OK, this may get a little personal but I was interested to see so I could use as a guage for what's accurate and reasonable.

This isn't necessarily devoted to dogs of a particular age group or breed either.

So if you could please fill me in to these aspects.

I hear so much regarding activities and tasks that I am curious as to what you do.

So if you could share with everyone your normal routines of your dogs duties and what you think your dogs expects out of you.

I find it difficult to understand how people manage to keep a working dog when some express, in my eyes, standards that are very difficult to live by. For example a person telling me my 6hrs a day of obedience, drive work, and hard running just wasn't enough and I am basically teasing the dog.

So, in your opinions, give some details as to your activities with your pooch.

*breed

*age ( of the dog, haha)

*aspects you are working towards, or have reached and time spent daily doing so.

*do you have a job that requires your being there at least 8hrs (you don't have to disclose what you do), and if so, is the dog in a crate until you get home? Is it in a back yard? etc

*do you have a family or are you single; and how does this play a role on your goals with your dog? A spouse/etc maakes things demanding with time if you have a job. MOst homes both work. If you have children it complicates the situation even moreso.

*So how do you realistically find time if your not a canine officer or something equivalent in having a dog with you for many hours a day? I mean, yes, you can work for 8hrs, drive home for an hour round trip, go home, work the dog for another 8hrs, then use the remaining 7hrs to eat, spend time wit your family, get ready for the following day, sleep, wake up, shower, and get ready to drive to work which would then be included in the hour after the 8hr work day.


So how is it physically possible in the time allotted in a given day to work a dog as much as some profess?

what do you do?

thanks....

I will start!


I have a 2 year old Doberman. We do LOTS of obedience and some protection. When I bought him I bought him as a pet and kind of stumbled onto working dogs... (Needless to say I am getting a sch prospect in December - because I am totally hooked. I go to club practices and I don't even have my dog yet... lol)

My family and I own a half-way house. I bring my dog to work.

I live with my girlfriend, who is very supportive of my k-9 fanaticism.

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So how is it physically possible in the time allotted in a given day to work a dog as much as some profess?

Some people just make time, others have it... Most importantly it is quality over quantity. My dog works better and cleaner with several short 10-15 minute training sessions a day than he does with one solid hour and a half.

just my 2 bits!

And sometimes you have people that come to a club and do nothing with their dogs, but stand around and chat the whole night.You also have people that have dogs that are 5 years old or more years and have been part of a club since their dogs were pups and have no titles to speak of, those are the type of people that have plenty of time and do nothing with it...I think if you really want to take part in a hobby/sport you 'll make the time and go for the medals...time is what you make of it..

Ok to answer Arons' question, for me it is a hobby/sport.I have done many sports and I always take it as far as I can.
I have today 4 children and I have 3 gsd.I have titled all my dogs myself, present and passed, I train 3 days a week, I make the time and make sure that I can train each training night.I also attend as many seminars and trials that I can. Our dogs live in the house and out. We take them for long walks/run out in the desert 3 days a week and we have no problems on days that we do nothing with them. They are social and great with our kids.I feed raw for all my dogs, I think once you get into a routine with your training and the way you live with your dogs, it's easy for me not that hard to manage..
I know you're asking about malinois but I thought I would share my ordeal..

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*breed

Showline German Shepherd, Dutch Shepherd, 2 Working German Shepherd puppies

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*age ( of the dog, haha)

Showline: 3, Dutchie: 16 months, Puppies: 9 weeks old

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*aspects you are working towards, or have reached and time spent daily doing so.

Showline: Couch potato, barking in the kennel, some Schutzhund style OB here n there, a little bit of Sch style bitework when I feel like working him.

Dutchie: Working toward SchH1, obedience once or twice a week for 5-10 minute session. Her OB is beautiful, she doesn't need to do it constantly for hours a day to get it right, it'd bore the snot outta her. Bitework 4-5 days a week, short sessions usually, 5-10 minutes.

Puppies: Clean poop, feed, clean crates 6x a day, clean more poop, play tug for 30 seconds here n there.

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*do you have a job that requires your being there at least 8hrs (you don't have to disclose what you do), and if so, is the dog in a crate until you get home? Is it in a back yard? etc

No, I work from wherever I have a laptop and a cell phone. I am working dogs as a decoy 4-5 days a week too so working my own dogs is almost no effort. I don't put any time-pressure or dates on how fast I want them to do something, I just work at their pace. When I can't take dogs with me, i.e. when I'm having a social life, they are in crates. Usually not longer than 6 hours in a stretch at most.

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*do you have a family or are you single; and how does this play a role on your goals with your dog? A spouse/etc maakes things demanding with time if you have a job. MOst homes both work. If you have children it complicates the situation even moreso.

