New Puppy Training Questions Please Help

[wildolthang]

I am getting a new Presa puppy and I want to make sure he is properly trained. What is the optimal age to start obedience training? Also I live alone. I have a dog now that is very protective, but he is getting old. His teeth have gotten soft and have worn to the gum line. Since this has happened I have noticed he is not quite as aggressive when it comes to protection. I have thought about training the Presa for personal protection, just for my own safety. I have read pros and cons regarding this. I did not train Jaws. I just did not over socialize him and we have a really close bond. My other dogs were more socialized and even though we have a close bond they will allow anyone to come up or into the house. I just really need some guidance. Do I PP train or will the way I socialize and bond with him be sufficiant? If I train, at what age do I start the training? Please give me your thoughts.

[PresaRed]

You can start obedience training as soon as you get your puppy. Just make it all motivational training.

Feed her only from your hand and you can work on obedience while she eats.

Start by feeding her when she gives you eye contact, for the first weeks, simply reward her for giving you this attention, once she realizes this is where the food is coming from she'll start doing it on her own.

Getting this kind of focus early will help with obedience later, remember not to correct her for losing interest and running off, but she doesn't get any food unless she gives you focus.

From there you can work on having her sit in a heel position with focus, and move on to a moving heel, down, etc.

Hope this helps, if you work on the focus in a purely positive way the dog will want to work for you, and it may help you bond.

This is just my opinion on obedience training, since it has the goal of a dog that you could work in protection later on, you really want to keep everything positive with very little punishment early.

Mark

[wildolthang]

Thanks for replying Mark! I have never hand fed from the beginning. I will give it a try along with incorporating the obedience. My only problem will be what to do with my other dogs while I am doing this. They want to push in any time food is involved. Maybe I can take the puppy into another room and feed him while the other dogs are eating. That way they will be occupied also. I will find something that works!

[PresaRed]

I would feed your Presa seperately from the other dog anyway.

I had a very nasty fight between a male and female who get along great almost all the time because one of them finished its food before I thought it would and bumped into the other one while it was waiting for me to feed it.

Mark

[wildolthang]

I have 4 dogs currently. A husky/austrailan shepard mix (alpha dog), chow/ german shepard mix, akita/sheltie mix, and a yorkie. The husky can eat by any of the other dogs, but the akita and shepard dogs will fight over food if they are any where near together. They are only agressive against each other. I have learned to keep their food bowl very far apart. The shepard does not even want the akita to walk past her empty bowl! They will allow the yorkie and the husky free access to their bowls. The two of them have other issues with each other also. It is mainly the shepard that starts it. I really think it is the chow in her that is cause of the nastiness.

In the past I have always raised registered German Shepards and I never had food issues. This is my first time with mixed breed dogs. I love each of them, but it is hard to determine just what to expect. The husky mix though being the alpha dog really does nothing to establish the fact. It is just known and not questioned. He is very domineering, head strong and assertive when he wants to. He is getting old and arthritic, but he is still young at heart. The akita mix is all akita. There is little of the sheltie traits in him. He has been my protector. He is getting old and is starting to get more laid back. His teeth got soft and wore down to the gums. He knows he can't back up his old aggressiveness so he is calming down. The shepard mix is 3 years old and is very playful. She loves puppys and other dogs except for the akita and she loved to start fights with him. I think it is due to the fact he was so ugly with her when she was a puppy. Since he has lost his teeth she has begun to leave him alone.

My vet feels the 2 older dogs will not have many more years left. That is why I am getting the Presa now. I want it to be an adult by the time they go. It will also be easier on the two older dogs now to have a big puppy in the house than when they are older and in worse shape.

Now that you know the history, if you forsee any problems I might have let me know. All of my dogs are crate trained and have their own individual crates. They are all house dogs and are spoiled rotten. They have all the love and attention I have to give. I am willing to try anything. Thanks Brenda

[PresaRed]

Brenda, with a Presa, I wouldn't worry to much about "oversocializing", they tend to be naturally suspisious, and in my limited experience alot of socialisation has been nothing but good in the realm of personal protection training. It makes them more confident in new situations, and especially around new people.

