Quote: Connie Sutherland

 Quote: Frank Crivello

.... So is everyone here retired or have their own home business?? ...

I now work at home. When I didn't, my dogs were adults, I adopted at the beginning of a vacation, I got up an hour early for power walks so dogs were left tired, I had a dog-walker do potty runs midday, and the first thing I did when I got home was attend to dogs.

Sounds like I definitely need an adult dog no matter what. I have talked with a few breeders who import working blood lines from Germany. Very nice people and very knowledgeable. These people also know my situation. I was told I should not get a dog younger than 22 months.

I actually don't think anyone will tell you that a 10-week-old puppy right in the critical socializing period should be left alone for ten hours a day, no housetraining, no socializing, no bonding.... it's one of those things (and there aren't very many! ) that you're gonna see a united front about.

Puppies are tough Frank. I work 12 hour days and I'm gone from the house from 4:30am til about 6pm but my wife is home to take care of dogs and kids. If not for that I wouldnt even think about getting one. I think you'll save yourself some stress by getting a little older dog.

 Quote:

So is everyone here retired or have their own home business??

No, but you do need a lifestyle that accommodates the dogs. Currently I work near home part time and am in college. I don't have a GSD, but do have 3 Border Collies!

I do make decisions in life to accommodate my dogs. The one big perk of the nanny job I had for 2 1/2 years was the fact that I could bring my then 1 dog to work. Now I have 3 and usually take one or more dogs along when I run errands and when I go to school. It's a community college a great place to get out and train with distractions. They stay in the car during classes. I do have family members that are willing to help in a pinch.

I also have a small flock of sheep that my oldest dog helps with and the other 2 I train in SAR work. I have a very "dog" type of lifestyle and about zero social life.

I had a GSD growing up. After he passed away when I was in professional school, I wanted another GSD. But I knew I was just settling down, finishing school, looking for a job, moving......

I waited 9 years, until I was absolutely sure I was capable (in terms of personal/work schedules and finances)of taking care a GSD, and that's when I got my female.

Was I tempted to get another GSD during those 9 years? You bet. I looked at GSD rescue/breeder websites all the time, but I kept telling myself that I had to wait, my GSD deserves the best from me.

My husband and I moved from a condo to a house solely because of the GSD. I changed my work schedule for her, and yes, I am fortunate enough to have flexibility in my work schedule, but then again, I wouldn't have gotten her if my work schedule were inflexible.

My female came to me when she was 28 months old, crate-trained, house-broken, and had basic obedience training. Even with that, we had to make a lot of adjustments to smooth out the little bumps along the way.

You can only enjoy the GSD when he is the right choice at the right time, otherwise, the stress will outweigh the pleasure.

 Quote: Melissa Hau

I had a GSD growing up. After he passed away when I was in professional school, I wanted another GSD. But I knew I was just settling down, finishing school, looking for a job, moving......

I waited 9 years, until I was absolutely sure I was capable (in terms of personal/work schedules and finances)of taking care a GSD, and that's when I got my female.

Was I tempted to get another GSD during those 9 years? You bet. I looked at GSD rescue/breeder websites all the time, but I kept telling myself that I had to wait, my GSD deserves the best from me.

My husband and I moved from a condo to a house solely because of the GSD. I changed my work schedule for her, and yes, I am fortunate enough to have flexibility in my work schedule, but then again, I wouldn't have gotten her if my work schedule were inflexible.

My female came to me when she was 28 months old, crate-trained, house-broken, and had basic obedience training. Even with that, we had to make a lot of adjustments to smooth out the little bumps along the way.

You can only enjoy the GSD when he is the right choice at the right time, otherwise, the stress will outweigh the pleasure.

Very understandable. My wife and I work from 6am-400pm and are home by 450pm every day, 5 days a week Mon-Fri. I work a second job, but only 3 times a month and those 3 times are 16 hour days.

My wife and I are fully committed to changing our life style in accommodating a gsd in our life. We have been excited for some time now since we have spoke about it. Even though a puppy is not going to happen, we are still excited about getting a gsd.

I have done my research (still am) and have a decided a rescue dog is not for us either. I feel sorry and bad for not trying, but i don't know what rescue dogs have gone through. I spoke to 3 people this weekend who have and had rescue gsd. Depending on what you get, a rescue gsd can be even more work than a puppy sometimes due to what they have experienced in their life. A couple of people I spoke to had fear biting dogs and some had gsds that didn't want anything to do with any other dog or person but the owner, even though she lived with 3 roommates.

