View Full Version : I think we have made a huge mistake!!!
neeshNgeorgia
08-12-2006, 10:41
Hi everyone
i have a little bit of a dilema, see about 8 weeks ago we decided we wanted a puppy, now either DP or i are very patient so we kinda got the first puppy we saw which happens to be a kelpie X. Now growing up in the country i know that kelpies are working dogs, but i thought with a bit of training we would be able to calm him down and turn him into a quiet dog. hahaha No!! i swear to god my dog has ADHD! i know it's in the breed, but we walk him we take him on huge runs his got plenty of chew toys and he's still sooo full on! The thing is we haven't been able to enjoy having a dog, it's turned into more of a chore than ne thing, does ne one know wether he will calm down or if he's just going to be like this forever? I've also considered giving him away to someone on a farm cos that's what his kinda bred for...i dunno i feel like we have make a massive mistake!!! :thumbsdown:
Ryan&RileysMum
08-12-2006, 10:44
sorry cant help you there
maybe valium?
It's the breed - Kelpie X are very boisterous dogs and they don't grow out of their energy until years and years later.
I had a Kelpie X Lab (sadly passed away last year) but she was a dog that had so much energy.
So I know what they are like....
I guess I can only advise with lots of dog toys, lots of walks (off leash) and obedience training with a club. We have 2 dogs to keep each other company as well but that may not be an option for you!
RoarsomeMum
08-12-2006, 10:47
You are very honest Brave and responsible. I would give him away. If you cant give him what he needs. Huge :hugs: 's to you. Dont let this put you off pet ownership.. maybe just research your breed better next time.. Kelpies and heelers are sooooo smart, and soooo naughty if they are bored..
neeshNgeorgia
08-12-2006, 10:54
sorry cant help you there
maybe valium?
hehe thought about that lol jks!
no, see i just don't know, his still a puppy so i guess i'll give him another month or so, i must say though that he is excellent with DD, 22months, and they will play for hours on end, so i guess i can't give him away if they have created a bond. I don't know this dilema is just growing lol!
thanks for the replies!
Have you tried the dog toys which are like puzzles? Keeps them occupied for hours...
Also I give my dogs bones - big juicy marrow bones and I have peace and quiet for a few hours!!! :thumbsup:
hey neesh
our mini foxy is now nearly 2 and shes only just starting to calm down!! Maybe cos hes just a puppy (so cute btw hehe) but he might not settle for a while yet!
neeshNgeorgia
08-12-2006, 11:02
yeah that's what i was thinking, maybe i just get cranky when i try hang the washing out and he takes off with my bra's and undies hahaha!! thanks guys!!
oh! my dog used to take the washing off the line as well!!! VERY VERY annoying.....
They do grow out of it eventually....... it's a puppy thing...
We have an 11 year old Heeler X and he looks at our 1 year old Kelpie X Heeler when she plays up and I'm sure he rolls his eyes at her!!! Like she is sooooo immature!! LOL :laughing:
Have you tried taking him to puppy school? He sounds like he's being a pretty normal pup to me. Training, toys and company should sort him out. Puppies are just like kids, plenty of hard work!
ogilberry
08-12-2006, 11:31
i did the same thing i had my daughter and though hey we need another dalmation knowing damn well the work that i would have to put into him (we had a girl already) so yep did the same thing but after time he calmed down and they are the best with the kids. we take forever in deciding which breed would be great with the kids . but yeah as someone else has said already that puppies are just kids really and need to be entertained..
he/she will grow up but if you do decide to find it a new home there is a pet site that i use heaps called petlink.com.au it is free to list your dogs cats birds etc perhaps in the end if you and the dog are not happy then best to provide a good home for him/her either that or just make the decision nope i am keeping this pup and i will win and do all the things necassary to keep the pup amused until it eventually grows up hehe
best of luck with it...i know how frustrating it is :hugs:
fiona
redland bay qld
A few months ago i got a border collie - at first i had been pulling my hair out cause he was so mischievious and naughty.......BUT.........
he is starting to settle down.........he's still cheeky but is starting to get past that really difficult puppy stage.
When i first got him i started wondering if i had done the right thing.....but its getting better and my dd loves him. They are great for eachother.
