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Fritz
08-23-2009, 04:53 PM
Hello good folks.
I just adopted my first Dobie today.

I have never owned a Dobie before, but have had Rotties for decades.
A few weeks ago, 2 of my elderly Rotties crossed the Bridge together at ages 13 and 14.
They were a devoted loving pair, but left behind a 9 year old Rottie girl, Luger, that was in deep grief, as she had never been an only dog before.

We tried everything, extra walks, car rides with vanilla ice cream as a special treat... but she still moped.

I searched all the rescues close by but couldn't seem to find a Rottie that fit.

Then I found a wonderful one year old purebred male Dobie on Craigslist to adopt.
He is GORGEOUS, has his ears and tail done, and is a seriously beautiful young boy.
Very gentle, he submitted to Luger instantly.

He had been living with 2 other dogs, an old deaf Boxer girl, and a little Boston Terrier that was alpha.
They also had a 2 and 5 year old non-dog kids, so he is fine with kids.
But between 3 dogs, and 2 little kids, and his mom having to go back to work full time, he was spending a lot of time in the back yard or crated.
He slept indoors at night, in a crate, but in their laundry room, poor boy.
He used to cuddle up to the old Boxer girl, and he is doing the same with Luger.

He now is adjusting to living indoors full time.
We got him a brand new huge crate, but he hasn’t gone in there yet.
Luger is not bothered in the slightest having him in her space, although we introduced them on neutral ground in the house museum yard across the street.

He is starting to settle in, and I have even gotten a few kisses and wags.
No camera yet, but he is textbook perfect for a Dobie.
He has the Look that will deter almost anyone thinking of doing evil around here.
I mean, he looks *scary*, but he is a creampuff.
I think this is going to work out.

He is a hot dog bite slut, we just found out.

Now that we know what he likes, it will go easy.
Just gotta stock up on packs of cheap hot dogs now.
He has remarkably gentle manners when taking bites too, *very* gently takes it from your fingers, and he doesn’t crowd Luger, the way we were accustomed to when giving bites to the Rottie Pack. Nice manners on this youngster.
Not one sign of any aggression from him yet, only a couple of soft whines, but his parents said he will bark at strange things when he settles in. Good.

He keeps going to the back door, and I have taken him out repeatedly, but poor boy, he thinks he is supposed to *live* back there.
We are assuring him that he can live inside, and that our dogs don’t live out there, only *wild* animals live out in the nasty heat with all the bugs.
At our house, that is just the Potty Place of course.

He is more high strung than the Rotts, jumps when an outside AC unit goes on and such, but everything is new to him, and he *is* still a baby, (although HUGE).
Has more to go to grow into his feet too, but he is VERY tall, and proportioned nicely.

He has had basic obedience class too, so he knows Sit, Down and Stay.
Pulls a bit on leash, but we can work on this.
He and Luger are so pretty when they walk together on leashes.
She has perked up a lot, she was lonely!

I was hoping a good dog in need of a forever home would find us, and I think one has.

I look forward to asking questions from you experienced Dobie owners should anything come up, and I love your board.

Thanks!

Fritz the Dog, and his new human

magtie
08-23-2009, 05:45 PM
welcome tot he forum. keep us posted on his progress with the transition

Gryphon57
08-23-2009, 06:34 PM
Wecome Fritz's new human! Glad to see you like to write small novels as well. Sounds like you have a wonderful pair of dogs!! I'd love to see pics! :) ps...I'm new here too!

DieselDog
08-23-2009, 06:51 PM
Welcome! I'm new, too...just joined yesterday and I got our Dobe on Craigslist last month, too! He's 11 months old and everything we wanted, except for his separation anxiety...:eek:(anybody got any ideas on what works for this?)
We had Rotties before...our last one died a few months back, but there is nothing that compares to a Doberman.
How old is your Dobe?
Take care,
Diesel's mom

Dobs4ever
08-23-2009, 07:51 PM
Welcome Fritz to the Hub. Bless you for rescuing this boy. How on earth could comeone list a beloved pet on Craig's list???? Drives me nuts. Glad he found a GOOD home.

