New OES owner here....
My wife and I just got a 4 month old OES (we named him Frodo) and he's absolutely adorable. I just have a few questions about his care and acclimation to his new home. I have four cats ranging in age from 2-13. So far two of the cats, Thor and Josie, seem to be very interested in him. They watch from afar and creep up to him only to dart away as soon as he makes a move towards them Loki and Charlie, well.. they'd just assume hide out in the basement for the time being. Is there anything that I should do to help the cats and Frodo acclimate to each other? Or will they just acclimate naturally over time? Secondly, we got Frodo from an elderly man who already had a few dogs and couldn't take care of another one, especially one that needs a good deal of attention and upkeep. They wife and I have no problem with either. But we're not sure what his former house-training regimen was all about. I'm assuming he's house broken because we took him for a walk this evening and he did his business. We're planning on walking him 1st thing in the morning then again as soon as we get home from work and then one more time before bedtime. Should I leave newspapers on the floor when my wife and I go to work and/or when we go to sleep or will this just confuse the dog? One more thing if you don't mind. Should Frodo be locked up in a room while we're at work or should he be free to run about the house? If we do need to confine him during the day; how long should we do this for? Oh, one more thing... sorry for being such a pest ... is there anything particular that we should do as far as training is concerned? Thanks a million and I'm looking forward to having a rich and wonderful life with my new and wonderful friend, Frodo. |
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| Oh, my wife just reminded me about one more thing. Frodo is scared to go up or down steps. Is this natural at his age and will he grow out of it? Is there a specific technique for teaching him how to go up and down a staircase?
Thanks again! |
| Hi Welcome to the three of you!
Great choice for a name and there's even a member here whose boy is named Bilbo Baggins, now we just need a Gandalf! 
Here's some possible things that may work for you..as I can relate having three dogs and 4 cats in the household. Baby Gates!!! Ah they worked like a charm for me..I even cut a small hole at the bottom of them for quick escapes. One of my three, Merlin believed the cats needed rounding up, and of course the cats don't comply. Remember these guys are herders and you'll find this trait is very much part of his breed. You've at an advantage that Frodo is young, and will become accustomed to the cats and the cats in their own time will see him as a member of the family. The baby gates allows the cats the opportunity to be able to go places to have some down time should he get too rumbunctious..and of course he will being a pup. I just searched in second hand stores and got a bunch of them super cheap..they don't have to be new. If you don't want to crate him then allowing him access to one or two safe rooms works too, if you use the gates. Remember he's still a baby and may chew things he's not supposed to so make sure wherever you keep him is puppy proof. Dogs get info from other dogs urine believe it or not. It's why a dog/pup will smell and urinate where other dogs have gone. The signals tell the age, sex, if they are neutered or spayed, if they are in heat...ect. At dog parks you frequently see a sequence of dogs all leaving their scent one after another. Taking him for a walk is a far better way of emptying his bladder than if they just went in the back yard, even if it's just around the block. Hey you're gonna get in shape!! My eldest dog whom is now 15 was paper trained which was the thing to do back then. I remember reading at the time that if you then took the urine soaked paper and placed it in a specific spot which you allocate for their business they will continue to go in that same spot. It worked for me. Blue had always gone to the same spot , until we moved. There's now puppy pads on the market to take the place of newspapers but I think they're been talk of the pros and cons to using them. I'm afraid I can't help with that as I just took Merlin (now 22 months) out every couple hours. I was fortunate enough to race home at lunch for his pee break, then would return to work. With a new pup take him out as often as possible and expose him to as many new situations that can arise. Crowds in parks, busy streets, heavy traffic noises, drive him around the block in your car...all these things will be enormously helpful when it's time to take him to the vet so he won't associate the car with vet appts and the short distance around the block will get him used to it. The noises too..anything you can think of...kids...other dogs..now is the time and you'll be able to enjoy him so much more for the next 12 years or so. A tired dog is a good dog. A little guy such as yours will get lonely and bored during the day, although he will get himself used to your schedule. The more tired they are from play, they sleep and don't get into as much mischief. I leave all three of mine in the house when I go to work and realized after spending some time at home that they all slept during my working hours..but were ready for lots of play time and walks as soon as I got home. Leave him lots of toys and Kongs..hollow toy which you place peanut butter or cream cheese inside and they lick it to get at the treat. The stairs are one of those things that he's just not used to , it quite normal for him to hesitate. Most pups can go up them but will really take some time becoming used to going down stairs. Another couple week and he'll be bounding up and down them. You know be careful what you wish for..ha ha! It's like parents whom can't wait until their babies could walk and then whistfully wish that the same babies still crawled when they see all the stuff they can get into.  If you really want him to get used to them...sit two stairs away from him and call him..that way you're not that far and he will attempt it. Still don't worry...like I said another couple weeks and he'll be bounding down them.
