Pawprints

Tealc (15 weeks) hiccups when he gets in trouble

As hard as it might be don't let him off the leash until you are sure you can gain some control over him. As suggested, the long leash will help. I know about getting your arms ripped off and obedience for this will sort it out. Take him to a few classes and get the tips and tricks on how to combat this. Yes he gets muddy and wet but thats the joy of having a dog that is loving life - in the mud. If I had to chose between having a dog that was attacking everyone, being naughty in unacceptable ways (not saying yours is by the way) and him getting muddy, I'd choose mud anyday!! I know about playing hard. Our pup plays very hard at the moment and he is forever going for the necks and pinning others down, or getting pinned down himself and all the while making the MOST noise!! I don't like it and feel the same as you, I try and separate them but he always seems to prefer some hard playing and mock 'killing' than balls and other normal playing!! I have been told that it's just play and they are not hurting each other but I still don't like to see it. ATM I wouldn't take my pup to an off leash area and let him off because he would do all of what you described, with the hard playing, not coming back, running off etc. I will tackle an off leash area after some obedience! DOn't give up or get too upset, he needs to learn and maybe when you have taught him some more, you can try the off leash thing again. And when people tell you to let him off to get rid of energy, just explain to them and say thanks but no thanks maybe another day.

I know it's hard when they are having a tanty and you have to grab them and growl at them. I hate it when I have to grab Tealc and growl at him, I feel like such a b$%tch but at the end of the day, when he is 50+kg's and behaving like that, it wouldn't be so funny. SOunds like you're doing a top job tho

Well done Shooey. Could you maybe post the links to the articles you have read or any advice you might have because I'm in the same boat. Haven't entered any shows but want to train over Xmas ready for next year and our first show

I hear what you're saying!! Out little man can be quite dominant and tests us daily. You have to make sure that if he is growling at you, and/or is biting you, you must grab him, look him in the eyes and muster your biggest, deepest (which is hard for us chicks! lol) growl back at him and hold him while you are doing it. When he looks away or submits, then let him go. Ours has learnt very quick. Also at puppy school they taught us the 'calming' technique. This involves you sitting on the floor, on your knees and sitting back on your feet (hard to describe). Get pup in between your legs head facing outwards, sitting against you and if you bring your feet together under your bum, he can't wiggle backwards. Rub his chest, slowly massaging him. When he tries to wiggle and carry on to break free, stop massaging but hold him. As soon as he stops wiggling and making noise, start massaging again. If he tries to bit you, hook both your thumbs under his collar and he wont be able to get to your hands. Keep doing this until he realises that if he carries on and wiggles, he is not going to get free. But when he stops, he gets a nice massage and/or treat. We have done this and it works. Its hard the first few times as ours carried on, screamed, growled, tried to bite etc, but they do get it in the end. Ours had his nails cut on the weekend and he sooked a bit but was OK. Not growling or agressiveness.

Tealcs pretty good. He hasn't done anything majorly destructive - yet lol. He loves running through my garden feeling the plants slap him as he goes by so therefore some of the ornamental grasses are looking a bit flattened now! And he's demolished a plantpot buts thats OK

I didn't even take mine out when he woke up. Just ignore. They can't hurt themselves the crate. Just make sure you have taken his collar off so he doesn't get snagged. Let him chew the bars, it won't do anything. Obviously some dogs may go bananas and end up hurting themselves if they start scraping their noses on the cage but thats extreme and you will know if thats happening.

Get a crate and do not give in to him. He will learn very quickly that by creating a fuss you are going to get up. If you do not wanting him sleeping in your bed later on then don't start this now either or it will be hard to break later. Make sure he goes to the loo right before he is crated. Line his crate with newspaper and a soft bed at one end. Put toys and a kong in with him. It will be hard to ignore for the first few nights of this but it will pay off. Our now 11 week old started sleeping and being quiet through the night when he was 9 weeks old. It took 2 nigjts of tantrums to ignore and now he's a dream. Hang in there

We have two glass sliding doors and my rottie pup went nuts at them when he was outside. Firstly make sure his environment outside is enriched with nice toys so that outside isn't so bad after all. Then we put him outside for short spells but staying in the room where he could see us. When he started going mad at the door, we ignored him, we didn't look at him and left the room. (and hid around the corner) Once he had a second of being quiet, we opened the door and let him in. The next time he did it, we repeated what we did. After about 3 go's at this, he figured out that a) we are not goiong anywhere we were just in the house, b) oh, I have toys out here so I'll play with them, and c) if I sit quiet, the door will open. Now he is 10 weeks, when he wants to come in, I say sit and wait until he does that before letting him in.

Shoemonster - for you. My baby Tealc having his first swim with our friends staffy, Choppa. He's a tank!! By the way thats my OH in the pool not me lol.

