Posted: 8/21/2013 4:24:35 PM EDT
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Post picture of your dobies.
My black male is Reno. The brown bitch is the mother to his first litter that he was studed out to. 
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He is gorgeous. What is a dobermans temperament like? They are smart, loving, loyal dogs. They want to be with their people as much as they possibly can. Great with kids when raised with them. Ours is protective but not aggressive. They need lots of mental exercise, are easy to train, and sometimes too smart for their own good. They are energetic, and do need a good bit of exercise, especially when younger. They like to know their place in the pack, and if you are a strong leader, they won't test the boundaries too much. But they do need an owner that is willing to be a fair but strong leader. They do need early and ongoing socialization so they understand normal behavior and can discern abnormal. Our girl Salem 
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Sounds a lot like a shepherd, or any large breed k9. They are fairly similar to shepherds from what I've seen. Perhaps a bit more Velcro though. And they shed a lot less. It's important to remember that the Doberman is one of the only breeds created first and foremost for personal protection. They are singularly devoted to their charges. |
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Just curious, is there a health reason to cutting cropping their ears off or just for looks? Fine looking dogs OP. Greater circulation to the ear canal = less risk for ear infections. But the actual reason for it is related to the intended function of the dog. Cropped ears allow the dog to triangulate sound location better, which makes it easier for the dog to get a fix on an approaching threat. It also provides less for said threat to grab on to when the dog is neutralizing the situation. |
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Greater circulation to the ear canal = less risk for ear infections. But the actual reason for it is related to the intended function of the dog. Cropped ears allow the dog to triangulate sound location better, which makes it easier for the dog to get a fix on an approaching threat. It also provides less for said threat to grab on to when the dog is neutralizing the situation. Quoted:
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Just curious, is there a health reason to cutting cropping their ears off or just for looks? Fine looking dogs OP. Greater circulation to the ear canal = less risk for ear infections. But the actual reason for it is related to the intended function of the dog. Cropped ears allow the dog to triangulate sound location better, which makes it easier for the dog to get a fix on an approaching threat. It also provides less for said threat to grab on to when the dog is neutralizing the situation. When I get into this debate with the 'ninnies' - I ask them to place their hands over their ear openings and explain to me HOW they can possibly hear 'better' like that... You were absolutely correct in ALL your comments above. 
Fine looking dog BTW - Love the ears AND the collar! LOL! 
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OMG! We went from a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel to a Doberman. Temperaments are how you raise them or mold them into what you want- IMO. Levi, is our 18 month old who we socialized, socialized and socialized. His bark is deep and fierce sounding, BUT due to what we have strived to do when he see's a stranger he wants nothing more than to sniff and get petted and petted some more.
How you raise a dog is pretty much what you get. FYI the below picture is wife hold the cute little puppy. I advise against this holding a puppy to much as later in life they think they are still lap dogs. href=http://i1301.photobucket.com/albums/ag101/mrf6781/Levi/IMG-20120415-00003_zpsf964a811.jpg" /> Food aggression was a major concern due to having grandkids around. So from DAY 1 we kept our hands in Levi's food dish. Proof that our efforts were successful happened when our grandson hand fed Levi 1 piece of kibble at a time. href=http://i1301.photobucket.com/albums/ag101/mrf6781/Levi/Chicago-20120701-00240_zps41bcfe7c.jpg" /> Wants to be where we are(actually where she is)! href=http://i1301.photobucket.com/albums/ag101/mrf6781/Levi/20130201_160628_zpsd1427c2e.jpg" /> href=http://i1301.photobucket.com/albums/ag101/mrf6781/Levi/20130620_151442_zps8962d114.jpg" /> |
| I have never been able to get any of mine to hold still long enough for a blur free photo. Mine have all kept there ears, not for some hippie,ninnie reason,just that they are so soft I could not bring myself to having them cut. I have had large working dogs my entire life and can not imagine life without them. Dobies are by far my favorite. Annie our current girl is hands down the smartest dog I have ever met. I made one mistake in not getting her socialized enough early on. It's a little hard around here because it's pretty rural and not a lot of people traffic around. She is my baby,best friend,protector and a first rate clown. Out of all my Dobies over the years this one has the strongest prey and play drive I have ever experienced. Baby girl has two speeds-full throttle and asleep on your lap. God I love that dog. |
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I have never been able to get any of mine to hold still long enough for a blur free photo. Mine have all kept there ears, not for some hippie,ninnie reason,just that they are so soft I could not bring myself to having them cut. I have had large working dogs my entire life and can not imagine life without them. Dobies are by far my favorite. Annie our current girl is hands down the smartest dog I have ever met. I made one mistake in not getting her socialized enough early on. It's a little hard around here because it's pretty rural and not a lot of people traffic around. She is my baby,best friend,protector and a first rate clown. Out of all my Dobies over the years this one has the strongest prey and play drive I have ever experienced. Baby girl has two speeds-full throttle and asleep on your lap. God I love that dog. Socialization is super important. We live out in the sticks too, which is one of the reasons we chose a Doberman in the first place. We try to take ours everywhere she would reasonably be allowed. Home Depot, Lowes, PetSmart, Tractor Supply, Bass Pro, parks, and anywhere else she might be welcome. This works both for socialization and as an opportunity to work on obedience skills in different locations with different distractions. |
the dobie on the far left is another blue.
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Here's my female, at almost 5months old. I have started obedience with a private trainer and shortly will start training for PSA to one day compete. Her lineage is straight show/conformation and not working lineage so I'm hoping Protection Sports works out. We've been working hard on her prey drive which seems to be good so far.
After she's a year and a half or two old I'm hoping to get in line for a Von Aldecrest doberman. 
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i've got six. will add some pics shortly, after i resize them. (camera shoots default size of 3000X4000) 
here's my two latest puppies, a blue and a standard black and rust. 
http://imageshack.us/a/img823/6884/p4160002.jpg Easier to train two at the same time in MY opinion... 
Been there and done that...
Once they learn THEIR names - No problems with individual commands...
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yeah, pairs aren't bad, if you have the ability to train and discipline. mine are all paired, it makes my day less stressful, with everyone having a playmate/buddy, to keep themselves occupied. Yup. Same thoughts here with respect to raising more than one at a time...
At one point years ago my Vets assistant had 8 Dobies. She would rotate 4 inside and 4 outside for a week or so then switch 'em up for the next week or so. Don't know how many she has currently... The lady that runs our local Dobie rescue club here was telling me one time that she had 17 different Dobies living in her home at the same time. Said other members had WAY more than a few as well... I could list more examples like above but don't feel like typing now. Point is - Those kind of Doberman owners would not consider something like raising a single 'pair' to be anything 'hard' to do at all.
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| Raising rescue dogs(dobermans in this instance) of all different ages is completely different than raising two pups. Yes they're trainable, can be great dogs etc. but can and more than likely will learn to depend on each other causing problems when separated. Hence littermate syndrome which is why I asked. |
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I prefer the step ladder approach. Right now we have a 14 year old, a 2.5 year old, and will be getting a puppy in 5 weeks. There was one between the 14 year old and the 2.5 year old, but he died of renal failure a couple years back. I like having the older dog to help teach the younger one the ropes, and the younger ones seem to help the oldsters stay on their game.
Then again, I am a mother to a young boy, so having 2 puppies to train at the same time is waaaaaay too much on my plate when you factor him in too. One puppy? No problem. |