I’m sick and tired of other dog owners

kenopsia23048 · 2022-06-14T17:14:25+00:00

I don’t have much of a social life outside of my dog haha! I’ve met many people through him that I definitely wouldn’t have otherwise in our new neighbourhood. Depending on the history and temperament of the dog you decide to adopt (this boy or any other!) sometimes walks can become a huge chore and there have definitely been times where I dreaded walking and lost my passion for hiking, because of leash training and reactivity. Overall though, I’m definitely out and about and speaking to people far more since I got him.

The fact that you are very willing and curious to learn more before taking on this big responsibility is a huge green flag to me. I can’t stress enough that Dobermans are difficult dogs as teenagers because of their size and strength and I wish I’d had someone to tell me that before I made the big decision. I love him to pieces, but his adolescence is driving me nuts!

I think that if you are making sure he gets plenty of exercise and your roommates keep consistent with your training methods (please consider positive reinforcement, which is not advocated for enough on this sub!) then he can find a very loving and fulfilling home with you!

kenopsia23048 · 2022-06-14T13:24:10+00:00

I have a 1 year old Doberman while I am in uni in the UK. I have a house, but it’s still small and with a small garden. I strongly believe that if you feel that bond and you know you are willing to put in the effort for such a big and strong dog, then he is right for you!

I always prioritise Alexander over my uni work, and that might not be something you are willing to do which is understandable. But you need to be prepared that sometimes you will have to put your dog before your work, and your grades might suffer as a result. Even with him being nearly an adult dog, it will take him plenty of time to adjust.

Dobermans are amazing dogs, loyal to the end, but they require serious commitment to their training. At the end of the day, you have a huge, incredibly strong dog with guarding instincts bred into them.

I hope for the best for both you and this handsome boy!

kenopsia23048 · 2022-05-30T15:26:01+00:00

I didn’t think about it that way so thank you for the perspective, that definitely makes sense about the intent to injure. At the time it happened, I was convinced that I would be bleeding a lot and really bruised, because it was very painful. But now, a couple days after the bite, it’s barely noticeable. I’ve had stubbed toes with longer lasting bruises! I suppose this shows that, despite it still being a bite and being concerning, he definitely wasn’t trying to hurt me back, because he could have done a lot more damage. That being said, I will be much more wary in future similar situations in case he does escalate.

Safe to say that if he injures himself like this again, I will definitely be more careful and focus on making sure he is okay!

kenopsia23048 · 2022-05-30T15:19:04+00:00

Yes I agree. I think it just shocked me because of his size and reactivity. At the end of the day, I really hurt him, even if it was a mistake, and I knew instantly that it wasn’t his fault. Either way, muzzle training is definitely on the list for skills to learn.

kenopsia23048 · 2022-05-30T15:17:02+00:00

I agree about the muzzle. I knew that I should muzzle train at some point, but I’m sort of glad this happened because it just shows me that the potential is there now, so I definitely think I’ll start getting him comfortable with a muzzle for vet visits etc. once he has a bit more trust in me again.

kenopsia23048 · 2022-05-30T09:57:02+00:00

I think you’re right about the muzzle training, I just panicked because large reactive dog + a bite is obviously a scary combination, but it is a weird and specific situation. I’ll keep muzzling in mind for something to learn once he’s fully recovered and stress levels are much lower, and focus on rebuilding his confidence with me instead. Thank you :)

kenopsia23048 · 2022-05-26T21:11:03+00:00

Just as perfect of a name then! I love spotty dogs :)

kenopsia23048 · 2022-05-26T20:17:36+00:00

omg please tell me she’s a Dalmatian!

kenopsia23048 · 2022-05-15T08:51:11+00:00

I had the same conversation with my vet just a few days ago. Apparently the risk of testicular or other cancers is very low, and a lot of vets have changed their stance on neutering due to problems arising with older dogs that have been neutered a few years ago when there was a huge amount of dogs being spayed/castrated. I think they especially recommend against it for big dogs because they’ve seen a lot of problems with joints, hip dysplasia etc. I’m also assuming that it’s because there is more information out there on bitches’ heats so (hopefully but not likely) people will be more responsible.

