Puppy!

I'm on holiday this week and met up with a neighbour in the village in which I'm staying. She has a new puppy who is 15 weeks old and is finding him hard work. It's her first dog and he's a German Wire-Haired pointer. We chatted about him and when I commented on how they are known to be very strong-willed and know very experienced owners/trainers who say they are the hardest dogs they have ever trained she said everyone keeps telling her that - She didn't realise how difficult it would be. There's a couple of points there for new dog owners:-

- do your homework on breeds before you get your new puppy, making sure you can meet the needs of that particular breed and that your lifestyle is suitable for that breed.
- think about puppy versus older dog - this lady is retired and it's her first dog

German Wire-Haired Pointers are great dogs and do great work but need training and something to do so think about going to a training class and make sure the trainer understands the breed and their needs in training.

We talked about his exercise as he is being walked for an hour free running at a time which is too much for a growing puppy of that age. The accepted norm is around 5 minutes per month of age and whilst nothing is ever cast in stone it is a general standard to work around. There are lots of other ways to exercise a puppy without walking his legs off and we are meeting today to do some bits and pieces so we can exercise his brain.