I hear that the four popular German dogs are quite a lot alike. I have an adored Boxer, but have heard the same type of issues from every German breed owner.
1) They seem to have this misguided sense of guarding, when you specifically train the dog it is unacceptable to behave with aggression. It turns into a dog that will not leave a visitor alone and demands to be on their lap, which is a bit obnoxious to many people. When trained against aggression, they get confused.
2) German house dogs are not at all cool with being left alone, with no one to use their 'guard instict' towards. I do not believe the dog gets mad at me for leaving her alone. I do believe German breeds have a psychological need to have 'their person' around or are very stressed out dogs.
I don't bother to punish my dog for getting in the garbage can. She tells on herself, as soon as I walk in, with that guilty look and will not greet you.
3) Can a dog get any smarter? It is a challenge to train German dogs. You definitely have a smart dog with a dominance issue on your hands! They know every single command you say, but act like spoiled children. They dare you to challenge them. I even negotiate with my Boxer! Isn't this pathetic, but these dogs are that smart.
4) After owning a German breed, would you give the ok for most people to buy one of these breeds? I say only people who love dogs, I do mean truly love dogs, could put up with a German dog's nonsense.
Any German dog owners out there? Please share dog stories!! These are unique dogs. They are definitely all that, if you can deal with having another kid on your hands! lol!! *************************************************************** 07-17-06, 10:45 AM FredPuli What are the four German breeds of which you speak, , Wildflower? The Boxer and the GSD are markedly different IMHO: I assume the German Shepherd is one but what are the others? You certainly never confuse a Mittel or a Kleiner Spitz with any other German breed, thats for sure ! (They are like playful, clever, kids all their lives and great fun, if tiring)
07-17-06, 11:57 PM Wildflower63 I only wanted friendly conversation about the popular German breed of dogs and their challenges to owners who adore these dogs, like a member of the family.
I am talking only about commonly know German dogs, not a breed so expensive no one could find or financially afford.
Her are the four popular, affordable German breeds I was referring to, which I believe everyone knows.
I was not trying to start a debate of who is more intelligent about dogs. These are common breeds, which many people own.
German dogs are quite unique, as I found out. They are so smart and act like a bad kid, at times. You definitely have a challenge training a strong minded, intelligent German dog, with potential for serious aggression issues, if you don't train them right.
Are you trying to debate me about dogs, Fred? My intended post was to share dog stories and tips of training a very intelligent and strong minded breed.
07-18-06, 01:31 AM FredPuli
quote: Originally posted by Wildflower63:
Are you trying to debate me about dogs, Fred? .
No Smile. And I shall give my profound canine thoughts on this once I am neither time-limited nor doing battle with a French 'AZERTY' (not a US/UK 'QWERTY') keyboard in this Paris hotel's business centre Big Grin
07-19-06, 01:12 AM Wildflower63 That's not all good, Fred. You just blocked discussion about four popular German bred dogs.
I always hated German breeds. They are mean! Well, if you encourage it, they will eat your neighbors. This is why my Boxer was carefully trained against any aggressive behavior.
These are breeds capable of love towards you and even your cat that you would never think a dog was capable of. German breeds need careful training and require a lot of attention, as owners know.
Fred, you just screwed up the entire topic! No one will talk about their dogs and tips of training very intelligent, but headstrong breeds.
Next time, be nice!! I only wanted to talk to dog owners about our loved dogs.
07-19-06, 03:19 PM jusork Wild, Fred only said that he'd respond later, and certainly nice enough. And the topic still looks like it's in pretty good condition to me. Give him time to get back to his QWERTY and I'm sure you'll have a good discussion.
07-19-06, 11:06 PM Wildflower63 Karrow, get your butt in here!!
You own German dogs. You know how difficult they can be to train. You also know that there is no dog that will love you, as a German breed is capable of.
I was afraid of German dogs, but spent a ton of time training my headstrong Boxer. I am amazed by German bred dogs, who seem to understand every human emotion, so easily. I finally get it why people love these 'mean dogs', as I used to believe. They love, beyond comprehension.
German breeds are a big challenge. They are so dominant, wanting to dominate you. They are so loyal and loving beyond anything I could imagine out of a dog. Finally, I understand why people love these breeds.
If you really love dogs and are willing to give them time they need, you will have a dog that is unbelievable, but not for every owner. German breeds are so smart and will challenge you. They do have serious aggression potential, to eat anyone who walks in your yard. In surbia, this is a big problem.
My son and I find this agression behavior with humor. Her favorite play is 'mean dog'. If you didn't know her, you would think she would prefer to see you dead. We know our dog will harm no one, but we can fire her up easily playing 'mean dog'. She is not allowed to bite hard enough to hurt. She acts so aggressive, in play, we can scare people. It is funny!
My Boxer even guards the cats. She thinks that she can play with them. She treed one of my son's cats, attempting to play, but cats don't see it that way. She didn't know cats belonged in trees. She cried and whined until the cat got out of that tree. This took hours!
My Boxer, who is so nice, but kills anything she can, like squirrels and small wild animals. I don't quite get it, but it must be the aggression bred to them. I really could command my Boxer to attack, but not kind to the dog at all. This is a very interesting and fun breed!!
That's only part of my dog story! I know other members own German breeds and deal with their challenges.
Post!!
07-20-06, 12:46 PM jusork How do you know so much about German dogs from just owning a Boxer? Surely they're not all the same, right?
07-21-06, 02:14 AM Wildflower63 I am extremely careful before buying a dog. I do quite a lot of research on breeds before I feel this is an animal that will fit in with our family lifestyle.
I realize how bad this sounds, but my cats are always rescue pets, who will die at the Animal Shelter. I know how dogs are, demanding and time consuming. I only buy pups with papers.
There are vast genetic differences, from a tiny Toy Poodle to Great Dane. I want to know what to expect, which is why I only buy pedigree dogs.
Actually the popular German breeds are very similar. They all have attack/guard bred into them. They can be sweeties, if trained right, or so mean you have a four legged laws suit on your hands.
Believe me, I did my homework to decide family wishes to the needs of the dog. I take it very seriously buying a dog.
07-21-06, 03:27 PM DvdGStwrt Sirius is apt to love a robber to death before taking a defensive posture. Seriously I think otherwise.
She can’t be left alone, deep depression and (I believe) suicidal tendencies quickly arise if left alone.
