Thread: Should I get a dog.

Originally Posted by Maarty

Amen.
The biggest problem I find is people who have a "fur baby" instead of a dog, they treat it like an equal and dogs don't like that. They need a leader for their pack and will try to take that roll if you let them.

a couple of days ago i hear this woman calling her dog . .. it goes on for about 10 minutes, this constant pleading noise. So eventually i go outside, maybe she needs help.
The dog, a nice lookn 12 month old foxy cross is trotting around at the end of the block ... totally ignoring her, i suggest she goes to the dog. . . nope.
Then the dog sees a cat and chases it and bails it up a fence a couple of houses down . .. still no response except the constant calling . .. which is comes across as part nagging and pleading
Eventually the dog comes back to much praise and patting etc . . . . being the helpful type i suggest different strategies which may help . . no way ' he's a good dog except for the running away and chasing cats ' she said.
Sadly i let myself down here . .. instead of telling her a story about how a friend of mine had the same problem and this is how they fixed it - my partner said i should try this method . .. i said your the problem and stop acting like a mother and more like a dog owner.
Nice lady, she's a teacher at the local school for many years. . . i shook my head and walked away . . reminds me of the time i saw half a dozen teachers standing around lookn at a tent without a clue what to do . . . people

i dont know mate it sounds like your keen enough but you might have uderestimated the tasks your setting yourself.
it sounds like you do long hours and whether you,l have the time patience energy to do the sort of training required for what your contemplating doing with the dog
only you can decide but at least your asking better that than the dog ends up paying for a good intention not able to be followed thru.

Originally Posted by Sideshow

reminds me of the time i saw half a dozen teachers standing around lookn at a tent without a clue what to do . . . people

Funny I've seen that as well[/QUOTE]
Gets scary when you tell kids where milk comes from and most answer the Fridge.......sorry I know off topic

Hi Ricochet
Hope you get a dog that suits you and what you want to do with it (hunt & SAR) won't be easy to find the right one to do both but good luck
To train a SAR dog will be very rewarding but very time consuming may be 99% training 1% deployment so be patient and don't get frustated
The huntng side of things should be easy enough. Try and find a dog with a natural ability
If this is your first time owning a working dog make sure that you are the boss and it will be your best mate don't have it the other way round
Most important thing to do is have fun and enjoy being out there with your dog

Ruff and me agree. Amazing.

I think you should be able to do both, the SAR work becoming an extension of a well trained deer dog.. but as a fresh handler/trainer you may well be biting of more than you can chew, if you were thinking about doing both from day one.. Get a dog, learn to train it, built that trust. Get the basics first and then think about Sar work as its really demanding now. Its public money being spent so there not much room anymore for driftwood. Three years training probably before your even operational bush/wilderness search. If you were an experienced trainer then perhaps two years.

Pm if you want to pursue it though and I will tell you exactly who to contact. Anytime..a year or so from now also good..