One month with Hogan
As the dogs take their afternoon nap I figured I would write up a one month reflection on my ownership of a Bull Terrier. Some of this is just statements and there may be a few questions as well. It may be a little lengthy but just using this time to brag and give observations.
I got Hogan at 9 weeks old and he was 11lbs he is now just a shade over 15 weeks at 21lbs.
Overall tempermant- The little dude is sweet as can be. Nala our year and a half old doberman and him get along well but when she gets too rough Hogan will get frusturated and try to stick up for himself. He is a stubborn booger though because when she wants no more play he will continually antagonize her and then she starts to get mad. It really is a neverending cycle of trying to let them play and not letting her 70lb clumsy body hurt him. Hogan plays very well with small dogs. Like many people have said Bull Terriers are people dogs. He wants to be around my wife and I all the time. If we are in the yard doing things he is right at our feet to the point of being in the way. Every day for about an hour or so in the late afternoon he will go into loner mode and just go lay in the main hallway or go under our entryway bench and takes his nap.
Training- He is very smart and very food driven. He knows sit, down, and stay fairly well. Potty training has been a rough battle. I estimate him at about a 80% success rate of going outside, but every so often he will sneak off and go in the house. It is usually poop when he does this. We have been very consistent in having him go outside after naps, play, and meals, but he still will go in the house if we miss his 30 second window of opportunity.
Chewing/bad behaviors- He does not really have a problem chewing things he should not and a firm no corrects the behavior when he does get the urge. I feel bad that he has no soft toys to teeth with because our dobe will destroy anything she sees in 2 minutes. I wouldn't mind if I just had to pick it up and buy a new one, but she also swallows it. We will let Hogan chew soft toys that we hide if he is alone but he only gets them for small amounts of time. He is not aggressive to people or other dogs, but my niece has got a few puppy nips and she cries about it, but that has seemed to get better the last few weeks as well. The one thing that drives me nuts is he is a constant digger! Any remedies to correct that? We used a water bottle on Nala and it took a few times and she stopped. Water bottle does not phase Hogan, he thinks its some time of game.
Ears- Just started taping two weeks ago.....still working on them. Any tips to really finish this and get them up?
Skin- We went out of town for 2 days to a wedding last week. When we picked him up from my parents he had scabs all over his neck. They are gone now, but we have no idea what caused it. Allergies perhaps? Maybe Nala got a little too rough and they didn't stop it soon enough? Bug bites? Not really sure, but it hasn't came back so I'm not overly worried about it as of right now. He's on grain free food and we give Coconut oil 2-3 times a week.
I got Hogan at 9 weeks old and he was 11lbs he is now just a shade over 15 weeks at 21lbs.
Overall tempermant- The little dude is sweet as can be. Nala our year and a half old doberman and him get along well but when she gets too rough Hogan will get frusturated and try to stick up for himself. He is a stubborn booger though because when she wants no more play he will continually antagonize her and then she starts to get mad. It really is a neverending cycle of trying to let them play and not letting her 70lb clumsy body hurt him. Hogan plays very well with small dogs. Like many people have said Bull Terriers are people dogs. He wants to be around my wife and I all the time. If we are in the yard doing things he is right at our feet to the point of being in the way. Every day for about an hour or so in the late afternoon he will go into loner mode and just go lay in the main hallway or go under our entryway bench and takes his nap.
Training- He is very smart and very food driven. He knows sit, down, and stay fairly well. Potty training has been a rough battle. I estimate him at about a 80% success rate of going outside, but every so often he will sneak off and go in the house. It is usually poop when he does this. We have been very consistent in having him go outside after naps, play, and meals, but he still will go in the house if we miss his 30 second window of opportunity.
Chewing/bad behaviors- He does not really have a problem chewing things he should not and a firm no corrects the behavior when he does get the urge. I feel bad that he has no soft toys to teeth with because our dobe will destroy anything she sees in 2 minutes. I wouldn't mind if I just had to pick it up and buy a new one, but she also swallows it. We will let Hogan chew soft toys that we hide if he is alone but he only gets them for small amounts of time. He is not aggressive to people or other dogs, but my niece has got a few puppy nips and she cries about it, but that has seemed to get better the last few weeks as well. The one thing that drives me nuts is he is a constant digger! Any remedies to correct that? We used a water bottle on Nala and it took a few times and she stopped. Water bottle does not phase Hogan, he thinks its some time of game.
Ears- Just started taping two weeks ago.....still working on them. Any tips to really finish this and get them up?
Skin- We went out of town for 2 days to a wedding last week. When we picked him up from my parents he had scabs all over his neck. They are gone now, but we have no idea what caused it. Allergies perhaps? Maybe Nala got a little too rough and they didn't stop it soon enough? Bug bites? Not really sure, but it hasn't came back so I'm not overly worried about it as of right now. He's on grain free food and we give Coconut oil 2-3 times a week.
Comments
The scabs on the neck sound like they may have come from wrestling with your other dog.
"It's not just a Dog, it's a Bull Terrier!"
www.bulliesofnc.com
I will post some pics later today! I think one of his oddest behaviors that we noticed is if we are in the office or our bedroom and the door is open he will squeeze himself behind the door and just stand there and stare at the corner like a kid in time out. He doesn't do this when hes in trouble he willingly does it on his own. Another funny thing he does is stare at our chickens. I mean he will sit and watch them for hours if we let him. I'd like to let him in the chicken run but I have bad visions of what might happen lol (also scared one of the chickens might peck his eye).