So my wife and I decided to go with a few reputable breeders and those breeders are in the process of finding us a 24+ month male gsd that is crate trained, obedience trained and mabe even some tracking training, which I very interested in.

I still appreciate everyone's help and advice on my situation. Thank you.

I think you and your wife are setting yourselves up to succeed at this--and that you'll have a great experience with your new dog.

1. Because you're doing thoughtful research beforehand.
2. You're working with breeders who understand your situation and are selecting a dog that will do well in your home
3. You're seeking out the advice and experience of others, and are being open to learning.

Congratulations to you. You're already waaaaaaay ahead of most dog owners. And you don't even have the dog yet. ;-)

Hi. This is my first time commenting tho I have been monitoring for awhile. I got a Shepherd/Rottie pup for Christmas (actually got him Dec 2) when he was 11 weeks old. My Mom agreed to do doggie day care for me and everything was fine until recently. Dutch is almost 5 months old now, 40 pounds and getting bigger every day and I think Mom is actually a little afraid of him. Dutch of course knows this and runs roughshod all over her, she can't control him. I now have him home crated for 10 hours of the day. I take him for a 30-35 minute walk in the morning and walk him again in the evening when I get home. I do have a 2 year old Shepherd mix, Casca who is there with him during the day. She was pretty much raised the same way and is a great dog, she's not the best disciplined in the world but is a wonderful family pet. I'm just wondering since I know for certain that he is 50% Shepherd and 50% Rottweiler if there's anything different I should be doing with him as far as him being crated for so long. Thanks!

It sounds like you're really taking this advice to heart, much to my relief after having read through this thread. I'm glad a puppy is off the table - they really are as dependent and needy as an infant.

I had a small dog (my own opinion is Basenji-Chihuahua), roughly 24 months old, and was out of the house, 30 miles away, from 5:45am until 3:30pm. Not quite 10 hours, but the poor little guy just couldn't hold it all day. Add to this the fact that my girlfriend lived close to my work and so I was torn between seeing her and taking care of my dog. So I did the right thing and gave him up to a wonderful family who love and adore him - the mother of the family is home almost all day.

Now my girlfriend (now fiancée) lives with me, I'm 10 minutes away from work, and we don't go out much. I'm in a much better position to get a dog, but a puppy just wouldn't get the attention that it needs - so I'm hoping to beat out the other applicant(s?) on a very laid-back Lab-Border Collie mix at a local no-kill shelter. My fiancée and I both really fell in love with him when we met him. Cross your fingers for me!

 Quote: lisa antonelli

Hi. This is my first time commenting tho I have been monitoring for awhile. I got a Shepherd/Rottie pup for Christmas (actually got him Dec 2) when he was 11 weeks old. My Mom agreed to do doggie day care for me and everything was fine until recently. Dutch is almost 5 months old now, 40 pounds and getting bigger every day and I think Mom is actually a little afraid of him. Dutch of course knows this and runs roughshod all over her, she can't control him. I now have him home crated for 10 hours of the day. I take him for a 30-35 minute walk in the morning and walk him again in the evening when I get home. I do have a 2 year old Shepherd mix, Casca who is there with him during the day. She was pretty much raised the same way and is a great dog, she's not the best disciplined in the world but is a wonderful family pet. I'm just wondering since I know for certain that he is 50% Shepherd and 50% Rottweiler if there's anything different I should be doing with him as far as him being crated for so long. Thanks!

Hi Lisa and welcome.

The best way to get a response is to start a new thread instead of adding your question onto an existing one. Go to the forum list, pick an appropriate forum, and then click "New Topic" (it's in blue text near the top.) Then ask away!

In response to your specific question--yes, I'd say you need to do something different with your 5-month-old GSD/Rot mix, because he's gotten to an age and size that he's pushing limits and "running roughshod" over your mother. Crating isn't going to fix that. Training will. And more exercise. An hour a day may not be enough exercise for a large athletic puppy to burn off energy. A tired puppy is a good puppy. (and at 5 months, this is still very much a puppy.) He'll be a puppy for another 12 months, and it's not going to get better on it's own.

So--for a start, wear him out in the morning and evening. And then you need to get your mom on board in a program to help Dutch understand that he has to mind her too. I'm sure you'll get lots of suggestions.