Crag Puppy Basics?

I just added a furry and sometimes poopy member to my family. I'd like to take her outdoors and climbing with me as soon as she's ready.

This is going to get filled with flames and trolls, so to facilitate that, I'll post this pic.

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OK, so she's clearly too young and too small to go out yet. Plus, without vaccinations, I don't want her rolling in the dirt yet (she'll get her first round in a day). I'll be waiting until she can walk 10 minutes without stopping to take her, she's just too little for that.

Some questions

Dewclaws, stay or go?

Additional vaccines/boosters because she'll be outside more?

What protocol do you use to train her to stay away from ropes and food? I'll be damned if my cragdog is annoying.

What protocol do you use to ensure that she's not territorial or aggressive toward other dogs or people, again, I'll be damned if my little lady is one of THOSE dogs.

Advantix? Does it work. I hate ticks.

Thanks guys. Flame away.

follow your vets advice, with my personal belief that anyone who plays in the dirt ends up with a much stronger immune system than some gym rat that mommie sanitized from the big bad world.

If you can put forth the time & effort, I love the Colorado Dog Academy up in Broomfield. That place is a dog's dog place. Your pup will learn how to act around other dogs & people -- and, more importantly, how people need to act around their dogs. I think they take all ages, of dogs. And, they offer a lifetime of refresher trainings, which is cool. Plenty of run space, open areas, comfy quarters, family run by good people.

And, that dog looks awesome! Skillet -- I like it.

Thanks Mark, I'll look into it. I've never had an opportunity to start so young. For the first time I can actually have a well behaved dog rather than the more typical good bad dog.

Declawing, ventriculocordectomy, diaper, muzzle, short leash and full harness so you can hang it in the air so it doesn't dig the ground all up, and maybe a shave. And then you will need a pretty bag to put it in because it will be so ugly.

M Sprague wrote:Declawing, ventriculocordectomy, diaper, muzzle, short leash and full harness so you can hang it in the air so it doesn't dig the ground all up, and maybe a shave.

orange sauce. You could use mint.

I almost forgot the most important - shock collar

You never know what you are going to get (personality of said dog.)
Luckily our boy was easy, even as a pup he was very calm.
Your dog looks that way so far, but then again the burner is still in the off position!

Start'em early.. Black Nasty started going to the crag at 4months old. Now he is 12, and
soloing 80foot 5.0's at Vedauwoo! :D

But seriously, lots of time with many people, and many dogs, and many trips to crag.
Bring them up in the environment you want them to be comfortable in.

Being nice around dogs requires them to be around dogs. They learn the way, and sometimes cry because of an older dog showing who is the boss, but the little ones need to learn this.

Our dog knows the word rope (which is also like rock, so that's good) and runs out of the way when you pull the cord down.

A good trick (which could be used anywhere I guess) is to leash them in the poop zone for some
time out. They have some quiet time by themselves in an area they hate to hang out near.
This is good for bad behavior, and you are not smacking them down. It is all mental.
(Although sometimes dogs need smacked just like a kid does!)

Also, I leashed him early as a pup, but not much after. He is good, and doesn't run away.
Not even for wildlife. How did we get so lucky?

Hmm, can't think of any other advise right now.. Hope that helps a bit.

C

M Sprague wrote:orange sauce. You could use mint. I almost forgot the most important - shock collar

Don't expose her to other dogs until she is immunized for parvo. Ask your vet about the schedule.

We taught out dog the on your bed command and take her blanket with us. If she is on ropes etc we command her to go to her bed. Sort of a variation on out of kitchen.

Congrats! Agree with what Buff said about socialization classes - it's worth it for the entertainment value alone. Socially, the earlier you expose the pup to various things she'll run into at the crag will go a long way towards her not getting freaked out by it later on. Things like seeing people with helmets on, people walking around with gear dangling from their waist, seeing people hanging in mid air from a rope, even people wearing big backpacks, sunglasses or hats...all little things that people don't think of as odd, but can freak a dog out if they've never seen it. A guy coming down the trail with a helmet on, dark sunglasses, noisy jangling gear banging around on his waist probably seems like a freaky outer space creature to a dog that's never seen anything like that. Socialization.

Dew claws - just keep them trimmed. Get the pup used to nail clippers.

Ticks - Advantix/Frontline do work, but the dog is still going to get ticks. When the treatment is working, the ticks usually die after taking a bite. It doesn't seem to work as a tick repellent so much, at least with our dog.

Generally not being a pest around gear - Teach her that she can't be on ropes from day one and don't make any exceptions. It's all about being consistent when laying down the rules. If you ever see her with her mouth near gear or a rope, freak out and shout NO! like it's the end of the world. As soon as she stops, go back to being normal like nothing ever happened. Be consistent even if you think you look like a bipolar crazy person to others.

Food - Don't feed her human food as treats and discourage your friends from giving her human food treats. If the dog is accustomed to getting a handout from people when it sees them eating, it will become a drooling begger whenever it sees people eating. She's going to be naturally curious about the smells from human food, but don't give her any.

Lots of dog hate on some threads and sometimes I get it - but often my dog and other friendly dogs at the crag seem to enhance other people's experiences. Of course, there are some places where I just don't bring my dog 'cuz she kinda doesn't belong. It seems that most people love friendly dogs and like to be around them. However, even if people seem cool with the dog, I still ask people in the area "are you guys ok with her?" and if they have any hesitations at all the dog gets tied up where she can't bother them.

Have fun with her and be consistent. She is going to make mistakes. She is also going to be your best friend and you're going to love it.

Eric Engberg wrote: Yes I strongly advise putting a shock collar on Mark until he learns to behave appropriately around canines.

Steph Davis wrote a bunch about her dog, and made a great point that stuck with me. To have a really great crag dog, on the first year, plan on spending more time on the ground with your dog at the crags, than climbing. The following years will be made infinitely better as a result. I have an 8 month old Bernese Mountain dog and thus far he's been amazing at the crag. Loves attention, loves people, loves dogs. Cragging in groups of 3 helps to have someone to constantly be around helping correct behavior and encouraging your pup.

Soak PAS in bacon grease to train it to go for the crotches of trad newbs.

David Sahalie wrote:Soak PAS in bacon grease to train it to go for the crotches of trad newbs.

I think one thing is important; you don't want to be screaming at your dog at the crag. They should be to the point where they recognize gesture commands, or at least respond to a quiet single vocal command. If you consistently use the same gesture while teaching them the voice ones you can give them commands while not disturbing those around you.

don't forget to teach it how to tie an edk.

make a doggie coat with patches: Belay Police & STFU Noob

She is absolutely adorable! I love to get a fur fix at the crag.

As for vaccinations, in addition to Parvovirus, distemper, and rabies (standard for all dogs), I would ask the vet about Borellia (Lyme disease) vaccine, and Bordetella (Kennel cough). Also, if she drinks from streams, she will be likely to get giardiasis.

Enjoy your puppy!

My friend started training his crag dog early by taking it on walks to the local crags on his rest day. He would take him up their and just hang out for a bit to see how it acted out there. The dog got a good break in on what it should and shouldn't do well before he came out to climb. Seemed to work really well for him, his dog is awesome at the crag now.

Buff Johnson wrote:don't forget to teach it how to tie an edk. make a doggie coat with patches: Belay Police & STFU Noob

Do you just anchor your dog to a shady tree while you're on the rock? Our guy is almost a year but isn't ready to hang out off leash yet.