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Bringing home my next sport dog... any tips and tricks?

2K views 13 replies 4 participants last post by  Femfa 
#1 ·
In October I’ll be bringing home a new sport prospect. He’ll be 4 months old at the time, and is staying with a breeder local to me until the time is right for me to bring him to my place. During those two months between I will still be engaging, training, and handling him.

Ryka is my Queen of Sheba... she loves her comforts, cuddling with me, and is currently snuggled up beside me on the couch as I sip my coffee and type this up. I don’t want to disrupt her life more than necessary, but I want to ensure that my next dog understands how to integrate into our home properly.

My idea is to have an X-pen on our main living floor where the puppy primarily hangs out when not out with me or in the crate. When he’s out, Ryka will be put away to encourage focus and engagement on me. Walks will be separate until the pup understands walking etiquette and then I will walk them both together. I don’t mind them just being dogs out in the backyard and the like, but I’ll wait until he’s big enough to properly romp around with her.

When I was raising Ryka it was very open and free and fun. She and I just had lots of fun all day together. I know that I can’t really do that the same way, but I also don’t want Ryka or the pup to be crated all day until they’re ready to integrate together in the house without an x-pen keeping them separate. So if anyone has any tips, suggestions, or personal experiences I could pull from I’d appreciate it.
 
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#2 ·
Just bumping my own thread to see if there's any magical words of wisdom floating around.
 
#4 ·
Thanks Steve, I appreciate the response. And that’s a really good point. I was just thinking about that. Ryka is possessive around other dogs but not people, so that is a genuine concern of mine.
 
#6 ·
I appreciate your faith in me :laugh2: I just like to hoard information. There's a lot I don't want to mess up on but know I will, regardless of how much I learn prior.

Just really excited at the idea of having a nice sport dog. I love Ryka, but I was conservative in my ask for her. Wasn't sure if I wanted a sport dog or not. Now I know I do, so I want to avoid diving head first into the rocks if I can help it... though that might knock some more sense into me since all us dog sport people are nuts anyways.
 
#8 ·
She's my momma's girl. No matter what she does she will always stay with me... the other dog, if it doesn't turn out, goes right back to the breeder. That includes a calm and manageable living arrangement with Sheba herself. ;)
 
#9 ·
A lot of it, you just have to wait and see when you bring him home. When I brought Doc home, that was 3 males and there was no problem. I kept them mostly separated because of the size difference between them, but even when I first brought him in there was no tension or over the top excitement. Never anything that looked like it could be a conflict between them. Every male dog we've owned has been very accepting of females, especially older females being a little bossy. Even strange females. An overly submissive female, they can get a little pushy with the sniffing and things, but I think you'll probably find them getting along pretty easily.
 
#11 ·
Both great suggestions, I appreciate it. Ryka is pretty territorial and considers herself a big shot in the house. Her and the Golden get along, but it’s because the Golden never pushes Ryka’s boundaries.

I consider peace between animals akin to the relationship I have with my brother. We get along and love each other, and are normal, kind human beings most of the time.

But I’ve also given him my fair share of sibling abuse, and he’s shaved off my eyebrow and locked me in my bedroom with a can of Axe deodorant spray duct-taped down, amongst other things that make my mom questions how we hadn’t killed each other by the age of 10 and 12.

Needless to say I don’t expect angels, I just want civil behaviour with no bloodshed :D

ETA: Yes, the pup is male.
 
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#14 ·
The best part was that my parents pinned him down and shaved off one of his eyebrows the following morning, too. I was missing the left (still have a bald spot where he nicked me in my sleep... I’m a deep sleeper), he was missing the right. Together we were the Unibrows United.

Great memories now, horrifying at the time of...
 
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