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Old 05-02-2011, 10:52 PM
 
Location: Mountains of middle TN
5,245 posts, read 16,420,995 times
Reputation: 6131

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Find a good maternal dog and get your dog with her ASAP!! She NEVER should have been allowed to leave her mother at such an early age. Now YOU have to be mom if you can't find a dog that will take over. You have no clue how livid I am that she was taken that early! I see dogs DAILY with no bite inhibition and horrible behavior problems sitting on euthanasia lines ready to be killed because some jack@ss back yard breeder wanted to get rid of that puppy ASAP to make sure it didn't cut into their profits anymore. You got taken BIG TIME by a horrible back yard breeder. Now you're going to have a lot of catch up work today. I'm so sad for that puppy. The sassiness you're talking about will only get better if you don't get on it now. If not, you're in for a long haul with a dog that's out of control and will bring you years of heartache and stress.

Being a 'purebred' APBT and having any paperwork doesn't mean a thing. I'm so sorry to say it. People fall for it every single day, and I certainly did in MANY times before I got into rescue and for many different breeds of dog. I even fell for the AKC registered, assuming that if the dog was registered through them it was automatically a well bred dog from a good breeder. WRONG!

Find some pitbull forums, join and ask questions DAILY. You've got a lot of work ahead of you. A LOT.

ETA there's no such breed as a red nose pit or a blue nose pit. It's just key words BYBs use to reign in people that don't know the difference. The difference? Color. That's it. It's like saying a black pomeranian or a red pomeranian. It's just a color.

ETA #2: Just checked Petfinder. Listed ONLY under Pitbull Terrier (not including staffies or the other 'pitbull' breeds), just shy of 16,000 of them looking for homes. One in a fantastic rescue close to me is pure white, just like yours, and was sitting on a euth line about to die when the rescue saved it's life. There are more than enough pure white pitbulls, or 'blue' pitbulls, or any of the other 'rare' pitbulls that these scummy BYBs claim are so rare. This includes puppies. Pitbull puppies die every single day in shelters. Given you've never raised one from a puppy yourself, you'd have been MUCH better off to adopt an adult from a rescue that's already been trained and house broken for you.

Like I said, you've got a TON of work ahead of you. I'm so sorry! I wish I could help more, but there's sooooooooooooooo much information you're going to need. Maybe start with your biggest problem and we can help work through that?

As for are you spoiling her letting her sleep in your bed? I'm no one to ask. I have anywhere from eight to ten dogs in my bed with hubby and I every single night. And we've had over a dozen. But keep in mind as she's growing, if she's a dominant female, and from the sound of it she may be, you DON'T want to give her the high ground. Breaking that now and starting on some NILIF training early would be very beneficial. The last thing you want is her growing up thinking she's pack leader.

Last edited by mrs1885; 05-02-2011 at 11:04 PM..
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Old 05-02-2011, 11:10 PM
 
Location: Mountains of middle TN
5,245 posts, read 16,420,995 times
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Just so you know I'm now stuck on Petfinder going through American Bulldogs and have found three I want! LOL Hubby says you're grounded since you're the reason I looked on there! LMAO!!
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Old 05-03-2011, 07:34 AM
 
Location: On the sunny side of a mountain
3,605 posts, read 9,054,460 times
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Our first dog was a lab/border collie, we did so many things wrong with her as a puppy in her training but we were lucky that despite our ignorance she grew up to be a great dog. Our second dog is very dominate and smart, training her has been a challenge and we should have enlisted a professional to help.

It sounds like you have a lot of training questions that would be better served by face to face contact with a trainer. The trainer will help both of you learn how to have a good relationship, she will learn who the boss is and you will learn how to help her become a great dog. Life with dogs is so much easier when they are well behaved.

Just to note, mine sleep in bed too, one with her head on the pillow, I wouldn't have it any other way.
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Old 05-03-2011, 08:51 PM
 
1,425 posts, read 3,314,162 times
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Mrs1885... you really freaked me out for a while. I think you may be over-reacting. I have been playing with this pup ALOT and letting her know when she bites/chews too hard and she has learned to inhibit her bite. I took her to the park today and there were two very little scrappy boys there (probably 4 and 6) they were rough and tumble and she was great with them and she has never been around children before. She was shaking with excitement when she saw them and she was very careful not to hurt them even though they were extremely rough and tumble. I had to give her a bath this eve after rolling around in the sand with these kids and I thought of another problem... how am I going to control a 50 lb dog that doesn't really want a bath? I have to sleep with the dog after all. Another thing... she wants to sit in my lap when we first hit the road but will eventually move to the passenger seat and really relax. She loves to go for long rides in the truck. I definitely need to get her to obedience class because she is still sassy with me if I tell her no regarding playing with the electrical cords... she will stop but not after trying to challenge me but it is alot of bark and no bite.
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Old 05-03-2011, 10:18 PM
 
