your dog "turns on" for the first time.

your dog "turns on" for the first time.

My pup is 8 months old, and I have socialized the hell out of him. He is great in public around other dogs, and I have taught him to ignore them while in close proximity and I never allow strangers to let them dogs run up on him. If they ask if he is friendly, I politely respond "Yes, he is but I do not like him playing with strange dogs." I do not trust other people to handle their pets, nor can I predict how these dogs may react. I know my pup well, and as his owner I feel it is one-hundred percent my job to protect him.

Today was the first day he really "turned on". In a strange way it was bitter sweet. It hurt me a bit to realize he isn't a pup any longer and that his ancestry will inevitably show through, but also it was a proud moment in that he feels like he can hold his own even with a dog much larger than himself. Now that may not be true, but he was acting like he could and I couldn't refrain from swelling with pride.

I like to take my Boxer mix out with my neighbor's German Shepherd Dog, and they are best buddies. My 8 month old has known his GSD since he was probably a mere 6 lbs, and it isn't like they are real strangers to each other. The GSD isn't much of a playing dog, and my rambunctious pup has usually just ignored him whenever they would be loose and supervised together (only a few times really). Well today we were walking them off leash in an enclosed area, and for whatever reason about fifteen minutes my pup just took a real hating to the GSD. Before it escalated, I leashed him up so it wouldn't get nasty. The GSD listens well and so he did as he was told and stayed back, however my pup was firing up like crazy.

My neighbor made a comment that my pup looked like he wanted to play, but having raised this dog from practically birth, I knew better. It was amazing to see my pup strain at the leash and attempting to throw himself into a dog that is literally twice his size. My neighbor also noted that my pup's tail was even, not raised up, and that the hair on his back was down as well. This pup always and forever will have confidence seeping out his ears--partially because of the way I raised him, he has no sense of defeat or the concept of losing. We ended the walk earlier than expected and let it be known it would be the last time they were ever to be unleashed together again. My pup is at the age where the development of this behavior is common, and I was expecting it ever since the day I got him. So long as he doesn't act a fool in public, I can manage. :rolleyes:

Anyone else have any first hand experience or comments about their pups turning on? Feel free to share.

 

Re: your dog "turns on" for the first time.

When I first got the pup in the avatar picture she was stand off'ish about dogs. She ignored them and walked by. About a month after I had her I started letting her meet dogs. The first dog she met was a friends pit bull mix and she walked up to him and bit his muzzle and didn't want to let go until the dog starts flinging her around. The dog ran away behind my friend and she hasn't looked back since. If i'm not careful she tries to go after my adults/almost adults. Lucky for me she isn't first game bred dog i've ever owned(she is mostly OFRN bred) so I am well suited to handle DA. She ever starts any HA and its dirt nap time. She seems to love every PERSON she meets so I wont have a problem. :]


I kind of wish my pup was more like yours in a since. Mine doesn't even want to tolerate dogs outside the ones I own.

 

Re: your dog "turns on" for the first time.

This story is about 5 - 7 years old, but the most memorable of any of mine, he was a pup named Specky I had, male scatterbred piece of dust from crack heads I got for free coz he was a runt and they thought size = everything. But I loved this dog, he had attitude and a heart that way outsized his body.

A wolf hybrid named Gabriel that lived a few doors down and was anything but friendly although the elderly lady that owned him didn't see it that way. He tried to dig his way into my yard to get at a bitch on heat. All my dogs were chained or kenneled, the bitch was off ground so not much risk, but still wasn't happy he was trying to get in my yard.

I opened the back door to see what all the comotion was about Specky ran out under my feet and charged the fence - he was 10mo at this stage, the wolf hybrid had its nose under the fence pawing around, Specky grabbed his nose and shook the shit out of it, hung on for dear life as Gabriel tried to pry it back through the fence, which he eventually did, they stood there and fence fought for a while in the space of time it took me to make the 40 yard dash to pick him up get him back inside, crate him and walk out the front with my whacking stick.

By that time he was gone, within 6 hours the old lady came over complaining one of my dogs has busted her sweetheart up pretty bad and he was bleeding from the nose and mouth. Took me everything I had not to smile, before I kindly informed her that my dogs were chained, fenced and gated and she was lucky I didn't get outside in time to shoot him for trying to get at my bitch since she let him run free on my property.

She shut her trap and went home, Specky got an extra special meal and a big rub down that night he turned out to be a great dog, little pocket rocket he was lucky if he ever busted 30lbs.

 

Re: your dog "turns on" for the first time.

well i had 2 litter mates "brothers" from 8 weeks old and they had both been crate trained and i kept them in the house i knew at some point i was going to have to chain them out but at this time i was still socializing them and loving them being pups. so as time progressed u could see that the playing pup fights were about over and i had gotten 2 chain spots ready for them im thinking they were around 7 8 months old at this time maybe a lil older but i had went to the store and my gf who didnt have much experience with bulldogs was outside had them off there chains and was playing frtch with the both of them they are having a good time playing as pups do tug of war over whatever toy she was tossing around well when i came home she stated that the dogs were in a fight in the backyard the smaller of the two which i had more of a liking to had the larger male on the ground shaking him as the other had the ear as i approach the dogs and tell her to grab one and i will use a breakstick to seperate them, they went rolling down a hill in the wooded area behind my house im guessing they went down a good 300 yards down the gulley well i took off down the hill and when i got to the bottom they were laying in a creek both still had the same bit as when they went rolling so i got to them tied one to a tree and broke them up i was extremely proud to see that i had 2 dogs that seemed to be true bulldogs neither gave an inch in that short time but that was the last time those 2 boys were aloud to play together as the smaller one got older he became etremely DA but the larger one is very tolerent of other dogs but i still have to keep an eye on him

 

Re: your dog "turns on" for the first time.

my first expirence was when me and my partner where out walking are dogs my boy was on his lead while my partner was playing with a stick with his dogs not realising that my dog was getting pissed off being on the lead while he plays with the stick when let off the lead he scratch straight into the dogs back leg and ever since then they dont get but you cant tell him off for it as that is what is in his blood