FinnishLapphund
There's no cow on the ice
Met a woman with a Papillon+Cavalier+Shih-tzu bitch, around 15 months old, last friday, and it just made me feel I had to write a NO NO's list from this experience. I really think she'd managed to do or say all the wrong things ever possible, but if not, please tell me.
Don't fall in love with a picture on internet, specially if the breeder only uses different versions of the word CUTE to describe all the puppies individually. Never let the distance you've had to drive to the breeder, have anything to do with deciding to buy the puppy once you're there.
If the broodbitch are standing in one room, anywhere away from the puppies, growling "Don't touch me with a finger or I'll take it off for you" Well then, if you really think she's doing it to protect the puppies, okay, ask the breeder to be allowed to say hello to the bitch somewhere else.
Otherwise remember that the only acceptable reason for not being able to touch the bitch is if she's ill or dead!
If you then, after such greetings, still decides to have a look at the picturepuppy, and it turns out that in real life, it's shy, withdrawn and refuses to show any interest in either you OR the breeder, then it's time to run IN THE OTHER DIRECTION.
If you still end up buying the puppy, it was just as cute in real life/driving such long way it felt stupid going home emptyhanded etc, and the puppy after just two weeks in your home, the serious way starts growling towards you, you should either take it back to it's breeder or seek professional HELP immediately.
A professional advice is not the one you get from meeting knows-it-all-strangers out on a walk, that tells you that you need to show the dog who's the boss by putting it on the ground, belly up, and not let it up until it gives in (this is not my favourite method). You shouldn't then follow such advices and teach your dog that after one or two minutes growling, DOG WINS and you give up, saying that this method clearly doesn't work on your dog.
Don't buy a puppy if you don't have the time to attend a puppyclass with it, specially if it's your first own dog. To have a friend go through the basics from their own puppyclass with the two of you, simply doesn't count.
Don't say that you don't think you'll have the time to take a dogclass before your baby is born, only to continue by saying "But of course, if the dog haven't improved enough when the baby is born, I'll immediately give it away to a dogknowing, singleliving person with lots of free time to get the dog sorted."
Because the one hearing it, might get a brainrupture trying to stop themselfs from answering "You're talking about euthanasia, aren't you?"
Don't say that you wanted a smart dog, because they learn things without you needing to go through the SAME thing over and over again, so smart dogs are easier to own. Though you have noticed, that she does learn the wrong thing just as fast (if not faster), than she learns the right things.
That you might have to come up with NEW things to train over and over again with a smart dog, or else it could get bored, shouldn't come as any news to you.
Don't be surprised if you, given your dogs problem, after having had new contact with the breeder, now have the following info :
Your dog has exactly the same temperament as it's mother. That the broodbitch after her first (big) litter, rejected the puppies from week 4, growled seriously at them if given the chance etc. With her second (also big) litter, which included your puppy, she now (to the breeders BIG surprise) rejected the puppies after 1 week, growled seriously etc. But the breeder knows for certain, that it's only your puppy that have any problems, all the others are now lovely, wellbehaved dogs that is a pleasure to own.
Obviously, we all believe that last statement, don't we?
Don't say that it's so much easier to breed crossbreeds, because their innated vitality makes it unnecessary to check your breedingstock for any diseases, the only thing to watch out for is bad temperament!
And after all this NEVER, NEVER, EVER tell anyone that you still haven't quite managed to let go of the thought of one day letting your bitch have a litter of her own...
So if anyone heard some strange screaming from far, far away last friday IT WAS PROBABLY ME!!!
from Sweden
Don't fall in love with a picture on internet, specially if the breeder only uses different versions of the word CUTE to describe all the puppies individually. Never let the distance you've had to drive to the breeder, have anything to do with deciding to buy the puppy once you're there.
If the broodbitch are standing in one room, anywhere away from the puppies, growling "Don't touch me with a finger or I'll take it off for you" Well then, if you really think she's doing it to protect the puppies, okay, ask the breeder to be allowed to say hello to the bitch somewhere else.
Otherwise remember that the only acceptable reason for not being able to touch the bitch is if she's ill or dead!
If you then, after such greetings, still decides to have a look at the picturepuppy, and it turns out that in real life, it's shy, withdrawn and refuses to show any interest in either you OR the breeder, then it's time to run IN THE OTHER DIRECTION.
If you still end up buying the puppy, it was just as cute in real life/driving such long way it felt stupid going home emptyhanded etc, and the puppy after just two weeks in your home, the serious way starts growling towards you, you should either take it back to it's breeder or seek professional HELP immediately.
A professional advice is not the one you get from meeting knows-it-all-strangers out on a walk, that tells you that you need to show the dog who's the boss by putting it on the ground, belly up, and not let it up until it gives in (this is not my favourite method). You shouldn't then follow such advices and teach your dog that after one or two minutes growling, DOG WINS and you give up, saying that this method clearly doesn't work on your dog.
Don't buy a puppy if you don't have the time to attend a puppyclass with it, specially if it's your first own dog. To have a friend go through the basics from their own puppyclass with the two of you, simply doesn't count.
Don't say that you don't think you'll have the time to take a dogclass before your baby is born, only to continue by saying "But of course, if the dog haven't improved enough when the baby is born, I'll immediately give it away to a dogknowing, singleliving person with lots of free time to get the dog sorted."
Because the one hearing it, might get a brainrupture trying to stop themselfs from answering "You're talking about euthanasia, aren't you?"
Don't say that you wanted a smart dog, because they learn things without you needing to go through the SAME thing over and over again, so smart dogs are easier to own. Though you have noticed, that she does learn the wrong thing just as fast (if not faster), than she learns the right things.
That you might have to come up with NEW things to train over and over again with a smart dog, or else it could get bored, shouldn't come as any news to you.
Don't be surprised if you, given your dogs problem, after having had new contact with the breeder, now have the following info :
Your dog has exactly the same temperament as it's mother. That the broodbitch after her first (big) litter, rejected the puppies from week 4, growled seriously at them if given the chance etc. With her second (also big) litter, which included your puppy, she now (to the breeders BIG surprise) rejected the puppies after 1 week, growled seriously etc. But the breeder knows for certain, that it's only your puppy that have any problems, all the others are now lovely, wellbehaved dogs that is a pleasure to own.
Obviously, we all believe that last statement, don't we?
Don't say that it's so much easier to breed crossbreeds, because their innated vitality makes it unnecessary to check your breedingstock for any diseases, the only thing to watch out for is bad temperament!
And after all this NEVER, NEVER, EVER tell anyone that you still haven't quite managed to let go of the thought of one day letting your bitch have a litter of her own...
So if anyone heard some strange screaming from far, far away last friday IT WAS PROBABLY ME!!!
from Sweden