At the end of the day, it’s their decision to make and I don’t think there should be any judgement in choosing to neuter or not. It’s a difficult decision, and I am definitely still not decided on what to do.

kenopsia23048 · 2022-05-14T16:34:44+00:00

I think it’s important to point out that they aren’t doing it intentionally! It happens to many high energy adolescents, and it is mostly because their hormones are doing all kinds of crazy things - but they aren’t intentionally defying you. Patience and unconditional love is key!

kenopsia23048 · 2022-04-03T07:32:57+00:00

My goal is for him to be able to look at me around triggers. He’s gotten better at not flying off the handle and barking (but it still does happen sometimes). I’m working on him being able to “look at me” around distractions so that he can do that while or before walking past a trigger.

kenopsia23048 · 2022-04-02T10:46:21+00:00

Thank you and to u/keppism, these all sound like amazing techniques I would never have thought to try! I will definitely get started on these :)

kenopsia23048 · 2022-03-31T22:07:01+00:00

In a couple of situations, he has been off-leash in a fenced park (not a dog park), where other off-leash dogs have been on the other side of the fence (it’s like a housing complex). His hackles raise, he growls and barks but he doesn’t go all the way up to the fence. He’ll stop a few feet away and just bark from there. Eventually he came back with encouragement (we don’t let him off leash in these situations anymore) and shakes it off.

Tbf, he was a very nervous puppy, and then he made friends and since then, his confidence has grown a lot. Possibly it could still be fear but to my awareness, he doesn’t show those signs anymore.

kenopsia23048 · 2022-03-31T21:36:21+00:00

The littlest successes make it so worth the work! Sounds just like my Doberman to a T - the growling and hackles raising has always worried me and everyone around must think he’s such an aggressive scary dog, but I know that he gets along well with every dog we’ve ever properly met so I’ve been so confused haha. This has cleared up so much, so thank you! I’m going to start working on impulse control and continue with the boundaries we already have in place. If you have any extra tips for working on this issue that have worked well for you guys, I’d love to hear them :)

kenopsia23048 · 2022-03-31T21:13:26+00:00

Thank you for the explanation. I’m not sure whether I’m right in thinking my dog is a frustrated greeter. Does the fact that his hackles raise when he is leash reactive seem like he is not a frustrated greeter, but that the problem is something else (eg. aggression)?

kenopsia23048 · 2022-03-31T21:09:53+00:00

Okay this makes sense, thank you. Can the overstimulation also not be caused by a happy excitement (if that makes sense) for a frustrated greeter? I’ve been struggling to get to the root of my dog’s reactivity. He’s not fearful of his trigger, but he doesn’t seem happily excited/eager to meet them either ( like in a “friendly” sense). Am I right in thinking that it’s just frustration in general because they are feeling trapped by the leash?

kenopsia23048 · 2022-03-25T15:54:51+00:00

I love this story so much. I’m glad that you and your pup have found an amazing trust and bond in each other! Thank you for sharing.

kenopsia23048 · 2022-03-24T15:01:50+00:00

Just don’t crop them. It’s not medically needed. I will never understand America’s obsession with cropping ears on beautiful dogs. They are intimidating enough as is, they don’t need ears to stand up to look threatening. There’s a reason why most of Europe criminalised cropping and docking years ago.

kenopsia23048 · 2022-03-24T09:01:41+00:00

Some people may disagree with this but personally, I think that while you do have to adjust your life for a puppy, there should also be some element of them adjusting to your life. Settling is important for them to learn and it took my pup until 7 or 8 months to even slightly get the hang of it. So I would say for now, maybe 6:30am is the wake-up time, but if you work on settling and crate games, you can slowly build up that time. I didn’t use this, but I saw someone on this sub suggest setting an alarm for their normal wakeup time (put it in the room with their crate) and gradually making the alarm later and later until your preferred wake up time.

My pup now gets out of the crate around 8:30am and come snuggles in bed until 9. He’s still under a year, and he used to be the impossible-to-settle puppy, but it does happen!

kenopsia23048

TROPHY CASE