how old was your cairn puppy?

[rileysmum]

I just rang a puppy trainer to book Rebel into classes and she seemed really concerned that I got him at 12 weeks she said that mabey the breeder got rid of him at this age because she could see his bad traits and decided not to keep him. I really don't think so, but it's not something I even thought of before.

Lucky I've been reading this forum and it seems to me barking at other dogs is a cairn trait not just a Rebel trait?

The other bad issue is him running to his crate if he has a treat, or he has stolen something and attacking me when I try to get it off him He really does scare me and I'm worried he will bite the kids, he stole a bar of soap and ran for his life to his crate and growled and snapped at me when I tried to get it back, I went and bought him some treats so I can keep on taking them off him and giving them back, hopefully he will learn he gets them back?

He really is a little doll and loves cuddles and kisses, he is never vicious except with his loot ,we even take his food off him mid meal and he just looks at us, so barking and biting?please any advise/experiences would be very much appreciated.

Also how old was your pup/dog is 12weeks to old to teach him ?I would not have thought so.

thanks Deb.

P.S.I'm not going to that trainer, if she made me this worried over the phone can you imagine training with her?

[savannahsmom35]

First of all, I agree with your decision NOT to return to that trainer! I have read that a responsible breeder should not "adopt" the pup out before 9 weeks old (9 weeks being the minimum) however, a lot of breeders will keep them longer than 9 weeks. I don't think that the trainers assumption has any validity as a pup can be trained to stop this type of behavior. Honestly, I think that you just have a typical cairn puppy who needs some training. 12 weeks is absolutley not too late to begin training. I don't think that it is EVER too late for them to begin an obediance class. I would contact another trainer or even get a book on how to train your pup not to be possesive of food. I would make sure that I mentioned the problems that you are having to any potiential trainers to ensure that they are knowledgable in that area. I think that taking him to correct this at a young age is very smart and will be better for him and you in the long run! Good luck and please keep us posted.

[Guest mrskti]

I got my girls at 8wks. Dont worry about the possesive thing, you can work them out of that. Cairns are ornory, no doubt about that! I think you're wise to look for a different trainer, she's not the only one around.

[bradl]

A lot of smart breeders won't place a pup under 12 weeks. The pups are learning a lot about pack behavior and manners at that time from their mom and littermates. Running to stash loot is totally normal for some pups. And your pup's loot-guarding is a sure sign that he needs training to understand that you are in charge of everything in his life: food, toys, exercise, affection.

[sj4iy]

And I thought my trainer was harsh...that person sounds incredibly dumb or ignorant, I wouldn't trust him/her. We got our dog at 12 weeks old, and there was absolutely nothing wrong with him. And your dog is never too old to learn, especially at that young of an age. Also, most dogs show a degree of possessiveness at one time or another- it's part of being a dog...ours is like that right now, but we are taking steps to correct it. So don't worry about what that person said.

[bubba]

Cooper was nine-ten weeks when we got him. We never had any problem with him and his food...until Yoda came around. Yoda is a pig (he really is a dog), and scarfs down his food in about three minutes (I've timed him!). Cooper takes his time eating his. As soon as Yoda is finished, he sits and waits for Cooper to get done then checks out that bowl for anything that might be remaining. We have their food bowls apart from each other, and for a while, I would feed Yoda on the back porch so he was entirely away from Cooper and couldn't bother him.

It's very important to us that Cooper not act up when eating because we have granddaughters near us, the youngest is just two. From the day we got him, we would reach in his bowl while he ate, touch him, touch his ears, etc and there was never any problem...until Yoda. We have started again with Cooper, as in the touching, feeding by hand, etc but I think if the girls are ever over during their dinner time, they will just be kept out of the room while Cooper is eating to be on the safe side.

Neither of the dogs have ever run into their crate w/a prized possession like you speak of, until just the other night. Yoda found a scungy, dirty bone outside that Cooper had 'buried' and ran into his crate w/it. Well, I didn't know what he had and he was sitting on it, so I couldn't see it at all. Our crates not only have doors on the front, they also have doors on the top that can be opened. Was Yoda ever surprised when I did that! The look on his face was priceless. I did that the bone from him as it was time for bed and they don't get this type of thing throughout the night, but during the day, I probably would have let him keep 'his new found treasure' in there.

I think the more you work with your dog and you learn to trust him and vice-versa, things will all work out. Your dog is still quite young and has a lot to learn.

pat.

[Brigette]

I've heard its so much better to leave a puppy with its mother until 12 or even 14 weeks, we had problems with Yoda nipping as a puppy and our trainer told us that we got him too early, and had he stayed with his mother longer she would have made it understood to him that that wasnt going to happen. I was very diligent to hand feed Yoda when we first got him, because the place we got him from (I wouldnt even dignify her with calling her a breeder) said that Yoda's mom killed one of her puppies who tried to eat out of her bowl. I fed him food out of my hand as a puppy so he got used to the idea, we now have a total of 3 dogs ranging in size from 100lbs to 9 lbs and no one has any problem sharing a bowl if someone comes along. Especially because of the size difference of our dogs, I was concerned any food bowl issues could result in serious injury or death. I will tell you that Yoda growls at my husband when he tries to move him out of a spot on the bed, I totally blame my husband for this because he's made it an "I'm gonna get you" game that Yoda loves to play. Yoda knows I dont like that and doesnt growl at me if I try to move him. I dont think its good to encourage aggressive play, but my husband disagrees and thinks its a boy thing. He is the one person in my house I've never been able to train! ha ha