Springador Puppy
Comments
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Can't help on the breed but how exciting. I'm sure all the usual advice on puppies and dogs is applicable together with extra patience as it's a rescue. But the reward will far outweigh the work. I'm rather jealous as we can't have a dog because of family living the opposite side of the planet.
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I haven't had experience of that mix - but I do know that Springers need masses of exercise AND firm training. Have they told you how he ended up at Wood Green? I would find a good trainer or dog classes to go to as soon as suitable to his needs. I think almost all dogs need to know what the boundaries are - it's lack of those that cause so many problems. Labradors are wonderful dogs but some of them can be very willful and I have one of those - but my daughter has two of her nieces and a great niece and they all win prizes for obedience! Mine is clearly a one off quirk - and we have had the family for longer than I have been on the planet! Very best of luck
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All I'll add is it's great that your taking on a rescue dog.
I'm on number 7 now, I have had, in my lifetime, 6 dogs from Battersea and now have one from a Collie rescue centre as well.
I sincerely hope you have many happy years of enjoyment together.
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Thank you, The reason he was given up was firstly when they left the gate open he would run away and they couldn't get him back. Also he used to get very excited and rough whilst on the trampoline with small children. Lastly he pulls on walks. All of this is down to the owner not the dog in my opinion, I have taken him on three walks this week at the animal shelter as i haven't got him yet and every day the pulling is reducing with firm handling and lots of treats. I think he will be a great member of our family and he seems very intelligent. I hope i will be picking him up in the morning.
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Rich, you are approaching it with common sense & a positive attitude
. It's invariably the owners fault in my experience when a Dog is ill trained. All Dogs start off wanting to please, it's the owners mixed/wrong messages that spoil & confuse the Dogs. Behaviour classes are to train the owners how to get the best from their charges. Regardless of breed a pup just needs positive guidance, guidance to enable it to fit into the family. A well trained Dog is a joy, with rules & acceptable limits you & your family will have a loyal friend for its lifetime. Please don't fall into the aggressive 'old school' way of thinking a Dog does not need to be offered violence for not doing as expected, the carrot & the carrot works perfectly. The stick? I've never used, I've never needed to. The need for aggression to a Dog is a failing of the owner. Enjoy your relationship with your Dog, you have the right attitude to succeed.1 -
We are on (since Wednesday)our third rescued Border Collie, and think with the amount of dogs in rescue centres there should be a much tighter method of control by the "Breeders"as to who they sell puppies to ,as the latest "must have"breeds are normally what end up in the rehoming centres,because of lack of any knowledge of what some people are taking on,as the saying goes "a dog is for life not just a present to get fed up with"
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How exciting for you. We took our puppy to puppy training classes which helped her to socialise with other dogs and the obvious benefits of training not only her but us as well. They give you unconditional love and affection that will stay with you forever. Good luck
Andrea and Kerry
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It sounds as though you are doing great and have the right mindset well done. When I took on my latest rescue I studied the half of her that I knew little about - the GSD half I was familiar with having had one plus two rescued ones. The Rottweiler half I knew little of and I joined in some group forums with Rottie owners (some very snobby about me having a mix!) I learnt a lot and the conclusion I made was that they are very similar to GSDs in many ways. I don't think I would say the same about your mix although both of course are hunters!
My sister had a rescued Springer many years ago and had great trouble with him even recruiting Barbara Woodhouse to offer advice - sadly he had already bitten my brother in law for trying to get into bed and even Lady SITTTT said he had to go - but he was much older than yours and had been in several other homes too.
Mine used to pull too when she first came aged one year - but it didn't take her long to learn that wasn't acceptable - now she will pull a little on command to help me up hills etc.
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Good luck Rich81, you'll have a very bright and lively companion and with consistent kind handling will be great fun to have around. I think you'll have your hands full but it will be worth it!
oh, I forgot, get The Perfect Puppy Book by Gwen Bailey, it's excellent and will see you through the early years and more.
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I Agree with Rocky, praise and reward the good, ignore the bad, by ignoring the bad, a dog does not see any reaction, so eventually doesn't do the bad. Most importantly, Never, Never, Never, lose your temper with your dog. Dogs don't understand bad tempers, a lot of patience and love is needed, also be aware of what the dog is telling you by it's actions....ears back, pointed, tail up down, eyes alert, shifty, head up, angled, down between shoulders. etc. These are all pointers to how your dog is feeling, understand these and be firm and consistent and you will form a great bond. Most of all, enjoy ALL your time with him....
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Unfortunately I take issue with dogs not understanding bad tempers - it is extremely bad practice of course but they do understand it. Two of my rescues understood very well - even slightly raised voices would reduce them to a quivering mess.
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There are always exceptions Pippah..... Generally, bad tempers confuse dogs, especially when training, they can't understand why you are shouting at them for something that appears normal to them, they don't do human emotions.....
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Agree JVB, a well trained dog is.....
