Training two chows

Training and behavior topics, guidelines, and tips for Chow Chows.

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kpayton

Training two chows

Post by kpayton »

Hi,

I am planning to get another puppy Chow about 7 months old, and i am still training my current Chow 9 months to do tricks like come, retrieve, wait, etc. My question is will it be even more difficult to train her to do these tricks with the new puppy addition? Have any of you tried training your dogs while you have two? What kind of difficulties have you encountered.

Thanks,

Kyle
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Post by Guest »

Just my Opinion but teaching one Chow to retrieve let alone 2 of them would be a Chow miracle.

Wait, that one will work, two tugs on the leash with the word wait is all that one takes. ( A must for walking in Traffic)

Come, wishful thinking, Better have a treat in your hand. (If it involves a cat or squirrel you better hope your Chow is Chipped)

Retrieve, Miracle worker. Write a Chow book

It all works with dogs but your dealing with a Chow.
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Post by Guest »

That last post was from me for all that disagree.
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Rogansmommy
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Post by Rogansmommy »

I have trained two dogs simultaneously, but one was a rottie and the other my chow. Rogan (chow) was 7 months old when Nina (rottie) moved in. She was only 5 weeks old when she moved in... too young I know but it's a long story. In my experience, what you need to do is one of two things:

1. another person in the house take on full responsibility (well, ok, maybe 90%) for the training of the dog. In our case, it was my husband. Nina became his dog. We could train together and help each other out. We would work the dogs outside of class on our front lawn (at the time we had about a 1/2 acre front lawn) and the neighbors loved to watch. We used them as "strangers", posts, you name it, we used them for it. It was alot of fun.

2. train them each, separately. Take them to classes at different times, give them each individual moments with you. Short bursts work well with chows (5 minutes here, 5 minutes there) so you might be able to pull this off. Take them out - socialization is so important for this breed.

In the end, I think it's totally do-able. Rogan got his CD at age 3 :D; Nina only has one leg of her CD due to her seriously poor health (again, a long story for another day!) but, IMO, is much better in her skills work than Rogan. (Rotties = predictable :D )

edited: Retrieve? You can make a Chow retrieve? :? Mom: throws ball. Rogan: looking at ball, yawns, and says, "Hey Mom, you lost your ball... send the rottweiler, she looks interested."
Michele

^Rogan^ at the Bridge on 5/16/09 -- always in my heart
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Zhuyos mom
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Post by Zhuyos mom »

You don't happen to be related to the other poster who has a 9 month old and trying to train it to stay outside 24/7? If so, oh buoy! (Judy, did I get that right?!)

It's better to train one-on-one. The focus is better. You can train your chow to do whatever you like. How your chow interprets that training is another thing! Our family chow, Suntzu and my cream chow, Zhuyo both learned to retrieve. But will retrieve in their terms only. Zhu is now retired and will only grace me with a "go get it" if I look so desperate and his favorite treat is ready for him. Even with that, he'll tuck the ball between his two front paws and lie down on it a chow's length away from me. So it ends up me retrieving the ball. All our chows knew the basic commands and basic tricks (paw, high five, etc. etc.), but would only do the tricks for family inside their respected homes and NEVER outside for the public as (according to them) they are NOT CIRCUS PERFORMERS! It took me 6 months to teach my rescue, Miss Pooh Bear (the cinnamon one), to give me a paw. But her interpretation of "paw" is completely different from our other chows. So I take what I can get! And I guess, that's how you have to view training your chow tricks.

Good luck! It's alot of fun!
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Post by Judy Fox »

Yes, well - tricks and Chows, as far as Milly and Mabel have taught me, just don't mix.
Except of course, Milly's latest trick of getting me up in the middle of the night to hunt hedgehogs. (See my post about Milly's dreadful behaviour in the posting "Hey").

Milly and Mabel will give their paws when asked and will lift their paws when they want something. They will sit when asked and that is about it.

If Fred calls them in in the evening, they totally ignore him! If I then go and call them in, they come in!

Fred and I have had dogs since we were both small children and Fred had a Police Dog when he was in the Military Police so we do feel we know how to train a dog. But, train a Chow - yes, well, whatever!! :lol: :lol: :lol:

So, good luck - sorry no suggestion - but if you find out how, please let me know! On the other hand, I love my girls as they are - beautiful, naughty, disobedient, arrogant, stubborn, self-willed, devious, clever (much to clever to retrieve a ball) etc. etc. etc.

Purple kisses to your two from my two!

p.s. that is another thing, they love us, but will they give us a kiss! Will they thump. Well, hardly ever. :roll:
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Re: Training two chows

Post by Guest »

kpayton wrote:Hi,

I am planning to get another puppy Chow about 7 months old, and i am still training my current Chow 9 months to do tricks like come, retrieve, wait, etc. My question is will it be even more difficult to train her to do these tricks with the new puppy addition? Have any of you tried training your dogs while you have two? What kind of difficulties have you encountered.

Thanks,

Kyle
you need to you know
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Judy Fox
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Post by Judy Fox »

are you the same payton who leaves the chow in the back garden - how about, before you get the new chow - you get a book on chows! What you are talking about is a dog and how dogs act - chows are not like ordinary dogs.
Deal with it! :evil:
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