Maybe hang in there for a little longer until it gets past that ratty puppy stage.
Good luck.
Chickadee
08-12-2006, 11:50
yeah that's what i was thinking, maybe i just get cranky when i try hang the washing out and he takes off with my bra's and undies hahaha!! thanks guys!!
One of our dogs still does this... she's nearly 7. I read a suggestion once to boobytrap the clothes with bags of water so the dogs gets a drenching. It's supposed to deter them from doing it again. Didn't work on ours but might with a pup.
neeshNgeorgia
08-12-2006, 11:50
hehe yeah i think i have calmed down now, i was thinking a little irrational, he is just a puppy after all. Wow and i was starting to think about having more children haha i'll definately be re thinking that one hahaha!
cheers guys
Butterbear
08-12-2006, 12:39
My suggestion would be to get another dog...:eek: scary as that sounds, the othe rpup will be able to play with and will tire each other out.
I have 2 beautiful pups boxer/bull arab and they are so full on!:yes: I walk then daily as far as 2km (they are 10 weeks this sunday) and they just love it. Agree, dont walk pup on a lead if you can, this way the pup can run around that extra bit further.... good luck!
If worise comes to worse.. i am sure you will find the pup a good home.:yes:
RedPanda
08-12-2006, 13:48
He may outgrow this stage. I have a dog that is cross bred with a traditional "working dog" breed. He was unbearably energetic for the first year. Now he's such a chilled out, great family dog. Make sure he has lots of walks, and challenging toys (food ball, kong etc). Hopefully he calms down. If not, you're probably being very responsible by giving him to a farm family.
Good luck with everything. :fingerscrossed: he chills out soon!!
candice_bree
08-12-2006, 13:55
Hi everyone
i have a little bit of a dilema, see about 8 weeks ago we decided we wanted a puppy, now either DP or i are very patient so we kinda got the first puppy we saw which happens to be a kelpie X. Now growing up in the country i know that kelpies are working dogs, but i thought with a bit of training we would be able to calm him down and turn him into a quiet dog. hahaha No!! i swear to god my dog has ADHD! i know it's in the breed, but we walk him we take him on huge runs his got plenty of chew toys and he's still sooo full on! The thing is we haven't been able to enjoy having a dog, it's turned into more of a chore than ne thing, does ne one know wether he will calm down or if he's just going to be like this forever? I've also considered giving him away to someone on a farm cos that's what his kinda bred for...i dunno i feel like we have make a massive mistake!!! :thumbsdown:
:hugs: for you!!
I am asking myself a similar question... We just got a blue heeler pup!! (see avatar)
And we have a small back yard and i have sworn to walk her everyday when she has finished her vaccinations, but i am thinking that she is just too much of an energetic dog for a small back yard....
So my solution: (hopefully one that might be helpful to you too!) is to take her to obedience school, so she knows when to come when called and all other commands, socialise her with other dogs, and let her run off the leed in the park up the street...
I wouldnt give her away though, not for all the rice in china... We just love her, naughty or not!! :yes:
mum2charli
08-12-2006, 14:05
I would say obedience school is a must, as well as free running every day!
And yes they do grow out of that FULL ON stage , takes about two years, but they will always be full of beans!
Just stick with it, it can be challening having a kelpie pup, but worth the hard work in the long run!
Kelpies are amazing, loyal, loving, gentle, playful dogs and if you give them the right start they will be your best-friend! We have two Kelpie X and while they have been a lot of work they are they are now nearly 6 and 3 years old and are great with DD (nearly 7 months)
candice_bree
08-12-2006, 14:08
P.S- Thankyou for creating this post... The advice is great for me too!! :thumbsup:
hayles86
08-12-2006, 14:29
Hi, I have a kelpie x as well. Shes about 10months now and she still digs holes and rips clothes of the line. But she has settled down alot since she was a little puppy. As for advice well i would just take the pup for walks everyday and if you can take the puppy for a swim every now and again, it really wears them out heaps. :) But she is so great with DD she wont even lick her or nothing. Alot of work had to go into training her but hey its worth it in the end. :)
I can completely symphatise. We have a 4 1/2 yr old pedigree cattle dog, who is still pretty much full-on. We have been told that they start to mature at around 7 years:eek:
Obedience training is a must as well as daily walks/runs. What we also did in the early days was buy a whole heap of toys and divide them into 2. Then we alternated them every few days to keep him entertained.
neeshNgeorgia
08-12-2006, 15:07
I can completely symphatise. We have a 4 1/2 yr old pedigree cattle dog, who is still pretty much full-on. We have been told that they start to mature at around 7 years:eek:
Obedience training is a must as well as daily walks/runs. What we also did in the early days was buy a whole heap of toys and divide them into 2. Then we alternated them every few days to keep him entertained.