She understands German, can roll down the car windows (both electric and manual “crank”), even knows when we are spelling out words – like Ride, Grandpa, store, even if we spell out whole sentences she understand when key words are spelt. Want to drive her crazy? Just say “Car” or “Truck” she’s ready to go – NOW.
She also shares; she will bring me a mouthful of kibble occasionally dropping it on the floor before me or into my lap. She will also bring me her raw-hide and will not be satisfied until I “nibble” on it (I don’t actually put it in my mouth, but make the motions and sounds of chewing on it). The difference between her kibbles and her raw hide is she does not take back the kibble – she understands that kibble is food and is one time consumption item, until raw hide which is chewed and lasts longer.
This behavior was not taught to her – she started doing it on her own way back when she was a puppy.
Dog is a social creature – they are naturally drawn to the pack. We humans substitute the pack with family; in order to be in control one must establish dominance of the pack early on in any dog’s life with the Family. Your dog will ultimately turn to you for clues on behavior, and will behave and act in its known place within the pack/family structure. Sirius is well aware that I am the Alpha Male in this household – Danny comes second and she is the third. When we had the Cat living with us he and she established that he was the alpha male that suffers the rest of us to exist in his domain Wink.
Did I say that Sirius would most likely lick a robber to death? In reality I doubt that, although she greets “strangers” enthusiastically it’s always because she sees me greeting strangers without fear/apprehension. However after a month that the Nephew was staying with us (a stranger now family) he got high, got abusive and her stance changed from “friendly” to protective snarling and raised hair – she was ultimately protecting me from his “frightening” behavior. She knew what was going on and acted like a guard dog just waiting (perhaps wanting) for me to give the order for attack (We have a German word and a signed word for that – she is trained for protection)
She barks to alert us to when the gas man and electric man come to read the meters. She will bark to let us know when strangers enter the gate. She completely ignores the landlord (when she is in the house) when he pulls in she will rush to greet him when he parks his car. When Grandpa or Grandma (Danny’s parents) drive in she gets excited, tail wagging and wanting outside. At night when Danny pulls in at the gate she gets really excited and must be let out to go jump in the car and greet him. There is a difference in her enthusiasm to greeting people – if a person poises a threat she growls and her hair comes up in defensive posture.
Leaving a dog alone for long periods of time is like leaving your child alone. You would no want to leave your child alone because you know that the child needs guidance and love. Older/mature dogs will usually sleep through most of the day – however you need to have a play time and attention time or they will likely suffer from emotional “issues”. The reason why I think Sirius is “suicidal” when left alone is because her sister died and her whole attitude changed – she is afraid to be left alone thinking perhaps she is likely to “disappear”. She still remembers Ebony – when we talk about Ebony (3 years later) her ears pick up.
Most dogs are smarter than we give credit to them, most can learn simple English (or any human language) and will act/react to the language. This is why specialized dogs are trained in say German where they can be given orders in a language which others may not know thus control the dog. Most (not all) dogs can pick up on Sign Language easier than spoken language. Ebony knew and understood a large vocabulary of words in Sign – she was also very attentive watching for Signed words.
As for breeds of dogs appearing to be more maladjusted than others, rotts, Dobermans, German Sheppard’s, boxers, etc are usually the ones picked due to size or ability to injure by humans and are trained/taught/abused to be aggressive by humans.
My Sister in-law has a variety of dogs – 5 of them, none of which are “German breeds” but all of which are smart, friendly and know when to be on the defensive and know when a person is “safe” to have around. 3 of them are hunting “bird” dogs. They have established a pecking order in the household – although Mom and Dad (humans) are in control (barely it would seem at times Big Grin) they have established rules within their ranks, who goes first to the food bowl, who leads, who follows.
One (or more) of them has learned how to open cabinets – thus the lower cabinets all have “baby locks” on them. Another opens the sliding glass door, knows how to unlock it – thus a stick is placed in the door to keep it closed.
Around her we pulled up the carpeting years ago – not because of “accidents” more because we live in a rural area and dogs and people tend to track in dirt. The sister in law lives on a large lot, the back yard (dog owned and operated) is usually a mud puddle or a dirt lot – she too gave up the notion of wall to wall carpeting (in the doggy areas) and went to hard wood floors.
She never trained the dogs to potty in one location in the back yard – I on the other hand teach the dogs to potty in a corner of the yard where they usually (except when it rains) go there to do their thing. I also gave up another corner to digging – dogs dig then lie in the hole – mind they do not have sweat glands and the soil is much cooler a couple inches below ground level.
By and large I do not buy into “what breed is best” My take is that Mix breeds are better than pure breeds as family members – the more mixed the better. Many of the breeds are prone to breed related ills, some are just plain ugly (in my opinion) and to me there is just something wrong with the humans who appear to have control issues Wink.
A few years ago when I was walking Ebony (about 9 years ago before Sirius was born) an old man greeted me and Ebony we talked and he said something which has stuck with me.
“You know you are a god – that dog there looks up to you, worships you and will follow you to the ends of the earth. Just make sure your worth all of that worship.”
07-22-06, 01:25 AM FredPuli First of all these breeds are not alike. The German Shepherd Dog is in a different league of intelligence to the others: the 'Alsatian'is only matched or surpassed in brainpower by the Border Collie and the Poodle (any size). (The Border Collie's brain is only just classifiable as canine so it might be fairer to ignore that: the breed is quicker to learn than its owners Big Grin ).The GSD is a remarkably tractable dog. It was bred as a sheepdog but not as a guard dog for the flock. It's not like the Komondor, for example. It is a herding breed. One of mine had this so hard wired into her that she would round up and herd a litter of poodle puppies that we had (somewhat to the surprise of the pups' dam ) and the GSDs I've bred generally showed a temperament consistent with such breeding.They are definitely a one-man breed , as you'd expect from a sheepdog type. They'll have eyes only for the owner. There image as aggressive is utterly misplaced. They are not even particularly possessive or territorial.
The Dobermann was certainly bred as a guard. It was designed as such from the off, intended by its originator as a breed suited to him as an itinerant tax-collector. It is quite an intelligent breed, though not really in the GSD league and it's not that difficult to teach: you should be able to get one to obedience competition standard .As to temperament, well you know what it was bred for !It can be possessive and needs some early training to meet and greet Big Grin
The Rottweiler. Nobody in their right mind gets a Rottweiler Big Grin Big Grin. It has too be one of the most stubborn, recalcitrant, dogs on God's earth (apart from the Hungarian Puli). Sorry, Rottie fans but it is also one of the stupider breeds. It's hard to tell, when you tell it the same command ten times wheteher a) it doesn't understand or has forgotten or b) it has understood but prefers to ignore you.