Single, but that in itself isn't the biggest factor. I know plenty of family people who work dogs. It doesn't work very well if the wife (or in alot of cases, husband) has no interest and is a pain in the ass about it, but a working dog can be something the entire family can enjoy. People bring their kids to watch, I've seen 10 year old kids help do OB on the dog. The dog isn't gonna be a national champion, but everyone has fun, the dog is fine, the kids enjoy it. Everyone is involved. It is also a case by case thing, some people aren't working constantly with conflicting schedules, other people are. Some people have more money and therefore more freedom to spend time on dog training when others are working to the bone and never have spare time that co-ordinates with their spouse. I've seen it all. Personally I believe that if you are in a relationship where you cannot come to a compromise to spend 1 day a week going to a training field to work dogs every single week, then you should reconsider having a working dog, or at least, intending on working the dog and just make the dog a pet. I see people all the time who have a cool dog, then don't do anything with it because they only have 1 day off together with their husband or wife, only one "family day", and there's no real mutual interest in the training, so the dog never gets neccesary maintanence training.

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*So how do you realistically find time if your not a canine officer or something equivalent in having a dog with you for many hours a day? I mean, yes, you can work for 8hrs, drive home for an hour round trip, go home, work the dog for another 8hrs, then use the remaining 7hrs to eat, spend time wit your family, get ready for the following day, sleep, wake up, shower, and get ready to drive to work which would then be included in the hour after the 8hr work day.

Whoever told you that your dog needs 6 hours of obedience and training a day is full of crap. Yes dogs need exercise and attention, but if I feel lazy for a day, my dogs get to pace around the house and chew a bone. After training I usually run them 2 or 3 laps around a big 5 acre property on an ATV so they get their running and energy fix. While I'm working other dogs my dogs sit in a crate. I know people who do just fine with doing obedience and bitework once a week on Sunday mornings. Most people I know exercise their dogs by running them alongside a bicycle or spending 30-60 minutes in the evening playing fetch and doing some fun obedience with a ball in their back yards. Spending too much time training burns out the dog too. I also have 2 dogs that can run together so if they didn't do anything during the day I just open the door and they will chase eachother around the yard for 30 minutes and tire themselves out.

This is kind of a fun topic. Since I'm an expert on nothing these are things I can answer.
Andy my Rott is 3. I'm working towards AKC obedience mainly and a little bit of carting. I work Mon thru Fri. 4:30am to 4:00pm.
My wife and I have 3 kids that she stays home with. I mostly take Andy to work with me. I like to work with him a few times a day for 4 or 5 minutes at a time. 1 mile walk at lunch,1.5 miles after work at the Marina and then home. From the time he was a puppy I took him to group obedience classes but when he was about 2 I started losing his attention and the classes werent doing me any good so I started reading, bought some Dvds here and started all over again. Now he is focused again and I plan to go to a trainer near me in the future. Sat&Sun we're up about 6 for 3 miles around the track a little playtime and then home for the family.

I have 2 working Border Collies ages 8 and 2.

8 y/o BC working farm dog (sheep). I've also done therapy dog work and basic obedience training with her. She is willing to play any game involving a ball any time you're ready.

2 y/o BC seach and rescue, working farm dog.

My job is currently 3, 10 hr days a week w/ a 2 hr round trip. 8 y/o dog goes with me. 2 y/o stays home. I have family members that walk him a few time throughout the day when I'm gone.

I am single, but am involved with my family quite a bit - babysitting younger siblings, working around the farm. They go along with me on errands, and almost anytime I do something with kids, the dogs go too, sometimes just for a ride, but if go to a park, I work on training while the kids play.

My dogs are what I do in my spare time. If I've got 5 minutes here or 10 minutes there I take them out and work or play with them. They are always ready to go, but settle quite nicely when I'm not doing something with them. I'm a part time student right now as well, so on days when I'm not working, I may study for an hour, then take the dogs out for 20 minutes. Gives me a break from study, and them something to do .

I find on days when I'm working, they each gat about 1 hour of training/play a day. On days when I'm not working it's more like 2-3 hours. It can take some creative juggling, but my dogs are my priority and what I really enjoy, so I make it work.

Breed/Age:

2 yr old Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever

Dog's Job:

CARDA dog (Canadian Avalanche Rescue Dog Association)

My Job:

Winter-I work as a paid ski patroller in the Canadian Rockies. I work four 10 hrs days. My dog comes with me to work and is kenneled outdoors for the day. He is out of the kennel several times a day for short OB sessions, kennel breaks, and average of 3 mock avi searches a week.

Summer-(new job but his is how I think it will go) Work guiding hikes and maintaining hiking trails for a Lodge 40 hrs per week. Dog comes with me to lodge and is kenneled outside. Dog does not come with me on most shorter hikes with clients, but does accompany me on trail crew duties and some longer hikes. Dog let out of kennel for OB sessions, kennel breaks. On a day without too much hiking for dog, dog will be walked/mountian biked in evening as well. Three wilderness searches a week (varied times and goals), Drive work and OB, one or two short sessions a day.

At home dog sleeps inside, is not crated when left at home (not destructive), has secure yard as well.

