Quote: Tanya Moyer

The video you linked...I'm not familiar with this 'sport' - can you provide info?

I do not think there are any kind of competitions but I know it is an activity that is a great way for dogs with high drives to burn off steam. I looked it up and people called it Flirtpole and Springpole. I think the flirt pole is when you first start the dog adn they are not fully off the ground yet.

 Quote: Wendy Lefebvre

It doesn't matter how "thin" the dog is though.
That doesn't mean the dog won't be susceptible to HD.

And the only way to hopefully avoid it all together is to buy from a breeder that screens for it.

if the breeder says they don't screen because their dogs are thinner and won't be prone to it that's ridiculous.
a thin dog can get HD just as easily as a thicker, bigger, fatter dog can.

Lol yes I know I would not fall for that. If they don't check I will not buy. From what I have learned this is something that is out of my hands and greatly depends on his genetics. I will still be careful about the growing years of my Dogo.

The whole deal with the Dutch Shepherd and Belgian is that I only want one that has the drives to do Personal Protetion/FR. I do not want Herding/Agility ones. I cannot afford FR/PP so I do not want a DS or Mal, for now. Later down the road I can afford it so when my Dogo, or whatever I get, is a senior or passed away I will finally purchase one.

Hi Caitlin

When I was researching breeders for my Boerboel pups, the absolute first thing I checked on was the parents lineage where possible health problems occurred, and while my understanding is that one of the parents can have average scores but still throw pups with great hips, the breeding for the improvement of what are, in my breed, historically not great health stats, especially hips and elbows, flagged up for me a concientious breeder, and any breeder that didn't disclose the HD and ED results, along with the other common health issues in molloser breeds, i.e. entropian, ectropian, prolapse etc of the parent/grandparent lines on their websites, were immediately crossed off the list.

Any breeder worth their salt would be willing and anxious to disclose these results, to my mind, these are the minimum tests and disclosures I would expect from a committed and honorable breeder.

Without presuming to give you unsolicited advice, I would be cautious about breeders that don't test their breeding stock for what is, in my limited opinion, the very least you, should expect, not to mention what is morally right for any pups from that mating.

The Dogo is banned in this country, so it is unlikely I will ever get a close up and personal with the breed, personally I think they are an absolutely stunning and noble breed, but hard dogs that need experienced handling, I thought I was prepared for my Boerboels, and it has been an extraordinarily steep learning curve, with what is a powerful, strong and stubborn breed, I can totally see why you would want a Dogo, they are amazing and challenging.

May I ask what breed you own at present?

Kind regards
Tracey

 Quote: Caitlin Beaumont

 Quote: Tanya Moyer

The video you linked...I'm not familiar with this 'sport' - can you provide info?

I do not think there are any kind of competitions but I know it is an activity that is a great way for dogs with high drives to burn off steam. I looked it up and people called it Flirtpole and Springpole. I think the flirt pole is when you first start the dog adn they are not fully off the ground yet.

I have an extremely high-drive dog, but I don't think this is something I would do to "burn off steam". First there is no engagement between handler and dog, and second, IMO that type of activity invites prey/pull behavior that I would not want to encourage in such a strong dog without absolute obedience. I would think a dog with HD (or a propensity for) wouldn't be a good candidate for this kind of activity - the leaping and twisting could easily cause harm to their spine and back end.

Good luck in your quest.

 Quote: tracey holden

Hi Caitlin

When I was researching breeders for my Boerboel pups, the absolute first thing I checked on was the parents lineage where possible health problems occurred, and while my understanding is that one of the parents can have average scores but still throw pups with great hips, the breeding for the improvement of what are, in my breed, historically not great health stats, especially hips and elbows, flagged up for me a concientious breeder, and any breeder that didn't disclose the HD and ED results, along with the other common health issues in molloser breeds, i.e. entropian, ectropian, prolapse etc of the parent/grandparent lines on their websites, were immediately crossed off the list.

Any breeder worth their salt would be willing and anxious to disclose these results, to my mind, these are the minimum tests and disclosures I would expect from a committed and honorable breeder.

Without presuming to give you unsolicited advice, I would be cautious about breeders that don't test their breeding stock for what is, in my limited opinion, the very least you, should expect, not to mention what is morally right for any pups from that mating.

The Dogo is banned in this country, so it is unlikely I will ever get a close up and personal with the breed, personally I think they are an absolutely stunning and noble breed, but hard dogs that need experienced handling, I thought I was prepared for my Boerboels, and it has been an extraordinarily steep learning curve, with what is a powerful, strong and stubborn breed, I can totally see why you would want a Dogo, they are amazing and challenging.

May I ask what breed you own at present?

Kind regards
Tracey

Funny You have a Boerboel, I like those dogs. Would I ever own one, No but I really admire them! You may not believe it but I have heard, and seen, many breeders who test their dogs for health problems and don't even bother posting it unless you ask for it! I can only imagine how many potential customers they are pushing away. I have no idea why they wouldn't want to disclose the x-rays and scores to anyone, unless they had something to hide like bad socres. I also hate it when breeders have dogs with bad hips, so they try and trick you by getting a score from the OVC or something that is VERY general about how good and bad the dogs hips are. They could be boderline HD but if the dog doesn't have it then they "pass". From what I have been told and already knew I don't think I should be getting a Dogo from a Breeder who does not test at least hips. It would be horrible to get my puppy and find out he is Dysplasitic at 3 years old .