There's a much more serious side to the Rottie. It was bred for one purpose, that of guard, a purpose for which high-reasoning skills were secondary to muscle and jaws. That brings a simple-minded and any potentially very dangerous possessiveness over property and territory linked to its owner. It will guard its owner single-mindedly against all threats both those which are real and those which totally of its own imagining (and how do you guess what it is imagining?).It may present an unpredictable threat to strangers.It presents a very real threat to visiting toddlers. Toddlers, very young children, naturally stare at anything that interests them. To a dog a stare is a threat. To a dog of the height of a Rottweiler this stare is often at eye-level or close to that. Now, put that fact with the other factors of the dog's breeding and tragedy can happen.Most dogs would walk or look away feeling out-stared or they'd ignore the 'threat'. This breed will not. [Pause now while indignant owners say 'The dog is perfectly safe with my/ my family children' So it may be but that's because it has been taught or learned otherwise in their cases but you should still not laeve a toddler alone with one.
Boxer: Big boisterous, playful. Not very difficult to train. A fairly safe breed. Can be a bit possessive but the tendency is not marked and should be easily stopped very early.This breed, though bred for aggressive purposes, has been shown in the ring and bred as a pet so intensively that any such trait is all but gone from its original state.
07-24-06, 03:28 AM Wildflower63 Thank you guys for sharing your dog information and personal experience!
David, doesn't it get tiring when you have a dog determined to outsmart you? lol! I had an adorable little terrier. He was hard to train because of sick people wanting to make a buck off of a dog. The poor thing was insane when I got him, as a pup.
I can't say that he was all that smart, but smart enough never to be corrected, ever, once we could finally train him. It took a lot of time and effort. I honestly believe most people would have sent him to the pound. That is how abused and neglected he was, but a sweetie!
My Lab was so smart, like my Boxer, but in such differing ways. My Lab did figure out any way to get anything she wanted. My Boxer gets what she wants using different methods.
These dogs were all pedigree, bred for differing traits. They were all vastly different and showed exactly what they were bred for.
My Lab was just as David describes, a problem solver. She would figure out anything she wanted. She was of hunting stock and definitely acted that way! She would chew up the house, if you didn't have something to keep her busy.
My Boxer is a very confused dog. She was never allowed aggressive behavior, but I see it in her. Her favorite game isn't fetch, like my Lab. She is bored by that. She wants to play attack dog.
My Boxer has misguided guard instinct. People that come in my house, she just will not leave alone, in a friendly way. Most people would agree that a Boxer does not belong in their lap, but she thinks that she is guarding us against this unknown person by blocking any attempt close to us.
Boxers, in my opinion, are bi-polar! If you train them right, they are the nicest dog you will ever see, too friendly, at times. I have run into Boxers that are mean and will guard anything they see as 'theirs'.
I have never seen love, as my Boxer adores my daughter and me, as constant people in her life. My daughter is 15. She has a friend two doors over. The dog will not leave me alone and forgets how large and strong she really is, very upset because my daughter left.
I have been told by other owners of German breeds that they are all like that. They adore their owners beyond belief. Owners have also said they will never own another dog, with exception to a German breed.
I got into a bit of trouble with my old neighbor who used a Rottie to protect property. This dog was a sweetie! I used to give him leftovers he liked. When my neighbor noticed the dog happy to see me, not a bark, he asked me to ignore the dog because I was teaching him not to guard his property.
My Boxer is a dominant rockhead to train. She knows everything you are saying, down to spelling. You cannot fool her saying 'dog park'. She already knows what time of day I will take her. If that isn't right, she doesn't buy it.
She also thinks every command is negotiable, until she knows I am angry with her. I then get this pathetic dog act. This dog is too smart! lol!
Please continue to share dog stories! I very much enjoy them!! 07-25-06, 03:59 PM
DvdGStwrt Sirius is the worst dog I ever had... But I love her the most.
Let me put it this way, she is the only one that has brought me to tears of frustration – literally.
We reached a compromise years ago with “the animals”. We decided to keep the antiques and “good” linins in storage until they grow up and move out.
After Ebony and her long decline due to cancer my heart kind of broke, I flat refuse to take on any more animals. Although people have attempted to push animals off on us I just remember that last month with Ebony and find the ability to decline taking in any more “kids”.
I prefer the company of dog over the company of the majority of humans I have met; I’ll take ahead strong, stubborn, too smart for her own good dog over a meek and mild human being any day.
Sirius has more than made up for the frustrations; she is basically a good dog, a good companion who has been loyal through everything.
07-27-06, 01:47 AM Wildflower63 I know just how you feel not wanting to get attached to another dog, knowing when you get a pup, you will probably outlive them. Personally speaking, I think they give me so much happiness that it is worth the pain I feel upon their death.
Why is it that the head strong, stubborn, gotta have their way dogs are the most challenging, but the most rewarding? I don't get it either!!
I will admit my Boxer is ill behaved. My Lab was fantastic at voice command. My Boxer thinks everything is negotiable. She does what I absolutely demand, like being housebroken, not ripping up the house, or going after the cat.
Everything else is a battle of will and negotiable. I do come home to a very guilty acting dog for getting in the garbage, but it is garbage. If I go anywhere, without a work uniform, she is going too. I have to physically back her off. Telling her 'no' is a negotiation point where I get this oversized, very strong dog climbing all over me to get her way because I don't feel like playing what she wants me to.
Why dogs that always seem to outsmart me are so adored is an interesting thought. I guess the challenge and intelligence is so appealing about them. They seem to understand you, too well! They get your demands of 'out of the question'. They also understand your every weakness.
How does a dog know you so well?
