SearchWhat It's Like Owning a Doberman: From a First-Time Owner
What It's Like Owning a Doberman: From a First-Time Owner
We brought home our puppy, Ike, at 8 weeks age in April, and I thought I'd make public my impressions of the breed. As a disclaimer, this describes only one dog, from a reasonably solid pedigree, in an "average" middle-class American family with three young children.
First and foremost, these dogs are extremely athletic. Even as puppies, their play might be in a league of its own where small children are concerned, very much like a high school football team versus the Dallas Cowboys.
His stamina and drive is quite high. Pack drive, exceptionally high: if you start running, he will be right there with you. He will almost certainly outlast you in any exercise.
Potty-training I would describe as "average". I've always issued the "go potty!" command, and he invariably does it when we are on grass - I'd say 99% of the time now. There have been a few accidents, none recently.
Dobermans grow quickly: Ours has gone from a cute little black and rust waif of 15 lbs. to 44 lbs. of teeth and muscle in just two months, with plenty more to come.
The breed, in our brief experience, is not particularly stubborn, usually responding well to corrections. The Doberman is a very smart animal. He has a mischievous streak, but is never what I would describe as malicious, vicious, or evil. He will quit if you "catch him in the act".
These dogs like extremely rough play. He is the largest animal we own, plays very rough with our pug - a normally docile animal who has given Ike a few snips sending the latter off yelping, and with our full blessing (the pug has every right to self-defense). Ike keeps coming back for more; the "rough" play doesn't seem to phase him one iota. He loves to wrestle with me, and I have the battle scars to prove it!
One trait I particularly admire: One of the members of our family is our two-year-old daughter, who is small for her age and has a few special needs. While he can be rough with the older two (ages 6 and 4), Ike has never mouthed her and seems to know, instinctively, that she is a delicate creature, an "untouchable". He has never attacked anyone who approached him while feeding.
He does bark at people passing on the streets, and I praise him for this because the instinct behind this barking is one reason we wanted a Doberman. He does not chase, and stays near the house at all times, seldom venturing past the driveway. We live in a rural, low-traffic area with no leash laws, so for the time being we have seen no need for an invisible fence. We have standard wire electric fencing around the fields - and around the wife's vegetable garden!
He does exhibit some fear of other dogs. We are correcting this. He spent a day with "Mindy", a four-year-old black lab, that involved a car trip to a strange place with a friend. Once he got over his initial fear, they played well together, and she established the boundary lines for him. He had another recent "meet and greet" with another large black dog in the neighborhood, a barker. After Ike's initial trepidation they did the customary canine greeting and went their own ways.
On trainability, I've done some work with some of the more basic Schutzhund commands. He comprehends them, but obedience is not yet where I would like it to be. Some of this may be my training method, and some attributable to his short puppy attention span.
Chewing is a real problem, as we expected. Anything with stuffing in it will soon be separated from it. Muzzling at times has helped. I have to temper any Schutzhund goals with the reality that he must also learn to be a good family pet. Pig ears are a favorite treat and satisfy the chewing urge for a short time.
Digging has been a minor problem, but one that seems amenable to correction.
He is aloof but never aggressive towards strangers, gently licking their hands once they are properly introduced. People instantly recognize the breed and are drawn to Ike. Thusfar he seems to be a good breed ambassador.
No health issues.
Lastly, the prey drive is exceptionally high: we've "lost" one of our cats since Ike joined the family- this particular cat was borderline feral anyways and extremely timid. Another had gone missing for days recently, and when she finally came home we had to grab Ike to keep him from chasing her off yet again. Prey drive can be a big plus, but I must learn how to harness it effectively. There are many pest critters in our fields that he is welcomed to dig up, but I believe his breed is best suited to guarding the home.
Overall, I like my puppy very much and look forward to a strong and loving relationship with him.
rgreen4,
I want to say a special "thank you" to you for responding to posts so faithfully! Even if the poster (me in this case) doesn't reply right away, please know your thoughtful responses are read and deeply appreciated! Thumbs up!
That's not a problem. As to size, I was going through some old digital photos I had taken of Red when he was a 14 week old puppy. He was already slightly taller and heavier than any of my three Miniature Schnauzers. Even Princess whom I got at 9 weeks was not not a lot smaller than the full grown Schnauzers. Someone looking at Princess now at 24" and an estimated 65 pounds might think she is full grown, but, she'll be 8 month sold this weekend. She still has an inch or so to grow and a few more pounds to add.
That's a funny story about Mo, your Dobes, and the 350' fence. The dogs invented their own dog run.
We also have about five acres and it is good for dogs. I just hope mine doesn't get kicked by a horse! :o It's impossible to watch the dog all the time, have to trust their own intelligence/instincts.
Have you gotten Red fixed yet? I remember reading a month or two ago about his interest in Princess.
Yes, the deed was done July 2. Now I have the two male Schnauzers to do. Not that they can get to her, its just that it's time. One is 11 and the other is 10. I am not going to breed either, so why take the risk of cancer in their later years.
An "Untouchable" is probably the best word I have heard yet to describe young toddlers (your daughter in this case). I have a 2 year old niece, and my dog will go from running around and fetching with my college age roommates, to sitting in front of my niece, not biting, growling, or even mouthing (something i'm trying to break in his interactions with older people), and if I have to stop him from doing anything, it is licking her to much.
First-Time-Dog owner myself and can relate to a lot of what your saying!
Just realized you posted this a year ago... Enjoy the flashback :)
Great post, we're a family of three with small children as well.
Our 8 week old pup has been home with us for three days and my jaw is still on the floor. I'm so glad I had kids before I got a Dobermann... I'm not sure I would have had kids otherwise! I'm already mentally calculating when we can add another Dobi to the family!
At least a few years I'm sure! We'll be Dobi owners for-ever!!
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I think you have nailed them pretty close. Your comments about being shy when meeting other dogs, remember that Ike is still a young puppy mentally, even though he may be larger than some of the adult dogs he will meet. Equate that to how a normal 7 year old reacts when they first encounter a strange adult. I would not really call it fear, but more of a shyness. When they realize they are meeting a friend, then the shields come down.
Digging - good luck. Remember the traditional second part of the original name - Pinscher. Translated from German, pinscher means Terrier. And Terriers all have one thing in common - they dig. And Dig. And Boy Do They Dig. I also have a few Miniature Schnauzers - another member of the Terrier group. At times in the night they will awaken me by their digging in their crates. Of course, they don't get anywhere, but that has never stopped them trying. Both Princess and Red do it on occasion as well.
Red was not too bad about digging in back until Princess got to about 4 months old. Now I have to be very careful, and it is amazing what those two have been digging up. When alone they are not too bad, but get two or more together and leave them alone - they will get in trouble.
Most dogs will chase anything that runs from them. The Dobe has the legs to run most of them down and the teeth to deal with it afterwards. I had a neighbor here that had a Rottie named Mo. At the time, we had a hog wire fence between the two properties (I have 4 acres, he had two). Mo and my Dobies would like to run the fence which was about 350' long. By the time Mo go halfway, mine had reached the end and had turned and were coming back. He would turn and start back and by the time he go back to the starting point, they were already there. My neighbor and I would watch them do this for an hour or more, before they finally got worn out. It had the tendency of keeping all four dogs out of trouble. They were too tired to do much else the rest of the day.
Princess is now of a size and confidence (7 months almost 60 pounds) that she really plays rough with Red. As you said, teeth and muscle. When she and he play in the evening snapping at each other, it looks like they each have twice as many teeth as they really do.