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Hi All -
Over the past few weeks I've been posting my experience with Parvo. My puppy that had it, Oliver, is doing pretty good after 9 days of illness and 5 days in the hospital and a few days of cooking him bone broth soup, chicken breasts, hamburger, etc. Now he's starting to get back to the puppy that he was when we picked him up (I only had 2 1/2 days before he came down with the illness).
Let me tell you - this puppy is something else. We chose him because of his outgoing personality. I had a black and white American working line boy that lived to be 13. He was similar in terms of intelligence, but OMG, Oliver is SOOOO much more assertive and confident. Rudy was apprehensive and aloof. Not Oliver. He is in your face. I'm not too worried because he seems very trainable and I am pretty demanding of my dogs. I really work with them and demand obedience.
I've been playing tug with him, something I haven't done with my previous GSDs, and I'm wondering if that is a mistake. I've heard both positive and negative experiences. With an assertive dog (not aggressive, but strong willed), does tug make the dog more prone to aggression?
I'm starting obedience with him in the fall, and we're already working on heal, sit, stand, and his hardest subject, 'leave it' (a lot of homework needed there). I was going to try and use tug as a positive reward mechanism and to teach 'drop it' and 'leave it', besides just food with a marker word, (my usual tack).
Any thoughts on this?
I'm posting a Google Photo link, in case anyone's interested in watching him run around a bit
Sorry, I'm not a videographer, but just some phone captures I did in the back yard.
By the way, he's a TERRIBLE ankle biter... which I told him that is reserved for chihuahuas, but alas, he's not convinced.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/my4sytVS7nctUSQx5
Mark
Over the past few weeks I've been posting my experience with Parvo. My puppy that had it, Oliver, is doing pretty good after 9 days of illness and 5 days in the hospital and a few days of cooking him bone broth soup, chicken breasts, hamburger, etc. Now he's starting to get back to the puppy that he was when we picked him up (I only had 2 1/2 days before he came down with the illness).
Let me tell you - this puppy is something else. We chose him because of his outgoing personality. I had a black and white American working line boy that lived to be 13. He was similar in terms of intelligence, but OMG, Oliver is SOOOO much more assertive and confident. Rudy was apprehensive and aloof. Not Oliver. He is in your face. I'm not too worried because he seems very trainable and I am pretty demanding of my dogs. I really work with them and demand obedience.
I've been playing tug with him, something I haven't done with my previous GSDs, and I'm wondering if that is a mistake. I've heard both positive and negative experiences. With an assertive dog (not aggressive, but strong willed), does tug make the dog more prone to aggression?
I'm starting obedience with him in the fall, and we're already working on heal, sit, stand, and his hardest subject, 'leave it' (a lot of homework needed there). I was going to try and use tug as a positive reward mechanism and to teach 'drop it' and 'leave it', besides just food with a marker word, (my usual tack).
Any thoughts on this?
I'm posting a Google Photo link, in case anyone's interested in watching him run around a bit
Sorry, I'm not a videographer, but just some phone captures I did in the back yard.
By the way, he's a TERRIBLE ankle biter... which I told him that is reserved for chihuahuas, but alas, he's not convinced.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/my4sytVS7nctUSQx5
Mark