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Getting a dog
SeñorAmor
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My wife and I are considering getting a dog for our children (son, 8 and daughter, 6) for Christmas. I had a dog growing up, but it's been 25 years since I was responsible for one, same with my wife. My in laws have had dogs since I've known them, and my son has always been great around them and has been asking for one for some time now -- my daughter honestly couldn't give a crap, so really the dog is for my son (and to a certain extent, my wife).
What should I know about being an adult responsible for a dog? Paperwork, spaying/neutering, shots -- I've heard of all that stuff but never actually had to deal with it before. What about the best way to train it to stay in my yard?
I have so many questions. I don't know where to start.
What should I know about being an adult responsible for a dog? Paperwork, spaying/neutering, shots -- I've heard of all that stuff but never actually had to deal with it before. What about the best way to train it to stay in my yard?
I have so many questions. I don't know where to start.
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Get some puppy pads and a baby gate or two to restrict movement from areas you want off limits. Be prepared to take it outside every 2-3 hours during the day and clean up messes at night in whatever room or space you set up for it. Heap praise when it goes outside or on a pad. Don't be angry about when it doesn't or it will be confused.
Once you get a good idea of the size it will be and it understands that pads and outside are potty places, buy an appropriate size crate and begin training.
Staying in the yard and specific behavior will be obedience training and puppies don't have the attention span for that. Leash when outside always until it's older.
Edit: Consistency is going to be the most important thing for a few months. Learning it's name and where to poop. Consider getting a bell to put by the place you want it to eventually wait when it has to go outside. Ring it every time you go out with the expectation it will eventually use it to let you know it has to go.
They won't understand punishment. But they damn well love praise. Make training a positive, exciting time.
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Adopt one from a shelter. Take your whole family to meet the dog before you adopt it. Some dogs that are cool with adults are terrible with children. If there's going to be a problem you'll know it immediately.
If you adopt one that's at least a year old there's a good chance it will already have the instinct not to pee inside. Still, take it outside every couple of hours for a while and praise the shit out of it when it goes outside.
Punishment doesn't work unless you catch the dog right as it's starting to do something wrong. Even then, a sharp "NO!" is usually all it takes.
Neuter/spay your dog. The shelter should be able to do this for you.
Walk your dog every day. It reinforces the pack order, lets the dog smell the neighborhood (very stimulating for them), and helps wear them out to give them a good night's sleep.
Training your dog to stay in an unfenced yard off-leash is a difficult obedience thing and it depends on the temperament of the dog. It might never happen. At the beginning keep it on leash at all times outside.
Also if you want the dog to pay special attention to a specific training thing like coming when called, it's good to have a high value treat for that you only give out for that thing.
Zak George on youtube has a whole series on puppies and is all positive reinforcement based. He has a book, but the videos are free and cover everything in the book. It's also nice to see how it goes. It was a big transition from how my wife and I grew up training dogs when everyone was using the collar to correct behavior. The whole idea is now to have your dog WANT to do the things you want because it means good things for them and makes you happy. Dogs have been bred to listen and want to interact with us, we just have to learn how to do that.
I would add crate training from day 1 if you can. It helps with potty training, and gives your dog a safe, comfy place they can sleep in, usually in your room to start with, because you will be taking them 2 to 3 times a night to go to the bathroom.
Another thing is that play time can be more effective for exercise and be used to facilitate training and obedience. See the Zak George videos for that.
Our dog also went to obedience class from the week he came home to us. A local positive dog training facility had special puppy training/ socialization classes. It helps them learn to pay attention to you while around other dogs and then how to play nicely.
The level of what you want is going to be based on your family and your dog. I have a high energy dog that weighs 75lbs. His obedience and behavior need to be really good because he could knock someone over with all his love. People tend to let smaller dog breads get away with jumping, my dog is not allowed to jump.
Be prepared for things to take time, especially if you aren't giving it all the practice at home. Our dog plateaued in his third obedience class. He graduated from puppy obedience to obedience 2, and stayed there for 8 months because he couldn't meet the criteria for graduating. Some of it is lehr age related, but also likely because we didn't do a great job practicing for 10 to 20 minutes each dayBut he finally made it into obedience 3 and is doing great!
We've also done other activities with him. He's done agility since he was a puppy to give him both physical and mental exercise, its his favorite thing in the world. He also does scent searching for the same reason, and to give us something we can do inside if the weather is bad.
