What's new
Fantasy Football - Footballguys Forums

Welcome to Our Forums. Once you've registered and logged in, you're primed to talk football, among other topics, with the sharpest and most experienced fantasy players on the internet.

Dogs are freaking AWESOME. (2 Viewers)

1 month "Rusty Report"

Things are going really great with our new family member. Rusty is adjusting well to his new home (he is now 10 months old we got him a month ago this coming Tuesday). He has already learned 10 command words from me, is behaving quite well and my son has not had any allergy issues other than some occasional small hives from Rusty licking him all over his face (he has learned he must wash up right away when that happens).

So far it's been pretty awesome.

 
We got a puppy at Christmas and I'm looking for some advice. Its a female lab mix we got at a rescue place. I've had many different dogs in my life, but none over the past 10 years or so. My kids love dogs, but this is their first. I'd appreciate some advice on training a puppy - can I learn it through Youtube vids or do I really need to do puppy school (probably with my son)?  I need to learn about leash training for a city dog, house training and crate training. Also need to find a good solution for my (unfenced) yard. I'd appreciate a recommendation if there is a good Youtuber, from the dozens that do dog training vids. Also, is there a consensus on the dog food at Costco - Nature's Domain Puppy?

tia

 
CletiusMaximus said:
We got a puppy at Christmas and I'm looking for some advice. Its a female lab mix we got at a rescue place. I've had many different dogs in my life, but none over the past 10 years or so. My kids love dogs, but this is their first. I'd appreciate some advice on training a puppy - can I learn it through Youtube vids or do I really need to do puppy school (probably with my son)?  I need to learn about leash training for a city dog, house training and crate training. Also need to find a good solution for my (unfenced) yard. I'd appreciate a recommendation if there is a good Youtuber, from the dozens that do dog training vids. Also, is there a consensus on the dog food at Costco - Nature's Domain Puppy?

tia
Click to expand...
Regarding training, part of the training is socialization. You want the dog to become friendly around other dogs and other people. I think this is actually the most important part of the training. And take him/her on plenty of walks where they can meet people/dogs.

 
CletiusMaximus said:
We got a puppy at Christmas and I'm looking for some advice. Its a female lab mix we got at a rescue place. I've had many different dogs in my life, but none over the past 10 years or so. My kids love dogs, but this is their first. I'd appreciate some advice on training a puppy - can I learn it through Youtube vids or do I really need to do puppy school (probably with my son)?  I need to learn about leash training for a city dog, house training and crate training. Also need to find a good solution for my (unfenced) yard. I'd appreciate a recommendation if there is a good Youtuber, from the dozens that do dog training vids. Also, is there a consensus on the dog food at Costco - Nature's Domain Puppy?

tia
Click to expand...
I don't know a lot about training. Three things I read about when my dog was a pup that seem to have worked - 

1) Barking - I wanted to limit it as much as realistic. As a result, when we were playing, if he started barking, I would leave the room for a couple of minutes. 

2) Thunderstorms/fireworks - from when I first got him, I sat him on my lap and played fireworks and thunderstorm videos on youtube. 

3) Training to go outside - As soon as I saw him start to go in the house, I would immediately pick him up and run him outside. Then when he does go outside, immediately shower him with praise. I never punished/yelled at him for going inside. First, its not his fault. Second, yelling at him isn't going to do anything. He doesn't understand. Just positively reinforce him for going outside. And I took him out A LOT those first few weeks. Every hour or two. And used a single word to associate with him going to the bathroom outside. So when I'd take him out, I'd repeatedly say, "Bathroom (or potty or whatever). Bathroom. Bathroom, Steve. Bathroom." Again, maybe he's just a genius dog (he's not), but he was house trained in about 3 weeks using this method.

My dog rarely barks and doesn't bat an eye at thunderstorms or fireworks. I've no idea if these two suggestions are why - but the articles I read suggested it'd help.