Fritz
08-23-2009, 08:21 PM
Thanks all.

Dieseldog, we seem to be doing some sort of eerie mirrored life sequence, at opposite ends of the country!
My new boy was a year old in June, so they are almost the same age.
And the Craigslist and the Rotties.
Wow.

We seem to be having some separation anxiety too, even if I just leave the room for a couple of minutes.

And he is afraid to climb the steps to the second floor.
I need him to climb up there so I can crate him in our bedroom while we all sleep tonight. :confused::(

But we love him already. :)

Sue J
08-24-2009, 07:48 PM
Welcome to the hub. My heart breaks to hear stories like this so I'm so glad Fritz found your home. Keep us posted on his transition but I'll bet it goes well now that he has you.

Big Dogs
08-25-2009, 08:58 AM
Congratulations on your new Dobe and I'm glad you found each other and welcome to the Hub. Separation anxiety isn't uncommon here is something you can try but do it on a day that you have plenty of time. Place him in his crate but do not shove him in there coax him in there with a toy or treats what ever he likes most then do something for 5 min or so where he can see you from there, he will fuss but it's ok. I would also suggest doing this with him after a hard play session or work session when he is already tired let him out after the 5min and praise him. Go for a little while and repeat the process when he gets to where he isn't fussing leave the room for the 5min and repeat it won't take long he will get the idea.

Fritz
08-25-2009, 09:42 AM
Thanks again everyone.

We are slowly working on a few things he needs to learn.
Yesterday we learned stairs.
Seems he had never seen a full flight of indoor stairs before and was terrified.
This is a long steep wooden stairway in a 115 year old house with 14' ceilings, so it really was quite an accomplishment for him. :)

I searched the Net and found essentially 2 ways of getting past this.

One was brute force, Cesar the Dog Whisperer's method, there was video of him *dragging* an adult St. Bernard up a stairway. :eek:
Needless to say, that was out of the question.
You cannot *force* a Rottie or a Dobe to do anything they really don't want to do! It's a good way to really freak them out, make it a lifelong issue, and probably get bitten.

The other method was enticing Fritz up with a hot dog bite on each step, and me moving further up every try.
Took him only about 5 tries, and he made it all the way up, yay!!
Smart boy, he picked up on it very quickly.

We are now leashing to come down though, as he kind of *explodes* down the steps, and is a bit clumsy.
I don't want him to fall, so I am helping.
I gotta get a harness for him, I don't want so much weight on his neck.

He still doesn't think the crate is his, so we are going crateless for now.
Only one accident though, he got the drizzles from all the hot dog bites, I think.
He also hates his kibble, I feed Iams, his old family fed Beneful, now he won't eat either one.
He is in no danger of starving, we free feed, just got to wait for him to get hungry and try some.

He has bonded to me almost maniacally.
I have never had such a clingy dog before.
This is nuts, I mean *every second* I have to be in his sight, or he starts to bark and cry.
I know he misses his former mom, but I hope he relaxes a bit soon.
He is a Mama's Boy, for sure, and I am now New Mom, he has decided.
That's fine, I am impressed with his devotion and loyalty, he literally gets up and walks over to me if I even look at him.

He is slowly *getting it* that if I leave to go to the front porch for a smoke, yes, I will be right back.
I take him along at least half the time, but when I pick up the leash, the Rottie goes berserk and wants to go too, and it is a bit much to leash both of them for a 3 minute smoke.
I mean, I can go out and be back in the time it would take to get them both ready to go.
So that is acting as our "yes, I might go, but I will be right back" practice.

Still love him, and I know he is still a baby, although a BIG one. :D

DieselDog
08-25-2009, 12:53 PM
Glad he's adjusting to the stairs....been wondering how you're doing.
I can relate to having a 'clinger'. Sometimes I have to just get in the car and leave him with hubby for a little bit, to escape those eyes that are constantly fastened to me!!