If you're getting a male Presa, you can expect him to challenge the "alpha" from anytime after 9 - 10 months. The difference you may find is that when a Presa chooses to defend something they can do alot more damage than many other dogs in a very short period of time, wether it be food, pack order etc.....

More than likely the other dogs will accept the Presa as the alpha fairly quickly, seeing as the others are getting on in years, and with proper socialisation you could have a happy household. If the other dogs continue to challenge the Presa that would be a different story.

Just my two cents.

Mark

[Juan00]

Good advice Mark. :ok: Btw, how is the decoying coming along?

[PresaRed]

slowly Juan, I've got alot on my plate right now with school, dogs, and work. So usually I can't make it out to Chello's until later on, so by the time we get through tracking, ob, and bite work for my dogs there's little time for me to take some bites.

This summer I'm really going to try and get some more time on the other end of a sleeve, but for now I just take the little I can.

Mark

[ButchCappel]

Glad to be back on board, and want to thank Mark and everyone that stepped up to answer questions for me while I was off the board.
You guys are good.

I am not adding anything except my same old favorite refrain, "socialize,
expose, socialize expose etc., etc., etc.
A good temperment from a well socialized dog will go leaps and bounds no matter what the breed, to making a very socially acceptable dog.

As far as PP work, as I have said, it is really only about bringing out the naturaly responsible tendencies of a pack animal to look after his own, and then teaching your partner when you want them to respond.
It is allready there, training just gives you more control of it.

[wildolthang]

Thanks for everyone's advice. I am considering a private in-home instructor for obedience and protection.

The home instructor I have been speaking with says he will tailor the training specific to my needs and the puppy's needs. He trains police, narc, and bomb dogs. He can also help me with behavior issues that could arise with my other dogs. I could just ensure the pup gets socialized beyond this training.

In-home training vs obedience classes, is one better than the other. I only have experience with the classes. The classes definetly were a plus on the socialization, but lacked in training problem resolutions and also bad advice was given. I would be more selective this time of the obedience class I chose.

Once again thanks for the help. Brenda

[PresaRed]

Brenda, as far as I'm concerned the big difference doesn't lie in the type of training (class or one vs. one) but the quality of the trainer you have. Ask around, see if you can find others who have trained with him/her, ask other trainers, and see what they think of him/her.

A good trainer is a good trainer, wether in a class or one on one.

Mark

[wildolthang]

Mark,
I think I just had bad trainers at my other obedience classes. The instructor that would teach at my home comes highly recommended. He wants to come and assess my current situation and see if any behavioral correction needs to be made with my current dogs before we bring the puppy in. It will also give me a chance to meet him. He will bring one of his dogs to show me the type of training he will provide and I will be able to see how well trained his dog is. There is a couple of behavior concerns I would like to see corrected with my current dogs. It would be hard on a puppy being trained to obey, when my other dogs are acting like idiots.

I will meet him and see what he has to say, his training style, and see how my dogs respond to him. That should tell me a lot.

Thanks,
Brenda

[ButchCappel]

I think you answered your own question, classes give you socialization, and private lessons are more effective at problem resolution.

If you find a good private trainer you can still go to some of the pet store "classes" very cheap. Why not do both?

The more you do, the better your dog becomes!

[wildolthang]

That is a very good idea, Butch. I had not thought about using the pet store classes as an addition to private lessons.

I am willing to do what ever is best for this new puppy. I am anxiously awaiting the time to go get him. The wait will be worth it though.

Thanks
Brenda

[Vulcan's Vega]

Brenda, I just wanted to commend you on being so well prepared and concerned about your puppy! If only every dog owner were as diligent as you! :ok:

[wildolthang]

I am trying my best to be prepared. I am sending a blanket to the breeder to put in with the puppies and the mother. That way the new puppy will have something with their smell on it to come home with. I did that with my last puppy and it really helped with the transition.

Any other ideas that anyone has out there just let me know.

Thanks
Brenda