 
CletiusMaximus said:
We got a puppy at Christmas and I'm looking for some advice. Its a female lab mix we got at a rescue place. I've had many different dogs in my life, but none over the past 10 years or so. My kids love dogs, but this is their first. I'd appreciate some advice on training a puppy - can I learn it through Youtube vids or do I really need to do puppy school (probably with my son)?  I need to learn about leash training for a city dog, house training and crate training. Also need to find a good solution for my (unfenced) yard. I'd appreciate a recommendation if there is a good Youtuber, from the dozens that do dog training vids. Also, is there a consensus on the dog food at Costco - Nature's Domain Puppy?

tia
Click to expand...
Puppies are hard work. But, however things seem to be going at the time, 99% chance (totally made that number up) he'll turn out ok as he grows. Just be persistent and eventually things start to click. Today, I'm totally shocked I can tell my 2 year old hound mix to lie down and she will...for about 20 seconds...after I say "lie down" and motion towards the ground about 10 times. She'll do it immediately for treats. Heck, she'll do anything for treats (except come when she's escaped outside) but she's much less obedient without treats.

 
eoMMan said:
Regarding training, part of the training is socialization. You want the dog to become friendly around other dogs and other people. I think this is actually the most important part of the training. And take him/her on plenty of walks where they can meet people/dogs.
Click to expand...
This, big time.  Training in a class setting allows the dog to socialize with other dogs, as well as people, which is crucial to having a dog that obeys no matter where you are.  It gives an environment where there are distractions, different sources of stimulation, in which to train the dog.  You want a dog to respond to a command no matter where you are, and typically just training at home doesn't provide the necessary distractions to simulate what it would be like out in public.

The commands part of training isn't that difficult, it's just a matter of staying consistent.  Single word commands are best (Sit, not Sit Down, etc.).  Same command for a desired result always.  "Down" is my dog's command to lie down, but occasionally, my wife or daughter will tell my dog "Down" when they want him off the bed, which creates confusion.  Consistency and repetition are crucial.  Work on the commands daily, but not for too long in one session.  Multiple 10 minute sessions where the dog stays engaged the entire time are far better than one 30 minute session where the dog begins to lose interest.  Training can be fun for a dog, for a while, but after too long their attention can wane.  I've had Rottweilers and Saint Bernards for the last 20 years, both of which are headstrong breeds which require a lot of training, and I now swear by getting them into a class.  

I also highly recommend positive reinforcement for house breaking them, rather than scolding mistakes.  My last 2 puppies were taken outside very frequently, and praised any time they went to bathroom outside.  If they made a mistake inside, I immediately took them outside, with no scolding.  Both of those puppies were the fasted housebroken dogs I have ever owned.

 
Other than giving treats, what are other successful ways to positively reinforce behavior? Petting? Saying "Good girl" over and over and over in an annoying voice?

 
dgreen said:
Other than giving treats, what are other successful ways to positively reinforce behavior? Petting? Saying "Good girl" over and over and over in an annoying voice?
Click to expand...
You can use a clicker to associate with treats/good behavior. But the vocal reinforcement or rewarding good behavior with play/attention is good. 

 
I've heard that a dogs second most important sense after smell is touch. So petting is a great positive re inforcement and I'll also watch the evening news while laying on the floor and she will curl up with me a get her extra daily strokes. Regarding potty training, I got my dog as a puppy and wanted her to only pee/poop on the rocks on the side of the house rather than on the grass. The first few days at home, every few hours, I would excitedly say "lets go pee pee" and run out back to the rock area where she would follow. She would pee, get petted while I said "good pee pee, good dog" and after only a few days would always go out even on her own to pee on the rocks only.

 
A dog is a huge investment in money and a family member for ~10 years.  To me, that makes training worthwhile time and money to spend.  It's half for the dog and half to train you and your kids about how to handle a dog properly.  You probably don't need it, and they probably won't need it when they get their own dogs in life, but for their first dog, I think it's a good idea.

 
whoknew said:
3) Training to go outside - As soon as I saw him start to go in the house, I would immediately pick him up and run him outside. Then when he does go outside, immediately shower him with praise. I never punished/yelled at him for going inside. First, its not his fault. Second, yelling at him isn't going to do anything. He doesn't understand. Just positively reinforce him for going outside. And I took him out A LOT those first few weeks. Every hour or two. And used a single word to associate with him going to the bathroom outside. So when I'd take him out, I'd repeatedly say, "Bathroom (or potty or whatever). Bathroom. Bathroom, Steve. Bathroom." Again, maybe he's just a genius dog (he's not), but he was house trained in about 3 weeks using this method.
Click to expand...
this is what we do with my son. he's 9. hasn't figured it out.

