Getting a puppy today! I can has your advice?

[Vandole]

i've had dogs all my life, but this is the first time this has been my animal. i had to put my dog down last valentines day and it put me into a depression that is still fucking with me, but this dog seems to be filling that void(oh how we become accustomed to things...) he's a 6 month old sheltie and i've known him since he was about 3 days old. last night i was really drunk cause of new years and my bud told me his family was selling the puppy to an 85 year old woman. Fuck that. i pretty much took that as a sign that i need to scoop him up. free purebred dogs ftw?

this isn't my first dog at all, but since so many BG people have dogs and do different stuff i'd love to hear about some stuff you do about them.

i'd love whatever tips you guys have on raising/training/acclimating to surroundings for this puppy. i looked online and the majority of stuff i found was faggoty fangirl shit about how much they love their dogs and didn't really help one bit.

Spoiler: show

it'd be pretty awesome if you know the secret to training dogs how to do some pretty epic shit.

tl;dr:
http://img2.moonbuggy.org/imgstore/o...ot-a-mount.jpg

[Kwijiboe]

Be the pack leader.

[Vandole]

Today, my wolf pack has grown.

[miokomioko]

Consistency.

Never let them "win."

Don't let anyone reward them for shit you don't want them to do. (example, they jump up on someone and the person starts petting them and getting them excited with a high-pitched voice. BAD)

Be aware that attention itself is a reward to them and distribute it carefully (like above).

If you're rewarding, you're rewarding everything they just did, not just what you decided they did right.

For terrible behavior, put them on their back, with a claw hand on their neck until they submit.

While on leash, if they try to run to something they want, turn around and walk the opposite way until they calm down. Rinse/repeat.

Watch all of Caesar Milan's shows.




As for puppies specifically...

Crate/enclose them so they try not to piss/shit in their own space and be ready to take them out often or else they will.

Do not use their crate as isolation punishment.

Ignore the separation anxiety cries (incredibly hard) and never comfort them as a result.

Reward any calm and collected behavior and discipline unwanted behavior by simply ignoring them.

Make a shitty high-pitched dog cry/yelp when they bite on you too hard.

Reward them with a play session when they do something right (like taking a dump outside).



edit: 6 months old sounds like it might have some of the basics like house training already down, hmm~

[Alleya]

Keep them in a small area at first, slowly allow them into more and more of the house as they become potty trained. If you're going to have them do their business outside, make sure to take them out frequently and reward with treat/praise when they heed nature's call. Same idea for indoors, except a little easier since you can just put the pad or litterbox or whatever in their small area. You'll have to spend a lot of time with it at first, obviously. Once they're housebroken you can let them loose, keeping an eye out for any accidents. It's always best to catch them in the act, because punishing them later is more likely to be confusing than anything. Always reward good behavior rather than just punishing bad behavior. Keep your praise and admonishment consistent, both in when you give it and what/how you say/express it.

Read online about the exercise/diet/health needs of the breed you get, and/or talk to a vet. Get them all their shots, and always get them preventative medicine if they're outside a lot.

If you want to teach them tricks, read up about classical and operant conditioning.

[Vandole]

thankfully pudgers is already potty trained. i got really lucky when it comes to this dog. my best friends dogs had puppies and this one kinda fell into my lap and it's been fun ever since. about two weeks ago my friends mom said to another friend of mine "yeah we're just keeping him here cause he's vandole's dog." thankfully i've finally convinced my dad to let me get him.

[Moss]

watch Victoria on Animal Planet "It's Me or the Dog"

[miokomioko]

"The Dog Whisperer" (Caesar Milan) is a bit more focused on rehabilitating misbehaving dogs due to trauma/neglect with demonstrating dominance and confidance, while "It's Me or the Dog" (Victoria Stillwell) seems to be more focused on rehabilitating people who have inadvertently trained their dog to be terrible. I highly recommend watching bothas they each have their methods that work better than others for different situations. Caesar gets the behavior he wants by asserting dominance and even using some extreme immersion therapy while Victoria coaxes good behavior out with mostly positive reinforcement.

Caesar Milan holding that Sheltie down and keeps popping the toaster in his face was hilarious (and effective). The music was also perfect.

[Amelya]

Even though he's 6 months old I'd still go back to the basics for potty training in a new house until he's more used to your routine. Take him out often and reward him like heck when he does. Don't punish him for accidents.

I would crate train him if he isn't already. It sucks in the beginning but it is worth it in the long run, for the safety of both your dog and your house.

Sign him up for a puppy class, they're great for socialization and training.

I personally like NILF training (nothing in life is free) and have had great success with it with both of my dogs. You can find plenty of info on google.

Feed him good food. Avoid anything with corn and by-product in it.

The dog behavior shows can be informative but remember that a lot of the dogs they're dealing with have very serious behavior issues. Every dog is different, and what works for controlling a dominant alpha dog on the show may traumatize a soft dog.

A furminator. Amazon has them for decent prices.

Exercise. Lots of it!

Since you're getting a sheltie, a pack of non-scented hypo-allergenic baby wipes by the door may be a good idea. Shit happens. haha

[Ksandra]

watch Victoria on Animal Planet "It's Me or the Dog"

^this and don't be afraid to go to a professional trainer. There is a lot to do when it comes to a puppy and it's not easy doing them, sometimes it's better to let someone handle it who knows exactly what to do.

Whatever you do don't waiver, otherwise it'll walk all over you, become the alpha dog, and start barking/biting like crazy.


