New Austrialian Cattle Dog Puppu

:? Hello everyone..I am new here and I was wondering anyone got any good tips for an 17wk old puppy that is very very hypher....We had to put our Sheepdog to sleep after 15 yrs...and we got a puppy unbeknowing to us how active she was .....she loves to run and jump in your head...
We love her to pieces but she is really a handful....any ways to keep her interested....she is also teething and boy does she bite....I have gotten the Kong toy, rawhide bones you name it ....but she loves our arms and fingers...
Open to any suggestion....
Thanks

 

welcome , I dont have any suggestion, but I know you can probably get some good advice the the people here who have similar dogs. YOu are right they are a handful, they are one of the most hyper dogsm but with the right training they will be great. I think Jimiya or samsintentions have this type.

good luck

honeybear

 

HI! I breed and raise Cattle dogs... May I ask where you got her from? Photos!!!


You need to beging obediance training VERY early with an ACD. First of all, they are extremly smart, and will test you. Once they learn that they can get away with something, they'll do it every time. Another thing. They are VERY energetic. You need to exersize her several times a day. Running, swimming, paying ball.

As for the chewing, Buy her a Kong. Cattle dogs have one of the strongest jaws....just to put it in perspective for you.... Smokey can bite through a cattle femur bone with one chomp...I buy him the bones with the meat still on from the butcher... Char, she can crunch and strip rawhide like its cloth..... SOOOO

A kong is indestructable. You can occupy her time during the day when no ones home by getting a treat ball. As she learns to roll it, small peices of treats will fall out certain openings in the ball. The ball is heavy, so it'll build up her muscles and make her work for the treats!


I have an ACD book that really teaches you pretty much everything you need to know.....

One thing I tell people before they get one of my dogs (if they've never owned one before) OBEDIANCE!!! Starts early. They are great dogs for adjility, herding, flyball, and showing!!!

My dogs are primarily shown, and for working dogs....I don't breed every year. Only when there is a demand for them. ANd I know I have homes for every single one of them.

Mainly I rescue. SO Breeding has pretty much halted for me!

But, I highly suggest starting some obediance classes.

 

Don';t know much about the breed, but as an owner with a high energy dog, perhaps I could help you a bit.

First, the teething: Give her ice cubes. Some pups LOVE them. I know mine did. All it took to settle her was some ice, cooled the burning gums, and she loves the crunching sound. Also, put some peanut butter in the kong and freeze it. The next morning she will fight the kong for a long while trying to get it all out.

Second, the hyperness: Secretly we al love it....hehe.
Okay, but seriously, at 17 wks. she needs to know her boundaries. I would definately say she is testing you so consistency is key. I would suggest putting her on a Nothing in Life is Free program.
This asserts your (and your families) role in the house. Remember, everyone in your house has to stick with the program.
It is very easy, and I swear by this. I would probably be bald by now if I hadn't done this.
Your pup has to perform a command BEFORE getting anything she wants.
ex: she wants a pet, if she comes to nudge your hand DO NOT pet her, tell her to sit, lay, whatever you like. ONLY AFTER she has done what you ask do you then pet.
ex:she wants to go for a walk. She has to sit/stay while you put on her collar/lead. If at any time she gets up in the middle, simply stop walk away and try again in a minute or two.
ex: This is a good one, for me anyways. Always make her sit/stay out of the kitchen/feeding area while you are putting her dish down. This ensures you don't get bowled over in the process.

This program can be tied into anything and really does work wonders. If your pup doesn't know any commands, now is the time to start teaching her. Mental training is just as exhausting for a pup as running.

Also, I am not sure how much excercise she gets, but you might want to consider increasing it. Remeber, walking a dog isnot excercise for them (well, maybe really small breed dogs). They need to really run constant for a good while to feel tired out. If anything, just walking your dog is conditioning her to be more hyper. YIKES! Take her to a dog park, even constant fetch in the yard for 20 minutes will have her pant a bit.

A tired puppy is a happy puppy. And isn't that what we all want? hehe :mrgreen:

 

Definitely - obedience, lots of exercise, mental games (hide-n-seek, training tricks, etc). These dogs ARE a handful. Some mellow with age - but it can be a long haul in the meantime!

Something very helpful is the NILIF program - Nothing In Life Is Free. That means that the dog has to work for what he wants. For instance, before getting his food, he has to sit until you release him. Before getting the leash on to go for a walk, he has to lie down, etc. Once you have one or two basic obedience commands under his belt, you can start this program. It helps the dog to learn to listen to you!

About the jumping at your head - been there, done that. Our 12-month-old still does that sometimes and she is over 40 pounds and VERY solid. It's not good! We have worked on getting her to sit rather than jumping up. You pay no attention at all until she is sitting, and THEN give treats or pet. It is almost impossible to ignore a dog jumping at your head, however, so you may need to leave the room. We also found a time out to be beneficial, to give the puppy some time to get control.