07-27-06, 01:52 PM FredPuli Dog stories you want? Right!Here are my most recent ( as in 'now'):
There is a great thunderstorm going on right now. So what do you expect dogs to do in thunderstorms ? Get nervous and hide? Come inside sharpish to avoid getting wet? Take shelter outside? Now think 'poodle'. Our standard poodle bitch runs true to breed. The breed was created as a water-dog: its unusual coat is a clue.It's meant to retrieve ducks. So this bitch doesn't hide from the wet. No, she's been demanding, pestering me, to go outside and have a look and she just has.She is charging about in the downpour, loving every minute of it. As a further entertainment she is looking out for the lightning flashes. Every time she sees one she runs full pelt towards where it is, as though she wants to catch it. She hasn't caught one yet (nor it her).The only break in this amusement has been when she has chanced upon a hedgehog taking shelter in the bushes. As soon as she finds a hedgehog you soon know about it because she stands over it barking her head off and looking back to me 'Hey, Dad, look what I've found.... and it's prickly! Come and see!' The hedgehog, naturally, doesn't move but just puts its nose down and presents its prickles to her. They are 'no fun' because they don't run away.At least she's not like an Alsatian bitch we had that used to proudly pick them up and carry them back to the kitchen (who said GSDs were intelligent ???) But this soon passes because there's another flash to chase.
Last week two of the cockerpoos (min poodle/American cocker spaniel cross) decided that hunting out and chasing the rabbits outside was no way to get a meal. So they 'broke in' next door and raided the hutch of the tame rabbit in the garden there and killed and ate that instead. Roll Eyes Unbeknown to me they've a track record for this. Apparently the groomer made the mistake of putting them in her back garden whilst they awaited a trim. She had a tame rabbit out the back too. I say 'had' advisedly: the rabbit was definitely in the past tense by the time they'd finished with it.
And, as a bonus, the Irish wolfhounds long ago decided that they were more wolf than hound. So they lead off the evening howl. Now, happy dogs howl either because they want to do a roll-call of an evening: it's a 'Hey everyone, are we all back together for the night yet? Just checking': or because they are establishing the whereabouts of other'packs'. This makes sense to wolves. It establishes that the various packs are out there and where they are. When packs share the same large hunting-grounds it is in their best interests that they do not overlap or try to hunt the same patch of an area.
That's all very well but not when a) they are not on the Russian steppes but are in rural Cambridgeshire b) are not wolves but wolfhounds (I must get them to read the book !) c) all the seven others, not even wolfhounds themselves, remember the ancestral urges and all join in the chorus d) they feel the need to do this, not just at dusk, but at dawn too i.e about 3.30 in the morning. It's that last bit that is worst. Whilst the neighbours are a fair way off they are still within earshot when, as now in the hot weather, they sleep with all their windows open.
Never mind. They few complainers are not country people but townees who have moved to the village so really their complaints don't really count Big Grin On the other hand saying 'Imagine the dogs were cockerels: you'd get noise from them at that hour !' may not be diplomatic. Big Grin( I may have to shut the dogs in overnight so they are not so aware of the first light but nothing is absolutely guaranteed to work)
07-29-06, 12:14 AM Wildflower63 Poodles? Are you serious! This breed has always been annoying to me. They definitely are very loyal to owners, but will growl and bare teeth at a visitor trying to pet them. What brat dogs! lol!!
Poodles are quite known for their intelligence. I didn't know they loved water! My Lab was a 'water lover' also. The only time she had to be on a leash was when a creek, pond, or anything she could swim in was around.
Why did she act like she was being tortured every time I gave her a bath? Honestly, I think a dog's nose is so sensitive. What nice shampoo we think smells great is probably overwhelming to a dog's senses. Do you poodles hate getting a bath too?
My Boxer is a bit different about water. She has no desire to swim at all. She hates the rain, but not afraid of a thunderstorm. She was lots of fun even during weather changes trying to house break her. If the temperature wasn't right she wouldn't go out, just pee on the floor. This drove me nuts!
Finally, she is ok with seasonal temperature change, but still hates the rain. She isn't afraid of the sound of thunder. She gets bored and wants out. I tell her, 'rain'. She is so smart, but thinks she is much smarter than I am. Once she sees the rain, she doesn't want out at all.
Dogs that sing? I bet your Irish Wolfhound gets to your neighbors! This one brings me back a long time. My dad was a phone man. We had morons with hunting hounds in their yard with a short chain and dog house. My dad had to go to work. Those dogs howling in the night ****ed him off!
This turned into a war of words! It wasn't hard for a phone man to get anyone's phone number, no matter how many times they changed it over his calls.
My dad kept calling our neighbors telling them to get their dogs quiet before he made them permanently quiet. They kept changing their phone number. My dad kept calling them in the middle of the night, with their howling hounds. They never could figure out who constantly had their phone number. I, as a kid, didn't trust my dad not to kill a dog. I know better now!
Fred, make sure you don't have some NRA member getting your phone number stalking you over your dog! lol! My dad would never harm a dog, as I know now. I be the neighbors didn't!
What is up with nice dogs killing things? I know that I shouldn't do this, but my neighborhood dies at night. I do let my Boxer loose after 11:30PM. My son got annoyed, saying the dog knew, which she does, and chased his car. He hit the gas harder, so she wouldn't be hit. She kept up at 30mph, a Boxer!
Given how fast she really is, she kills every small animal she can find, but adores 'her' cats. She would never bite anyone. She is not aggressive toward any dog. I had to shut down my bird feeder because she killed four squirrels on a chain!
Keep the dog stories coming!!
08-03-06, 03:26 PM FredPuli Wildflower (and all) Dog stories? Here's two from England this week. First is the Jack Russell called Ratty. He's a farm dog, kept to kill rats. The farmer thinks that the dog has ridden in farm vehicles and on tractors and trailers but not anything else and has not been taken into town. So imagine his surprise when someone rang him to report seeing the dog three miles away in York. Others knew why that was. The dog had taken to going to the road outside the farm gate and had there seen a bus stopping at a bus stop.People got on and so did Ratty ! And after three miles Ratty got off the bus at a stop by a pub and went in. This was his regular run and he'd got so used to it that he even had his 'own' seat on the bus, preferring the back-facing single seat near the driver !His choice of stop to alight at, the last stop before York itself, may have been a chance one but it was reinforced because he was soon being given a drink of water and bits of sausage by the staff of the pub. They did, initially, take him back or call the owner but it now seems that he's been encouraged to take the bus again and so make a return journey. Dogs travel free on the local buses there so it's not costing much.
Story two has made national news too and was just now on French radio : Barney,a Dobermann Pinscher, was employed to guard a valuable collection of teddy bears. These were brought together for a public exhibition at a mansion and the dog and handler were required by the insurers. He was allowed off the leash briefly to have a sniff around. He did but also set upon innocent teddies and started ripping them . His most valuable victim was Mabel, a teddy bear once owned by Elvis Presley:victim suffered severe abdominal wounds and head almost severed ('she' cost $80,000 at auction).The dog was on the rampage around the display for at least 15 minutes before his handler could wrestle him off Mabel, by which time he done over £20,000 (c$40,000) worth of damage to other victims.