On the same subject, ask for the health history of the dogs and make sure they're Canadian Kennel Club/American Kennel Club/whatever your country's equivalent certified as a breeder. You can also request the breeding history and often good breeders will already have that publically posted. Check into the usual health concerns of the specific breed (e.g. for German Shepherds, they often develop hip issues in the American style), and ask about that occurrence in their dogs. Also find out the conditions of their contracts, because some breeders can be weirdly attached to the puppies and try to stay super involved in their lives, forever, and man I ain't got time for that. You can also tell a bit about dogs if they've collected titles (those are the little collections of letters after their names); for example, agility titles can be a good sign of decent hips, given the amount of jumping they have to do on the regular (it tends to disqualify those with bad hips at an early age).
Make sure whatever breed you're getting is one you're equipped to deal with. Some dogs need more attention and activity than others, and if you're unprepared and wind up being the type of person to send it up for adoption in a year, well.... Don't be that guy. If you're looking for specific breed suggestions, Schnauzers and Terriers can be fantastic family dogs. Rottweilers and German Shepherds get a bad rap, but it's undeserved; they're smart and loyal though just a little loud. Our class had some Labradoodles, a Dalmatian, and an Australian Shepherd, and they were the best performers in the group. Just....verify that the breed you're looking at is one you can handle. (As a bad example, we've had people request training who adopted a breed that is *literally* a feral animal from the mountains of Taiwan, and holy shit, of course that thing's gonna be aggressive! Make sure the breed you're getting is known to be a good family dog.)
Also, absolutely work on socializing it from an early age. Once you're in the 10 week range you're past most of the fear week stuff, so you should look into signing up for a puppy class (where they'll basically just have you pay to hang out with other puppies, touch their paws and teeth, and let them play for a while) and at 3 months you can start proper obedience training (which is especially important for larger breeds so you can get control of the dog before it becomes a hulk). Bring them with you to public places like the mall or parks. Introduce the dog to strangers and have friends over so the dog gets used to both people and other dogs. That should help alleviate most potential problems from the outset.
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Just wanted to second this advice and also add that if you are going the breeder route don’t be surprised if there is a waiting list and you won’t be able to get one for Christmas. Any responsible breeder will have a waitlist that is months out during anytime of the year (to ensure there is always a home for every puppy), and the one I know personally purposefully does not breed them around the holidays to avoid “Christmas Puppies” because of the higher incidence of families getting them thinking it would be a good gift and then realizing they aren’t up to the responsibility (I’m not accusing you of this, this thread is proof you are thinking ahead). On that note a responsible breeder usually refunds and will take the puppy back if that were the case because they don’t want them to be abandoned or end up in a shelter.
maybe i'm streaming terrible dj right now if i am its here
we also talk about other random shit and clown upon each other
Hell, even if you don't both work be careful about this. High energy dogs are high maintenance.
I'm also pretty sure we don't want a pup. Something maybe 1-2 years and of medium size is probably what we're shooting for. We're also not looking to spend $texas so that probably rules out a breeder. A shelter is likely where we'll go.
When you get the puppy take it to a local vet and start a record with them like you might with a kid and a pediatrician. They'll let you know when to schedule shots and spaying/neutering.
The easiest way, hands down, to get a dog to stay in a yard is to pick a breed that's not inclined to wander. We had a pyrenees as a kid and they're inclined to view a large area as their responsibility, more space than you might want. Our current boston terrier though couldn't care less.
Other than that train it to stay in a yard the same way you'd train it to do anything else. Consistency and positive reinforcement. Visible barriers will help a lot since dogs don't really get abstract ideas. A picket fence might not actually keep it constrained but it'll help the dog figure out where the line is.
Either way I wouldn't recommend leaving a dog outside and loose without supervision. Even smart well trained ones can get themselves into trouble and people will steal dogs, especially friendly ones.
edit: like people already mentioned up thread, positive reinforcement goes way further than anger. Dogs have funny notions about time and aren't likely to connect your behavior to anything other than their immediate actions anyway. If you need to express disapproval don't yell, just be firm and stern, they'll get it. Fundamentally they want you to be happy with them so knowing you're not is punishment enough.
Adopting a dog at that age can bring some issues with training if they have behavioral problems. I couldn't recommend boston terriers more though as family dogs. They're friendly, quiet, shed minimally and have enough energy to keep pace with kids without needing constant heavy exercise.
Only downsides are their respiratory system can be prone to issues as they get older and they have some more difficulty regulating temperature but a kiddie pool/sweater is plenty for the task.
It might not rule out a breeder if you can find one looking to rehome a dog (if someone adopted one and returned it to the breeder). If there's specific breeds you're looking for, you can post in the Facebook groups for that breed/your area and see if there's any looking to do that. All the benefits of a shelter and a breeder at once, though it's a lot more timing and luck dependent.
