I had my first experience with another shorthair on Sunday. And ruby had her first experience with another dog. She went completely nuts having a good time. Running, playing chase, and getting chased by the other dog (who by the way is about 80lbs, and yes he is a pointer but a little chubby). She completely wore him down and it was very cool to watch. She played constantly for about 2 hours. Now..this wasn't forced play, she just kept going and going and going. The owner of the other dogs who has had several hunting dogs seems to think she will be an excellent hunter given the energy, so that was good news.

I have also purchased a prong collar, i slipped it on last night just to check the fit and lead her around the house using my finger as a leash, just to see how she reacted. I think it scared the crap out of her, but she definitely calmed down immediately when it was on her. I think i am going to give it just a bit longer before really using the thing. Next walk we go on though, i am going to try it out.

I don't think it was a 'wrong' choice of dogs. It's just when i was looking at dogs, i had all of the information in front of me about the GSP being hyper, active, etc, and i thought (and think) i could handle it. It just seems that she is wired different even according to a person who has owned other GSP's.

I guess I am just thinking baby steps.


One other question: how often should you give your dog a bath? is bathing too often a problem? thing is, she stays outside all day, and inside at night. I want to have her in living room often, but she gets a little stinky.

I have bathed dogs up to every 2 weeks with no problems. A short-haired dog dries faster than a medium or long coated dog so can be bathed more, I have found.

What are you feeding her? I found that switching a dog to a high quality diet helps with the "stink". My 6-month old puppy has never been bathed and he does not stink at all. He has thicker fur than a pointer, more similar to a Rott.

I am glad to hear she will be a great hunter. I bet she will love it.

Mark, bathing frequency - once a month if needed, longer if not. I always go longer (2-6 months). That's just my opinion, figuring that I don't want to strip the dog's skin of the oils that keep his skin from drying out.

Remember that dogs do have a "dog" smell to them, that's part of their "allure" (love that smell!). That's not reason for a bath, however (again, my opinion since I love the dog smell). If you find you need to bathe him more often, use a hypoallergenic gentle shampoo or one of the ones Ed sells on this site: http://www.leerburg.com/grooming.htm

Regarding the prong, yes, get him used to it by just putting it on and letting him wear it for a couple of days before actually using it.

Carol, your hubby is right about short-haired