The mansion's (and Mabel's ) owner, Sir Benjamin Slade, knows a bit about Dobermanns. His former mother-in-law, who possibly didn't like him much (note 'former'), left him her Dobermann together with £50,000 in her Will. The money was to help provide for the dog and 'no dog, no money' was the rule.So Sir Benjamin, entering into the spirit of the Will, used to drive the dog around in a chauffeur-driven limo, kept his water in a champagne cooler, groom him with silver brushes and feed him off a silver bowl Big Grin Perhaps Barney knew of this history and was jealous?
Anyway, he's 'nothing but a hound-dog' !
PS I don't find the dog on a bus so very odd. It's odd for a farm dog but certainly I've seen dogs in London that would travel on buses on their own.They too were well known to locals and were creatures of habit. It was easier then because all the buses had an open entry platform at the nearside rear corner and no doors. Dogs and people could jump on and off at will. Ratty has to go to a stop and wait for the doors to open Smile
08-03-06, 10:23 PM Wildflower63 Fantastic dog stories Fred!!
I owned a Toy Fox Terrier. From anything you read, this breed should never be allowed off leash. It is said that they are a very independent breed, which may ignore your command, off leash.
I figured that one out quickly with my Toy Fox Terrier! Let him off leash, he would be on a bus also. Terriers are that independent!
What an adorable, smart dog! He even got a free ride on the bus! lol! I couldn't trust my early kids as teens to figure this out without calling me with some stupid excuse to make me pick them up. A dog is smarter than my teens. I knew it!!
I can't say that I'm surprised about that Dobie! My Boxer isn't one for tearing up the house, just interested in the garbage can. She does tell on herself, with those guilty looks.
German dogs cannot resist a stuffed animal! This is a trained Guard Dog, which all German breeds have been bred to do. My Boxer shows up with one of my daughter's stuffed animals. My daughter is furious! The dog does not act with guilt, as if she raided the kitchen garbage. She thinks it is her entitlement of stuffed toys, as hers.
German dogs 'guard', with primary breeding instinct. My Boxer thinks she owns the cats! She even gets worried if one stays out too long. If you buy a dog with 'guard instinct', you never know what they decide to guard. We never trained them to be police dogs. They are pets with a misguided instinct.
I find it too funny that a Dobie was guarding stuffed animals. They should have used a Lab!
08-04-06, 05:09 AM FredPuli
quote: Originally posted by Wildflower63: I find it too funny that a Dobie was guarding stuffed animals. They should have used a Lab!
Unless the Lab was hungry Smile Have you ever known a breed which was keener on beating all known obesity records ? They really do have to be controlled in their eating. Most litters of other breeds have one individual 'hungrier' than its siblings but most Labs are 'hungry' throughout life.
One of the cockerpoos here gobbles her food and then rejoins the line in the hope of getting a second helping. She is aided in this deception by her being almost identical to a litter sister. Both of them take advantage of this and so answer to each others name Roll Eyes . This tactic aids the dishonest repeat- queueing by the greedy one. See? So well trained that they are fed in sequence by my calling each forward by name Smile.I vary the sequence to annoy them (and to stop any strange ideas about changing of dominance among themselves) They can sort out any subsequent squabbling themselves once I've left. Now if only they did everything else to order...
Stuffed toys? Try stuffed furniture. Years ago when the wolfhounds were tiny ( a comparative term: they must have been about eight months at the time so about the size of a greyhound bitch Big Grin) I made the mistake of leaving them in the drawing room. I left them in there with a grown dominant dog, a poodle, so they would stay calm and rest. I don't think being calm came into it: fun did though ! When I came back in an hour or so the room looked as though it had been hit by a snowstorm. I waded through feet of kapok and other filling from the furniture. The two miscreants were in the midst, panting happily, surrounded by the skeletons of a settee and three armchairs.Benny their poodle 'baby-sitter' was sitting by the hearth with a resigned 'Don't look at me: you try stopping 'em !'expression.
I suppose I should have guessed. They were at just the age when soft furnishing could be more than just to lie on but, even so, to demolish all that lot so thoroughly and in such a brief time showed real talent enthusiasm. Big Grin
08-04-06, 10:44 PM Wildflower63 Topic 1; Boxers are mean!
At the moment, my Boxer is trying to negotiate letting her off leash to run. I can only do this late. My neighborhood shuts down fairly early, but a car might hit her. I don't want her overly friendly nature to scare visitors of any of my neighbors, given it is a weekend night.
Boxers are easily trained to be mean, by too many idiot owners are ignorant allowing such agression to the point a Boxer will eat you alive. My dog is nice, as trained. If unable to train a dog with bred in agression, get another breed! A female Boxer is never going to be a pretty dog, no matter what I do, so go with the look!
My neighbors will hate the breed with a hot pink collar, so why not make her look good? Her collar is black leather, spikes, and studs! This suits her! She looks like a beauty!!
Topic 2; Is a dog ever fed enough?
I know exactly what you mean by a dog that is never fed enough! My Lab would never quit eating. Before her arthritis became a problem, I used to call her my garbage disposal. At least I could play fetch and let her run off her extravagant calorie intake.
I do have to threaten the lives of anyone who feeds my Boxer table scraps! Teens will think nothing of it. My Boxer cannot take this, as my Lab adored. I clean up vomit too often, from dog and cats because of teens thinking they are being kind to an animal, feeding them a pizza roll. It isn't kind to any animal making them ill!
Eating and playing fetch were the two loves in her life. I had to put her on a diet. Her mobility problems of arthritis were a problem. She hated it! She wasn't exactly in any condition to grab a Frisbee out of the air, like in younger years. She could do a bit of playing house fetch.
I didn't know there was a difference in that adorable yellow dog that I wanted, bench or field stock. This Lab was of hunting stock and demanded to work. Shouldn't the camo boat have tipped me off? I figured it out!
Topic 3; What is a chew toy?
You better hit yard sales and get a ton of stuffed animals. You house isn't ever going to look all that tidy, but tripping over toys beats buying a new couch!
I also figured out that you better leave a ton of chew toys around, like everywhere, or this dog would have eaten my furniture too! I honestly think she would have thought I was a rawhide chew, if asleep and no other chew toys around.
I have heard of Poodles being rotten, also. I never liked this breed. They are very smart, but trust no one at all. Poodles are definitely an owners dog.
