New to the site

[felixone123]

Hi all - just joined, so new to the site and new to the Dutch Shepherds. My husband and I love this breed and are interested in getting a puppy. I have done research, but would like to hear from owners about them. We have no childern and are pretty active. We do have a 2yr mix hound female and 4 cats, that get along really well. I have been hearing that the Dutch Shepherd has a high prey drive and would like to hear from real owners of this magnificent breed.

[GSDNanny]

Welcome to you Felixone123 (the mods will tell you shortly to make a signature line so we know who you are )

You are in the perfect place to find out all there is about the Dutch Shepherd breed. Enjoy!!

[felixone123]

thank you for the introduction. Have not seen the "mods" yet - not sure what that means, but i guess i will find out ).

[felixone123]

Hi - Since I am interested in getting a DSH pup, can anyone tell me the cons of this breed? I know most of the pros. Thanks!!
Barbara

[vneerland]

Welcome Barbara, potential new owner of a future brindle.
Mods are moderators, those who will kindly ask you to introduce yourself (you did!) and sign your post with a real name (you did in the last post) and for that purpose, it is mostly easiest to make a signature line (in your user control panel, top left) so you don't have to remember your name all the time, since we are bound to forget it.

[Schlussdibusti]

Welcome to the forum!
Please consider a rescue DS
http://www.dutchshepherdrescue.org/index.html

[felixone123]

thanks for the welcomes!! I do check the rescue site periodically for pups - my husband and I would like a puppy.

[dutchringdog]

Welcome!!

I have a 9yo and a 10 month old pup. I cant say enough about this breed, They are both females and are the best dogs in the world, they are loyal and funny and just ooooooooze sweetness. They are fantastic with kids, I know you said you dont have any, but just in case LOL. I cant really come up with any cons.... Its all good with them, I guess it depends on how you look at things. As you know, they are super high drive, but they have good "off" switches, when Im still, they are, well not the pup quite yet, but as soon as I get up, they are armed and ready to go ! Sadie, the pup, I got from NADSR, she is fantastic, always on the go, so I have plenty of moose antlers to keep her occupied.

The best statement one of the other owners said was they are always one step ahead of you, its very true!
If you are active, then they will love being active with you. Thalie, the older girl, she knows my mountain biking shoes, and when they go on she goes ballistic, she just loves running through the woods.

The pups are so smart and learn so fast !

[felixone123]

Hi - thanks for the great info on DS!! I have been on the fence about whether this was the right dog for us and based on all of your feedback I am convinced it is. We currently have a 2 yr old female rescue no name brand and are leaning towards a male. How do your 2 females get along? I have always heard that 2 of the same gender will fight, which is why we are leaning towards a male.

[tedge007]

Two Females are ok, two males can be dangerous. There are exceptions to this but for the most part unless one male is very submissive having two can be asking for trouble in my opinion. I have had two females in the house for years now and while they have gotten in to a few "heated arguments" neither has ever required medical attention.

[icvanstra]

Welcome to the forum.

One way to tell who a moderator is ... their names are Green.

It is the moderators job on the forum to keep an eye on things, help out people who are having problems with the forum itself, lookout for spam, and moderating the occasional squabble or inappropriate post.

[felixone123]

Hi and thanks for explaining what the moderator does. I see that you are the site admin- can you tell me what you do?

[icvanstra]

Barbara,

I started the forum just to play with the software (I'm a professional nerd) and then a few years ago Judith asked me to work on it and get it more active. She and Christie volunteered to help moderate things.

Christie, Judith, Bob and I are all moderators for the whole forum. Cheryl is a moderator on a section that is currently hidden and used by North American Dutch Shepherd Rescue (NADSR) for their calendar/fundraising initiative. Christie, Trudy, myself and some others were heavily involved in starting NADSR. Because of other commitments Christie and I are not as involved in rescue. Trudy is still doing a great job with NADSR along with many other volunteers.

Myself and Bob are listed as "site admins." The major difference with a "site admin" is that we are the ones who can do maintenance tasks on the forum. Things like updates and patches.

Finally and DEFINITELY not least .. there is Bob. He is a extremely knowledgeable in the software that runs this forum and is an incredible dog lover. Although, it's a shame, his primary canine love is not the Dutch Shepherd. Without him I probably would have just walked away from the website in frustration. His patience in working with me through issues/problems has been a huge help!

I threw out a bunch of names - with time they will become familiar.

...

This forum has all the volunteers listed above that run it - more importantly without the members of this forum who post, discuss, and share it would not be what it is.

[icvanstra]

Two Females are ok, two males can be dangerous.

My personal experience has been that two females is a bad combination.

...

here is my opinion for what it is worth:

- two males can live together
- two females can live together
- a male and female may fight
- depends on the dogs

Personally I have a female in my house that will fight 50 per cent of the other females out there. But has never shown any aggression towards any male rescue that has passed through my house. .. or my current male.

[felixone123]

Hi Eric,
Thanks for the info on the inners workings for this forum and am glad that there is one for DS. Since i will be a future owner of one, I had alot of 2nd thoughts about truly owing one - many non DS owners told me their prey drive was off the charts. So, of course I did extensive research, found a reputable breeder and found this site, which has been the best place to find out about them.

My current dog is a female and fights with most other females, but gets along well with males.

[Lauren]

Hi Barbara, and Welcome!

I have owned a Dutch Shepherd for almost 4 days now, so take my advice with the weight it carries. I have a Standard poodle, 3 indoor cats and two kids that all get along great. I also have free range chickens that the poodle knows to ignore and hand out with.

My new little girl has surprised me in how bright she is. We got her at 7.5 weeks, with no training. In three days, she has learned to wear a collar, walk on a leash, sit on command, sit when she meets someone (reminder needed), make eye contact on command, Sleeps in a crate through the night....

She would like to chase our cats IF they run, but a treat or good toy can distract her. the same with the chickens. I don't dare let her off lead out in the yard with my chickens, but in the house if she goes for the cats she goes in time out. her 7.5 week old mind "gets" that. I have not figured out how to tell her 'no'. The conventional training methods of a quick snap on the collar, a light touch or even a gentle scruff grab ALL make her more aggressive and ready to attack.

I am waiting on ideas from this board and the breeder on that...

All in all I think that she has adapted remarkably well and that she will get along with the cats soon and the chickens someday. Be prepared to come up with all kinds of distractions and mind games! Lauren

[felixone123]

Hi Lauren and thanks for the welcome!!
Wow - 7.5 wks -she must be adorable!! Where did you get her from? would love to see pics. I have 4 cats, a hubbie and no kids - oh and 2yr female heinz 57 breed
Love the DS and looking forward to owning one (hopefully) in 6-7 months. Am already checking out puppy classes.
Barbara