Outdoor Dog Questions - And I DID do a search!

Oh, I wasn't saying YOU would. Sorry. Around here there are a LOT of "yard dogs" whos people think are guarding their places at night. Needless to say, they are far from home at night. Sort of a mini rant, I shouldn't have included it. Sorry if I offended. Day before yesterday one limped into my yard and a neighbor commented that he'd been shot several times already but had more lives then a cat and I can't get it out of my head
I've read enough posts about Bud E Dog to know how you feel about dogs

The only thing I would really warn about is if he is strictly an out-door dog from puppyhood, from a puppies viewpoint, even if you're outside with him 5 hours a day, it's not really enough. He'll form his own life, y'know.
And being a hound/heeler cross, he'll start barking at everything pretty young (if he hasn't already) but barking is usually not guarding, though most people think if a dog will bark at something, they ARE guarding. Most people who have dogs who aren't specifically trained to guard, rather then just bark, I can walk right into their yards without Rover making a peep at me.
It's an easy trap, dogs have to be trained to guard (I'm not talking about bite training, but guarding). Barking is usually fear based. Or say alarm or excitement, rather then fear. If there's no high emotion, there's no response. Whereas a guard dog should be calm and alert you when things are out of the normal routine.

For example, my beagle is the Worlds Worst guard dog, I never trained him to guard. He will ONLY bark if people he knows are here (useful, right) He is excited (high emotion) because his friend is coming to visit. A stranger could walk right up to my door. He doesn't know them and they probably have no biscuits.

Now my pup (who will likely want to move outside when he is grown) is being taught to work. He has to Hush! when a friend comes up the drive. I don't need to know someone is coming up my drive, I can see my drive, but he is encouraged to bark if anyone approaches from any other direction. He is encouraged to bark at anyone on the property from any direction after dark. See what I mean? It's actually a little against the instinct, which is to bark when excited.

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A ship in the harbor may be safe, but that's not what ships are built for

I don't think it'll be a problem to bring him into the house. I had a border collie once that I WANTED to be a house dog...didn't work. She'd sit and look at the door with that intent stare until I let her out. She'd come in, but she never wanted to stay for more than half an hour, and only then if she got a lot of attention. Some dogs (and most likely your heeler/hound) are just meant to be outside dogs.
As several have mentioned, the bonding issue is your most important consideration. If you are a strong pack leader (and every pack has a leader...it really should be you, not the dog) the dog will want to please you. It's instinct. There are two big obstacles for your being the pack leader. One, if you have a dominant dog, he's not going to want to obey. It is essential that you consistently let him know that you are in charge. One way to do this is to "mount" him...OK, I know how that sounds. What I mean is to position your body over his. When he's little, get on all fours over the top of him, then reach down to rub him and play. When he's bigger, lean over him so that your body is directly above his when you pet him. All this does is establish that you are the "top dog." You want to hold him under you for just a moment longer than he wants to be there. If you watch well-socialized dogs that have a pack, the leader will crowd up to the other dogs so that his chest is above them. That's what you're doing.
The second big obstacle is simple miscommunication. Always use the same phrases for what you have to say. For example, my dogs all know that "That's mine" means that an item is NOT to be touched. It doesn't matter if it's a full milk pail, a flock of very tempting chickens or the neighbor's child. "That's mine" means that it is off-limits. And for "no" I make this little "eh eh eh" sound...it doesn't translate into writing very well, but it's that Mom sound most of us use without thinking. It just means to stop whatever it is that you're doing.
Sometimes you will have to physically correct your dog. I do NOT mean to beat him. Usually a "poke" with the tips of your fingers will do it. Dogs use a lot of body language and that's what they understand best. I knew a woman once who would give a little attention-getting hiss and lift her chin in a small, sharp gesture. The dogs responded beautifully. The key is to always use the same signal. Dogs are smart and reading your signals is a survival skill in a pack.
Have you considered a second dog? Get this one under control first, of course, but dogs really do need a pack. If you want him to stay outside, I worry that he'll run if he's alone too much. And a dog that's tied or otherwise confined can't guard the chickenhouse. Wild animals are smart too, and they know that a tied dog is no threat.
Have fun...I'm sure you'll do well, mostly because you obviously CARE if you do.