Your little guy is going to teeth just like a baby does too so provide lots of chewy toys. If he attempts to nip your hand and they have sharp puppy teeth at that age. Firmly say no..and possibly even make a yip sound as his sibling would to let him know it's too rough and IMMEDIATELY place a toy in his mouth with lots of Good boy!!! He'll eventually get it, that hands are off limits but toys are good to chew. In fact, with most anything you don't want him to do..it's not enough sometimes to say no but provide an alternative behavior you want him to do and then lots of praise. Oh last thing...there's a search button located on the top and what ever subject you're interested it will bring up the hundreds of post that members have discussed. It's a really friendly bunch here and everyone is willing to help. Give Frodo lots of belly rubs and yes...we want Pics!!! Marianne and the boys Oh forgot to mention one last thing..you should also take Frodo out first thing in the morning soon as he gets up (back yard is fine) then feed him..then walk..which will completely empty his bladder. Same with the dinner time, they normally want to go every time they either just wake up or eat/drink. |
| 4 months is still pretty young. I'd be happily surprised if he can hold his urine the whole time you are at work.......every day. Accidents will happen.
Yes, empty him as often as possible. Make certain play time and pee time are different in his mind; otherwise he'll want to play as you stand there, freezing your buns off, waiting for something more productive from him. I agree, get that pup out into society meeting people, children and other animals. Make certain all meetings are happy and safe so the little guy is a happy sheepie in the world. Nothing about training here? Sheepie boys are big and powerful (not that the girls aren't either). Get him in a training class or two, three, etc. The two of you, or three of you, must start "speaking" the same language for his protection and your sanity. Don't delay. The older they get the harder it is to untrain bad behavior. Yes, working schedules being as they are.......that's why training classes are often at night. Most importantly, sheepdogs belong with their owners, indoors, interacting with the family. They do not make good backyard lawn ornaments. The more he interacts with you, the more you touch, hug, kiss, talk, belly rub, etc, the better the dog and the bond between all. My husband complains I kiss the sheepdogs more than him. I explain there are three of them......but he's right. So don't forget your mate  |
| Hi Gabriel! Welcome to you and Frodo. It took our puppy Bailey a while to figure out the steps. Just a warning - he figured out how to get UP the steps before he figured out how to get DOWN the steps so we would have to carry him back to the bottom. We found it helpful to carry him down to about the 3rd step from the bottom, then entice him with a treat. Then we progessively moved him up a step until he was comfortable with the whole flight. Now he tears up and down like a maniac.
Good luck! |
| Wow, thanks for all the excellent and thoughtful replies! My wife took Frodo for a walk around 6:00AM and then I took him again prior to leaving for work (around 9:00AM). He's locked in our puppy proofed bedroom now while my wife and I are at work but I'm thinking of picking up a crate later this afternoon. From what I hear, the dogs come to love the crates and think of them as their "Den". I'm assuming that Frodo will likely have an accident sometime during the day as he's only four months old and probably can't hold it in more than a few hours at a time.
He seems to know his name fairly well already so tonight my wife and I are going to work on the sit command, after he gets the hang of it we'll move on to down and stay. We are both so grateful to have such a fine pooch move in with us. Oh yeah, one more question if you don't mind ... Frodo's face gets fairly dirty is there a proper way to clean the hair on his face? Also, should we put his hair up in a ponytail? He's got the most beautiful blue eyes but they're covered up by his hair. Frankly, I don't understand how he can see at all. 
Once again, thanks for all the responses and God bless. |
| Lol. My suggestion about the dirty face: get used to it! The beards stain no matter what, although some much more than others. Even the show dogs have slight staining. My Clyde is a huge dirty slob. I can't keep him out of the dirt and mud. He enjoys it so much, I've given up on discouraging it. However, the one suggestion I would make it to make sure you don't neglect his face, particularly around the lips, when brushing. You can get some serious mats that harbor all kinds of yuckies there. We learned that the hard way and ended up doing a little trimming!
On the steps: Bailey's Mom is right, they definitely learn up before learning down. Clyde would get to the top and get stranded when he was little. Now, at 9 months, he takes the whole case going down in 2 giant bounds. Frodo will just start following you up when he's ready but be prepared to do a few manual carry downs! When Clyde got too heavy to carry, I bribed him on each step with a treat a few times and then he got the hang out it. He looked really lame and a little mentally challenged but, he got it! Congrats on the new addition! |
| Little update: Just wanted to let you all know that Frodo's doing great and is acclimating well to his new home.
Frodo is very well behaved. His only idiosyncracies seem to be chewing on furniture and untiing my shoe laces. Every time he begins to chew on something that he shouldn't be I clap my hands loudly, which causes him to stop chewing whatever it is that he's chewing on, I then hand him a chew toy and praise him when he takes it in his mouth. This seems to be helping a bit. He's had a couple of accidents as well but that's to be expected. He's already met several other dogs, children and adults on various walks and he was absolutely wonderful around them all. It's as if I can't take him two blocks without someone saying "wow! is that a sheep dog?, can I pet him?" Even the cats are starting to get used to him. Josie actually walks right up to him and (even though she'd likely deny it) I caught her giving him a kiss. Thanks again for all the great advice and God bless. Oh, is there a way to post a photo or two of him? |
| Oh Yes!! We do love pictures around here. Here's the link to the info http://forum.oes.org/viewtopic.php?t=1119
Welcome!! |
Beaureguard's Mom wrote: Oh Yes!! We do love pictures around here. Here's the link to the info http://forum.oes.org/viewtopic.php?t=1119
Welcome!! Thanks for the link. I don't have all that many photos yet, but I uploaded the few that I've got. Tonight I'd like to get a better picture of his face. He's got the most fantastic looking crystal blue eyes. |
| You're quite welcome! I can't wait to see the photos! |
| Max is so funny with the stairs. We think he may be OCD. He only will walk up and down on the right side of the stairs. If we are walking down together and I try the right side, he'll wait patiently for me to go ahead, then he'll walk down right behind me. On worse days, he'll just try to plow me out of the way. He's so cute, I love that little guy. |
| I'm not sure if I uploaded the photos correctly, so I uploaded them to "putfile" as well.