ALSO WHERE ARE THE PICS

[Vandole]

i only have old pics of him, more pics when i actually get him. my bud's family is coming over for a cookout and they are bringin my dog when they come! believe you me many a snapshot will be taken

edit 4 ksandra: http://i56.tinypic.com/x3hjjb.jpg

i grabbed him and fell asleep, turns out he fell asleep too.

[Caiyuo]

Feed him good food. Avoid anything with corn and by-product in it.

^ Check out this site to gauge where your budget fits with what's best for your dog: http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/

[Max™]

Be very aware of your body language, because your dog will be.

If he shits somewhere, look as disgusted as you can, and take the shit somewhere outside in the yard.

Show it to him out there, and be very approving.

Don't punish an animal because they had to shit or piss, be sure they figure out how to tell you when they need to do it, and that they know where NOT to do it. We have a cat that will go in the tub as a last ditch if he can't bitch enough to get people up and let him out, it's kinda weird that he picked there, but it beats the middle of the rug.


Be super consistent with the language and intonation you use.

If you want him to sit, show him a hand signal, lightly touch his back near his tail til he sits, while saying "sit" in a particular way. When he does it, tell him "good sit" and reward him. Once he gets that pattern down, he'll be desperate to learn new things to get you to tell him "good boy" and get excited.


Dogs love to please the pack leader, they can get very insecure if they aren't sure they are approved of, but only dole out positive reinforcement when it is exactly what you want, he's smart enough to figure it out, or he'll get smart enough to do so.

Besides that, have fun with him, what kind is he again? Oh, and look into either a comfy crate or a comfy doghouse that you can heat/insulate.

[Sqwunk]

Don't let anyone reward them for shit you don't want them to do. (example, they jump up on someone and the person starts petting them and getting them excited with a high-pitched voice. BAD)

I hate when people come over and talk like that to my dogs. Seriously, do people really think that's a good idea to do.

[Max™]

Hell, I have the opposite issue, brother-in-law and his wife have this shih-tzu that they basically trained to be bad. When she'd grab a paper towel or sock, she'd growl and snap when they tried to take it, so they give her treats to get her to drop it. She starts yapping at someone who comes in, no one tells her it's ok, this is someone we invited, shut the fuck up. She bites people, they console the dog for having to do it.

First time she bit me, I snatched her ass up, pinned her on the floor, and made her shut the fuck up before I'd let her go. She's now snapped at me and drawn blood again, suffice to say I made it clear, in no uncertain terms, so the dog now understands that I WILL KILL AND EAT HER IF I FEEL LIKE IT, and she respects me. I tell her to be quiet, she does, I tell her to drop something, she does, I point at her, she stops growling... yet I'm the bad guy for disciplining their dog properly.

Fucking hate that shit, the big goofy stray we adopted, Larry was trained by me. Now at about 6~8 months (not sure) he's a good boy, excited, but sweet, and knows several commands. They were baffled when they met him, he started to jump up on them, I snapped and made an "eennk" noise and his ass hit the deck.

/sigh

tl;dr, do NOT let the dog think it is the boss, unless you want it to think it can do what it wants, remember, you're a larger animal, remind them that you could eat them, but that you won't because you love them... and incidentally because dog tastes bad unless you put enough soy sauce on it.

[Koul]

Oh god. a sheltie. Be prepared to BRUSH AND BRUSH AND BRUSH. Go out and buy a furminator brush cuz you'll need it. Their undercoats can get pretty intense. specially around their ass and chest. also they mat up around their ears pretty easy.

Make sure to get it around people/other animals so it's socialized. Another thing that helps is touch around it's ears and in-between his feet so that he gets used to it. Make it easier on yourself or the groomer for nail trims/hair thinning/baths

[kyod]

I have zero advice to contribute to your dilemma but I want to steal your dog. That is all.

[Fahren]

Hmm from my experience with the puppie(s) I had, it would not listen to my sister because she had a softer high pitch voice, vs me with a low deep "authoritarian" voice. Because of that, she would rarely listen to my sister, but as soon as I would tell her to do something (sit shut up etc etc) she would immediately do it. Deep strong confident "authoritarian" voice helps I think, though I never really read up on. This is purely from my own experience.

[Souj]

I had a sheltie. My mom got it for me when I was 5. He died when I was 21. I knew him longer than my two other sisters.
I don't really have any training advice as I didn't train it, but I'll just say that if you don't have any kids but plan on it, or if it will be around little kids at all, you may want to get it to interact with some quite a bit before it gets too old, otherwise it might not do to well with children.
Also, as Koul said, they shed mad amounts of hair. But the good thing is it doesn't normally just fall out everywhere and cling to everything, it comes out in big clumps.
also make sure it gets exercise and can run/walk around a lot, because they are herding dogs and if they don't get enough stimulation they'll start chewing/tearing up/digging up stuff you don't want it to.
And I'm not sure if this is a normal Sheltie thing, but mine would bark and bark and bark whenever he heard/saw anyone in our yard. Never did break him of that habit.

[Vandole]

i love this dog. his bark is quiet, he's nice, he doesn't bite, he sleeps a lot, AND HE PISSED AND SHAT OUTSIDE ON DAY 1.

also knows sit!


http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-..._3135893_n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-..._3369654_n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-..._6633257_n.jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-..._7242858_n.jpg

pretty sure from now on i'm getting dogs from friends because this has been a pretty smooth transition. he wasnt scared for long since he's known me forever.