Rosebud

[quote name='courtnek']She's givin' him a "honeydo" list! LOL :-?[/quote] :lol: I think she's actually gripping about the "honeydo" list not getting done. :angel:

:P First thing I would do is to buy a book on Teaching your Dog Obedience, get one for [u]your[/u] breed and one for dogs in general. Go to breeder web-sites and read what they have to say about training your breed. Every breed is different and responds differently to training methods. I have to bribe my RR's, but that's pretty much their breed, stubborn and very independent. But once they learned to respect me as Alpha everything else just began falling into place. Good luck with your new baby I'm sure you will have a long wonderful relationship. :angel:

:thumbs: Pitmomma, My hat's off to you! Very admirable of you to take in that baby. :angel:

:) Well I see that everybody has a good outlook on breeding and cross-breeding. Courtnik, You should be proud of your baby! Having a good temperment in a dog regardless of the parents is always a good thing, and I have to admire you for your participation in rescue of mixed breeds. I can also understand the 2 glasses of wine thing. Everyone else, I can respect the efforts of the societies who want a better breed for assistance dogs, but there are other breeds to choose from without creating one. It's not correct to breed for temperment, either your line has it or it don't and breeding for temperment is only going to create a line that has a hidden trait that will be unpredictable; meaning a good temperment could become bad in the dogs old age. :angel:

Timbos13, :onfire: [b]You asked for our opinions and you got them![/b] It seems that the vast majority think that there are enough dog breeds in the world that we don't need yet another one, especially one that could become a target of dog-fighters to breed for the sole-purpose of fighting. If that is what you intend to do then I feel for you, your dogs and your soul. If you just want a bigger version of the pit then breed oversized pits to each other, you [u]will[/u] get bigger but you [u]will fall out[/u] of the long agreed upon by obvious experts opinion [u]of the breed's standard[/u] and once people start deviating from a breed's standard the breed existence will be in danger. I am sorry that you did not like our opinion on the matter but the truth is why create another breed when there are more than needed in the world today, and that's not including the accidental cross-breedings. And it will take more than 10 years for the breed to be accepted as a new breed. The Ridgeback breed was defined and perfected back in the early 1800's and still was not accepted until the mid 1900's. That's over a [b]100 years [/b]of breeding. I believe that your new breed will end up either being a [b]fad[/b] or be breed only to fight. I don't see how it can better either breed involved. [b]But that's just my OPINION![/b] :angel:

:lol: Now that makes me feel pretty darn lucky. My babies are not really big diggers they prefer to do the weeding, pruning and harvesting of what I try to keep planted in the ground. I have opps [b]had[/b] a large holly bush that is now nothing but a bunch of sticks sticking out of the ground. :angel:

:) :lol: How precious. Your little girl is very intelligent. Just make sure the cookies are in cast iron child-proof containers or she may decide to start skipping the bell and just start helping herself to her midnight snack. :angel:

:P Thanks Jamie, And you are also so right! Doesn't matter with the breed, it's in the temperament. First point, a bitch is supposed to be naturally more apt to protect the family. Well, my bitch RR would probably tuck tail and run, well she might actually do something if someone was actually physically hurting me. My boy RR on the other hand would not let you near me IF your intentions were to hurt me. He proved that at 4 1/2 months old when he insisted we leave the park because there was something in the trees he didn't want me near. He is a very social, friendly, loves children even when dressed up for Halloween boy, doesn't have an enemy in the world, ........... unless you want to hurt MaMa. :angel:

:D Your friends are uneducated about the characteristics and temperments of dogs in general. I have the same problem with my friends and my 2 RR's, even though when the dogs see them they have tongues out all the way to the ground and are wagging their whole bodies so fast that I think they are going to flip over. Every dog will bite, it just depends on the situation. Some breeds are more predisposed to people and dog aggression than others, but they still have to be trained to be aggressive, even if it's through the lack of being socialized. All dogs, regardless of breed, that have been bred properly can be raised to be loving, social members of your family. Socialization & Obedience Training are the keys to having a happy four-legged member of your family. It's all in how you raise your children, four-legged or two legged. I would suggest you take the Canine Good Citizen Test and proudly display it to your friends. You might even get your baby certified for Therapy Work even if you never do any. That might calm your friends down enough to accept your baby. :angel: Good Luck,

:cunao: [quote]* You tell your dog to sit, and he backs up until he finds a chair. * It takes 3 people to get your dog on the scale at the vets. * You walk your dog and everyone knows him by name, but you have no idea who these people are. * You can carry on a conversation with a dog's muzzle firmly in your crotch. * You own a dog capable of pulling someone from a port-a-potty. [/quote] Can definately relate. I guess I would have big dog syndrome. :angel:

:lol: Great laugh. I think my ridgies are finally learning the doorbell thing. Need more practice with crotch-sniffing and severly pout over the toilet bowl (which I leave down). :angel:

:confused1: The reason for crossing the breeds is to hopefully obtain the [u]"ultimate"[/u] protection dog... [u]wary/protective[/u] like a Neo (or other mastiff breed), athletic and "game" like and APBT (or other bully breed). Seems to me that if you wanted a breed that would be the ultimate proctection dog that is wary/proctective you would just go ahead and get an RR. The Rhodesian Ridgeback is such a breed. Originally bred to be able to withstand the harsh enviromental changes in the African veldt, proctect the farm & family from the dangers of wild African animals, assist in the hunt by keeping the wild animals at [b] bay [/b]since the hunter had to get dangerously close to the prey, ie. lions, etc. while being a completely loyal companion to the families children. :nono: Timbos13: If you pay attention to the first pictures in the top-left it appears that those dogs are being encouraged, if not trained to fight, which gives me the impression this CROSS-BREED [b]is not [/b]being bred to be a protective family companion. This new cross-breed is not necessary. There are enough breeds in the world to optain the characteristics anyone could want in a Working, Sporting, Non-Sporting, Herding, or Companion dog why do more cross-breeding, and there are plenty of breeds that can Work, Hunt and Herd and still be a great companion. :angel:

:x I hate to hear about this lady and I hate to say that the best action to take is to take her to the humane society you spoke about, drop her off as a stray. Let them know that if no one claims her you would like to keep her. Here's the trick. After the stitches have healed, and most hair has grown back, drop her off in front of her home. I bet this women never notices that she was ever spayed, besides sounds like she doesn't really care anything about being responsible or ethical. Dropping pups off at the pound, adopting them out to whoever, wherever at 4 weeks old. Personally I don't think she should be able to reproduce either. :angel:

:D I crate trained my RR's and they love it. I had the same problem with them during the night only add howling to it. The area they are allowed to have should be just enough for them to be comfortable, they must earn the rest through good behavior. I did not allow my babies full run of the house until they started respecting it, ie. no poop/pee, no tearing up things, etc. I solved the crate issue by getting in the crate with them and laying down to sleep (5-15 min), they got the idea the crate was a den not a bathroom and quit pooping/peeing in it on their own. And cardboard is a favorite of my girl to shread, next to plastic bags (bunnies). The positive reinforcement to going on lead is great, too. It works with off-lead recalls as well. When I'm at the lake I will interrupt play several times and call my RR's to me just to pet them. When it's time to go they don't know if they're going to get some attention from me or have to quit playing and go. Good luck with the crate training, it may take some time but will be well worth it in the long run. :angel:

:D Those are great tricks! I don't know if what my babies can do could be considered a trick but I think it's worth mentioning. Now my bitch has chewed on the column gear shift of 3 trucks, 2 jeeps and a motor coach. It wasn't until she got the second jeep that I started to look at why! The second jeep had a deer sack over the four-wheel drive shift-stick and she didn't touch it, just the shift-stick on the column. So I started watching her whenever I left her in the truck to go into the store. This is what she does. She watches the entrance to the store, then she will hit the gear shift with her nose, she does this several times. Finally she will put her mouth on the gear shift and try to pull it down. I do believe my bitch has figured out what makes a car move and she's trying to come and get me. Now for the boy! When he was about 3 months old he was a chatter-box, making sounds all the time, so I decided to try and teach him to count and say a few words. MaMa seemed to be the easiest. After a few lessons that turned into wet kisses and dumb looks I gave up. One night while camping at the lake, me and my friend were awakened at 4 in the morning to the sound of MaaaaaaaaaaaMaaa! It sounds exactly like a child, and he will not do it on command. He only says MaMa if his sister won't give him his toy back, he wants you to give him some love and you're ignoring him, and finally the best one, when he needs to go outside and potty he will sit by the door and say MAAAAAAAAMaaa! :angel:

:D Great tantics, but I don't think anybody can beat my male RR when it comes to insisting on a snuggle. If you are sitting he will come and put his nose in your face and sniff, if you ignore him he will then plop down with exasperation in a sit or down and start saying/howling MaaaaaMaa! It is the cutest thing in the world my RR can actually say MaMa. His sister on the other hand will bury her head in your lap and give you a snuggle first. Both of them will start rubbing up next to you if you are standing. :angel:

