elastigirl--
My girl also is from an accidental breeding. I adopted her in Marlyland, (Calvert county)though I was told she was actually from Virginia (Halifax County).
She is 1/2 golden retriever, or at least that is what the DNA test says...but I do believe that because of her reaction to golden retrievers.
LOL & she greets like a golden retriever, once she's done 'posturing'.
I was not looking for a TM, & never would've thought of adopting one. I thought I was adopting a rottie/retriever mix--a rottie with a softer side...
I'd have been utterly lost without this place, I thought I had a defective puppy. Her temperament was a shock. Thought myself not capable of handling her.
I was honestly afraid, she was so stoic--I had so much to learn. I decided to raise her as if she were pure bred TM, meaning taking the extra precautions of x-x-x-tra socialization & NOT teaching her to guard, etc, cuz we really don't know how guardy she will become.
I didn't get flamed through all of my doubts & frustration-
I wasn't one bit prepared for a TM, wasn't looking for one--
--So I doubt you'll be flamed here. I've found nothing but warmth & a TON of great advice.
There's things TM pups do, or don't do, quirky little weirdnesses that you really do not see in other types of pups.
And every weird thing--the people here had seen it before.
The stoic thing really sent me for a loop. She was sooo serious. Never experienced this with a pup ever.
She's so full of expression now, or I've learned to read her--but she is much more forthcoming now.
and stubborn...so so stubborn!
Stick around, it's a great place.
Thanks, Catia. I have been lurking for a while and the advice and knowledge here is something that I have really taken to heart. My friend was very up front with me about how different TMs are from any other dog breed. We have been treating her as such.
I do feel she is developing a "softer" TM personality with regards to people. But she is still so young that it is hard to make a generalization at this point, so I'm really withholding judgment until she gets older.
She has been to puppy play and the trainers that observed her had nice comments - they said that she was curious, confident and friendly but not at all aggressive - so that was nice to hear. We spend many hours working with her on socializing and training.
I've actually butted heads just a bit with my friend who bred her - she believes I'm trying "too hard" to train Ivy and that my expectations are too high. She thinks I should just let her be and dispense with the puppy classes, etc. I keep telling her that I don't expect Ivy to be perfect. I am going under the assumption that she will never be reliable off-leash and that is fine. She might never get a perfect stay and that is fine. I am spending a lot of time training Ivy not because I have high expectations that she will be a "perfect" dog, rather because I want her to be a happy, well-behaved dog who is WELCOME in my friends' houses and in public places. I don't want a backyard dog; I want a dog who will be a part of our family and be able to go places with us. So far, it is working out that way. On Friday I took Ivy with me to Tractor Supply because I needed chicken feed and she loves going there. I was in the back loading my feed onto the cart, and somehow with the 50 pound bag of feed in my arms I lost the leash. Ivy promptly trotted out the door of the feed room and found her "friend" Judy, the cashier that gives her treats every time she comes in. She came back quite willingly once she had her moment with Judy and gotten petted and said hello. So - we need a lot of work, but she's got great potential and I love taking her places with me.
While I have never had a TM and yes, they are very different from any other breed I've encountered, I did get a *tiny* hint from my darling Samoyed that I raised as a pup and had until he died. Samoyeds are also difficult to train, and I suspect possibly for similar reasons - they are highly intelligent dogs who are quite capable of making their own decisions, thank you very much, and they have been bred for thousands of years to do a particular job, so that is their priority; not necessarily pleasing the humans that they happen to live with!
Not sure if there is any scientific basis for this, but I have a funny feeling that whatever a TM is bred with (in Tessa's case golden retriever!), the TM side will take over!!
