New Friend :)

[Mairte]

I dont believe I ever posted what happened between myself and my German Shepherd pup, Leo. I got him at four months and obviously he had no training. I worked with him and got everything resolved except for one important matter. Housebreaking. It didnt matter WHAT I did. I would think we were getting somewhere and then it would backslide and become even worse.
I have NEVER had that kind of problem with a dog, they "get" it and dont want to soil in the house or kennel. I reluctantly gave him up to a friend on a farm. I felt like a traitor. I had wanted a pup to learn from my older big dog (Chow/Akita cross) and bulloxed the whole thing up.
I didnt want to even LOOK at another puppy....
Meanwhile, Leo was ecstatic at not being subjected to a house.
Fast forward to now. I took the plunge again and glad I did. This pup is everything Leo was NOT, most particularily SMART, or at least wanting to please. He has quickly learned everything I have attempted to teach him and to date, has only had TWO accidents in the house.
Granted, I have to shift myself awake at midnight or 2 am when he lets me know he has to go to the bathroom but I feel it's worth it.
The breed of the pup? Great Dane/Lab/American Bulldog.
His name is Mordecai aka Puffalump aka Lumpy.
He gets along with Max (big dog), doxies and cats, though his exuberant "puppiness" sometimes annoys the felines.

[Captain Teague]

Congratulations on your new furry four legged child with a speech impediment. 

[DonaCatalina]

Congratulations on the new puppy. We'd love to see pics.

[Rowan MacD]

  Congrats on the new furbaby!  Sometimes you have to wait for the right one. 
  Leo was fortunate to have an adoptive mommy who understood his need to be a 'yard dog', and who could find a new forever home that suited him, otherwise it might not have ended so well.  Bless you.

[Mairte]

Thanks all, I will see if I can get pics (my daughter will have to take them, the only phone I have is a cell phone camera that works sporadically...at best...). Mordecai is black with white on his chest and feet. He has really GROWN in the time I have had him! Big surprise that.
He loves his Cuz toys but even at this age it's difficult to find toys he cant destroy. "L" bones from Jeffers work as do the Galileo nylabones.
Stuffed animals I have to be careful with because within a short time, they are history!
I will always feel sad about Leo. I would have kept him here rather than let him go to someplace even less suited to him. I am just glad it all worked out for everyone, people AND dogs.

[Mairte]

Started LEASH training this week. The Lump is not pleased. Until he figures out the word "TREATS".
He already knows, SIT, KENNEL, DROP IT, WAIT and GET THE TOY. 

[DonaCatalina]

Photos yet?

Have you tried training with Greenies treats and pill pockets? Our dogs will do anything for a pill pocket.

[Mairte]

No, my daughter is gone for a while and the camera on her phone is the only one that works in this house.
The pup is growing like a WEED. He is very intelligent and picks up anything if I tell him "Good Boy! And make a total fuss over him.
The housebreaking is proceeding wonderfully, even in this cold weather, he just goes faster,lol.
He has mastered going UP the stairs, now we are working on down the stairs...he is getting entirely too big to carry!
One of his favorite things to do, when I am going up to bed, is to take a flying leap onto the bed and wait for me to give him his chicken toy. I usually watch TV or read for a bit while he blissfully chews on the toy.
He is already taking over more of the bed, probably three fourths of it by the time he is grown.

[Mairte]

I do have a picture on the computer now, just need to post it.How does one post something from pictures on the computer?
I am wondering if I shouldnt have carried him quite a bit when he was younger as that is his "comfort" zone. My daughter was laughing because I pick up his front end and he is desperately trying to get his back legs in the air so I pick him up the rest of the way....

[Merlin the Elder]

This forum doesn't host images. If you don't have a place like FaceBook or something to host it publicly, send it to me and I'll post it on my server. I'll IM you my eddress.

[Rowan MacD]

I do have a picture on the computer now, just need to post it.How does one post something from pictures on the computer?

I use a Photobucket acct to host pics to post here, on LJ or any other forum that does not allow you to download directly to it (more often than not nowdays with bandwidth cost).
   It's free, and it came in very handy when my computer died.   I have all my important pics stored in a password protected acct and was able to retrieve them. 

[Mairte]

Emailed you Merlin. Thanks Rowen, I have been gone a little while so just getting back to this.
Lumpy is doing great and very intelligent. He's a keeper.

[Merlin the Elder]

May I present Mairte's young friend, Lumpy?

[Mairte]

He has actually doubled in size since this pic.

[Merlin the Elder]

Then it's a good thing I cropped the photo, or he wouldn't have fit on the page!

[Mairte]

LOL, its a good thing you cropped the photo because it was around the holidays and the room was chaos! Lumpy found plenty to mess with but that only helped in the chances for me to re-enforce what he couldnt have.
Thanks Merlin for posting it.
Yeah, by the time he is grown, he will probably take up almost the whole bed.

[Merlin the Elder]

My house is chaos twelve months out of the year.  Happy to post it. If you need to post any more—within reason—, you know where to send them.