# Help with Drive!!



## Kat LaPlante (May 17, 2009)

I need some help and suggestions. I took my 9 month old pup to work with a friend of mine as the dog was showing some behaviors I wanted to learn how to re-channel, he was a good chioce as he and hid Dog won internationals Sch a few years ago. So....my dog became shy and reserved, would not work/play for food, or a tug, just wanted to sniff around and ignore us?? At home he is a different dog completely, stong and competent, never has been highly food driven but will always do basic ob if he knows he is going to get a good rough game of tug of war.Thoughts?? My goal for the dog was going to eventually be SCH but my friend mentioned although he is a great dog he is probably not a Sch dog. Should I give up on him and get another one to learn to work with? or can I bring about the behavior/drive that I want him to exibhit when we are away from the house?


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## Chris Michalek (Feb 13, 2008)

To me he's not a keeper. How serious are you about doing schH? Almost any dog can be made to do a schH routine.

Its easier to rehome a pup than an adult.


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## Jeff Oehlsen (Apr 7, 2006)

Quote: My goal for the dog was going to eventually be SCH but my friend mentioned although he is a great dog he is probably not a Sch dog.

By definition, he is not a great dog.

You left out an awful lot about what the dog has been doing for the past 9 months. If he has just been at the house, you probably need to start taking him places, but if he has been a lot of places, then if you are serious about Sch, then you get another dog.


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## Julie Ann Alvarez (Aug 4, 2007)

Your friend is being honest with you. 

I am with Chris on this- not a keeper for me (but he might be a great pet for you). 

If you got the dog for schhz and he is not cut out for it you will face nothing but heartache and defeat trying to make him some thing that he is not.

On the other hand I have seen some neat dogs that were really flat as puppies grow up and turn on. 

However you can not put drive, nerve and courage into a dog that has never had it to begin with. Some times it can be supressed by other factors and can develope later. Your friend probably saw some things that indicated that this is not the case.


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## Kat LaPlante (May 17, 2009)

I think by "great dog" he may have meant "great pet dog". No, he's a keeper, I will give him another while and see if anything arises and then if not then that's OK, but I will look for a specific addition to the family that may fair better in the sport. BUT....what if its me? I am fairly reserved and shy do my dogs pick up on this, all my dogs have been this way, they have all been really great "pets." I feel so guilty about being disappointed in him, but underneath it all a little ferocity around would be nice.


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## Kat LaPlante (May 17, 2009)

Jeff Oehlsen said:


> Quote: My goal for the dog was going to eventually be SCH but my friend mentioned although he is a great dog he is probably not a Sch dog.
> 
> By definition, he is not a great dog.
> 
> You left out an awful lot about what the dog has been doing for the past 9 months. If he has just been at the house, you probably need to start taking him places, but if he has been a lot of places, then if you are serious about Sch, then you get another dog.


He is at home all the time, he has made his job guarding my kids when they are wandering around the acreage, unfortunately we do not have a feced property so god only knows what he does and where he goes when the boys come it, but he is sure good at keeping them within his sights whern they are there, I think he hangs out at the river alot too....That is what he has been doing for the past 7 months, a whole lot of anything he wants.


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## Kat LaPlante (May 17, 2009)

Chris Michalek said:


> To me he's not a keeper. How serious are you about doing schH? Almost any dog can be made to do a schH routine.
> 
> Its easier to rehome a pup than an adult.


Its not the routine, although impressive, it doesn't get me excited. It the the certian something in the dogs that I see, determined and powerful.


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## Chris Michalek (Feb 13, 2008)

about a year ago one of the guys pick up a black DDR Shepherd. The dog wouldn't do a damn thing at first but the helper kept tying it out with the pups along the fence. After a few session he got it and it seemed like it would turn out to be a decent dog but then the guy stopped coming out so who knows what happened to it. I remember the dog being pretty edgy but he certainly picked up what was going on and turned into something that could be worked. So maybe there is hope for your dog.

Still, it's so much more fun when the dog is ready to go out of the box.


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## susan tuck (Mar 28, 2006)

If you want to do schutzhund with the dog then he needs to be YOUR dog. Don't let him roam with and play with the kids all day, not at 9 months old. Put him in his kennel, at least on training days, kenneling allows the dog his own space and time and insures he will be really happy he gets to "play" with you, not take you for granted or even worse, see interaction with you as less exciting than roaming and playing with your boys. The other thing is if the dog is not under your supervision, than you have no clue what the boys are (accidentally) teaching him, what bad habits he might be developing. I'm not saying a dog shouldn't be a member of the family, I'm saying if you want a competition dog then you have to be in charge of ALL interaction, especially while the dog is young.

You might think about letting this dog be your kid's dog and then get another for yourself and for sport.


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## Kat LaPlante (May 17, 2009)

Thanks for everyones thoughts and comments, one quick question though, if I get another dog for competition and raise him diferently that I have raised this one, can the two dogs interract? or will the spoiled one spoil the next one?


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## Chris Michalek (Feb 13, 2008)

Kat LaPlante said:


> Thanks for everyones thoughts and comments, one quick question though, if I get another dog for competition and raise him diferently that I have raised this one, can the two dogs interract? or will the spoiled one spoil the next one?



it depends on the dogs. 

I let my dogs be together but I work from home most of the time and when I'm away my working dogs go into kennels. My two working dogs don't play. I'm not sure if they even like each other but they totally fine with each other and 95% of the time they are in the workshop with me. When I go out in the mornings I train both dogs separately but I toss the kong for both of them at the same time.

If you can't be around them all the time then I wouldn't let them be together.


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