:bigcry: :placz: I seen alot of bad pics of animals, I've been to the pound, I've seen that room. That story hit the hardest. These angels are for SAM. :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel:

:D Everybody's got some great advice, although only use a muzzle if he tries to bite you. I use a dremel, and with the mix you have I would highly suggest this since as he gets older the nails will get harder to cut. Check out [url]www.doberdawn.com[/url] she's got a great method of teaching a dog the dremel method. Re-enforce with lots of praise, cookies, hugs, kisses... you get the idea. Don't try to do all of his toes the first time. Take puppy dog steps. Good Luck! :angel:

:D My male kitty use to ride in the car with me to go and feed the horses; since he was neutered he gets car sick just going around the block. I don't know if he knows what happened or he is just remembering a bad experience. My female RR would get nervous and would refuse to go in the room until she got a urinary tract infection. Now she just gets nervous. She does not like to go to the vet, but I think she knows that they are there to help her. She is very friendly to my vet and his assistants, they think she's great and she give them kisses but I still have to comfort her while he inspects her. My male RR is fine as long as the vet doesn't check for worms, check his temperature or touch his pawpaws. :angel:

:D Using a dremel is so much better for the dog. I tried to use the clippers but I would have to have hedge clippers to get through my dogs nails. I came across dobiedawn's dremel directions and they are fool proof. My IG loves to have her's done, my female RR is still a little timid and my male RR is finally getting better at it after six months, (he's touch sensitive). I would definately follow her directions on getting your baby use to them, as I skipped the week long one a day and jumped right in which was not a good idea. You try holding down a 6 month old, 60lb. RR who's an Alpha personality, probably why she's still a little hesitant at a year old. Anyways, I thought I would re-add a link to the site. [url]http://doberdawn.com[/url] :angel:

I wouldn't worry to much with three month old puppies during a vet visit, my RR's don't like going to the mean :x vet either, my male had to be muzzled one time and sometimes I have to muzzle my female so that I can dremel her toenails. But get them down at the lake and they want to play with :banan: and lick :facelick: every child down there. :evilbat: Aggression is from fear and the babies are going to fear going to see the people who hurt them with needles. I always take the babies to get a hamburger or to the toy store after a vet visit, they seem to get over what happened rather quickly. The first thing you want to do to make sure that this does not become a problem is to Socialize, Socialize, Socialize :popcorn: join a puppy obedience class :laola: and never, never hit any dog with your hand; this only causes them to fear you, disrespect you and could even encourage aggression. A dog that respects you will be a much more trustworthy companion. :angel:

I get alot of people asking me if my dog is a pit or rottie. I respond with a very polite "No, she's a Rhodesian Ridgeback", which is quickly followed by "A what!?" or "What's that?", to which I respond "African Lion Hound!". This is were it usually gets humorous for me. :lol: :lol: They will slowly back away from my dog while making some kind of comment like :o "Oh!, they hunt lions" or "Are they mean and does she bite?" I usually just politely reply with :wink: "Yea they hunt lions, No there not mean, she only bites if I tell her to!" :angel: :angel:

I like the interrogation theory. 8) I have a beautiful breed/show bitch. People ask me when I'm going to breed her. I just tell them once she gets a CH in front of her name, I'm going to find a male with a CH in front of his name and a ROM behind his and his parents name. You could just politely respond I will only breed ROM's. :lol: :angel:

Well the time debated question? :hmmmm: Dog lover or Cat lover? I guess I would have to say that I am an [b]Animal Lover[/b]. I love :iloveyou: all animals, although for most of my life I enjoyed the company of cats :kociak: over the company of dogs :dog: but that was befor my heart was stolen by a Ridgeback. And she did steal my heart at a tender age of three weeks old. :angel:

:-? Well I'm not wild about terrorizing an animal into thinking "OH NO, If I don't mind a brick or chains will fall out of the sky and hit me and hurt me" :dog: Now I have one of the hardest breeds in the world when it comes to doing a recall. I have all hounds, Ridgebacks to be exact. When I call my bitch she stops, turns around looks at me, literally sticks her nose in the air and turns to go away. All I did to break this is teach her that I better not have to come to her or she will get in trouble :nono: and my discipline is the same her dog mommy would give, grab her skin by the neck and pat her bottom towards the direction I want her to go. When we get there she has to either be put on her tie, (maybe 5 minutes) or go in her crate. I don't beat my babies, but I do use firm tones in my voice and when they respond immediately they get a dog cookie. It's almost gotten to where I could use cookie as my recall word.