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Our latest family member Rosa is still not sure of how to "please" us as we are forever getting the "submission" of her showing us her tummy
we do not think she was a farm dog in her previos life that we we told as she is very much a people dog
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I never understand which human emotions dogs don't do. Mine do quite a selection including guilt, jealousy, frustration, anger, pleasure - its quite a list - I am not saying they are precisely the same as ours - but I have heard trainers say its not like humans - and my dogs don't get treated like humans but there are definitely similarities.
Some years ago I remember Monty Roberts the Horsewhisperer saying horses don't understand English but I had a horse reluctant to go in his stable - he escaped and as I recaptured him he jumped onto my foot (he was 18.2 hh! rescued). He may not have understood "if you don't go in that stable you will be sausage meat" but he went in the stable like a lamb. Of course it was my tone he understood but......
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Rich - I have a little, secondhand, experience of the breed in that a good friend of mine has one - trained as a gundog and I regularly go out picking up with him on a shoot in North Yorkshire. "Wayward" is the expression that comes to mind!! Lucy is nicknamed the 'Black Bullet' because if she sees a running bird, she's off like the wind and won't come back until she's completed her mission. Having previously had a succession of springers, Lucy is probably the best working dog he has owned, although it has taken him almost three years to be able to exercise a reasonable level of control over her. When not working she gets at least two to three hours of exercise a day - and she needs it!
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I don't mind admitting that I talk to my dog all the time and it never ceases to amaze me just how much of our language they understand. For example, mid morning, she has a whole raw carrot as a snack and all I say to her is 'would Meg like a carrot?' and off she dashes to stand by the fridge awaiting her treat. On the odd occasion we leave her alone in the house, I simply say to her 'Meg, in your shed' and off she toddles, as good as gold to her cage in the kitchen where she settles down in her bed. That said, and much to my frustration, she will also demonstrate the 'cockapoo deaf ear syndrome' - especially when I try to call her back on the beach but she's having none of it because there's a far more interesting smell to explore amongst the pebbles!
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Brue - your post made me smile. We were in Dartmouth in June this year - it was exactly a year since we were there last. At least once during our fortnight's stay, we have lunch in the Bayard's Cove Inn. Meg is allowed in, of course, and the staff now know her and make a big fuss of her (with the odd treat thrown in!).
We were within about 50-100 yards of the pub when Meg realised where we were going and began to pull on her lead, almost dragging me through the door - talk about excitement - she knew exactly where she was going! And - as soon as we were inside, she sat down politely and waited - looking around at all the staff - as if to say - "Come on then - where's the treats!!"
I am the first to admit that she is a very greedy dog - but like yours - obviously has an incredible memory!
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When my son was on an extended Hospital stay - a dear friend took on my GSD - to add to her considerable pack. Their routine was to give treats to the dogs when they returned from the evening "last walkies". My dog was very soon at the front of the queue but it took them a while to realise why there was a puddle in the morning! She claimed the treat before doing her business! That's a GSD for you sharp as needles!
Who says they have no memory capacity? My Lab is a retriever and whenever something exciting is happening she will bring her food bowl. Come feed time up to 9 hours after the excitement - she will find her bowl - about 90% of the time even at the end of the garden.
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Hi all, Thank you for the nice replies. We have had him for over a week now and he is settling in very well, he hasn't had any accidents in the house he hasn't chewed anything only his own toys and he had nearly stopped pulling. We have refistered him with a vet and he has had a checkup and all is well. We love him.
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Rich, I am glad it is going well with the new dog. I'm afraid the breed would be far to energetic for me. My daughter has a springer and a springer/collie cross. They are so energetc but very well trained dogs that need so much exercise. We're content with the smaller breed..
David
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Great you came back with an update R81, thanks
. Hopefully the both of you will continue positively. Patience & positive reinforcement is the key-but you'll already know that0 -
Sounds as if you're getting there, Rich.
Can you post a pic?
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Baffling why someone would put a puppy on trampoline with children, I would be worried it would get hurt....so pleased you are enjoying your new addition Rich, of course he is a gundog and needs his brain kept active so maybe some dummy throwing (of the dog variety!) and getting him to retrieve it, whistle training might also suit him, they love nothing more than working and it's just beautiful to watch. We have HPR's and I never tire of watching them work with their noses when out for a walk. So encouraging to hear of a positive rehome.
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Rocky and Brian are right, reward the desirable behaviour and ignore the unwanted. We were advised that whilst in that training when that undesirable/incorrect behaviour occurred the secret was for the owner to show no signs of interaction at all with the dog including eye contact, reprimand or show of displeasure. Total neutral response rather than negative was the idea. Very difficult to do in practise but it did work and after all that the positive rewards were common to both dog and owner in both the short and long term. Much fuss and a morsel reward followed the good but make absolutely sure the dog connects the two was also suggested.
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Hi All,
Another update on our little dog. We have just returned from the New Forest Club site on Saturday, We woke up Sunday morning and Diesel was very sick indeed, and he was deteriorating quickly. We got him into the vets and after many investigations and scans he was put on a drip. They found he had objects in his bowel and intestine. They operated yesterday and found a piece of plastic and a piece of wood inside and they have removed them. He is still with the vat and he is recovering well so far. We are lost without him and we didn't even know we were so attached to him. The house isn't the same without him. Hopefully he will soon be home
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