I have a true dog lover friend that actually took on five Toy Poodles. I did think she was crazy! She treated these dogs like kids. If she left the house too long, her dogs required a babysitter. What? I know why now!
A Poodle, even a Toy breed, is a very smart dog. They will do almost anything to get their way. They definitely do not take kindly to their owner being gone too long or might eat the house. It isn't about punishment. They are very stressed if their owner is gone too long. Dogs can and will get destructive, from stress, not anger.
I hate when people say that dogs are ill behaved because of anger that the owner left. This is not true at all. These dogs love their owners so much that they are so stressed out and act horrible, like urinating on your bed, ripping up your house, so on. These are dogs that require careful attention or don't own one!
Topic 4; Is a dog 'bad' or stressed out?
My Boxer is fantastic! You will see nothing but her negotiation of what she wants, like throwing her 80lb. body over you, licking, or just being annoying, to get her way. She doesn't tolerate being alone well at all. My daughter leaves, I get to hear the dog go from window to door. I have to calm her down.
I find it hard to think a dog is acting bad to get back at an owner after seeing how our Boxer reacts to my daughter leaving. She is upset and stressed. One of her two people have just abandon her! Teens don't leave the house on a schedule, like I do for work. The dog knows when I will come home, but not my daughter!
A fantastic dog that never destroys the house or uses it for a toilet does get very stressed when alone. She is into everything! I get this pathetic dog look walking in the door. She knows better! She also knows that I am not going to approve of what I find.
I feel so fortunate that my furniture isn't what my dogs have ever felt were a chew toy! The cats do enough! They think it is a scratching post, but these two are my son's cats, which he is dumping on me. My cat is declawed.
Conclusion? Dogs are so rotten at times, but so worth it, even if it does mean buying a new couch! Oh, I feel for you on that one!! I can get lengthy about my loved pets. My apology!
Please, keep the dog stories coming!!
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Wildflower63, 08-04-06 11:44 PM
09-07-06, 07:32 PM FredPuli German dog owners out there? Dog stories: again! OK so here's the latest from Puli Towers. First off the Yorkshire terrier bitch has taken a liking to banana. So far, so good: a tiny piece of banana won't do any harm. Now she has been caught with a loose banana that she pulled out of the groceries. This presented her with a problem viz. that it was still in its skin. So we watched fascinated as she carefully nibbled the skin and spat out the bits with a loud 'Phooey !" of disgust each time. Eventually she got to the fruit and chewed on that contentedly until we spoilt the fun by declaring, to her evident annoyance, that a banana -based diet was not in the Yorkie owners' manual.
Second she's taken to watching as I smoke a cigar (Cuban, I'm afraid: sorry, Mr President ). Her fascination is not in the smoking itself( indeed she seems to object to smoking and pointedly sits at the door threshold looking in) but in the stage it has reached. She keeps glancing up to see how much has gone and when she sees I've reached the last few centimetres she gets up and comes over to stare at me. Evidently she's picked up that I'll be getting up from the chair soon. If she's ignored she utters a reproving bark; she's a bossy little madam. If I get up she trots off expectantly to either the door, to be let out to beat the bounds of 'her' domain, or the kitchen for food all the while looking back to ensure I follow.
She tries this barking demand to get me elsewhere too. Yesterday she had me follow her to her (full) water bowl and then barked again there. A scrap of meat had fallen into it. When I changed the water she looked up satisfied and drank from the bowl without further comment. Fussy, eh?
To be fair she does stop if shushed loudly and sharply (and then unconvincingly pretends to sulk)
Third, two of the cockerpoos have got a new labour-saving strategy. In the evening all the dogs are now being let out into the fields near dusk. So they disappear into the woods and two of the cockerpoos don't return. Then it's getting dark so I drive across the field to find the absentees. No sign: so I toot the horn whereupon the two magically appear, usually soaking wet from a swim in the river, and jump in through the open car window to get a lift home: they are exceptionally agile, taking after their min. poodle sire.If that fails then they just chase the car back across the field to the farmhouse, but at least they've had more time out for adventures than their more compliant sisters got Big Grin 09-07-06, 09:11 PM Wildflower63 Good post Fred! Don't dogs make you feel like a moron, at times? They know us so well, too well!
I know what you mean about coming home with groceries. Put them away fast because the dogs always know what goodies you brought home! My Lab would eat though the bad before I even had a chance to put groceries away. I actually had to pick the yummy stuff up last out of the trunk of my car, but should be the first to be put away.
My Lab is now buried in my yard and we have a Boxer. Thankfully, she doesn't have the Labs appetite, but she still finds putting groceries away a fun thing! She will find everything she likes quickly. Boxers aren't a good breed to be your garbage disposal, as a Lab is. I do buy her a few treats, which she always finds. You can't trick a dog coming home from the grocery store!
I have known the issue of smoking a cigarette to be a cat sensitive issue. Cats can't stand smoke at all! I have three cats. My son dumped his two cats on me and I have one cat of my own. Two of the three like to be lap cats, but leave the second I fire up a cigarette. My dog is a bit more tolerant, but doesn't like it either. While cats flee, the dog only wants me to keep smoke out of her face. At least someone is willing to put up with me! lol!
The water topic is something I have to deal with humans about. My dog and cats seem to love toilet water. I have the recommend of ceramic bowls for all. I even put ice in their water since dog and cats seem to like fresh cold water. That hasn't exactly changed their minds about toilet bowl water. Flush the toilet and all come running. I honestly have to tell all humans, be sure to flush the toilet!
About letting dogs run free to be happy and get needed exercise, I do let my Boxer out late and I mean when my neighbors are asleep and no traffic to kill her. Let a Boxer loose around here, you get the police at your door! My yard isn't large enough for a Boxer to get a good run. I'm not fast enough to keep up with her demand of speed either.
My house is on a steep hill. Electric fence will not work unless my neighbors agree to allow me to bury the line in their yard, which they wont ever go for this. A physical fence is going to be something a Boxer can easily jump and take a property value hit over it.
What is my Boxer doing? She is a strict indoor pet. I have no choice but to chain her out of my front door. She adores the cats and even protects them. She is busy killing every wild animal around her, with a chain.
This is difficult for me to believe, but a dog with a chain actually can kill multiple squirrels and rodents. Boxers have excessive mouth tissue, lack of a better term. I let my dog in, off of a chain. You can't really see what's in their mouth. She dropped half of a juvenile bunny rabbit on my living room floor.
