|
Ok, so after I was signed off work for a bit with a serious depressive episode, my long term flat mate decided to get a puppy to cheer me up. I don't want to get into the utter stupidity of this move in this thread because, dear god I KNOW, or the wisdom in buying dogs for cash off Gumtree (uk's Craigslist) but here we are so; Vet check today revealed said 'puppy' is a 5 month old entering puberty. He is a French Mastiff cross 'could be anything' but judging by his current size and the size of his paws he is going to be huge. He has an ear infection, possible UTI. Not vaxed, flea'd or wormed. He has shown no aggression or much fearfulness towards us or our other dog (7 year old staff mix) or two cats, but seems to have no training, is not housebroken, acts like he never saw a street before, freaked out when we tried to leash him and got really anxious when a guest opened a can of cider. My guess is he has been neglected at best and mistreated at worst. Previous owner not answering texts re his history, such as- has he ever had a bath before or is this going to scare the poo poo out of him, because he smells of wee but has only been here a couple of days and don't want to make him think we are terrifying or overwhelm him? Questions- Is 5 months too old to train a dog which will be potentially very big and hard to control if not properly trained? Vax- We got him vaxxed and chipped today and the vet says two weeks is ideal to wait before taking him out, but he is driving all of us, and other pets nuts with his bouncing around and he is big enough to unintentionally hurt quite a lot when he mouths and jumps on your head. In addition, while other dog is calming down with the growling and barking, which to be fair I would expect for a few days when introducing a new dog of that age, she is still not interacting in a positive or playful way and growling when he comes too near- I think it would be really good for them to spend time in a neutral space like the park- is it a huge risk to take him out before the two weeks? I really really don't want to rehome a dog of this kind of breed, the risk of ending up in a fighting ring (there are a lot around here) is way too high and this kind of breed tends to get euthanized in shelters because they are a handful, too big, not as pretty as cockapoos and designer breeds etc. Also- Training methods, there are a lot of opposing views out there. Our current dog was a dream to train because we got her younger and she just had that kind of temperament with this strong desire to please. Basically she was clever enough to figure out what we wanted with a few 'no's' and 'good girl's' and job done. I know that treat training is very popular, and clicker training, Cesar Milan style is based on some dodgy assumptions and out of favour- mostly I am asking for views from anyone who has trained pubescent+older 'problem' dog on what the most effective method has been. The only way this is going to work is a lot of hard work and consistency so we need to make decisions pretty quickly. You don't even want to know what this is doing to my 'rest' time off recovering the depressive episode which was bad enough to have me within a hairs breadth of being sectioned for my own safety. Any advice at all would be hugely appreciated- I will of course be doing my own research but thought it worth asking here too.
|
#
?
Nov 14, 2016 17:52
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 26, 2024 04:37 |
|
|
I'm hardly an expert, but I HAVE had experience training a huge, mischievous 4 year old rott mix. 5 months is definitely not 'too old'--there's no such thing. Figure out what motivates him; my old girl was highly food motivated, and caught onto what I wanted very quickly when roast chicken was involved. I trained her in 20-minute intervals two or three times a day with really delicious, high-value treats, and taught her to respond to a voice command + hand signal. Eventually it reached a point to where only the hand signal was needed, or, occasionally, she just heard the tone of voice associated with a command and acted on that. If your dog is intelligent and likes treats, most basic puppy training manuals and such will probably be just fine as a starting point. Sit and Come are both the easiest to teach and the most important, IMHO, so give that a shot and see how your dog responds. If your dog ISN'T food motivated...well, let me know when you find something that works for you, because my current new pup has the same problem. I'm lucky that he's attention/praise seeking, but it's harder to get him to work with me without edible bribes. As for taking them out to the park: if you feel like you can physically restrain the younger dog if he decides to take off, or jump on another animal, then maybe you could give it a shot. Otherwise, you should probably figure out your limits when it comes to controlling him first. It can take months for animals to get used to each other, so as long as neither of them are super stressed by the other's presence, you don't need to rush it. Even then they might never be friends--I have absolutely had dogs that cohabited peacefully, but distinctly did not enjoy the other's company. Taking them out for a park walk or a hike is a good idea for bonding though, since any activity where they're together but not focused on each other is a solid low-pressure bonding opportunity. Have you given him toys? It sounds like he needs to blow off some steam. Kongs are GREAT if he's food motivated, and most dogs enjoy rope toys (tug games also give you a chance to practice 'release' commands). Good luck--getting a new dog is stressful even under ideal circumstances, and I wouldn't want to be accidentally suckered into it. Good on you for being responsible, though. TheAbominableSnow fucked around with this message at 18:00 on Nov 18, 2016 |
|
#
?
Nov 18, 2016 17:56
|
|
|
It's all been said I guess, just wanted to add that I got my idiot problem dog at age 2 and positive (treat!) training has made her a lot better, so yeah - five months isn't too old, and I'd start with treats.  Training is also good for tiring a dog out. And you haven't had him long, so I wouldn't expect your other dog to be used to him already.
|
|
#
?
Nov 18, 2016 20:05
|
|
|
Five months is still very much a puppy and he sounds like he needs to be treated like a brand new puppy. He's not a problem dog, or even an older dog, he's a new puppy with no training trying to make sense of this entirely new environment he's found himself in. Take things slow and use positive reinforcement to help him gain confidence. I really like Behavior Adjustment Training for nervous or reactive dogs. Also get to training him the basics in a fun, positive way. Mental stimulation is great for wearing dogs out when they can't go someplace and run amok. The dog training thread is really thorough and has a ton of good resources. If you have good, positive reinforcement based dog classes near you it can be great to talk to a trainer in person about all your concerns. You're right to avoid any that spout off about dominance or alpha rolls or puts any dog that walks in on a prong just because, they aren't a good choice especially for nervous dogs. There are some good online classes for dogs now too if you don't have access to in person classes.
|
|
#
?
Nov 19, 2016 04:25
|
|
