Thoughts on living with an intact male

You're already getting your second Dobie!? Oooh, I'm so jealous.... I bet I could have handled an intense Dobie but I'd rather have a calm dog for a change.  My current dog is super high energy with crazy prey drive and I'm used to that since that's the only kind of dog I ever had....but I heard that there are dogs out there that are happy with just one walk a day. I want to know how it is to have calm animal that will walk by my side during walks instead of running around like maniac,lol.

We are going to meet a dobie pup.  I'm am not sold on getting him.  A lot will depend on how he & DH get along.  While I will be doing the training, DH has to be on board as well.  Bev is a pretty intese dog, & the breeder knows Bev so she has a good idea of what I am used to living with.  Her words to me were "Compared to this pup, Bev is a mellow guy."  That is exactly what I want, so I was happy to hear those words coming from her.

Natalie, every dobie that I know is a "high energy" dog.  Some are much calmer than others, but, when healthy, dobies are always ready for exercise.

I have two, one Maremma (big boy Tully) and my young BC Ted.  As far as intense it doesn't get much more so than a BC, but I've been working on Ted since he was a pup.  Being able to control his urge to breed is nothing compared with controlling his urge to chase down sheep bolting right under his nose!  Of course, he's never had a taste of true love so he has no idea what he's missing, and he'll likely be neutered before that happens.

Once the dog has mated it can be a different story.  It can go two ways then.  Sometimes the dog actually gets more sensible around females in season, because he knows that there's no sense approaching her unless she has that really special smell.  Some dogs can't discern the difference, though, and then they really are nutty because they know what to do and want to do it.  Sometimes the difference is simply maturity and experience, though there's also some dogs born with a more sensible approach to the whole thing. 

When Min the Maremma was in heat, Tully had no interest in her until one day while she was standing.  We put him up that day and the days following, but sure he had somehow gotten to her anyway.  But when we had her spayed she was not pregnant.  Either Tully knew, or she was sterile (the latter is possible).  So Tully's one of the sensible ones, so it's been very easy to keep him intact to allow him to mature fully (important in a giant breed that also has a remarkably long lifespan). 

brookcove

Some dogs can't discern the difference, though, and then they really are nutty because they know what to do and want to do it. 

That's where a seriously experienced bitch is invaluable. Oftentimes they can be cured of obnoxious mounting by her, in one go around...or neutered...either way problem solved...LMBO.

Someone said it can make a difference in coat altering too soon?  Could that be why Dub has almost no side fringe at all?  I never fixed a setter as young as he was.  4 months.  But his coat, pretty as it is, is lacking the real showy fringe that most associate with setters.  He has nice feathering everywhere but the chest and side.  Just curious if I caused this by neutering so young?

rwbeagles

That's where a seriously experienced bitch is invaluable. Oftentimes they can be cured of obnoxious mounting by her, in one go around...or neutered...either way problem solved...LMBO.

Oooooh, anyone want to lend me one for a short time? Eko could use the lesson!   

I think obedience training and training for conformation (believe it or not) can make a big difference. Gizmo is intact and he's only encountered one female in season (we were on a walk and he was leashed.) Maybe his inexperience helped, or he is like his dad, because I gave him a sharp "leave it," kept walking and after a moment so did he.

I was at his breeder's house when she had a girl in season and Gizmo's sire was there and he was NOT being bred to her.  Did he want to go visit her? Yep. But he went in his crate when he was told to go and wasn't going nuts. He's done obedience, agility and he's a therapy dog, so he is pretty solid and he was maybe 5 years old???. I can't imagine him ever marking in a house and Gizmo doesn't either. When the breeder asked if I would be interested in showing one of her pups we discussed behavior issues with an intact male and  one of the things that settled my concerns was the way her intact dog behaved.

Maybe it can be an issue with some breeds more than other breeds? What is the sire like? the dam? Gizmo is definitely a combo of his unflappable dam and his high-drive, would-lay-on-hot-coals-for-you sire.

losinsusan

Someone said it can make a difference in coat altering too soon?  Could that be why Dub has almost no side fringe at all?  I never fixed a setter as young as he was.  4 months.  But his coat, pretty as it is, is lacking the real showy fringe that most associate with setters.  He has nice feathering everywhere but the chest and side.  Just curious if I caused this by neutering so young?

I think that has more to do with how fast the dog matures, though it's true that sex hormones help coat growth some.  Ben was intact until he was nearly a year old, and he didn't get the coat that his sire and dam's sire had, until he was five or six years old.  Come to find out, they didn't either!  Most dogs no matter when you neuter them, will max out their coat by about that time - no neutered dog will have as full a coat as an intact dog of the same breeding, pretty much.  I've neutered many mature full-coated dogs and they always lighten up their coats afterwards (though it looks nice still).

Ted's intact and he's really got a light coat.  I saw his dam up close for the first time last weekend (I'd seen her working many times, but never put my hands on her), and realized that she had a super sparse coat.

So I'd say genetics has a lot to do with it. 

In dogs where coats are big part of the "type" you will see a difference in coat whenever you neuter.  Dess lost his ruff to a considerable extent.  He blows undercoat most of the time... he lost some of the density in his guard hairs.  His furnishings and britches are thicker and more cottony than when he was intact.  Spayed bitches often has similar results with heavier coats.  They dont seem to blow coat either, meaning you have to work much harder to keep them looking nice.  Dess was true wash and wear when he was intact, not now.

BEVOLASVEGAS

Natalie, every dobie that I know is a "high energy" dog.  Some are much calmer than others, but, when healthy, dobies are always ready for exercise.

I don't mind an energetic dog at all, but I'm talking about crazy terrier energy combined with high prey drive.  I have been training my dog almost everyday since I got her 2 years ago and it paid off some but she is still all over the place with me exercising her beyond what other people can afford since I stay home all day during summer.  I've seen other dogs off leash and even the high energy ones get a little tired after 2 hours of speed running but never my dog, she can go all day if I let her and I love that when I go biking with her but I have to admit that it drives my family crazy at times.

When I was thinking of getting my first dog my sister's friend offered me a pit bull puppy but I said no and went to a shelter instead.  I'm sure I didn't know a first thing about dogs then and was afraid that I wouldn't be able to handle a pit bull, but now since having Martini who is just as dog aggressive although smaller, I could have handled that pit bull with no problem, lol. I know I can handle a Dobie high energy or not, I just want a dog who is trainable with minimal prey drive and who has an off button.

Dog_ma

rwbeagles

That's where a seriously experienced bitch is invaluable. Oftentimes they can be cured of obnoxious mounting by her, in one go around...or neutered...either way problem solved...LMBO.

 

 

Oooooh, anyone want to lend me one for a short time? Eko could use the lesson!   

I Have 4 girls and Believe me NO one plays the Humpty Hump game without their express permission, they'll duke then out in a blink of an eye then invite the to play in the next...

Hounds can be reall hussys !!

Bonita of Bwana