Dog Community

Traits of a mixed breed-please voice opinion

Posted : 5/18/2010 4:43:32 PM

A family member of mine just gotan 8 week old Westie/schnauser mix. Both parents were pure bred, so she is now around nine, almost ten weeks old. My mother just told that they are referring to her as a "Devil child" (Please do not dwell on that is is with love not hate), because everytime they pick her up she bites at them. I have only had herding breeds, none of mine at such a young age have ever had this behavior, nor do they now. They also have an Labradoodle that is the best natured dog in the world. Just curious if this could potentially be a trait of the mix, or what they should expect as she gets older.

Thanks in advance!! Please remember no need get hostile.

mrv

Posted : 5/18/2010 4:54:58 PM

Terriers do what they do for a reason..... what might one expect from an animal bred to go down a dark hole and deal with something man was afraid to reach in and get.

Check out puppy kindergarten, Nothing in life is free, Ian Dunbar's new puppy book, the ASPCA complete dog training manual. It is all about management, structure so the dog gets it right not wrong and training.

bunni

Posted : 5/18/2010 5:54:07 PM

Biting is one of the main things any 8 week old puppy does in my experience. You just tell them not to bite (a few thousand times) and yelp or walk away or stop playing when they do.

sheltiecraz

Posted : 6/2/2010 4:32:32 PM

It isn't a good idea to mix any purebred with another because of hidden recessive genes, and yes temperament can be inherited! I would look into what temperament the last 5 generations had. Also, depending on the biting, could she be hurting when picked up? Sometimes a tender spot will evoke that reaction.