[barrel browner]

My hubby and I were reminiscing over the last nine months on how quick the time has passed since bringing our little (not any more) V home. Our 'baby' girl will turn one on the 25th May. We could help but recall all the highs and lows the laughs and tears and the overwhelming love you have for them.They truly become part of the family more so than any other dog I have been privileged to own. ....................

If there was one thing you would/could change about your V what would it be?...

 

[doglover]

I wish Clyde would lay down, just like once a day for like 20 minutes. He is 10 months and has never layed down... unless I put him in his kennel. Everyone talks about the enegry level but I still think I am dealing with a crazier than normal V...ADD of Vizslas if you will. Still love him though...at least I will be pleasently suprised if I ever decide to do this to myself again. Thanks for asking. Anna

 

[Crazy Kian]

Nothing major comes to mind. I personally feel he is the way he is because of us and he can't help it. All in all he is a great dog, except when he will not listen, but even that is getting better.
So, if I had to choose one thing, it would be that he learn to lie down in the bed we bought for him. I would like to have him lie/sleep in that at night instead of his crate. Now he just attacks it and tries to shake the living bejeezus out of it ;D.... one day he'll understand :

 

[barrel browner]

thanks for your replies guys .... I am probably goin to upset you both as Purdey seems the total opposite of both your V's.....As I type this Purdey is sleepin upside down in her night bed still snoozing ( she's tired only been asleep 10 hours!) and apart from 10/20 mins of that typical V tearing round the garden and the velcroness of her I would say thats the only similarities she has of the breed!!!!!!

But having said that she's gorgeous,clever,loyal,loving,mad as a hatter (just like me!)and much much more but the one thing I would change FOR HER is to give her more confidence...Purdey is a very nervous girl who at the moment is seeing a dog behaviourist (who is also our trainer so has know Purdey from 10 weeks)...

So if I could Change anything for my soon to be birthday girl it would be that she could have a stress free life and not to feel scared ever again

 

[Mercutio]

I have thought about this a lot over the last two and a bit years : At different times I've said "if he would just..... then he'd be perfect"

What I'd really like is for Merc not to react to people he doesn't like with a big woof. I can live with the excess energy, with the insistence on cuddles, with the love of rolling in disgusting, unidentifiable things but I would like to be able to take him out in public with confidence.

However I have to admit it's my fault for not socialising him enough as a puppy. I did a great job with some things, but never considered that he would find girls skipping alarming or plastic bags up trees threatening. We're working on it now but next time I'll make sure my puppy grows up more confident in the world around him.

 

[gunnr]

I really don't think I'd change anything. I'd like to see Gunnr eat more, but she just doesn't and leaving the food down has made Tika a little on the chubby side.

My two dogs are polar opposites. Tika will stay by your side all day, and Gunnr just wants to go.

 

[Big Rick]

I can't think of anything to change! Dexter was quite energetic when he was younger but Scarlet has been much less energetic from the beginning. Right now they are both lying in the sun in the back yard, being very quiet. We love them just the way they are!!!

 

[kathleenleff]

Maple is now almost 5 months. I wouldn't change anything but would love for her to learn how to fetch. She just doesn't quite have the concept yet. She doesn't always see the throw and when she does, doesn't bring it back. We will keep trying.

 

[Pineapple Princess]

I wish Hobie didn't moonlight as a thief (see my previous post "Vizsla Thieves").

Last night I saw her tearing down the hall, paper flapping in her face. It was my engagement photo.

She identified it in the guest room closet (which she now knows is a treasure chest of forbidden fruit). I swear she must have immediately thought "JACKPOT".

But I guess if she weren't a bandit then she just wouldn't be the same Hobie that we adore.

Other than that I wish she could live forever. Even at 6 months old, I am ashamed to say I think of that sad day at least once daily, wondering how I will cope. :'(

 

[sarahaf]

I can relate to all of this, especially stealing (her biggest issue at home), anxiety, and barking at strangers, strange objects, and people dancing or running on TV.

Pineapple, I can so relate when you said you imagined Hobie thinking "Jackpot." Rosie knows exactly what we find valuable enough to chase her for (which we try to avoid doing unless we have to have the item back), and she LOVES being chased. So she will go for those objects as soon as she gains access to them. She also knows the command "drop it," but she makes you show her the money (treat) before she obeys. It's a win-win for her, either she gets chased or she gets a treat reward in exchange for releasing the item. She looks so gleeful when she's running around with your (prescription sunglasses, shard of glass, pill bottle, cell phone...). Yeah, I think we need a trainer, too.

We love her velcro-ness, though. As I write this, she has her head resting on my feet and is sleeping peacefully. I too have sad thoughts about what it would be like to lose her.

 

[jp]

Yes, definitely the stealing of things to get chased or for destruction. When she's in certain moods (half the day?) she can't be trusted. As I'm trying to set up a new computer last night and therefore not giving her attention she wants she kept running at full speed into the kitchen, jumping and swiping to get stuff from way back on the counters, photos on the fridge, whatever she can reach anywhere. Then it's off to the chases unless I want it to be destroyed. The velcroness is nice, but it can get out of hand as it has, hopefully temporarily, into anxiety.

 

[RyanColleenLia]

Sarahaf, Lia does the same thing Rosie does! Lia is an extremely intelligent little girl (a little too much for her own good ) and knows what she has to do to not only get our attention but also a treat out of it at the same time. We have her in puppy classes and she recently learned "Leave It" for things that she wants to play with but can never have. It worked great for a few days and we would treat her after, but now we are to the point where it is a game...she gets the pleasure of playing with something she knows she is not supposed to, like a sock or shoe, and the when she stops when we give her the Leave It command, she gets a treat and goes right back to trying to steal the same sock or shoe, or anything else that will get our undivided attention. We stopped treating her as much and it's make Leave It a little less effective, but I'll ask the trainer tonight and see if he has any words of wisdom to report back.

So if there is one thing I could change about Lia, it would be that we could speed up time (but still have her be the same age she is now) so she would be more mature and we could let her roam free around the house without the worry of her finding a tasty sock or shoe to devower (she's already downed one pair of heals). Ryan would love it if instead of stealing a sock to chew on, she would retrive it for him so he can put them on, but I think we are a long time away from that happening! Wishful thinking...One more thing! Lia has the loundest "death cries", as we call it. She is such a whiner; doesn't back much (which is good), but will whine to no end, especially when she has done something she is not supposed to and we "punish" her by a little cuddle time with us to calm her down out of her "turbo" mode. Less death cries would be nice, but if I had to choose that or excessive barking, I would choose death cries.