 
  • Smile
Reactions: Ned
Our pup (now about 1 year old) was left out alone during the day for the first time yesterday.  Normally, she is in her kennel while we are gone.  My 13 year old thought my wife was still home when he left for school (despite her saying goodbye to him when she left for work).

Fortunately she didn't poop, pee, or yak anywhere apparently.  She did have a good time chewing stuff up though.  With the run of the upstairs, which is bedrooms and a bathroom, she sure picks weird items.  My 13 year old has a room full of stuffed animals.  She loves the stuffed dog toys we get her, but she didn't touch those.  There was some sort of nerf toy destroyed, but we can't for the life of us figure out what it was.  Then in our room, she touched nothing of my wife's.  She did however get up onto my dresser and get my checkbook and extra wallet. She chewed a couple of books of checks, and destroyed my wallet and chewed some of the cards.  It was a leather card wallet with a magnet clamp to hold cash.  She chewed the leather to bits all the way down to the magnets.

She could have, but didn't touch, a pile of clean up matched socks, or the pile of dirty clothes.  Thought those would be more fun than metal and plastic. :shrug:

Poop looked normal and she isn't acting differently, so hopefully she didn't ingest much of anything.

 
Bull Dozier said:
Our pup (now about 1 year old) was left out alone during the day for the first time yesterday.  Normally, she is in her kennel while we are gone.  My 13 year old thought my wife was still home when he left for school (despite her saying goodbye to him when she left for work).

Fortunately she didn't poop, pee, or yak anywhere apparently.  She did have a good time chewing stuff up though.  With the run of the upstairs, which is bedrooms and a bathroom, she sure picks weird items.  My 13 year old has a room full of stuffed animals.  She loves the stuffed dog toys we get her, but she didn't touch those.  There was some sort of nerf toy destroyed, but we can't for the life of us figure out what it was.  Then in our room, she touched nothing of my wife's.  She did however get up onto my dresser and get my checkbook and extra wallet. She chewed a couple of books of checks, and destroyed my wallet and chewed some of the cards.  It was a leather card wallet with a magnet clamp to hold cash.  She chewed the leather to bits all the way down to the magnets.

She could have, but didn't touch, a pile of clean up matched socks, or the pile of dirty clothes.  Thought those would be more fun than metal and plastic. :shrug:

Poop looked normal and she isn't acting differently, so hopefully she didn't ingest much of anything.
Click to expand...
wow brings back fond memories of when my dogs were younger....let me guess...some sort of Lab?

Had a yellow lab (passed away in 2013) and have a 11 year old black lab mix. They would always pick odd items to chew on.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
JoeSteeler said:
wow brings back fond memories of when my dogs were younger....let me guess...some sort of Lab?

Had a yellow lab (passed away in 2013) and have a 11 year old black lab mix. They would always pick odd items to chew on.
Click to expand...
She's a mutt.  Definitely some sort of terrier (people have said Jack Russell based on some of her personality traits).  The rescue we got her from said she was a lab mix, but she's only thirty pounds, and the only lab quality I see in her is that she's mostly black.

 
Bull Dozier said:
Our pup (now about 1 year old) was left out alone during the day for the first time yesterday.  Normally, she is in her kennel while we are gone.  My 13 year old thought my wife was still home when he left for school (despite her saying goodbye to him when she left for work).

Fortunately she didn't poop, pee, or yak anywhere apparently.  She did have a good time chewing stuff up though.  With the run of the upstairs, which is bedrooms and a bathroom, she sure picks weird items.  My 13 year old has a room full of stuffed animals.  She loves the stuffed dog toys we get her, but she didn't touch those.  There was some sort of nerf toy destroyed, but we can't for the life of us figure out what it was.  Then in our room, she touched nothing of my wife's.  She did however get up onto my dresser and get my checkbook and extra wallet. She chewed a couple of books of checks, and destroyed my wallet and chewed some of the cards.  It was a leather card wallet with a magnet clamp to hold cash.  She chewed the leather to bits all the way down to the magnets.