Here he is. I'll have more photos soon! http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=7/18114013636.jpg&s=x3 http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=7/18113593963.jpg&s=x3 |
| Frodo is a gorgeous puppy! Thanks for sharing the pictures. |
| Welcome Gabriel and Frodo! He is an adorable pup! Can't wait to see pictures of those blue eyes!
Be prepared to become addicted to this site. There's more information and experience here than anywhere else! Have fun browsing through all the topics and threads!
Chris |
| What a handsome pup !!
Best Wishes, Welcome to the Forum ! |
| Thanks everyone! I'll post more pictures within the next day or two. I trimmed the hair around his face a bit so maybe I'll actually be able to snap a photo with his eyes showing. |
| Hey, I'm rocking the Frodo avatar.
woohoo. |
| Great avatar! Can't wait to see more pictures of Frodo. I just can't bring myself to let the hair grow in Bailey's eyes, he's such a clutz when he can see! |
| Here's a few more pics of Frodo taken this afternoon.
http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=7/18421510224.jpg&s=x2 http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=7/18421522963.jpg&s=x2 http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=7/18421533683.jpg&s=x2 Sorry if it takes a bit of time to load. Putfile is notoriously slow sometimes. |
| He is sooo cute...I have to say that Im a little bit of a sucker when it comes to blue eyes!! |
| He's sooo cute! Congratulations on your new baby! |
| How cute!
I mastered climbing the stairs by standing behind my pups and placing one leg at a time up to the next step as they would if doing it themselves. I'd encourage them on the way up, then love and praise them at the top. Depending on the number of steps and age of pups, sometimes I'd start them on the top 3 or 4 to lessen the stress. Going down, I'd get in front of them and help walk them down. Stairs that don't have backs seem to scare them even more. Get on your knees, look down the stairs and see what they see. It looks a lot different from their view. After doing this a few times, I'd go up or down, tell them to "Come on", and leave them there. They'd whine a little, but wouldn't be long and they'd be peeking their head around the corner into the room I was in. Too cute! Then, they'd cautiously explore the surroundings. I'd then repeat the "Come on" when I got ready to return to the stairs. I'd ignore them (so they thought) and if they followed, they'd "run" into the room with a "proud" look on their face looking for love and praise. My advice on potty training is to take him out to the same spot. Ignore him until after he goes. Except for telling him to go potty. When you come home, "don't" get him excited in any way. Ignore him until you're ready to tell him "let's go potty", and do so in a calm voice. The more excited you are, the more excited he'll become and the less apt he'll be able to make it to the door without a mistake. The Sheepie beard, as said before, just get use to it. Along with paw prints, nose prints, clumps of hair, etc.......... Oh, I forgot, dirt and dust.
If you want to see those blue eyes all the time, you can trim the hair above his eyes. Different views on this subject. Some of mine would run into things and thats when I decided it was time for a trim. Speaking of trims, "MAKE SURE" you keep the hair trimmed very short around the rectum!!! Be careful not to snip the testicles or skin. One time of not doing this will show you why its so important. Its for his cleanliness and to prevent you from having a big mess to clean up in that area. Remember, don't start anything as a "cute little puppy" that you don't want a "big dog" doing in your house. Such as getting on furniture, etc. As said before, its easier to train, than retrain. They do like their "dens". They like a schedule, but I always vary it just a bit to keep a step ahead of them. Otherwise, they know you, oh, too well.
Came to a good place for advice. Full of helpful and very friendly people. Happy training. You're in for a lot of luvin's, fun and a Sheepie adventure you'll never forget. OES are addicting, and SO IS THIS SITE!!! |
| Well put! |
| What a cute boy you have! Once you start getting used to sheepie kisses there is no turning back |
| He's sooo handsome! |
bestdogsx4 wrote: What a cute boy you have! Once you start getting used to sheepie kisses there is no turning back
Tell me about it. I didn't even want to leave my house this morning. I feel like cutting out of work early just to get home and give my boy some kisses. Thanks again, everyone! |
| How adorable! I love his eyes! China blue with eyeliner! Very nice pup |
Maxmm wrote: Well put!
Since your post is after mine, I'm assuming you mean me? If so, thank you.
If not, then thank you from whomever you were replying to.  |
| Yup Mouthy PF, all you! |
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