Otherwise it's great to adopt a 1-2 year old pup, but definitely find out everything you can about its temperament in advance, and be prepared to potentially look into a few sessions with a trainer if it shows signs of anxiety or dominance.
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I would warn you though to avoid dogs parks for at least the first few months and maybe forever. Not every dog enjoys being introduced to a whole bunch of dogs at once, and even if your dog is fine there are bad dog owners that will bring their aggressive dogs to dog parks and not give a shit. We tend to watch friends dogs when they go out of town or even just have people bring their dogs over for a few hours so they can socialize, which is much easier to control than a dog park with like 20 dogs in it.
Have a plan for what you're going to do with the dog when you go out of town. Could be friends or family, but it's a smart idea to have a border you can use if you're travelling during a popular travel time when all those people might be travelling too. We have a lady that dog sits out of her house that we use when friends can't take the dogs.
Also sometimes breeders adopt out retired breeders
We've trained our dogs to heel off-lead, but even my parents' dog who won multiple obedience awards was firmly kept on a leash for walks (runs are different, but be sure they're in a quiet area with little access to the road so your dog doesn't run into it)
You just never know what might set them off to run towards traffic, or what other peoples' dogs will be like
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Just wanted to throw out that its good to do some research into this, and really assess the cost. Some places might only be 20 bucks a night for basic kenneling (we'll put the dog in a kennel and give them regular breaks), but the more trendy ranch style places around Austin go up to 50 bucks a night. Adding 140-350 to my pet budget JUST for Christmas was enough to push out dog acquisition to later. We have a few fall backs in town, but also make overnight trips a couple times a year, sometimes without much prior planning. My cat can handle an evening alone, dogs are completely reliant on you, so knowing you can afford comfortably if the need arises is better.
If money is something of an object, I would take the time to make an amazon list of all the shit you'll be considering buying, monthly food, and some average pet vet costs. The pet industry is well suited to make you feel bad if you aren't always getting diamonds for your dog, but the range of that goes from the cheapest kibble to buying sleeves of dog food from the fridge at wholefoods really quick. Have a budget in mind so that you can resist falling into unnecessary expenses while still optimizing your dogs health. I would read about the common ailments for your breed and consider if they are something you could afford to deal with, should the need arise.
We have a sheepadoodle (poodle/old english sheepdog mix) which doesn’t shed. Grooming costs were $100-$150 a few times a year until my wife finally decided to buy a set of sheers and have her mom (who does occasional grooming) show her how to do it.
Our terrier mix by comparison sheds, so we have to vacuum more often, but don’t really have to make groomer trips for him.
So we takes him every two to three months for a trim, shampoo, etc. $40 a trip. I also got some shampoo and conditioner from Petsmart just to give him a bath if he needs it. Just do it in my slop sink in the basement; not a big fan but he tolerates it:
I had no idea these existed
I love them
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When you leash train them, don't use a harness. Dogs are working animals, pullin' some shit is a thing they like to do. Use a collar. It helps keep them from wanting to pull you around on the walk.
Don't use something like choke collar or anything, but just a regular one.
yea, our dog sounds similar.
He is part ragamuffin
Better yet, if you're getting a big or stubborn dog get one of these
https://www.petsafe.net/gentleleader
If the dog is a very small dog (by breed or age) though, a harness might be better for their own safety.
On the other hand I find the fascination with recognized breeds super weird too. Especially since there is quite a bit of evidence that pure breeding causes very real problems.
Get what you like, shelters are the best though.
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That gets them used to handling and yes definitely do that. Males checking feet and teeth and clipping nails way easier
Fortunately our dogs are about as aggressive as a beanbag, but I had to have a serious chat with them about how to interact with dogs you don't know, and I really wanted to give their parents a good talking to. Anyway i guess the takeaway lesson is, your kids are going to model/mimic your behaviour with the dog, and probably with other dogs they run into, so starting with good habits from the get-go is probably wise.
All of the above is good advice, but regarding pound dogs and temperament - often rescues are an indeterminate breed, especially if they're young, and will have also been shaped by their experiences as puppies. So don't worry too much about the shelter's guess for breed, except maybe as a guide to energy levels - the best way to find out the dog's personality is just to try and spend time with it. Definitely take your kids with you to see how they react to young children, and just hang out for a bit with them to see if they seem anxious or nervous. With kids around, you want a dog that isn't easily startled or alarmed, is eager to please, and is just generally pretty chill with small humans.
You definitely want to check for/find out if there is resource guarding. That's a dominance area that you don't want to mess with if you have little kids
this is very different from hitting etc. negative enforcement vs. negative association.