She could have, but didn't touch, a pile of clean up matched socks, or the pile of dirty clothes.  Thought those would be more fun than metal and plastic. :shrug:

Poop looked normal and she isn't acting differently, so hopefully she didn't ingest much of anything.
Click to expand...
My dogs are weird about that too. Shoes were a natural target when they were young, but for some reason they were big fans of reading glasses, bed pillows (not normal ones, like memory foam type pillows) paper napkins, books, mail, cookware like measuring cups, remote controls (infuriating), their own beds. One of my dogs loves to chew the corners of end tables or eat the buttons off your jacket or your shorts/pants, don't ask me why. Another doesn't chew the shoes, but eats shoe laces.

Jerks.

 
Buckna said:
My dogs are weird about that too. Shoes were a natural target when they were young, but for some reason they were big fans of reading glasses, bed pillows (not normal ones, like memory foam type pillows) paper napkins, books, mail, cookware like measuring cups, remote controls (infuriating), their own beds. One of my dogs loves to chew the corners of end tables or eat the buttons off your jacket or your shorts/pants, don't ask me why. Another doesn't chew the shoes, but eats shoe laces.

Jerks.
Click to expand...
Mine loves napkins or used tissues.  She'll go into the bathroom, grab one in her mouth and jump onto your lap.  She just sits there looking innocent waiting for you to notice her mouth is open just so slightly and there is a tiny sliver of it sticking out of her mouth.  I take that as my cue she needs some attention.

 
So 3 years ago I adopted a "senior rescue" border collie (a breed I absolutely love) named Beau.  He was thought to be 12 or 13 at the time (they didn't know much about him, and were only guessing at his age).  When the rescue facility got him they did some medical work on him - finally got him fixed, basic bloodwork stuff, and some dental work involving the removal of either 7 or 9 teeth.  They said they would have removed more, but that he was coming out of the anesthesia and had to stop.  We were told that he might have 6 months to a year or so - and we were happy to give this dog a nice home for the time he had left.  He was going to be our second border collie, with the first named Luke (so now we have border collies named after the Dukes of Hazard, yeah yeah). 

Anyway, that was nearly 3 years ago and Beau is still doing fine.  He enjoys chasing the cats in the house and barking at birds outside.  Recent blood work results had the vet telling me "if I hadn't seen him for myself, I'd swear this is the blood work of a 5 year old."  That blood work was done as a prelude to some additional dental work he needs, which I dropped him off for this morning.  All in (with an EKG and everything else involved) the dental work will be at least $650, and if found that multiple extractions are needed we could end up around $1k.  Makes me nervous after hearing he didn't do well under anesthesia the last time, but with everything going well today Beau should have a few more years with us barking at birds.

 
matttyl said:
So 3 years ago I adopted a "senior rescue" border collie (a breed I absolutely love) named Beau.  He was thought to be 12 or 13 at the time (they didn't know much about him, and were only guessing at his age).  When the rescue facility got him they did some medical work on him - finally got him fixed, basic bloodwork stuff, and some dental work involving the removal of either 7 or 9 teeth.  They said they would have removed more, but that he was coming out of the anesthesia and had to stop.  We were told that he might have 6 months to a year or so - and we were happy to give this dog a nice home for the time he had left.  He was going to be our second border collie, with the first named Luke (so now we have border collies named after the Dukes of Hazard, yeah yeah). 

Anyway, that was nearly 3 years ago and Beau is still doing fine.  He enjoys chasing the cats in the house and barking at birds outside.  Recent blood work results had the vet telling me "if I hadn't seen him for myself, I'd swear this is the blood work of a 5 year old."  That blood work was done as a prelude to some additional dental work he needs, which I dropped him off for this morning.  All in (with an EKG and everything else involved) the dental work will be at least $650, and if found that multiple extractions are needed we could end up around $1k.  Makes me nervous after hearing he didn't do well under anesthesia the last time, but with everything going well today Beau should have a few more years with us barking at birds.
Click to expand...
damn fine story...thanks for adopting!!!

 
matttyl said:
So 3 years ago I adopted a "senior rescue" border collie (a breed I absolutely love) named Beau.  He was thought to be 12 or 13 at the time (they didn't know much about him, and were only guessing at his age).  When the rescue facility got him they did some medical work on him - finally got him fixed, basic bloodwork stuff, and some dental work involving the removal of either 7 or 9 teeth.  They said they would have removed more, but that he was coming out of the anesthesia and had to stop.  We were told that he might have 6 months to a year or so - and we were happy to give this dog a nice home for the time he had left.  He was going to be our second border collie, with the first named Luke (so now we have border collies named after the Dukes of Hazard, yeah yeah). 

