8 1/2 mo Vizsla behavior

[Waterfowler21]

Hi All,
Had a few questions that I had asked a few months ago but still need some guidance on. My V has been a phenomenal dog so far and a great hunting companion. However I do have a few concerns about in home behavior still.

1. She really is a vacuum inside/outside the house. She will pick up anything and everything that is on the ground. While this doesn't bother me too much I do worry she will eventually eat something that will make her sick or hurt her. Any tips to stop this behavior or is it something she should grow out of?

2. She is a sweet dog to people especially children which is great to see. But when there are people/dogs walking outside our home, she tends to bark or growl at them, especially at night. This bugs me immensely and it seems to have gotten worse the last few months. She does seem to get anxious which leads to her barking at nothing, and when I say nothing I mean it. I will look out the window and there isn't a squeak of activity outside. We do use a shock collar every once in awhile to help with the barking but I don't like to use it constantly unless she gets out of control with it. ***I know a lot of you are thinking "dog needs more exercise" I understand she needs a lot. But we take her on morning walks/play, and when I come home I take her to the dog park and play at least another hour when I get home. This is the every day schedule and she is rarely in her crate for more than 4 hours due to my fiancé and I having opposite schedules.

3. Any tips for after spaying? We are getting her fixed next week and I am just curious as to what others have done after surgery to help keep them entertained.

Any advice is appreciated and I feel I have been very patient with her in her first year. Maybe she just has too much puppy in her yet.

Thanks!

[shags]

1. I've allowed my dogs a bark or two, then tell them to knock it off. I want them to alert me to activity outside ( isolated rural house) but I don't want them carrying on and getting stupid about it. Don't try to calm her down by reassuring her - be stern and tell her to stop. Read the aggressive GSP thread to see where letting this go can take you.

2. Follow your vet's instructions. Your dog won't be on bed rest or anything, so probably walks on lead and gentle activity will be fine. IIRC my vet said to limit activity for a week. There are internal sutures etc, so don't gauge healing only by the appearance of the incision.

Nice looking brace of dogs you have there!

[ezzy333]

Just one comment, you are pushing the spay surgery before she has matured. That might cause somr problems down the road.

Ezzy

[Waterfowler21]

Is that so Ezzy? I thought she would be close enough by now..what is typically the "right time"?

[mnaj_springer]

1. Dogs are scavengers by nature. Knowing that, I make sure to keep everything I can out of reach from my dogs. Things like shoes and socks get taken away without a word said.

2. I'm with shags on this. Guard dog barking is okay but stops after a couple barks. If it doesn't I stop it.

3. I kept mine on a leash after surgery. I've tried sedatives but they don't do much for high energy dogs so I took control to limit movement. Plus lots of kennel time to rest and heal.

[ezzy333]

Is that so Ezzy? I thought she would be close enough by now..what is typically the "right time"?

Somewhere between 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 would be best.

[Waterfowler21]

Thanks for the replies. Does anyone have advice for teaching heel? I've been struggling to teach her the command. I usually just use the leashing method, or ask her to come then say heel while guiding her next to me then praising.

[Vision]

[quote="Waterfowler21] Does anyone have advice for teaching heel? [/quote]


Wonder string/lead from Lion Country supply.

[cjhills]

Is that so Ezzy? I thought she would be close enough by now..what is typically the "right time"?

Somewhere between 1 1/2 and 2 1/2 would be best.

Ezzy, Where is your IMO.
There is no "right time" Go by what your vet and you decide on the spaying. There is very little evidence (maybe none ) that waiting to spay a female has any upside.
It is a fact that spaying before the first heat virtually eliminates Mammary cancer and of course eliminates uterine cancer........................Cj

[ChestertheVizsla]

Regarding spaying your V. The breeder I received my V from has all applicants sign a contract that the bitch is not be to spayed until at least 2 years. She provided me with a ton of study information regarding early/late spaying. Relatively speaking, there really isn't too much information on the topic because it isn't studied too heavily. In my opinion its like cancer in humans. Some people will get it, some will not, it really is a gamble. That being said, the study linked below was conducted specifically with Vizslas. If it was my V, I am a strong believer in letting the dog develop fully before spaying. Per the study, the longer you wait, the lower the chance for blood and bone cancers. This will still eliminate the ovarian/uterine cancer possibilities since they are removed. However studies show an increase in the chance for mammary carcinoma. Like I said, it's a gamble. All this does is reduce, not eliminate the chance of cancers.

The breeder's pedigree can say a lot, look into you V's line for the cause of death, if you see anything common try to address those odds/chances to put them in your favor.

With my V's line, life expectancy has been 13-15 years which is towards the high end for V's. This is following the breeder's recommendation of a minimum of 2 years before spaying.

Another one of my opinions here. Early spaying/neutering was early introduced to avoid unwanted pregnancies. As a secondary benefit, mammary carcinoma is reduced. My recommendation would be to talk to the vet and breeder and see what their recommendations are and why. The most important thing you can do is gather as much information as you can and make a decision from there.


Good luck with your decision!

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24432963