Oh the toys idea is a great one, i actually used to do that with georgia's toys when she was a baby so she didn't get bored! good thinking will have to try that one!!!
Hi we have a pedigree Kelpie, and she was so full on when she was a pup (she's now 22months), but about 6 months ago she just mellowed heaps and loves sleeping most of the day in the sun, we live across from the beach so she gets a morning and night run on the beach and this keeps her satisfied, also the big marrow bones keep her going for hours, and she has plently of toys, and obsticles in the back yard to keep her entertained. can't help you with the washing sorry ours has never shown an interest in it.
Keep perservering with him if you can, cause they are so loyal and will love your bubs heaps
Mikeswifey
08-12-2006, 15:57
I personally beleive any type of farm dog needs to be on a property of at least 1/4 of an acre for them to be able to excersise, amuse themselves, bark at people etc.
My cousin in law has a boarder collie pup. Its in a backyard of a unti that is so small you cant even put a chairs and table there. It is going crazy, no matter how much they walk it.
My aunty in law takes it out everyday because the cousin wont but its still going crazy.
If you think it needs to go to a farm, maybe thats the best thing you can do for it.
We have 2 dogs, had them in a court yard at our own house and they never wanted to go outside. there was nothing for them to do.
We have just moved to 1/4 acre and they are different dogs. We cant get them inside now!
Dogs need room.:thumbsup:
Hey,
I have a three year old Lab who really hasn't settled down all that much. We failed at obedience training... I guess in a way we kind of gave up too, he is such a big dog. He at least sits when you tell him now, but it will be a age think I'm sure.
As for the washing, I grew up with cattle dogs who would pull clothes off the line and play tug-o-war with them and make a mess of any garden. The only thing that worked was electric fence. I know it sounds harsh but we spoke with the manufacturers and they said you use the same unit for a mouse as an elephant. We got ours from a stock feed shop. It is easy to set up and the dogs only need a sting or two and they stay away. I actually use it to keep my cat in the back yard - works a treat! It has the same effect on the pets as it does on us - a shock, not really painful.
Hope this works ( and doesn't sound too strange)!
Good luck
reAllytee
08-12-2006, 16:11
I wouldnt go the electric shock way but thats just me.
Get into training this is a big big must.
A lot of breeds are puppies for a long period of time compared to others but with training, patience & dominance you will get there.
Asserting dominance is a big thing this doesnt mean beting your pup just showing it you are top dog leading the way & that it must follow you not vice versa.
If you contact our lovely bubhubber shed via PM im sure she will be more than happy to help she runs puppy preschools !
I also suggest taking a look at Dog Tech website the trainer John Richardson is known as the dog whisperer & his site offers great advice if you arent wanting to go down the training path yet. He also has a great book called The Dog Whisperer & it was a life saver for me ! No i dont know him etc yes he did help me with my Labrador but thats it.
Allyoo,
I love the quote in your signature... where is it from?
reAllytee
08-12-2006, 16:29
Allyoo,
I love the quote in your signature... where is it from?
Aww thanks :D
I use http://www.thinkexist.com/ hope thats not bad for me to post ooops :o
You can then go into topics & look up things you are after ! Or if you have a book or the likes you love you should be able to find something via a search. I got a whole heap of quotes off the site for my DS's Naming/Blessing Day using Pooh Bear quotes & everything tis a great tool !
Thanks Allyoo!!:thumbsup:
mum2bubba
08-12-2006, 18:20
We have a kelpy x too and he is very playfull, jumps on everyone, that sort of thing, he is a year old and we were told he will probably calm down within the next few years. Its good that you are taking him for walks and everything, maybe get him to a puppy school if it gets out of hand (I should take my own advice on that) our dogs digs the garden up alot.
