reputable breeder will offer you either a replacement puppy, or give you your money back and let you keep the puppy).
5. What level of training have the puppies parents achieved? (this may only be family dog obedience or could be AKC ring obedience titles.)
6. Some breeds are prone to certain health concerns, do your homework ahead of time and ask the breeder if they have ever seen the specific health issue in either of the breeding pair. Check for any guarantee on this health issue. Depending on the health issue and how common, the breeder may not be able to offer you any remedy.
7. Finally, ask for any referrals of other people who have gotten puppies from this breeder. If they willingly give them to you, they are more likely than not to have had good results.
8. There are no guarantees, these are animals and health issues do come up no matter how hard we try to cover all the bases, life happens. The better we get at holding breeders to a high standard, perhaps the fewer unwanted dogs we will see in our shelters.
9. Finally, do your homework on the breed you are choosing. Ask questions about their temperaments, activity level, trainability, socialization, and general maintenance. Even the best bred dog can be a problem in the wrong house. And a good breeder will often tell you which dog they think is suited for what kind of house hold. This can vary from puppy to puppy in the same litter.

Problem Dog Behavior in Your Home

Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:02:35 -0800

If you are experiencing bad behaviors at home that make having your dog in the house unpleasant at times, it’s likely that you are not managing your dog.

Management of your dog helps to prevent unwanted behaviors from occurring, as well as helps to teach your dog the desired behaviors.

Does your dog rush the door when visitors come knocking? Does he bark and jump up when friends walk through the door? This is easily corrected but will take some time especially if the dog has been able to get away with behaving badly for a long time.

First thing I advise my clients to do is establish a place to tether your dog where you can observe him. Never tether your dog and leave him. Dogs can get anxious if left and especially if they are tied down.

Second, practice with a family member or a friend by pretending they are coming for a visit. When they knock on the door, take the dog to his place, attach him to his tie-out, and tell him stay. If he barks, you can use a squirt bottle or a noisy shaker bottle (plastic jug filled with pennies) to deter the dog from barking. Experiment to find the one most effective. Once you have let the visitor in, return to the dog, and if he is quiet, reward with a treat and a “good dog”, but keep him on the tie-out.

If you do this every time someone comes to visit, your dog will learn it is not his job to meet and greet those at the door. Gradually, you can release the dog once the visitor has been in the house for a while and the dog is calm. If the dog gets excited (the visitor must be asked not to give attention to the dog, unless he is calm and invited by the visitor. If you have been consistent, you will eventually be able to tell the dog to go to his spot, when ever there is a visitor and he will wait for you to return with his reward...

What's a High Drive Puppy and Do You Really Want One?

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:18:46 -0700

The Link below is a video from a website that I look to for products and information to help my clients and expand my skills as a dog trainer.

If you are in the market for a new puppy you may want to watch this video first and consider what kind of puppy you are ready to live with.

How can you tell if your puppy will be a high drive puppy when you first see it? Of course age will reveal a lot. But if you are picking out a 5 - 8 week old puppy you may not see what its true nature is until you get it home and it has had an additional week or two to mature. Look at the parents. What is the breeding intent of the dog? A good example of this is the difference between “show” quality golden retrievers and hunting golden retrievers. The show dogs are bred for an easier temperament where the hunting dogs are bred to be active high drive dogs.
The breeder should also be able to tell you from the litter which puppies tend to be more dominant and which ones are more congenial. There are tests you can do with your puppy such as roll them over and see which ones are okay with this and which ones struggle but give in within a moment and which ones really put up the resistance.

If you decide you want a high drive dog, then it will be even more important to learn early techniques to direct the dog’s energy to constructive behaviors and keep him from engaging in destructive ones.

High energy dogs are a lot of fun and can really build your skills as a dog handler, but they will also challenge the less willing or less patient persons commitment to training.

If you have a family it’s important to look at the whole picture and ask yourself if you are not around, could one or more individuals in your family handle this dog? If the answer is no, do not inflict this on your loved ones, the dog will get the short end of the stick. For help on choosing an appropriate breed and puppy, I am available for consultations and evaluations on a fee basis.