Random Comments (RH)

[Exterminator]

   of course you would have to say something like that.

Gee, I don't know, maybe because I train police dogs?  I'm sure that everyone would like to believe that his/her dog is capable of stopping a man but the reality is that it takes genetics and training to produce a dog with the qualities we're talking about.

[Exterminator]

And since we're on the subject...some of you might remember my black puppy...here he is now...

[Purplelady1040]

Yes, it does on training police dogs. I say my Australian Shepherd is bad ass but he is only protective toward us and other stray dogs that come around. He is in no way like a police dog who protects their handlers and do their jobs.

[Exterminator]

Is that mosty on your property, PurpleLady?  FWIW, I like Aussies...smart, fun dogs.

[Purplelady1040]

Yes, we have a huge fenced in yard and he lets us know if anyone walks down the alley, pulls in our drive way or just lurking around. I like Shepherds, from Australian to Belgian Malinois to German Shepherds.

[Exterminator]

What he's showing is territorial aggression; pretty normal.  The dog who can continue to be a bad-ass in a completely foreign situation is what we look for.  Some Aussies make good drug dogs but they are often slow to mature so it is sometimes difficult to get them to calm down enough to focus on the work until they're 3 or 4 years old.  Our group trains dual-purpose K9's (detection/suspect apprehension), schutzhund dogs (what I am currently training my personal dog in) and personal protection dogs.  We're probably 75% German Shepherds...95% of which come from working lines, 23% Malinois and 2% other which includes the occasional Doberman or Rottweiler.  We have police/sheriff's departments who train their active K9's with us from several localities...Boone County, Hendricks County, Marion County, Avon, Speedway, Whitestown, Zionsville, Shelbyville...several others who come by from time to time.  Our training director just sold Shelbyville their newest police dog a month or so ago...a dog many of us have had a part in training (I've taken bites from the dog myself...with the appropriate gear, of course).  In his first month, he found 4 lbs. of pot in someone's trunk (I will personally be glad to see this legalized as I see it as a waste of time and money and see it as a source of significant tax revenue), tracked and apprehended a 250 lb. woman who thought it was ok to beat up an 89 year-old lady (I have pictures of the bitch's wounds if you're interested), and last week alerted on a traffic stop that resulted in the seizure of a late-model SUV and $103,000.00 in bundled drug cartel cash that was hidden in the rear seats of the vehicle.  Through that seizure, that dog...the dog trained by members of my club...just paid for not only himself but Shelbyville's next 5 police K9's and all of the expenses involved with outfitting their handlers' equipment and vehicles needs to accommodate them.

To be clear, I was not one of the primary trainers for that dog but did have a role in his training.  My point was mostly directed at Henry who thinks because his Labra-doodle barks at people, it is a protective dog.  More likely than not, it is a dog that is afraid and is hoping that by making himself look big and scary, he can make people go away and I would submit that it is an effective strategy.  Criminals look for easy targets and if the choice is between your house where you have barking dogs and the next house where they have no dogs, they will choose the house with no dogs.

A couple of other points I'd like to make...it seems like I got the impression that Henry rescued his dog...I hope so but just in case, stop buying these over-priced mixed-breed dogs that they're giving all of these fancy names to...they're mutts and the shelters are full of them.  Adopt a dog in need instead.  They will appreciate it more, you will save a life and you will get a great dog.

Also, if you think you want a personal protection dog then do your research and buy a dog that is genetically predisposed to do that work.  Base your decision not only on breed but on bloodlines that have proven themselves.  Be aware that there is liability involved in owning a protection trained dog and act accordingly in restricting that dog's access to the general public.  A dog that will willingly love on every stranger is not a personal protection dog.  A dog that will watch your children wrestle with their friends without attacking them will not protect your children.  Be prepared to train with that dog early and often over the course of his life.

Most people do not need nor, without training, are they qualified to handle a real protection dog.  If you have a big, imposing dog and someone decides they'd like to go ahead and attack you anyway, that is a bad person and you need a gun.

[Henry Hawk]

My point was mostly directed at Henry who thinks because his Labra-doodle barks at people, it is a protective dog.  More likely than not, it is a dog that is afraid and is hoping that by making himself look big and scary, he can make people go away and I would submit that it is an effective strategy.  Criminals look for easy targets and if the choice is between your house where you have barking dogs and the next house where they have no dogs, they will choose the house with no dogs.

See, THIS is why you are such a dick.  I never once said he was protective because he barks at people.  This is just YOU being yourself, blowing off and butting in.  I never said my dog was a Navy Seal ready to snap the neck off of an intruder.  I was speaking tongue and cheek about a damn good dog, that I am very fond of.

A couple of other points I'd like to make...it seems like I got the impression that Henry rescued his dog...I hope so but just in case, stop buying these over-priced mixed-breed dogs that they're giving all of these fancy names to...they're mutts and the shelters are full of them.  Adopt a dog in need instead.  They will appreciate it more, you will save a life and you will get a great dog.

Again, you blow off and make assumptions.  I never ever said I resued my dog.  I bought him off of some friends who breed them.  He is an exceptional dog with a wonderful personality.  He is easy to train, he doesn't shed, and is a very, very loving dog.  He has become part of the family.  He may not be RAMBO and I am not trying to train him to be a rambo... but I would be willing to bet if you walked in my home aggresively, you would not receive a welcomed greeting from him.  He rarely barks except when he wants to play or when he hears someone pull in my driveway.  I love that about him.