Location: On the sunny side of a mountain
3,605 posts, read 9,054,460 times
Reputation: 8269
Try a little bitter apple spray or tabasco on the electrical cords, it works great for some dogs, for mine not so much, but they're odd.
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Old 05-04-2011, 10:54 AM
 
Location: Mountains of middle TN
5,245 posts, read 16,420,995 times
Reputation: 6131
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cookiemeister View Post
Mrs1885... you really freaked me out for a while. I think you may be over-reacting. I have been playing with this pup ALOT and letting her know when she bites/chews too hard and she has learned to inhibit her bite. I took her to the park today and there were two very little scrappy boys there (probably 4 and 6) they were rough and tumble and she was great with them and she has never been around children before. She was shaking with excitement when she saw them and she was very careful not to hurt them even though they were extremely rough and tumble. I had to give her a bath this eve after rolling around in the sand with these kids and I thought of another problem... how am I going to control a 50 lb dog that doesn't really want a bath? I have to sleep with the dog after all. Another thing... she wants to sit in my lap when we first hit the road but will eventually move to the passenger seat and really relax. She loves to go for long rides in the truck. I definitely need to get her to obedience class because she is still sassy with me if I tell her no regarding playing with the electrical cords... she will stop but not after trying to challenge me but it is alot of bark and no bite.
I've spent 17 years training dogs. I've spent 16 years in rescue taking in dogs from shelters and many, many owner surrenders. I'm telling you what you may be facing. It sounds to me - based on what you've described - that you may have a dominant little puppy. I'm not saying you do, I've not seen her myself in person. BUT if she is and if she was taken that soon from her litter I'm telling you, you WILL have a lot of work ahead of you. It has NOTHING to do with her breed. I've seen small breed dogs with issues similar. A couple years ago we had a stunning purebred golden retriever with the same problems. I'm not saying you can't work through the issues. I'm saying it's hard and takes a very dedicated person. I'm not trying to scare you; I'm trying to let you know now while she's young and you can start early BEFORE you have issues. You don't have to believe me if you don't want to, but I've got many years dealing with dogs and have had experiences you obviously haven't. I'm trying to help. I certainly hope you listen to people that have more knowledge than you do.

Also, just because she's dominant or was taken from her litter too early, doesn't mean she's a bad dog. I don't want you to think that's what I'm implying. I'll be the first to take a very dominant dog. I love them; I love the challenge. I'd rather have a dog that's exhibiting different kinds of aggression issues than one that's fearful any day. My pittie/dane mix is a fearful dog. I love him but I'd never trust him in the psychological state he's been in around strange small children by himself. I've worked with him over a year, although he was much better once upon a time until he was adopted into a home where a family friend's child tormented him for several months. Since then though, he's back to square one. As long as I'm here and my staffie is here he seems much more confident and given an hour will allow someone to pet him. But if I'm not there or the staffie isn't there he'll just pee on himself and hide. I hate it. Of all the dogs I've taken in, he's been one of the most challenging. And since we live in the middle of nowhere in a town of people that dislike the breed, any socialization is nearly impossible. It's limited to people I can get to come to the house. LOL

As for her bathing, do it every six to eight weeks now while she's little. Dogs that have regular grooming as puppies will tolerate it as adults with no arguing at all. Make sure you're handling her feet daily because you'll need to be able to trim her nails regularly as a baby. Don't forget to play with the ears so you can clean those with no problem and brush her teeth! So many new owners forget about the teeth. Tooth decay may be linked to heart disease in both humans and dogs. Just one of the many things you'll hear people argue about, but I always think better safe than sorry. So brush those teeth.

When traveling, please buy a crate for her to travel in. I get the wire cages and run the seatbelt through the cage and put the dogs inside that. If you're in an accident and she's not secured, she'll be flying all over and can be severely injured or killed. A crate may not be her preferred way to travel, but it'll be safest. Make sure you give her toys and something yummy to chew - a frozen RAW beef bone from the grocery store is ideal. If it has some meat on it even better, as she'll be so intent on eating that meat off the bone she won't care that she's crated and she won't even think of trying to chew on the seatbelt. If the seatbelt is an issue, see if you can get a dividing panel for the crate. They're used in crates for medium and large breed dogs so you can keep the crate size smaller for the puppy and move the divider back as they grow. Just put it in the very back of the crate so she can't get to where the seatbelt is.

