Doggy Mentor

Posts Tagged ‘portuguese water dog’

With the surge to popularity of the portuguese water dog breed, fans worldwide must now be “experts” in way of the general tidbits that need to be known about the dog breed. But porties (as they are affectionately called by others), are very brainy, high-energy and very talented dogs that are easy to misunderstood. And this is the “test” that will “test” how well Portie fans and owners want to tough things out with their precious Portie.

For example, among the many concerns that can be known about the breed, an important one is the degree of challenge in training a Portie. Is the portie open to being trained, or does it end up struggling against independence streaks?

Indeed, training a portuguese water dog is something not to take for granted. After all, the portie is one of the smartest dogs worldwide, and it has no patience for repetitive, lifeless lessons. So the portie is truly a trainer’s dream assignment, but trainers who become nervous, or erratic, lacking confidence or consistency, will soon see the portie grow inexplicably unresponsive.

Lest it be imagined that porties are schemers and four-footed cheats, porties are on the contrary only too anxious to please. Their day is made when they know that their master is happy with the way they do things. This encouraging thought drives them to finish what is asked of them. Another interesting thing about porties is that they are capable of sensitivity, like shelties. Thus nothing can be more effective in training them than “praise-based” training, which taps into their emotions.

Without a doubt, any dog breed will benefit from obedience training, or in the case of porties, portuguese water dog training. If you are a portie owner, or are planning to be one soon, and you are looking for somebody to consult on dog behavior issues, a veteran dog breeder is the authority to get your information from. This is a dog professional who will discuss with you, say, the portie’s propensity for loitering on couches and furniture, or its penchant for investigating things by countersurfing. Even in the event that you need some advice about your destruction-inclined dog, or how to protect their bones in their active years, or even just about house training, consulting with a dog breeder can help a lot. And it doesn’t hurt noting it down again and again that your dog needs (or will need) socializing!

A certified breeder of portuguese water dogs is the most reliable expert to count on when it comes to that dog breed. But if there is a something fishy with their breeding, then there is no sense in their being in the business! But considering how relatively small the community of portie breeders are, there is not much danger of a portie fan tangling with a defective puppy. And any portie breeder can definitely help out with concerns like what to do with the dog’s tendency to countersurf, or in the case of a puppy, to chew anything that catches its fancy? Below are a few issues that discuss how portie experts deal with some common portie behavior issues.

First of all, there is not much to worry about regarding portuguese water dog health. While porties are generally very healthy dogs, in the end, it is the vigilance of scrupulous breeders that help ensure many many years of fun together with this stellar dog breed.

The next concern is whether anything special needs to be mentioned about how the breed responds to children in the household, or the presence of other animals.

How the portuguese water dog welcomes the presence of “new” things around it will be heavily influenced by how it is raised. Therefore, the puppy that is introduced early on to plenty of people, animals, and things will grow up with a well balanced personality. Therefore, there is no danger of hyping training too much if we say that overlooking portuguese water dog puppy training risks harming the personality of the adult portie much later on.

Lastly, how does a portie fan or enthusiast know if the dog is not meant for him/her? No matter how cute the dog is or whether or not there is some sort of “inner voice,” it is ultimately all about a frank assessment of one’s free time for the dog, needs in a dog, and how much activities can be done with the dog. The potential owner needs to size up the dog’s appetite for skills and activity, and see how ready is he/she to provide the dog’s everyday quota of work-play tasks.