I have seen that this dog is lean and so fast, I have thought of putting her on the track, if a Greyhound can keep up! lol! Why is such a nice dog that will even protect cats killing anything she can? I don't get it!
Keep the dog stories coming!!
09-08-06, 05:14 PM FredPuli Dog tale again WF:
Today the min poodle stuck his head out of the car window at 70 mph and was really enjoying it. All dogs do that. Yes, but it was he who opened the window . It came as a dangerous surprise to the driver (me). He's found that all he has to do is press hard on the front of the switch in the door and, yippee, a great gale. Fine. Pity he's not learned to warn the driver of his intention. Why it took him so long either to bother or to find this out; this is the 'dog car' after all; is not obvious. Perhaps he's taken against air-con and prefers to go back to nature? I blame the Green Party.Now he's found there's a passenger control and he doesn't need the driver to open the window he's been repeating this trick all day.
By law, he's to be strapped in if he's in the front. (You see,in England we treat our dogs like foreigners do kids and our kids like foreigners do dogs e.g. nobody in England would board their dog every year from its youth during school terms but boarding the kids? That's different Big Grin ) That's a great idea except that whoever thought of this provision has never had to get a car-safe harness on and off a dog every short trip. OK so you can walk the dog in the harness ( must be right:it says so on the package !). Yeah, right Roll Eyes.
BTW The dog car is recognisable from the sticker in the rear window saying 'Irish Wolfhounds in transit'. The Irish have a great sense of humour. Their Wolfhounds may travel in their cars but ours only get into other peoples' (It's a big mistake for a stranger to leave the rear hatch open if ours are about )Still, ours enjoy laughing at the sticker.
{My mother said that dogs like to take refeshment from a lavatory because the water is cold to drink. Ever since then I've been wondering. How does she know?]
09-11-06, 02:11 AM Wildflower63 I am thrilled my dog hasn't figured out how to work power window! I do it for her, so she reama
This message has been edited. Last edited by: DorianGreyed,
Another dog tale: This is from the magazine of the Irish Wolfhound Club. [Wolfhounds have their own club? Yes, but only the Irish ones.They are so much better organised than their owners. You should see the committee meetings !]
Anyhow, this is from the report of Wolfhound Rescue:
A wolfhound was notified to the Trust as being too big and boisterous for its owners. It was reportedly only young, a year old, and so barely more than a pup and still growing.When the assessor arrived she was greeted by a medium size, lively, dog. She asked to see the wolfhound and was told that that was it. 'It' was a Bearded Collie!
Now, don't you just wonder at the salesmanship of whoever sold it as an Irish Wolfhound?
The Bearded Collie is a midsize hairy dog,with a long-haired 'bearded' face, and stands about 21 inches at the shoulder. The Irish Wolfhound is a giant hairy dog, 'clean shaven' ,and stands about 31 inches at the shoulder! Here's a Bearded Collie :
Good heavens! My childhood family included an Irish Wolfhound/Great Dane cross (Paws like tea saucers at 6 months ) and no matter how much he resembled a Terrier with a serious gland problem, I'm very, very certain that anyone who's ever met a Wolfhound could never thereafter confuse it with any other breed.
Posts: 2252 | Location: Western United States | Registered: 06-03-02
Originally posted by babthrower: What a beautiful dog that Bearded Collie is! I take it from the story that they cost less than an Irish Wolfhound does?
Neither breed is common. The Irish Wolfhound is very rarely encountered. In Britain you'll encounter the occasional Bearded Collie, but few people outside dogdom would recognise one on sight. You'd pay, perhaps, £1,100 [$2,200], for a Wolfhound pup and somewhere around £850 [$1,700] for the 'Beardie'. That largely reflects the costs of rearing them: the Wolfhound eats a lot more, requires more attention, and is not ready to go until much older than a Beardie pup.
A sinister explanation may be that the Beardie had been stolen, perhaps in the belief that it was a young Wolfhound, and given or sold to some innocent. There is a crime wave of dognapping in Britain. Certain breeds are favoured. Top of the list is the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, which breed accounts for a quarter of all such losses. However any big breed is a likely aim as is any expensive and fashionable breed of small dog (the latter being usually taken for the blackmail or 'reward' potential). Can't think there's a black market in Bearded Collies (or Pulis , for some unaccountable reason )
Some people are gullible over dogs . My Irish mother once mischievously persuaded some people that her gundog was a "an Irish breed,the Needle Pointer". Just as the gundog the English Pointer would strike a pose, nose and neck stretched out, tail straight and horizontal,its whole body 'pointing' to where the game was,so telling the hunters, the Irish Needle Pointer was used by travellers, so they would not get lost when wandering the vast fields and byways of Kerry. Called upon, on command, it would strike the pointer pose and indicate North....
The accounts of purebred dogs are so different from my memories of my beloved collie, Laddie (of course!) He was a Border-Highland cross, the result of a midnight encounter of some undocumented sort, no papers, not even a motel receipt. But what a lovely, lovely dog! A working dog.
He was given me by a neighbor when I was ten, after we had moved back to the farm after WWII. We had another dog which we had got in town, a Pomeranian, nasty bitch, literally, who had fits and snapped and bit quite readily.
But this Collie puppy was totally sweet, and he followed me everywhere. So when I went to fetch the cows for milking, he would come along.
Those cows were horrible to herd. I would drive one 'wing' toward the lane, then go to the other, but by the time I had the other 'wing' moving, the first had drifted back into disarray.
My uncle would not have a dog on the place. There had been an incident a few years previously in which farm dogs would run in packs, after dark, and slaughter sheep. My uncle found 30 dead and dying sheep one night, and there was a wholesale slaughter of farm dogs who had not been tied that night. Dogs who 'pack' at night are entirely different animals from their daytime selves.
But my uncle gave in to my pleas. "He's so cute! Look at his eyes!" And his reward was a wonderful cattle dog who never strayed. My dad was a dog-lover, so no problem there.
On my first jaunt to fetch the cows with accompanying puppy, I was amazed to see that when I went for one wing, he would go for the other. The cows were alarmed by the little chap even though his fat little tummy barely cleared the grass. We had the cows home in no time.
My father said to me, "What a clever little girl you are, to train that little puppy to herd cows!"
I said, "Oh, no! He trained himself!"