Obedience class will be highly beneficial to her now anyway. It will serve as not only basic obedience but also an opportunity for socialization. At this age she's going to challenge you. Think of a two year old kid. Know how they're always arguing and trying to get away with things? She'll be that way as well. She is trying to figure out boundaries and how much you're serious about them. Just like with human kids, being consistent is the key. I've got my daughter's boxer / boston terrier right now that's about 18 months old. She's done a great job with her since she was 8 weeks old but even at a year and a half she still tries to challenge me. She kept me up all night wanting to play with my slippers. The easy fix would have been to just put them where she couldn't reach them, but I wanted to teach her that when I say leave it, I mean leave it until you're told you may have it. So it was a long night of me getting back out of bed, removing the slipper from her smiling, slobbering little mouth, correcting her, putting the slipper back and crawling back in bed.

Puppies. Just like children except when they get on your nerves you can crate them and go to dinner. People get all pissy when you do that with human kids.

ETA: BEFORE you take her to any classes, to parks, to pet stores, etc., please make sure she's AT LEAST had her second set of vaccinations in her for at least a week. Until then the vaccs are really in effect and she can pick up parvo, distemper, etc.

Last edited by mrs1885; 05-04-2011 at 11:03 AM..
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Old 05-05-2011, 08:34 AM
 
Location: Wherever I am
457 posts, read 889,167 times
Reputation: 464
Listen to MRS and Foxy!! They have given you a TON of GREAT advice!!! With any dog, training and socialization are KEY...especially when dealing with a "bully breed". They are great and wonderful dogs, but not everyone sees it that way. It's your responsibility to make sure that she sets a good example for the "breed". I have an APBT, who is just a little over a year old. Yes, he is very spoiled, but he still knows and recognizes his boundaries. This is something that you must teach early. The NILF (nothing in life is free) program works GREAT!!

I would suggest getting her into training classes, and keeping her there. Training is a life long task with dogs. You train them initially, and always continue new training, then you'll want to occassionally go back and brush up, or have refresher training. Also don't be a bit surprised if some people don't want your dog to play with their dog. That was a bit of a hurdle that I had during our socialization period. I ended up having to actively seek out other pittie, and unbiased dog owners for socialization because the people in my neighborhood, did not want to risk an attack on their dog by my "ferocious" pit bull. Now, of course, they look at him in a totally different light, but it took a lot of work!

The good thing is, pitties are SMART and catch on fast! Yes, it's a lot of time and work training them to be great dogs, but it's also a TON of fun, and will make your bonding experience with her a lot stronger, and more specical. Good luck with her training, and enjoy really getting to know her in the process!!


By the way...pit bull owners and lovers will always be more than happy to help you with any questions or what not that you have regarding the breed. It's a very tight knit "community", and we always do our best to try and stick together! We need each other, after all!

Last edited by KittKat; 05-05-2011 at 08:42 AM..
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Old 05-06-2011, 07:04 AM
 
Location: Wherever I am
457 posts, read 889,167 times
Reputation: 464
Quote:
Originally Posted by KittKat View Post
The good thing is, pitties are SMART and catch on fast! Yes, it's a lot of time and work training them to be great dogs, but it's also a TON of fun, and will make your bonding experience with her a lot stronger, and more specical.
Spelling correction...SPECIAL

Sometimes...I am! lol
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Old 05-06-2011, 11:18 AM
 
216 posts, read 681,946 times
Reputation: 466
An all white dog, from a totally irresponsible byber, could possibly be deaf...a very common congenital condition linked to white coats. She may be unilateral deaf, in which case you may not notice right away. That's why responsible breeders of Dalmations, English Setters, and several other breeds BAER their dogs.

Also, she may be prone to skin allergies and problems, as that can also be linked to certain coat colors, like white and "blue". The chances of these problems are much greater since you got her from such an unscrupulous "breeder".

I would recommend a super premium dog food, at a minimum, to mitigate possible allergic reactions...no supermarket food.
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Old 05-07-2011, 03:20 PM
 
13,768 posts, read 38,181,103 times
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That is something else to consider. You are putting her in a pen all day. It needs a cover to keep her from getting a sun burn in the summer. Hopefully you have a place for her when it rains and you are at work. Maybe you could put her in a doggie day care a couple of days a week so she can get use to being in one place in case you have to leave her for a few days.

You have gotten a lot of good advice here. I personally do not believe in leaving a dog outside all day in a pen but that is just me. I have 6 dogs all rescues except for one and they all stay in the house when I go out.

I volunteer at our local shelter and we have had pitties who were PTS because they were not trained and chased a neighbor or attacked another dog.
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