Btw, just because you "adopt" a dog, does NOT mean you will be getting a great dog.

[Purplelady1040]

Okay, guys, I agree with both of you and Henry you are right about the adopting part. Our first dog we adopted we thought was a Boxer-Lab mix, he was beautiful and lovely, turned out he was a Bull Mastiff, still beautiful and lovely but could scale a 6 ft. fence like it was nothing. We took him back to the no kill shelter and they found him a 200 acre farm to live on. We got our next 2 adoptive dogs when they were puppies and our last was 2.5 years old, he is the most possessive little thing but he is a terrier and terriers think they are the big dogs of the world. I call them Napoleon's in the dog world.
Exterminator- our first Australian Shepherd was a blue eyed, blue merle and she looked like a wolf. People were afraid of her because she looked like a wolf. We had to have her out to sleep when she was 13 because she had been hit by a car when she was 6 months old and it messed her hip up and then she had underlying aggression because she had nothing to do. Shepherds and other herding dogs have to have something to do. I am just a huge horse and dog lover so I love all of them even Pitbulls.

[Exterminator]

I never once said he was protective because he barks at people.

That's awesome!  It always makes me happy to hear about someone lining the pockets of the back yard breeders who fill the shelters with their designer mutts.  If you hear about anyone else looking for one, let me know.  My dog left four labra-doodle puppies out in the yard on his walk this morning.   

[Purplelady1040]

Okay Exterminator- I understand that some designer dogs should not be sold or even bred but actually Labradoodles were bred to help those who have allergies and wanted a non shedding dog like a poodle or a bischon fraise, you do realize that all dogs have to be bred by someone and sold to someone in order for some people to have dogs. I have problems with people who have puppy mills but some people raise dogs and only have a litter of pups once so often. I mean take a look at all the designer dogs we have out there cock a poos, malti poos, peek a poos, yorkie poos, the labradoodles, aussiedoodles and puggles. I am sure there are more.

[Purplelady1040]

The only issue I do have with these designer type dogs is that the people want to sell them for exorbitant amounts and that is just plain ridiculous. I am not going to pay over $200.00-$300.00 for a dog and even to adopt, I am not going to pay over $100.00- $150.00 to adopt one. Any more than that is highway robbery to me but that is just me.

[Exterminator]

I understand that some designer dogs should not be sold or even bred but actually Labradoodles were bred to help those who have allergies and wanted a non shedding dog...

If only life were that simple.

you do realize that all dogs have to be bred by someone and sold to someone in order for some people to have dogs.

Absolutely and I support responsible breeders who go to the effort of health and temperament testing their breeding stock and train and test their dogs for suitability to the individual breed's intended purpose.  Those people aren't breeding cross-bred mutts.

[Exterminator]

The only issue I do have with these designer type dogs is that the people want to sell them for exorbitant amounts and that is just plain ridiculous. I am not going to pay over $200.00-$300.00 for a dog and even to adopt, I am not going to pay over $100.00- $150.00 to adopt one. Any more than that is highway robbery to me but that is just me.

I typically pay a lot more than that for a good puppy but here's why: in the German Shepherd Dog world, there is a well established set of criteria used to determine breed worthiness.  Those include working titles, in which the dog has to prove in a trial before a judge his ability to do the work for which the breed was intended in three disciplines, tracking, obedience and protection.  The dogs must all also obtain a breed survey in which a judge examines them and rates them based on their conformity to the breed standard.  Finally, there are mandatory hip and elbow certifications.  In Germany, these requirements are mandatory...if your dog hasn't met them, your puppies don't get papers.  No papers = no buyers.  Here in the U.S., anyone with two GSD's of the opposite sex can stick them together, make puppies and get AKC papers on them.  Many of us, however, hold ourselves to the German standard because it is in place to maintain the integrity of the breed.  Training a single dog to his/her titles requires thousands of hours of work, equipment, countless hours driving to training, trials and shows and lots of gas.  There are entry fees, registration fees, certification fees, x-ray fees, DNA tests, etc...all of these things add up to thousands of dollars in expense for each dog...and some dogs don't make the grade.  I am willing to pay these people $1,500.00 for a puppy because they've earned it and because I have a reasonable expectation of what I'll be getting in one of their dogs.

[me]

The best dog I ever had was a beagle someone dumped in the neighborhood and the kids fell in love with him and he kind of adopted us. 
If I were to buy a dog I think it would be a Rottweiler or a lab.   
A friend of ours who has a huge house and lives in the country takes rescue dogs and adopted a blind pug.  He was the most loving, playful, friendly dog you could imagine. 

[Henry Hawk]

I paid $300 and have a reasonable expectation of what I am getting.  Actully, I am overly happy with what I got.  I am happy for you too Ex.  You are a real dog lover and I enjoy your tidbits of info you have shared over the years.  You have an awesome looking dog.  If I had the time and desire to put forth the energy you do with your dog, I would probably go through the process of learing more about them.
I simply wanted a dog, that was loyal, easy to train, that doesn't shed that I could keep indoors.  I got one.  I am thankful for the breeders that I bought him from.  They are great folks who put a lot of love and devotion in breeding these dogs.  They are not getting rich from it, but they enjoy it.

The bottom line is crossbreds has been around for years and years.....and have made fantastic pets for thousands and thousands of families.