Anyway, that was nearly 3 years ago and Beau is still doing fine.  He enjoys chasing the cats in the house and barking at birds outside.  Recent blood work results had the vet telling me "if I hadn't seen him for myself, I'd swear this is the blood work of a 5 year old."  That blood work was done as a prelude to some additional dental work he needs, which I dropped him off for this morning.  All in (with an EKG and everything else involved) the dental work will be at least $650, and if found that multiple extractions are needed we could end up around $1k.  Makes me nervous after hearing he didn't do well under anesthesia the last time, but with everything going well today Beau should have a few more years with us barking at birds.
Click to expand...
If I could give multiple likes for 1 post I would have for this.  Great story and thank you for taking care of him.  I have no doubt that he is doing so well despite the initial diagnosis because you have made him a part of your family.

 
RC94 said:
If I could give multiple likes for 1 post I would have for this.  Great story and thank you for taking care of him.  I have no doubt that he is doing so well despite the initial diagnosis because you have made him a part of your family.
Click to expand...
He's a good dog all in all.  Like I said above, we had no idea about his past.  He may have been a border collie that never was really allowed outside - and it's a breed that definitely needs that.  We've got around an acre of fenced in area in the backyard that he and his two siblings (including the one who is my profile picture here) have free reign off.  I think all in the vet said 10 teeth were pulled.....which will pull over $1,100 out of my wallet.  This dog better have 2+ years left!!  Haha.

 
matttyl said:
He's a good dog all in all.  Like I said above, we had no idea about his past.  He may have been a border collie that never was really allowed outside - and it's a breed that definitely needs that.  We've got around an acre of fenced in area in the backyard that he and his two siblings (including the one who is my profile picture here) have free reign off.  I think all in the vet said 10 teeth were pulled.....which will pull over $1,100 out of my wallet.  This dog better have 2+ years left!!  Haha.
Click to expand...
Ouch, not bad though and small price to pay for fresh doggie breath! Our second rescue had broken off both of his upper canine's (we think likely chewing on the bars of his kennel while he was in a shelter) and they were starting to get infected. We had them extracted but Duke had a bad reaction to the stitches somehow. They had to put him back under, pull the stitches and put different ones in. Took a few weeks to heal during which the poor guy couldn't eat solid food. Basically fed him watered down canned food (gruel essentially.)

Wasn't cheap and he came through fine, no issues with his teeth for the last 3 years!

 
popeye said:
Wife and I adopted a 10 month old Jack Russell terrier - WTF were we thinking?  He's 90% awesome, 10% crazed ####head.  But then so am I.  Okay, I'm 50/50 at best.
Click to expand...
Good luck to you sir. Have kids? If not, you may just have enough energy left for the little guy/gal!

 
We went to a Super Bowl party and one of the kids left the pantry door open. My dog, all 25 pounds of her, are 7 chocolate Z-bars. She opened one of the oatmeal Z-bars. It had a small nibble but was mostly untouched. All of the empty wrappers were the chocolate brownie kind. Three different kinds mixed in a box and she picked out all of the ones she liked. I am left with the S'mores and Oatmeal flavors. It was a new box from Costco. So my dog ate individually wrapped dog poison and the result is that she pooped a little more yesterday.

 
I have a puggle (75% pug, 25% beagle) who is now about 9 years old, but you wouldn't guess it based on how excited he gets for every meal or 'play ball'. Has a passion for chasing a ball and bringing it back and an even stronger passion for eating. Not a mean bone in his body unless he's around another dog and there's food in the room and then it can become a competition. My guy is a cuddler, loves to sleep on my arm as a pillow and sleeps on his back so he looks like a little person. Probably the best single decision I've made in my life was to get a dog, but as he does get older and eventually his time will come, putting him down will be one of the toughest things I will have to do, that day will be very difficult.

