Well, we are almost moved in to our new apartment and I have to say everything is going so well with Mouse. There is a big grassy area a couple houses down where he can get his exercise, so all is good. What was I worried about? He is such a good dog.
There is a lot of controversy on the subject of socializing dogs. The mainstream believes that dogs should be socialized with all other dogs. We did this with our first dog Jazzy and had some problems because of it. Luckily she was never attacked by anther dog so she was very friendly and nice but alternately often she wouldn’t mind me or my husband if there was another, more fun, dog around. When we got our GSD from Tom, who has been training personal protection dogs, police dogs, and search and rescue dogs, for over twenty years, he told me to have my GSD around people as much as people but not to let him play with and interact with other dogs. The reason for this is simple.
First of all, other dogs are more fun! Dogs are simple creatures it is all about immediate gratification.
Secondly all it takes is one attack from another dog and your dog can be dog aggressive or overly avoidant for the rest of his life. It is risky because even a seemingly nice dog can bite/attack really fast and unexpectedly.
Personally I notice a difference in how my dog responds to my commands based on if he has been around other dogs. It makes a HUGE difference.
There are many other arguments for and against. I found this article by Ed Frawley very interesting. Please take a moment to read it. I would love to know what you think. Read the article and let me know if you disagree... if you agree... why? I love debate and I am not too proud to admit when I am wrong, although it is often very difficult to convince me I am wrong ;-) Just don't be vulgar or offensive or I will delete your comments.