My 2c. This is a very young puppy. Treat as an indoor dog. Take the puppy everywhere with you for proper socialization. To friends houses who have children, tall people and small people, bald, and hairy. Introduce him to other dogs, to play equipment in the park, to garbage cans. The more objects and sounds the puppy experiences in the next month the better able he will be to cope with new sounds, objects, and situations. Take him to the vet's office, having him sit nicely at your feet, not in your lap. Let him walk around the office sniffing. Take him to the vet's for a visit before shots. Then, take him there several times for a quick visit. Every where you go, keep him on leash (longer and longer as he gets bigger) and work him on the obedience skills he knows- sit, down, come, leave it. All of this makes him a well rounded dog. The more you work him on basic obedience and in more places, the more obedient he will be to you. This includes around the farm. "Leave it" in the barn is not the same as "leave it" in the pasture, or "leave it" in the park.

When you are out and about the farm, attach him to yourself (longer and longer leash) so you are right there to praise him for proper behavior and avoid wrong behavior. He should never have gone to the neighbor's because you should not have let him out of your sight- good grief, he's only 8 weeks old. He needs to be with your other dog to learn proper doggie manners. This easily happens indoors, where he learns about the crate and gets more practice with basic obedience.

This type of dog is going to be comfortable outside, is self entertaining. When you put him out, he will run around the property, sniffing, chasing, checking up on things. The older he gets, the longer he can be outside, but you can't just leave him outside unsupervised, even when he no longer needs to be on leash. If he is herding the neighbor's cows it is your fault for giving him too much freedom too soon.

You will develop a routine as to when he is in the house and when he is outside. If you have varmints coming around your place, he is going to WANT to be outside protecting his turf. My border collie is not outside when I am not home. If our situation was different, not right on the road, I might not be so careful, but I don't want him getting hit by a car or getting into other trouble. Outside, he runs off rabbits, herds the ducks in the pond, and if I need him to herd sheep he's right there. At night, if he barks, he is let right outside. In your case, you might want to keep your dog outside at night, or specific hours at night, but break him to it gradually. Don't forget, something could eat him at his age. If you have a barn, I'd make a place in the barn for him to sleep. But now, I'd tie him on a six foot rope in that specific corner while I worked in the barn, but do it when he's ready to fall asleep, giving him a chew toy to distract him. When he wakes up, take him right out for potty break in the place you want him to go in.

Yard dog or house dog, either way I would take the puppy to a puppy class to start his obedience training. Sit, stay, come, leave it are commands that will be extremely useful with an outside dog. Puppy class will also give your dog contact with other people and dogs in a controlled environment. The trainer will also be helpful when you need extra help. Generally there is a Puppy class II that covers more advanced commands

Not all puppy classes are alike. I have seen the puppy class in action at a PetSmart in Madison and the folks teaching the class are not real dog trainers. Ask about trainer's education before you sign up for the class . We highly recommend a local dog training company and their trainers are college educated animal behaviorists. Oh I should add that their class fees were still very reasonable.

deb
in wi

some people are going to hate me for this but i would suggest a perimeter shock collar. YOu can set them for like 100 to 150 feet diameter and when the dog reaches the end of the circle it will beep then if they go beyond the beep they get a shock, you can set for how much shock..that way the dog doesn't go beyond the perimeter..if you want to take them farther you disable the shock collar or remove it and use a lead

We have Catahoula Leopard Dogs and, from what I have seen, hound/cattle dog mixes act like Catahoulas. The pup should be very smart and always into stuff. The puppy stage will be bad, very bad. I would suggest that you look up Don Abney of Abney's Catahoulas (google it). He has written books on training catahoulas and other working/hunting dogs and is know as the premier expert in that arena. Good luck.



http://www.dostersheritagefarm.com

I used to raise catahoulas for hog hunting so it's nice to run across some one who still does. I've been considering getting a pup.....

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Ted H

You may all go to Hell, and I will go to Texas.
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Wow! Such great responses! THANK YOU!

First, Otter: I know you weren't saying that we'd leave the pup to fend for himself. I was agreeing that he needs to have a purpose in life, and he needs company.

We're just taking him with us around the farm. When Nick is home, Frank's tethered to him. When Nick goes to work, Frank is tethered to me. Once in a while, I leave him and Bud D to play together (it's such a hoot!)

Dog parks? Training classes? Nice idea, but we live in the middle of nowhere. 'Sides that, I've trained more than a few "house" dogs in my life, so I do know the basics. I just needed to ask questions because I want to do right by the "outside" dog -- this is a whole new world for me in so many ways, and leaving a dog outside was as foreign to me as the planet Mars.

Nick and I have read your many responses, and we thank you so much for your replies.

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Forgot a couple things:

Palani, I took off a VERY stinky shirt I was wearing and put it in his bed. He loves it!

Ronbre, I have no problem with the judicious use of electric collars.

Farmerga, I just opened Don Abney's site -- thanks!

Everyone else, thanks again! If I didn't answer your post, it's because I have to get outside again and get to that garden before it rains again...

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