With due respect, I'm not expecting anything of him. I was simply asking the question about how a connection is made by them in regards to being taken outside for a wee and them finally doing it on their own. I take him outside for a wee every 20 minutes or after meal/water, play, sleep etc. He is a wierd one because he has never pooed in the house, like bluepoppy, he knows to go outside for a poo. And get this, he holds for 8 hours overnight in his crate!! Yep not a single drop and when he goes outside with me at 6am, he does the biggest wee you've ever seen!! I know he will eventually get it but I wonder how they get it when they are taken outside involuntarily or carried out. It must be like, oh well I'm out here now might as well wee. But if I don't get taken outside, what the heck I'll wee here! I do watch him like a hawk but it's very hard. The other day we were playing like normal in the lounge, throwing the frisbee thing and him retrieving it. Nothing unusual, he ran to get the frisbee, then stopped and peed!! I have just bought him in not 15 minutes ago from having 3 wees outside!! aarrgghh lol ;)

Thanks tonymc and Nacster (no he's doing it in all different places) I know forward thinking is not a dog attribute, but I didn't know how to put it into words what I meant lol ;) I just thought if he keeps getting taken outside invouluntarily, how is he to know thats what we want him to do. I am being very patient with him and I'm in no way annoyed at him etc as he is not doing it on purpose, the little babe, I just want to make sure that I am doing it right. The times that he did it in the house yesterday, I caught him 4 out of the 5 times and yelled "NO!" and grabbed him growling and put him outside where he finished and I praised him and played with him. Then I wait to see if his little never-ending 'tank' had any more left!! The funny thing is, he holds all night while in his crate! but when you take him out for a pee in the day and he does two or three, then he comes back inside and 15 minutes later, hey presto a pee!!

We had a bad day with out 10 week old yesterday, peed inside 5 times!! ;) Each time after we had taken him out and he had emptied his tank, he found a little more for inside!! We watch him like a hawk but yesterday were not fast enough! How do pups get the connection between toileting inside and outside when we take them outside before they have thought about going to the toilet and we carry them outside when we have busted them midstream!! I know they can see that we are pleased with them when they go outside but how do they think forward enough inside to want to go outside to the toilet??

I don't blame them for leaving the building lol

Please stop trying to scare the crap out of us and make us feel bad for leaving our pups while we work. Enough is enough. I think the amount of well adjusted, happy healthy pups on this forum who are left speak for themselves, mine included. You say that one of the main reasons a pup shouldn't be left alone unchecked for 8 hours is because they can go downhill fast (see the parvo threat comment). You say they should be checked upon constantly. What about night time, is a pup not left alone in his crate for 8 hours unchecked??? Or do you spend your whole sleeping hours not sleeping and disturbing the pup every 2 hours to check if he is alright? Whats the difference with 8 hours during the night and 8 hours during the day??

Vindaloo

My 9 week old rottie is already humping!! His teddy, my mums staffy.............

Unfortunately there are always going to be people that disagree with the way you bring up a pup just like there are people out there who hound new mums with all the 'breast is best' and 'how dare you go back to work before your kid is school age'. People like this annoy me because they don't stop to think how their comments can hurt people and make people feel inadequate when they are doing a bloody good job already and doing it THEIR way which is working for them! I have a 9 week old and I and my OH both work full time. I go home at lunch to feed and play with him for an hour. He is in a 3m x 3m puppy pen with more toys than you can poke a stick at, several kongs and his crate. He spends half his time sleeping and the rest busying himself. I take offence at anyone that tries to tell me that my dog is suffering or will turn out bad. He is certainly not suffering and he is a happy well adjusted little man!!

My 9 week old pup sleeps in his crate with his tiger!! (a soft toy, eyes removed so he can't chew them off lol ). He snuggles up to him and we don't hear a sound!!

Whats an 'inside' dog??!! Dogs can be inside or outside, it is what they are conditioned to. You could safely say that all dogs are people focused, if you are their leader, then they will focus on you. The dog whining at the door to come in is communicating to you that he doesn't want to be out there but if he isn't hungry/cold/hot/hurt then there is not reason why he could not stay outside. Its all about letting him know that outside is a fun place to be by playing with him out there etc. Also that you are inside and thats OK too. Separation anxiety maybe a cause too. I have a 9 week old pup who bashed at the door and whined to come in. In just one weekend, he has realised that outside is OK on your own to play, that mum is inside the house and he knows that, and he has also been taught that if he wants to come inside, he sits quietly near the door, not bashes on it. If my pup can do it, I'm sure this one can. Just don't reward whining behaviour.

yes the shame of it all!!

Well people I have bought my crate. Got is off Deals Direct for $49!!! Pretty good!! I know it won't be as sturdy as the more expensive ones but it will do for now. Hubby builds horse trailers and trailers for living so he will be able to knock a good one up by the time his gets big!! Wish me luck in my crate training!!

Thanks for the replies!! His final sleeping place will ultimately be outside (except Winter when he will sleep inside in the lounge/family room etc). So should I be putting the crate outside later on when he's old enough to be sleeping outside???

I am doing all this ground work before I get my puppy in a few weeks!! I have decided after reading this forum and others peoples opinions to crate train him. I will have the crate in the ensuite to my bedroom and then move it out later to 'his' room when he's older etc. My question is, he is a rottie, and obviously going to get big so I was looking at buying an XL crate, but can I block some of it off with a wire divider so that when he is small, the crate is smaller? Just after reading about toilet training and not leaving too much room in their crate that they sleep in one corner and pee in the other, this seems like a good option. I just think it would be silly to keep buying crates as he grows!! (and expensive! :D )