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Welcome back and what a beautiful dog!

Aw! Congratulations Donna! Dobies are the *best*. Such sweet gentle dogs. I hope the cats' noses aren't too out of joint. :) (I have 2 cats and would love a dog too, but just don't have the room!) >^..^

What a sweetie!! It won't tske her long to figure out that life is good with you guys. I'm a dog person, but not a smart one - mine are spoiled rotten!! Take care and get some sleep.

Dogs are like children - they WANT structure and discipline. You NEED to establish who is the alpha dog right away. Don't wait. I know the surroundings are new to her and she is young. But if you don't start now, she will settle into bad habits that you won't be able to break. Go ahead and use the commands she knows. You don't need to spank her, and whatever you do, DON"T use a newspaper! Speak to her in a strong tone - you don't need to yell. Be consistent - if she already knows commands, stick to those. New ones will definitely confuse her. Reward her when she does something correctly. This can be with sweet dog nothings or with a treat. She can sense your worry and confusion. Be confident! Continue to give your cats the love and attention they are used to. They will get upset and jealous if you ignore them. I hope all of this helps. Find some books on dobies so that you can understand the breed. I have two Jack Russells. So I KNOW what it is like to have a rambuncious kid at home. Good luck. Email me if you have any other questions. Your pal, Tracey

DONNA,
WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF DOGS.
MY DOGS WOULD LOVE TO GET THE NEIGHBORS CATS.
LITTLE ORANGE (WHAT I CALL HIM) LOVES TO TEASE MY DOGS.
MOMMA TAUGHT HIM THAT THE DOGS ARE ON A LEASH AND THEY CAN'T GET TO HIM. BOY DID HE EVER BELIEVE THAT AND IS PROVING IT DAILY.
JUDY

Crate training is a great thing. We have Brittanys, who are little monster sporting dogs, and we wouldn't have an intact house without them loving their kennels (and lots of exercise). Have you ever seen the Dog Whisperer show on the National Geographic channel? He knows his dogs, and uses a pack mentality to train them. Definitely worth checking out.

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/channel/dogwhisperer/tips.html

Dobies are great dogs, I have had them in the past but now have a white German Shepherd and a blue heeler. I live in coyote country and cats don't last long around here unless they're totally inside cats.... I have some experince with dogs and training and would suggest a couple of things. Make sure she gets plenty of exercise! Love her, but don't be wishy washy with your rules (like letting her on the couch). You are the boss and you don't want her in control. So set the rules up your way and give her a peacful safe place to be while you do your things. I used a kong toy for my blue heeler when he was a pup. Filled it with peanut butter and that gave me and him about 1/2 hour of peace.
Good luck, and by the way, you make beautiful beads!
Donna

Congrats on the new addition! Let me tell you from experience it's both wonderful and frustrating bring home a rescue dog. My husband and I have done this a couple of times and it's those first few months that are the most trying. Four months ago we adopted in an 18 month old boxer who we named Bosco. He's so much fun and doing really well now but I have to say that the first month was pretty hard. We also have 3 cats (and two other dogs) and Bosco thought the cats were great fun to chase. I felt horrible for putting my sweet kitties through this! However, it has become a happy household again now that all the newness has worn off. The cats now lay with him and the other dogs during nap time and he no longer chases them. We didn't do anything other than give him a stearn NO! when he went after the kitties in the begining and now it's not even an issue. We always follow up the "no" with a request to "come" or "sit" and then lots of praise for doing what he was asked. I promise things will settled down with your Lady---she is so beautiful! The only other thing that I would recomend is to keep her out of her crate as much as you can...I know that's hard right now but she'll adjust to your life/schedule soon. Crating her during the day may work a bit against you in that she may want to play all the more when she is let out. Believe me I would have loved to crate our boy Bosco (he honestly drove me nuts for a while) but he's adjustly beautifully to our hectic lives! Good luck to you and your new Lady!!!

Hi Donna,
Welcome to the wonderful world of Dobermans!!! You've done a wonderful thing by adopting a rescue dog! Lady might need some special attention in the beginning, but that's to be expected.
We have a red male Doberman (Beau) and he is the most lovable, sweet dog you could imagine. Before Beau, we had a black female Doberman (Ripley - named for the movie Alien) and she was also a treasure! Dobermans are very intelligent and willing to please.
We had 3 cats as well (gone now, sadly) and both dogs had to be introduced to them slowly. They came around just fine in the end, though, so don't lose hope!
She is a lovely Lady! I'm sure you'll have a long and wonderful relationship!
regards, Beata

What a beautiful baby!
Congratulations on your blended family.
I'm afraid I have no good dog karma to bestow upon you. I might have a dog hiku stashed away somewhere but that wont help you any.
The last dog I had was when I was 6 and she was a Saint Bernard named Gertrude, rode her like a horse and she slobbered in bucketfulls.
Anyways, good luck! ;o)