I almost always hear from everyone that they studied but when they actually got the puppy it was a whole 'nother thing! I can only imagine how hard it was when you got your Boerboel. I own a Labrador. He is the total opposite of what I want my next dog to be. He doesn't have enough stamina, energy, or drives for me. I think he is a washed out BYB dog, not positive since he is a Rescue.

 Quote: Tanya Moyer

 Quote: Caitlin Beaumont

 Quote: Tanya Moyer

The video you linked...I'm not familiar with this 'sport' - can you provide info?

I do not think there are any kind of competitions but I know it is an activity that is a great way for dogs with high drives to burn off steam. I looked it up and people called it Flirtpole and Springpole. I think the flirt pole is when you first start the dog and they are not fully off the ground yet.

I have an extremely high-drive dog, but I don't think this is something I would do to "burn off steam". First there is no engagement between handler and dog, and second, IMO that type of activity invites prey/pull behavior that I would not want to encourage in such a strong dog without absolute obedience. I would think a dog with HD (or a propensity for) wouldn't be a good candidate for this kind of activity - the leaping and twisting could easily cause harm to their spine and back end.

Good luck in your quest.

Thank you it will not be an easy one! I know this activity can work the dogs hips when they jump and the dogs teach the dogs to pull but so does Skijoring and Weight pulling. I would still like to do this with my dog though.

...I couldn't agree more with Niomi's comment:

"The most athletic dog in the world will be no good to you if you can't take it anywhere..."

. I guess I'm a little unclear (..and maybe, to be honest as a bully advocate, a bit concerned)as to the real goal here. Have you ruled out a well bred, utility line Staffordshire Terrier? You will not find a more athletically inclined, devoted family dog -or do you actually not want the "friendly" part??

...and spring/flirt poles? They were more a tool for the old school dog men -flirt pole games can be a fun supplement to structured exercise for a pup, but needless jaw hanging displays are firmly in the gangster set out here...

...Last, as to the osteosarc and "all" rottie's comment -that of course is not accurate but will leave that to Steve's capable insights..

..oh, and I like your old gentleman -I'm sure he's a wonderful companion..

 Quote: HILARIE COBY

...I couldn't agree more with Niomi's comment:

"The most athletic dog in the world will be no good to you if you can't take it anywhere..."

. I guess I'm a little unclear (..and maybe, to be honest as a bully advocate, a bit concerned)as to the real goal here. Have you ruled out a well bred, utility line Staffordshire Terrier? You will not find a more athletically inclined, devoted family dog -or do you actually not want the "friendly" part??

...and spring/flirt poles? They were more a tool for the old school dog men -flirt pole games can be a fun supplement to structured exercise for a pup, but needless jaw hanging displays are firmly in the gangster set out here...

...Last, as to the osteosarc and "all" rottie's comment -that of course is not accurate but will leave that to Steve's capable insights..

..oh, and I like your old gentleman -I'm sure he's a wonderful companion..

Thanks Gunner is a great dog. My goal is to have a large athletic dog with enough drives to do spring pole and lots of other physically demanding activites/sports. A dog that wants to please would be good too. I do not like primitive breeds like an Akita either. A Staffy and APBT are too small for my liking but still great dogs. I do not care if the dog is protective or super friendly, but he cannot be dog agressive. Ive gone over and over again all the breeds and I am looking at the Catahoula Leopard dog right now. They seem to be a good match for me. But I have heard Hounds and Curs have a mind of their own! I know not all Rottweilers get Cancer. But since this is not something you can test for I am a little concerned about getting a Rottweiler. I guess if I researched the lines and pedigrees with not much or any Cancer that would really lessen the chances. I also don't know of any "light weight" breeders because I do not want my dog to weigh more than 95 pounds and most Rotts today are pretty heavy.

Caitlin,

It's good that you are thinking about these issues in advance. Just like others have said, GO CHECK these dogs out (a lot of them) before you get a pup! Take your lab with you he will tell you what your getting in to.

I've got a working line (really a hunting line) intact Rhodesian Ridgeback, who is 20 months old, and it was a shock to me and my family bringing home this 7 week old alligator! And I do mean alligator. I grew up with a hyper lab and jack russell, so I thought I was ready.


I WAS WRONG!

A hunting line dog is not like your Lab AT ALL! If you are not planning on hunting this dog than expect to put in at least 20-40 hours a week in training for at least the first 2 years, I am not kidding, this is going to be a second job just to make a working line dog solid in OB to take 'out' in public.

With big dogs it will always be YOUR FAULT if anything ever happens. Remember this.

Even with this work he is borderline when it comes to taking him out in public places, He is NOT a candidate for therapy dog or Obedience. Now I would trust this dog with my life if I was out in the wild where things could eat me, but really he is a lot of dog for suburbia(Kind of like having a Ferrari to get milk and eggs at the store).

He is a stubborn hound who has the energy of a border collie, the intelligence of a GSD, and the speed of a Greyhound (similar to a Curs). When I don't do at least 3 short(3 miles is short) walks a week on/off leash he is 'difficult' to live with.

An example:
Last night we had beginning agility class (our 3rd class) lots of soft little dogs will little to no training, kind of like a dog park with leashes. It was hard to get him to focus on the task at hand and ignore everything (and every smell) going on in there. This time Hank was actually 'workable' but only after we went on a 3.5 mile bike ride (in 15 minutes!) right before class.


Moral of the story be prepared, and go in with your eyes open. The people here on Leerburg are a great resource for working dogs, but its not going to be easy with any powerful working/hunting dog.


I hope you find what your looking for in a dogo.