Status:
Married not kids. I am the handler of the dog, my husband is supportive, but is not interested in doing much for the dog other than talking baby talk to dog and MAYBE talking the dog for a walk if I am out. The dog is MY responsibility. My job as a ski patroller is what got me involved with having an avi dog, so I knew I would be able to bring it to work. I have always chosen summer jobs that allowed me to bring my dog to work, even if the dog was kenneled there instead of at home.

Winter is good because I can train the dog while I am at work. If I did not work in the avalanche industry, I would not have this kind of dog. Too hard to train in spare time for me.

I am not as busy whith kids and multiple dogs as some, I still find it a MAJOR commitment that I take very seriously. I could not PERSONALLY have a working dog and work 40+ hrs a week without the dog, and then devote the time and energy I want to to the training. That said, I am kinda lazy and it is amazing what people/dogs can do with limited time and resourses when they put their minds to it

How much time and work involved will depend on the breed you choose, your goals and your dog's individual temperment. 6 hrs a day sounds like a good way to burn a dog out to me. Not saying 6 hrs of exercise of some sort would be bad, but 6 hrs of focused, goal oriented training a day is way off base IMHO.

Cheers,
Jennifer

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*breed
*age

(Abby) APBT mix - 3 yrs old. (Kado) APBT mix 2 -4 yrs old? (Moxie) APBT 9 mo old

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*aspects you are working towards, or have reached and time spent daily doing so.

Abby is a stunt/trick/high jump performance dog. Her training gets squeezed in whenever. Seems like 2 short sessions every two weeks now. (No performing arranged in the next year and better things to do.) To get her this way was 4 - 8 hours of training and physical every day. Now tricks are a matter of chaining other commands together and very quick to train.

Kado is a disc dog, training for high jump and dreaming of a BH or SchH1 someday. We disc at least twice a day until he's tired (15-20 min each). And OB once per day (5-10 min) and physical conditioning a couple times weekly.

Moxie is a future high jumper and disc hopeful. She's dreaming of dome other things to, but not sure what yet. Her training bits are about 5 minutes, whenever I can squeeze them in.

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*do you have a job that requires your being there at least 8hrs (you don't have to disclose what you do), and if so, is the dog in a crate until you get home? Is it in a back yard? etc

I'm a stay-at-home mom. I worked in kennels previously and could bring my dog(s) to work frequently.

When I was working, they were crated. Now that I'm home, they are out in a small fenced yard whenever the weather is good. When baby is sleeping, I bring one dog inside to hang out with me.

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*do you have a family or are you single; and how does this play a role on your goals with your dog? A spouse/etc maakes things demanding with time if you have a job. MOst homes both work. If you have children it complicates the situation even moreso.

My husband works from home half of the week and travels the other half. When he's home, I can bring my son into his office and take out the dogs. When he's away, I have to wait until nap time.

At events (weight pull, SchH club) we take turns carrying my son in a sling. Sometimes it works better to put his blanket into a (clean) dog crate and let him sleep safely in there. (Looks horrible, but dog people understand, or have done it themselves!)

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*So how do you realistically find time if your not a canine officer or something equivalent in having a dog with you for many hours a day?

In my life: get married, quit working, or only work a super-fun-amazing dog related job, and enjoy. (Yes, I'm spoiled.)

When time is a pinch, I put up a springpole for Kado to tug on. Take Abby on in the yard and send her to the house, call her to me, send her to the house, call her to me... And the puppy tires out quickly by having her roll over repeatedly.

This is a cool thread. I'm glad I thought to look at it.

Well I have a 15 mo old Boxer I got from a friend (byb, bitch now spayed). My dog is in the breed standard but is not a working dog per se, but she is a smart pup.

I wasn't too much into sport dogs until I got Brandi, I decided to try rally/agility/obd etc... After doing some reading, I learned off leash and obd is a must to excel in those sports, so voalah! I found Leerburg. I bought some dvd's and research on a daily basis when I have time at work.

I work M-F, 9-5 selling insurance and also PT 10hrs/wk avg selling mortgages from my home ofc. While my wife is at work, our dog is in the crate. I get home first, let the dog out, go change and do some obd work for 5-10 mins. Then I take her for a walk run 3 days or so a week or stay home and play tug or fetch for 30-45 mins. I also do weight training and am a club Dj, so our routine isn't super consistent, but for the most part that's how it is.

My wife doesn't do much training with Brandi other than sit, stay, down, etc..and nilif. She is very supportive of all my doggie expenses though.

I'm getting more into sport dogs and I will learn as much as I can for obd and stuff w/Brandi and try to go for as much as we can in rally & agility. I don't think she has the temperament for any kind of hard work such as DVG. I hope to get another dog from a good breeder in a few years to do some DVG work etc & by then I should know what I'm doing.

I'm a member of the Boxer club but I don't think I'm going to get into conformation, instead I want to be available and kinda be the go to guy for obd work and hopefully in a few yrs DVG.

We are planning on having kids in the next yr or so, so I will just have to adjust my lifestyle to the new addition(s) when the time comes.