Heres a photo of our pup Chaos (his name suits him too)
http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f111/mum2bubba/P7310002.jpg
Mum2Tyla
09-12-2006, 11:06
Hi,
I have an alaskna malamute and also teach puppy preschool everyone who meets my dog goes on aobut how well trained she is but as a pup she dug holes, pulled wahing off the line, stole my undies, chewed furniture the works, take them to training , be consistent and strict with your training this does not mean you have to smack them i have never hit my dog and she is so well behaved. I must admit working dogs do take a bit of wrok but if trained right and kept stimulated they are great dogs
Kelly
we had a kelpie x lab but he's been since given to the rspca and probably been put down. :crying:
he was exactly like the OP desrcribed. we had him since he was a puppy and we had him for about 8 years. he never grew out of it like some people are saying. i think its the breed of the dog.
i think you should just get another dog. i dont think training will change him, nor do i think he will grow out of it as he gets older.
bronny-jane
10-12-2006, 05:40
they need lots of attention...and like routine...like going for a walk at the same time....ours used to have her lead ready at 7pm evernight....she was full on as a pup, but mellowd out as she got older........
sadly she got aggressive with my kids...cause we couldnt get enough attetion her way...she went to the pound:crying:
TickledPink
10-12-2006, 11:54
i feel your pain - we have two dogs and one is a kelpie x border colllie and the other is a retriever x kelpie.
and they are two of the most energetic dogs that i have ever seen.
thankfully after two years they are starting to settle down. they are really lovely dogs but definetly not for those with small backyards.
My BF has a kelpie - she's about 5 now (i think) and still is a very energetic dog wanting to play ball constantly.
bubbles & peanut
11-12-2006, 10:07
We had a Kelpie x Border Collie about a year ago - he was completely nuts.
We used to take him down the beach and he'd spend HOURS running up and down chasing and barking at the waves. We had to give him away because he ended up jumping our fence to chase cars. We were so lucky he didn't cause a massive accident :shame:
Shazbutt
11-12-2006, 15:19
I have a 15 month old pure bred cattle dog and he is now surprisingly obedient! :eek:
He is energetic, sure, and i found that taking him to obedience classes early on and at least getting those basic commands down pat helped ALOT!
I have also bought toys as bigglet suggested, ones that work their minds and also their bodies (Cougar has an Aussie Dog Staffy Ball (http://www.saveadog.org.au/shop/products/dogs_aussiedog_balls.asp) - bottom of page), and he LOVES it! He used to puncture all the basketballs and soccer balls he had...he rolls it around and essentially 'herds' it like livestock :rolleyes:, and this is well worth the money. The home alone toys and buster cubes are also great! Expensive, but if they save your underwear, then worth it!:laughing: I don't really walk him that much now (it's waaay to hot here at this time of year), but i throw the ball for a fair while every arvo, and he goes for his life with his big ball every day! He also gets big juicy marrowbones etc to work on....
Good luck, it sounds as if he and your DD are bonding and would be sad to see him go. I hope you can give him a bit of time and see how he goes. Good luck! :fingerscrossed:
TickledPink
12-12-2006, 22:29
We had a Kelpie x Border Collie about a year ago - he was completely nuts.
We used to take him down the beach and he'd spend HOURS running up and down chasing and barking at the waves.
sounds alot like my boy dog (kelpie x collie) we took him to the beach the other day and he wouldnt get out of the water. he was being cheeky and was staring at us, even his love of tennis balls (we were throwing them up onto the beach) wasnt enough to get him out. Dh ended up having to drag our other dog back into the water to pull him out.
Ryan&RileysMum
13-12-2006, 00:08
sounds alot like my boy dog (kelpie x collie) we took him to the beach the other day and he wouldnt get out of the water. he was being cheeky and was staring at us, even his love of tennis balls (we were throwing them up onto the beach) wasnt enough to get him out. Dh ended up having to drag our other dog back into the water to pull him out.
i saw this thing on dr harry cooper
he tied a reallllly long rope to the dog so when the owner wanted to get him back out of the water (at the beach) the could reel him back in it look really funny but it seemed to work
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