Doggone good dog thread
- Thread starter hickslawns
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triple_duece
Ragin Cajun.
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Sgt Fury
Sgt. Spellchecker
We use heartgard for heart worm treatment and nexgard for flea and ticks. They are both chewables and are given once a month.
Trip heart plus for heart worms and worms. Solestro collar for fleas and ticks. Last up to 8 months. No fleas or ticks yet. Oy been 2 months so we will see how long it works.
Heartgard and soresto for flea and ticks, they say 8 months, but we go about 10 months and have not seen the first flea or tick. Just put the third set of collars on this week.
triple_duece
Ragin Cajun.
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I left Bailey behind this weekend and took Gunnar with me to the family outing. I'm pretty pleased with his obedience so far, but he's a bit lazy and not as outgoing as I'd like. Tonight, we trained individually with a wing. Both made the retrieve several times, but Bailey showed more enthusiasm and stayed with it longer. I've said from Day 1 that she showed better instincts and it showed again tonight. Pups are 10 weeks now.
tracker 6
Junior Member
The females are generally quicker to pick up on things.For 10wks,hard to beat those 2. Good job !!!
Looking good Jesse. I don't know dog training like these others but that seems solid for 10wks.
I suppose it is a good time for an Otis update. Wife has been walking him when she goes walking. Kids have fallen in love as has everyone who has met him. He minds very well. Take him to Mom's and don't even put a leash on him. He is becoming my shadow as he gets more adjusted. Finally starting to find his voice. He didn't make a peep the first 6 weeks or so outside of a wimper here and there. He doesn't bark often but has barked a handful of times. Trying to turn him into a good guard dog. I think it will come as he realizes he is here to stay. Encouragement anytime he takes notice of a car in the driveway has been reinforced with treats.
We plateaued around 60-61# a couple weeks ago. For the last week we upped him to 5 cups per day from 4. He gained 1-2 pounds in the last week. He is starting to put on some muscle now and I can't wait to see where he ends up. Has come a long way from the day I brought him home.
I suppose it is a good time for an Otis update. Wife has been walking him when she goes walking. Kids have fallen in love as has everyone who has met him. He minds very well. Take him to Mom's and don't even put a leash on him. He is becoming my shadow as he gets more adjusted. Finally starting to find his voice. He didn't make a peep the first 6 weeks or so outside of a wimper here and there. He doesn't bark often but has barked a handful of times. Trying to turn him into a good guard dog. I think it will come as he realizes he is here to stay. Encouragement anytime he takes notice of a car in the driveway has been reinforced with treats.
We plateaued around 60-61# a couple weeks ago. For the last week we upped him to 5 cups per day from 4. He gained 1-2 pounds in the last week. He is starting to put on some muscle now and I can't wait to see where he ends up. Has come a long way from the day I brought him home.
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Jesse, my wife was pretty disappointed in the difference between our dogs. She worked with Oakley all Sunday. I told her that he could be like that or better in 3 weeks. But he needs to know his name first! I was hard on the kids about calling him puppy or boy, he needs to learn his name. It should be easy with how food driven he is. Dog was ready to take that kennel out to get back on NBC’s puke pile
Yeah, knowing their name is huge cause then they know you're talking to them rather than just talking. It's the same "oh shit" factor as when your grandma called you by your first and middle names! 
You have my attention!
You have my attention!
Another good session tonight, which made me realize how having two pups really is a perk for a intermediate level trainer. I have two completely different personalities, good habits, and bad habits to work with. Gunnar needed a check cord tonight because he wants to retrieve (very slowly), then slink off by himself or stop short by laying down with the wing. Bailey is enthusiastic, but her obedience is lagging and she's a chomper. Gunnar has the softer, steadier mouth, but damn he's lethargic. Both dogs are responding to sit and drop, as well as learning "get that bird" as their fetch command. My goal is 5-10 good reps over 5-10 minutes each night for the next several weeks. I'm also reading and watching content that's been given to me by JB and others, so I'm learning right along with them. I truly enjoy this process and it's been very rewarding to do this with 2 at the same time. I could totally be a dog trainer in a different life!
triple_duece
Ragin Cajun.
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One day at a time. Dogs will pickup the concepts differently. Keeping it fun and positive, its what promotes drive and love to please.
Only give commands that you are willing to enforce. There will be good days and not so good of days. Always end a training session with fun and excitement.
Sounds like your doing well and pups are coming along.
Only give commands that you are willing to enforce. There will be good days and not so good of days. Always end a training session with fun and excitement.
Sounds like your doing well and pups are coming along.
Solid advice here ^^^.
I would also add, don't get too hung up on the retrieving...either the desire, or the chewing, or enthusiasm. They are still so young that none of it really means a whole lot at this stage, especially if you're going to force fetch later down the road. Biggest thing right now is forming that bond between trainer and trainee. You need to nurture and reinforce the dogs' focus on you, more than anything. Retrieving is in there... They're bred for it... It'll come. But the foundational, relationship "skills" that you form now will last their lifetimes and will influence the outcome of every single concept and command you try to teach.
That being said, wings and feathers are fun. Puppies should have fun. So keep doing what you're doing!
A couple more things I just thought of: If you haven't bought retrieving dummies (bumpers) yet, the 2" vs 3" is definitely something to consider. I own almost entirely 2" (diameter) bumpers, but if I were starting over I would probably go with 3" instead. I think the 3" bumpers do a better job promoting good mouth habits because the dog has more difficulty chewing it, rolling it around, repositioning in their mouth, etc. Also, little things like "place" training and hand signals (casts) can be started right now even at just 9-10 weeks old. Pieces of dog kibble work great as treats. Hand signals are easy... imagine a baseball infield... have the pup sit at the pitcher's mound, and place an empty bowl at each base... start with just 1st and 3rd to simplify (left and right overs) and only put them 5-10 feet from the pup... walk to each bowl, reach down and pretend to place food into each one, but you're only going to drop the food into ONE of the bowls... give an "over" cast to that bowl... pup goes the correct direction, pup gets a treat. Boom. Hand signals taught and pup has fun/receives treat. The sooner the pup LEARNS what these various commands mean, the easier and more confident you can be making corrections later during formal training.
triple_duece
Ragin Cajun.
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Lundy
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Zeb is almost 6 months old now. 47.5 lbs of muscle. He is doing great and has been a blessing for our family, especially my wife that spends all day everyday with him. He still has not barked yet even once and that is OK by me.
triple_duece
Ragin Cajun.
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Sweet looking pup. I don’t like a barking lab, but I like when they bark when a stranger comes messing around or something that’s not supposed to be here.
Lundy
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