Jupiter

Jupiter

Jupiter or Rowdy dog or Rowdy as he most often gets called, because that is what he is. Rowdy is a big 80lb lovable bundle of pure energy. He requires a lot of exercise and really needs at least one walk a day of about an hour long in order to keep his energy in check, and even with that he’s up at every noise, (even the ones that I don’t hear) gotta check and see what is going on. He is a strong dog and actually walks fairly well on lead and gets better but still requires a strong had when walking. He’s still adjusting to ‘family life’ but he is coming along well in some areas but at a slow pace in others. He will crate, but we have found he does better without it. In crate he has torn up his bedding twice once we started leaving him out of crate other than him trying to get the front door open the first time we left, he has been well behaved no chewing or destruction, but he will take that opportunity to climb up on the couch. As far as I know he does not bark while we are gone, but I can’t be certain as we have no neighbors close by to complain. He eats well and will look at you and wait until you put the food down. He does have intermittent food guarding issues that we are working with, mostly with people coming around and touching him though. I’ve not seen him do it when the other dog approaches. He follows commands to not jump, and go lay down or leave an area/room when he is told. He likes his Nylabones and a tennis ball to chew and play with. STUFFY toys are a big NO for him, he gets very intense and aggressive with them and will growl at you if you try to take them. He loves the yard, especially in the mornings when all the cats are in and he can go out without his muzzle on, and is still in the process of learning that he doesn’t have to come back in right away after doing his business.

As for his socialization with other animals, Rowdy has 4 permanent house mates. He gets along well with our greyhound Leon. Leon is a couch potato and is touchy about other animals invading his space in that he will give a little growl, Rowdy does not respond really when this happens. We also have 3 cats, this has been a big adjustment for him as he is very intense and came very prey driven. He has learned to coexist for the most part with them in the house all though his behavior is still very intense and he scares the cats causing most of them to keep their distance or go to another room. All but one is determined to make him her cuddle buddy. So she is definitely working on teaching him to get along with cats. I cautiously trust him with the cats while we are in the room but would not trust him in the house alone with them and never trust him outside right now if the cats are out unless he has his muzzle on. He has learned to tolerate my son-in-law’s little Corgi after a few tense moments at the beginning of introduction and a few days with muzzle on even in the house but we eventually got to where we could leave him indoors with muzzle off. Still not sure about trusting him outside muzzle off with him though.

Rowdy still has some issues socializing with other dogs. He tends to get highly stimulated when approached by other dogs and isn’t quite sure how to distinguish between playful and aggressive behavior so his first response is generally to nip at any dog that approaches. Unfortunately he also seems to be unable to distinguish the difference between a dog and an infant or small child. When we take him out in public we have found it’s best to take him to places that aren’t too busy and the contact can be kept to a minimum, too much stimulation makes him harder to control.

Jupiter