Getting a dog, any tips?

[Sugarphreak]

Me and the wife are pretty close to committing to getting a dog in about 3 weeks time; it is a male Highland Terrier, about 8-9 months old.



Basically it has been crate trained and has a good headstart on housebreaking as well.



While my faimily had a few dogs when I was very young, this is the first dog I have personally ever owned... so I am a bit nervous about what I need and how to look after it.



Anybody have some tips?

[MasterMechanic]

get him/her trained right away whether you do it at home or at a training facility its important for your dog to understand who is the boss. dont be nervous its a great time and you will see how quickly you will love this dog. I used doggie central in mississauga great place and great people. if you need any help i would love to help cheers and best of luck

[Khamul]

He should be trained by this age so make sure you keep a firm hand.



Sit Happens is the best place around for training and I totally agree - you should attend classes with your dog for training as them understanding the hierarchy of the household is critical to a long happy relationship.



An important piece of advice that some people dissagree with but works, is from time to time you flip them on their backs and hold them until they stop struggling, this is a dominance routine that established your position being higher than theirs. You also find out at this point how well your dog has been litter trained.



Having a Rotti - I made sure I established a firm hand right from the start including the kids being above in the pecking order. Once that order is estabished - you will have an extremely loving happy relationship with your dog.



May sound a bit mean... but this is what they are instinctively used to so it actually puts them at ease.



These tactics made me realize what an awesome job Gia's mother did at litter training. Sounds stupid but one of the first things I did when I brought Gia home was what I said above and I stood over her and grabbed her neck with my mouth on all fours with a growl.... she went completely limp and would not move until I let go. Now if she is ever doing something I don't like, it just takes a low growl and she stops immediately and comes over for approval. Again... sounds stupid - but it worked like a charm! I doubt our pampered "little - lol" queen could be any happier!

[Sugarphreak]

'Sit Happens' sounds like a good idea, thanks!



I need to get a lot of stuff too; Kennel, Dog pen, leash & harness... ect

[dwaxman1]

good luck... instead of dog, maybe get another truck

[Sugarphreak]

[quote name='dwaxman1' timestamp='1303005269' post='27017']

good luck... instead of dog, maybe get another truck

[/quote]



The problem is I can't afford the Kennel needed to fit another truck <img src='http://www.canadianhummerclub.com/forum ... e_wink.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' />

[dwaxman1]

Funny... good luck with the Dog, it is great to have a dog on trail rides as it will help scare off the Bears

[Khamul]

LOL - I could afford another truck.... just can't afford the gas to put in it!



Sugar - Let me know if you wan to come over for a coffee or something with the wife as I can give you alot of good information as we have been through ALOT until we finally got Gia. The breeder is one of the single most important thing to research prior to the purchase. DO NOT get a dog from Petland or those places as they come from puppy mills.



We adopted a dog from Petland first which was a huge mistake (our dog that is, not the program) as we got an Alpha female. What a friggin nightmare and we finally had to get rid of her ans she wouldn't be trained. Being an Alpha - it was her way. We even had a police trainer come out and finally they said to get rid of her so she went to a farm. Learned about breeders with out second dog as he had to be put down.



Now we have Gia..... Dude - we've been through alot!! And Sit Happens is the best investment you could possibly make!



Lots of advice around kennels to. Keep it in a location were people are - do not isolate. throw a treat in from time to time so they know it's a happy place, do not use it for punishing. We did use ours for an occasional "Time-out" but we did it carefully. They will quickly realize that is "Their" space so quite often when Gia just wanted some alone time she would go into her kennel as they will see it as a safe place. Her door was always open unless we went out.



I think we did a good job at kennel training as she would use it alot to sleep in as she was comfortable in it. Whenever she would see that we were going out, she would go ahead and head into her kennel. We would of course give her a treat when she did that. We don't use it anymore now that she is older, but we did use it up until about 3 years....

[Sugarphreak]

Yeah no petland for me; We are getting the dog from a breeder in Manitoba www.moroccokennels.com



I was going to pick up a kennel yesterday, but I want to get one that is properly sized... the breeder suggested a size, but it was huge! I will wait until I get the dog, then run down to Petsmart right after.

[Khamul]

[quote name='Sugarphreak' timestamp='1303154228' post='27114']

Yeah no petland for me; We are getting the dog from a breeder in Manitoba www.moroccokennels.com



I was going to pick up a kennel yesterday, but I want to get one that is properly sized... the breeder suggested a size, but it was huge! I will wait until I get the dog, then run down to Petsmart right after.

[/quote]



Definitely - it CANNOT be too big, it should be just big enough so they can walk in and turn around - that's it! Any bigger then they will start using it at a bathroom to...



I love the Terriers, always been fond of the Scottish Terriers especially...