I got a puppy for Christmas! Information and opinions needed

[redhen]

Quote:
again and for last time cause its like hitting my head against a wall..open your minds just a little people..NOT ALL PET STORES ARE THE HORRIBLE TERRIBLE DOG BEATING ABUSIVE DIESEASE RIDDEN PLACES SOME PEOPLE NOT TO BE NAMED, ARE BRAINWASHING YOU WITH..some are good caring loveing people,so they make a living off it,arent we all makeing a living off other peoples needs ,wants and desires????

well..not knowing your friend or anything, i CAN believe you...IMO most times its the LARGE chain pet stores that are bad.....i think that alot (but not all) of the small privately owned pet stores DO care about the animals....i have seen both sides to this....and as for the breeders....whats the differance if they sell to me (a stranger) from their house....OR they sell the dogs through a pet store to STRANGERS....either way...the breeders dont see the pups again.....

 

[Roosterboy]

Back to my scenario

My aunt just found a breeder in Tennessee that had two sable and white sheltand sheep dog pups that are 5 weeks old (Not exactly, probably more like 5 and a half weeks) and her daughter is coming up to washington (2 hours away)

Sooooo............ I love her shelties and she has had a lot and breed a lot of them

the father is 18 lbs and the mom is 25 lbs

I'll keep posting when i get back but i want to know if it is okay for someone else to pick the dog out

ETA: I would take one in a heart beat but i did have a couple of questions and i am worried about getting a dog i don't pick out. I trust her, because she has breed and raised many a sheltie and she does it responsibly and knows a lot about the breed.

Will shelties were clothes? I don't mean a jacket or dog shoes but a life jacket or a bandanna (or a football Jersey )

On a scale of 1 to ten how well of a swimmer are they?

Is there any special breed specific information i should know?

Will a sheltie be a good travel(Car) companion?

 

[lorieMN]

Quote:
shelties are great little dogs,some tend to be a little hyper and barky,but most are very smart so problems can be addressed and fixed early on..they can wear clothes like you want,I dont really know how they are as for swimming,I dont think they are real water hounds and prefer not to swim..any dog loves to travel in cars,once they get used to it and realize they get to be with humans more..I guess haveing someone else pick out your dog wouldnt be any worse then buying one from another state that you have only seen pics of and talked to the breeder by phone and having them shipped,it all depends on if you are comfortable with that or not..I have bought a couple this way and havent been dissapointed.

 

[Roosterboy]

Can you keep their hair short? Like people do with yorkies and long-haired dogs in the summer

 

[redhen]

Quote:
hi..you have to be careful with shaving some dogs in the summer..they can and do get sun burns....sometimes the hair is what protects them from that...but..i bet you could get it trimmed down and thinned out some....good luck!

 

[lorieMN]

I agree with redhen,I wouldnt shave them,the double coat also helps keep them cool in the heat..but they thin out a lot in the heat anyway,unless you keep them in AC all the time.

 

[raindrop]

Some shelties have much more coat than others. I do agility with my dogs and know a lot of shelties since they are very popular agility dogs.
Good things:
Very smart. Playful. Good size. Clean. Athletic. Excellent focus and trainability.

Potential negatives:
Many are VERY SHY. Meet the parents and see how social and outgoing they are.
Many bark a lot, no matter how much you train them.
Require a lot of grooming.

Good luck!

 

[Big Red's Mom]

I have a friend that has always had them. They do swim but they are small so you have to watch them. They will over do it and can get in trouble if the swimming area is large. Lake, pond etc. They do bark a good amount of the time. They also do well with other dogs.

How old is your Lab? Will it be too much for a small puppy?

I have an 85 pound Golden and she loves babies but she has a hard time understanding they are smaller than her....She rolls then alot.

Good Luck.....No matter what you choose, you are giving an animal a loving home.

 

[Rae_37066]

Quote:
I went to this site and found a pitiful starved Rat Terrier here in Tn and I think I might be taking a small road trip. I can offer him a good home, love and food.

he is so skinny. bad people I can't believe what people do to each other and helpless animals.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j251/rae_37066/tn_joey.jpg

Crate training worked for me. I leave the cage open and they all use it like a dog house. I tell them to go to bed and they run and jump in their cage. I get the vacuum out and they get in and won't come out til I am done. lol so far they never offered to help.

Well, I went and picked up Joey from the Johnson city pound. The girl at the shelter was a very nice girl. I took Joey to the vet yesterday. he weighs 14 lbs, he should weigh around 20. The shelter had him from 12/23 and said he was twice the size that he was. Someone put him in one of those drop boxes for dogs and left a note with him that he was wandering around and looked hungry. (i wonder how they figured that out?) He has an upper respiratory infection due to stress on his system. He is on an antibiotic for that. He seems to be about 4 yrs old. He is not scared of us but if we move quick towards him he crouches. He gets along good with all the dogs and cats. so far he is trying to impress us

, I hope that keeps up. some pics of Joey

poor skinny Joey

Getting some love

Joey loving the fridge. LOL check out that tail

going to bed (not sure if he likes it)

Looks mean but it is 20 degrees out there. and one is sick, one is small and the other is spoiled. All boys and they all will mark their territory

and I don't agree with them cause I think it's mine.

 

[Roosterboy]

I'm thinking i am going to get the Jack-Russel sheltie mix or the sheltie. What do you think? I have not met the shelties but i have met the mix.

The one of the litter of mixes i like isn't to crazy, not the runt, and her legs aren't as long as her sister's.

Or should i wait for the sheltie or get more information about them?

Why do they all have to be so dang cute?!?