There are really no easy solutions. We tried everything and are still working on it! One thing about my dog, though, is that she does NOT respond to any negative training techniques at all. We do all positive training with her now (which is better anyway) and she does much better.

Yelling does nothing but rile them up more - it's hard, but you need to keep a firm, quiet, low voice to try to calm the pup down, and speak in long, drawn out words. Short, clipped words may sound like barking to them and gets them excited.

Above all, a tired puppy is a good puppy. Find ways to tire him out. Mental exercise is even better than physical - so make sure he gets enough running and playing but also teach obedience, tricks, play games, etc.


Jamiya

 

heehee Jamiya, we are true advocates for NILIF. I think we even used the same expamples.

 

LOL! Great minds think alike, bullylove. We even both said "A tired puppy is a good puppy." :lol:

We never did find a chew that would keep Nala busy. A Kong with peanut butter frozen inside lasts her about 15 minutes, tops. The only thing that worked for a while was a jumbo bullystick (expensive) - that was great! But after getting used to raw food, she now crunches through the bullysticks in an hour or less. *sigh*


Jamiya

 

I agree with bully, in that just wlaking a dog doesnt tire them out. I have a year old hyper dog, I can play frisbee with her for hours. but it is not same as letting run full out for awhile

good luck

honeybear

 

Actually, what helped the most with us (besides time and age) was getting another dog! Now SHE gets pestered by Nala all day long instead of us (poor thing).

I definitely would NOT recommend another dog until your puppy is older, though - at least a year old. And a second dog is not for everyone. You also have to be very careful in choosing one, or you will end up with TWO hyper dogs!! :shock:


Jamiya

 

Especially with Heelers.... Mine are 6 and 4.... lemmi tell ya. They herd and work all day. They get home, run play and terrorize everything,,,,and just when you think they are tiring out.. BOOM! They hit another gear and take off again!

Thats what the breed is for, its endless energy and stamina!
But the one thing my dogs do know, Settle. When I say settle, they hit the ground and lay down for a while...YEah, so it doesn't always work out that way....but in the long run, its effective.

 

Ok here's the title of the book



A New owners guide to Austrailan Cattle Dogs, Australian Cattle Dogs
By: Narelle Robertson.

 

Thanks

Thank you for all your replys and I will try freezing this Kong with peanut butter....like you said she can rip thru a rawhide bone in about 15 minutes...she does not like the big ones yet...

I got her from the pound she was the runt of the liter...they say she is mixed with St. Barnard...but she has no features like one except maybe the floppy ears and nose...every one else says she is more like ACD...I know nothing of this bread....she likes for me to sit and hold her or my husband...he is on disablity and I am his caretaker so we are here with here 24/7....we leave her long enough to go to church and to grocery store, but most of the time someone is with her....

Everytime someone comes to the door, she pees on them...we have tried even taking her out when someone is coming...but she still just pees and pees...

She does listen to us...and she sits for her lease....but when food comes around we have a hassle and don't know why we feed her when we eat...HER FOOD ONLY....no table food....only thing like that she gets, is a potato chip once in a while...she loves them..but otherwise...treats and all are her food...

We do not have a crate...my husband said he didn't crate the other one and he was not going to crate this one....she is daddy's girl....for sure....she does sleep with me....he has to sleep in hospital bed...so she has the whole side of bed to herself...but she will sleep with her little head right under mine....she is oh so good at bed time.. I tell her to go to bed and she goes and gets on bed before I go....but afternoon's when my niece comes in for supper everynight....well it is just holly terror for her, she cannot sit down, everything we do..is just I DONT HEAR YOU and she keeps on and on....will try to take her out and get her tired before she comes....she has her own run from our backdoor down a ramp and fence ...we don't have to take her out...has her own little door and all...

Hope she will be a good house dog....she is loveable...don't have any recent pictures of her, but will get some and try to send them to you...she is pretty....I think anyway..

Thanks again for all suggestion....and more will be greatly appreaciated...

Donna & Hope Frances...(the puppy) :wink:

 

heehee, the peeing thing. ahh....
my moms yellow lab used to do that when he was a pup too. He would be so excited to see her he would just stand there and pee! Even if had just been out. She will grow out of it eventually. I am not sure how you feel about this, BUT...there are doggie diapers you can get. Maybe you could try that when you know company is coming over, then take them off once she is settled.

I would definately start in obedience. All too often pups get so excited about other people, they forget 'who's boss' around the house. I have many friends (even my own at times) who have well trained dogs, but as soon as people are over FORGET IT. They just look at you like, yeah, what do you want?

its kinda cute when they're young, but it is definately a habit you want to break them of before they get older.
Its not impossible to teach an old dog new tricks, just easier to do it while they're young.

If you don't want to crate her, you can always get baby gates and confine her to a room when you leave. Purely up to you. I know my dog gets anxious with the whole house to herself because she feels she has to guard the whole place. W give her the fully furnished basement, and she is a dream......