Anyways, as a puppy, I put bells on my door and each time I took him out, I'd take his paw and hit the bell; At first, he drove me crazy. I must have taken him out (I'm in a condo, 2nd floor) about 30 times in one hour because if I don't take him out, he doesn't know what the bells are for, and I can't get impatient else he'll get uncomfortable.

In any case, the bells worked, he learned to ring them for the bathroom and I still can't believe he gets the purpose of them.

9 years later, the bells are still there, even though his bladder is much more stable today, and there is a little bed next to the door that he likes. Now, he likes to ring the bell before he lies down in that bed so the meaning may have shifted over time, but still love that this worked out.

 
Cold Dead Hands said:
We went to a Super Bowl party and one of the kids left the pantry door open. My dog, all 25 pounds of her, are 7 chocolate Z-bars. She opened one of the oatmeal Z-bars. It had a small nibble but was mostly untouched. All of the empty wrappers were the chocolate brownie kind. Three different kinds mixed in a box and she picked out all of the ones she liked. I am left with the S'mores and Oatmeal flavors. It was a new box from Costco. So my dog ate individually wrapped dog poison and the result is that she pooped a little more yesterday.
Click to expand...
i had a pug eat an entire bag of mini snickers at halloween time years ago...ripped open the outer bag then proceeded to open each candy...all of them...never even got sick...pretty lucky and pretty amazing lol

 
matttyl said:
So 3 years ago I adopted a "senior rescue" border collie (a breed I absolutely love) named Beau.  He was thought to be 12 or 13 at the time (they didn't know much about him, and were only guessing at his age).  When the rescue facility got him they did some medical work on him - finally got him fixed, basic bloodwork stuff, and some dental work involving the removal of either 7 or 9 teeth.  They said they would have removed more, but that he was coming out of the anesthesia and had to stop.  We were told that he might have 6 months to a year or so - and we were happy to give this dog a nice home for the time he had left.  He was going to be our second border collie, with the first named Luke (so now we have border collies named after the Dukes of Hazard, yeah yeah). 

Anyway, that was nearly 3 years ago and Beau is still doing fine.  He enjoys chasing the cats in the house and barking at birds outside.  Recent blood work results had the vet telling me "if I hadn't seen him for myself, I'd swear this is the blood work of a 5 year old."  That blood work was done as a prelude to some additional dental work he needs, which I dropped him off for this morning.  All in (with an EKG and everything else involved) the dental work will be at least $650, and if found that multiple extractions are needed we could end up around $1k.  Makes me nervous after hearing he didn't do well under anesthesia the last time, but with everything going well today Beau should have a few more years with us barking at birds.
Click to expand...
Beau update - the damn dog is like 5 years younger after the procedure.  We had some unseasonable warmth yesterday, he spent all day outside either laying in the sun, or running around barking at birds. 

Over the weekend he was on some pretty wicked painkillers, and either Saturday or Sunday I came downstairs to see him laid out of the floor with his mouth open tongue hanging out.  My first thought was, "looks like Beau is dead, there's $1,100 I'm never going to get back."  Turns out he was just high from the pain killers.  

 
matttyl said:
Turns out he was just high from the pain killers.  
Click to expand...
High dogs are the best. When my hound was fixed, I remember her just standing in the middle of a room with her head lowered towards the ground and eyes glassed over while she drooled on the floor. Pretty sure she just stood there for about 5 minutes.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

mr. furley
Long Island serial killer suspect in custody
Replies
34
Views
1K
Dezbelief
Dezbelief
woodstock
This Article Is Righteous And Prescient About So Many Things, Oh, and Nü-Metal And Twilight Are The True Outsider Art, The Only Rebel Poets
Replies
7
Views
615
rockaction
rockaction
Pip's Invitation
The THIRD 100 from 1971. #1: Echoes
5 6 7
Replies
310
Views
10K
BobbyLayne
BobbyLayne

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 3 (members: 0, guests: 3)
Top