Second quessing my decision...please help me out

[Bar B]

look for a pup that is confident and out going. Try and find the alpha of the pack and then choose the pup under him. The alpha is most often the hardest to train. There are things you can do at home to help with training such as "when the phone rings have the pup go to the phone and do a dance for attention". If I`m not mistaking Charlotte Gott or Goss(sp) has her 3rd seeing eye Boxer now. The organization she went through was The Seeing Eye Inc (located Morristown, New Jersey). They start all pups up in a 4H home to learn basics (come sit stay) and socialization. The 4H family takes the pup every where possible. Training doesn`t actually start for the seeing eye pup until it reaches 16 months of age. For those that don`t pan out will be placed in pet homes.

It is possible that a hearing impaired service can provide you with a trained dog. Not sure how it all happens but that is how Charlotte got her first. It lived with her until it aged out and then she had a second dog to come in. Aged out does not mean the dog was put down. It merely states that it had gotten to old to perform its duties and went to another home to live out its life while keeping a service dog in the home the whole time.

Even though these organizations spend thousands of dollars to train NOT all dogs make it. They do extensive genetic research and testing for desirable pups that go through their program. In fact they have their own breeding program with frozen semen and everything. I know seeing eye will not be what you need but i`m sure it would compare greatly to a hearing impaired facility.

 

[haleyandmark]

I actually have a friend that works with hearing impaired children and she has a Boxer and a black Lab that go visit the kids at their school. She has taught both of the dogs sign language! Of course they don't understand long sentances but the command for sit, stay, settle down, and things like that.

 

[tasillo]

Alpha

How will i know which dog is the alpha dog and choose one under him?any advice what i should looking for?
And to reply to us being able to get a guide dog for free....well we cannot because we do not qualify.
My daughter has to live on her own and be at least 18....she can then get one if she wants.
Its such a LONg wait...he is not to be born until end of March....each day seems to last forever.We already have a collar , leash...and a crate all waiting for him.

 

[littleone]

Hi Tasillo,

The links below are specific to deaf dog ownership, we have a Boxer puppy and an Argentine Mastiff (this breed is prone to deafness due to their white color), one of the websites pertaining to his breed has a number of links for owners of deaf dogs, please see the info below. Though you are looking for a hearing dog, I believe there is quite a bit of info that may be helpful to you and your family once you get your puppy and begin the training process in order to have him/her be your daughter's "ears". I hope this helps, please keep us posted on how it goes.

Penny

http://www.deafdogsatlas.com/

http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/aslweb/browser.htm

http://www.voy.com/140866/

http://catatonic.freeservers.com/penny/deafdogs.html

 

[Bar B]

How will i know which dog is the alpha dog and choose one under him?any advice what i should looking for?
QUOTE]

There is a temp test for puppies on the board here somewhere. I have seen it before but you will have to do a search. Does your breeder temp. test their puppies? They should be able to help you with a pick. I know you had mentioned a male but if you look at the litter overall, it is highly possible that a female might have the more desirable traits but it could go either way.

 

[BeckyNC]

If you are working with a reputable breeder, he/she should be able to help you identify the alpha pup and choose the one that's best for you.

When I took Tae to obedience, we trained with hand signals, as well as verbal commands. Even though I use the verbal commands, she still responds to hand signals. That said, it should not be too difficult to train the dog in a simlar way. I would suspect many obedience instructors teach both.

 

[tyson&ali]

My uneducated opnion is that while yes boxers are active and they need alot of attention and they are sometimes crazy, have a special nature about them especially in regards to children and recently I saw it with the elderly. It is almost as if they know whith whom they can act up and who they can't. My little girl (FUR KID) is crazy, she jumps an wiggles and nips and does all those quirky and cute things that boxers do but when an elderly lady bent over to pet her and put her face within jump and nip range I feared the worst, however Ali politely accepted her love and went on her way! I was amazed!!also when Matt's 7 month old neice is over both our babies are as gentle as lambs with her! congrats on doing you homework! appicon good luck and god bless Tyson and Ali's mom

 

[hanley]

I would have to say a Boxer would be your right choice,unless you can get a Lab. already trained for hearing impairment. My Boxers have always been great with children. My Mom has mutiple sclerosis & its as if my Boxers can sense she has a problem,they are never rough with her in any way. These dogs are very sensitive & protective of their family members. Has your daughter ever been around an adult Boxer, & if so how did the dog react to your daughter or did the dog act the same with her as he did the other children, I have watched how my dogs react with different people, I guess because of my Moms M.S. Best of Luck, Hanley

 

[roxy's mum]

Hey there.....

Our Roxy girl is a Boxer X Lab.
This is a fantastic mix!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
She is a ball of energy don't get me wrong.
But she suprised me the other day when she came across her first dominant small child.
This little girl came up to us and asked if she could pat our puppy (Roxy is 6 mos. old), of course we said yes.
This little girl then preceded to pull Roxy's tail and ears, and try to sit on her back.
I'm never worried that she would ever hurt anyone.....but even this could test the most pacid of dogs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But Roxy suprised us all and completely loved the attention. Then when the little girl left Roxy sooked cause she wanted to keep playing.

Moral to the story......love your little puppy with all your heart, and they will do everything they can to make you proud!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[tasillo]

thanks

My little 3 year old has been around a boxer and so have my older children. And now looking back i must agree with you. While we were visiting ( the boxer is owned by my friend)...the dog was rough housing with my older ones and with my 3 year old she would just run up to her to lick her face....OVER and OVER and OVER again. the dog was extremely gentle.
This was the initial reason I started reading on boxers and was stunned to see how much they LOVE kids.
I was like a lot of people are....looked at the dog...and had the misconception of a guard and tough dog....when infact boxers are just the opposite. To be honest i had never considered getting one....initially i was never the one that found them attractive..(sorry)
But how my views have changed....THEY are so cute...their eyes show their soul.I can say i have converted....i NOW think they are a stunning breed.
And ofcourse my hubbie is so happy ....since he has always loved them.
We cannot wait to get our little baby boy!!