Laddie ate scraps. So I started hunting groundhogs when I was 12. They are nasty, large rodents and their burrows are a menace to cattle and horses, who can injure their legs by a burrow collapsing. Also a cluster of burrows can house enough rodents to eat astonishing quantities of grain.
I would shoot the groundhog with my little .22 caliber, and Laddie would rush forward and grab it before it dived down the burrow.
Laddy would proudly carry the dead one home and then, protein-starved, he would spend hours chewing the carcass. What he couldn't eat at one sitting he would bury. Next day he would dig it up and resume his meal. By Day 3, we would say, "Oh, no, oh, god Laddy, go away!! You smell AWFUL!|"
And he would look at us, head cocked, puzzled.
Posts: 6553 | Location: British Columbia, Canada | Registered: 06-11-02
Hi all! This is kinda off the subject.... But I have a part German Shepherd/Akita mix,female, spayed (of course!) and she is about 8 yrs old now. We got her at the local pound as a 4 month old pup, weighing in, then, about 50 lbs! She is 115 lbs now. She is bigger than any Setters, but smaller than St's or Newfies. More like a runt of the litter on the latter 2 breeds. I had only my son when we got her, he was 3 1/2 and I was preggers with my daughter. She instantly took to my son as a playmate, but when my daughter was born, she besame a lot more protective! At times, she would refuse to leave the house to go potty, cause she didn't want to leave her "baby sister!" To this day, she hits a panic button when "HER" kids are outside and out of her site!!! She paces all over the kitchen the whole time she can't see her "kids". She is VERY protective and I can't emphasize this enuf- LOYAL!! Best of all, another good point, although she is getting up in age, she still loves to play with them, as she did when she was younger. And she seems to know how big she is and how rough to play, so she has never, ever hurt them. I have a scar on my leg from her tho! She does tend to get a bit rougher with adults! But, with the kids, she is a gentle giant! I also had a Shep/Chessie mix who was great with my son. Very protective- again! This is a breed who is ALWAYS welcome in my house! Be it a mix, or purebred. Granted, some can be stubborn, but some, of any breed, can be the same! Just my dog story! Skye.
I have a beauty of a Boxer. I had two dogs pass. I did read, 'not for inexperienced dog owners'. I didn't consider myself 'inexperienced' with dogs, but I quickly figured out why this warning was given.
This dog has fought me for 'who's boss' since a pup! Well, 'boss' turned out to be some compromise with us. I have found German bred dogs to be very dominant. If they don't have an owner that is equally as stubborn, the dog rules!
My Boxer and I have come to an understanding. I insist that she not use the house as a toilet or otherwise cause damage, like chewing. She insist on all use of furniture, down to pillows, and a king size bed for her comfort.
I can't say a Boxer is for everyone, but this one is so fun and kind, I couldn't ask for a better dog, just a more obedient one! She knows all commands, but doesn't want to listen, which gets frustrating when she is obnoxiously friendly, yet scares people.
Has anyone run into this problem with German breeds, smart enough to train you?
The Irish Wolfhound here has taken to searching for, and then eating, the young leaves of hogweed (heracleum sphondylum, since you ask). She is that fussy: she ignores the old leaves. She wades into long grass in a single-minded quest for the plant. She does eat grass too, like many dogs, but presently is into hogweed. This suggests that she knows something of interest. Hogweed, as its name suggests, was once used as fodder for pigs. It did have a medicinal use. It has expectorant qualities and was used in the treatment of laryngitis and bronchitis. (Haven't noticed her spitting or coughing though )
My inference is that she is doing this because she knows instinctively that the plant is of some good to her. On the other hand, she does have peculiar tastes: she's particularly fond of sherbet and there's no suggestion that this is chosen for its medicinal benefits.( I think she likes the fizz in her mouth, just as small children do)
Does anyone else have a dog that's ever shown any interest, whatever the reason, in eating a plant? Prima facie, a dog cannot fully digest raw green plant material. Dogs,it seems, eat grass stems because they are indigestible but help them by providing fibre which assists their subsequent vomiting or evacuating their stomach's contents. There's no sign of the hogweed leaves reappearing though and it may be, in any case, that she can extract whatever ingredient it is that benefits her.
[The hogweed she eats is the common hogweed. It is not the 'giant hogweed',heranteum mantegazzianum an introduced species which escaped from gardens and is now the subject of British government rules forbidding its cultivation.It is intensely irritant to the skin and leaves land around it clear of vegetation.]
How many dogs so you have Fred? I love Irish Wolfhounds, but they don't live very long do they?
I had an Old English sheepdog who lived until she was almost 12. I think she was the best dog I ever had. Her only fault was her tendency to want to round up the children all the time when they were playing outside. She got very agitated if they were playing in separate parts of the garden! Speaking of dogs liking plants, she liked the taste of stawberries, and ate them off the plants in the vegetable garden.
Originally posted by dance girl: How many dogs so you have Fred? I love Irish Wolfhounds, but they don't live very long do they?
Nine. A min. poodle dog and eight bitches viz. an American cocker, an Irish wolfhound, a Yorkshire terrier and five cockerpoos.The other wolfhound bitch who was six had a mammary tumour. This was not malignant, as it turned out, but she collapsed and died soon after the operation to remove it
The wolfhound is a short-lived breed. In general they don't make it past nine years. So you get three years while they are growing to maturity and, no sooner are they there, then it's time to start thinking of the next generation to grow on to replace the ones you've got. Because Nuala's companion, Caitlin, died unexpectedly soon I'm now looking for another adult bitch or dog, probably from wolfhound rescue, as a companion for her. At the same time I'll be waiting for suitable litters from which to pick a pup or two.
Herding instinct is no surprise in a 'bobtail' (Old English Sheepdog: they'll have to stop calling them bobtails now that the tails can't be bobbed Good thing too). We had a German Shepherd bitch that did it to the pups of a min. poodle dam here. Other instincts include: Newfoundlands' and poodles' wish to find the nearest lake, stream, river or pond and the corgi's wish to nip out and bite the ankles of strangers (bred as a cattle dog, see ? )
Dog that likes strawberries? Can't remember whether any here do but I've no intention of finding out. Buying punnets of strawberries for n
Yes, but only the Irish ones.They are so much better organised than their owners. You should see the committee meetings !]
,and stands about 31 inches at the shoulder! Here's a Bearded Collie :
) and no matter how much he resembled a Terrier with a serious gland problem, I'm very, very certain that anyone who's ever met a Wolfhound could never thereafter confuse it with any other breed.
