Personality

lets talk personality. I get this exact situation a lot. A family tells me they want a laid back pup. So they look for the timid pup in the group. I get this more often then I get the opposite. A family tells me they are very active so they want the pup that’s dominate one. Let’s examin each. And I’ll tell you the pros and cons to each. First the timid one. They prefer to sit and wait or may walk away from a situation. Sometimes they are really timid and will let others have the food or treat. I’ve never had any so timid they run and hide. The pros with this personality are they are not high energy. But that doesn’t mean laid back. This personality can become a barker. They bark at the situation that is scaring them. They have to be convinced to try new things. Usually if it’s fun they will try it. So if you select a timid pup you need to build confidence. They need to feel secure and not pushed. Let’s look at the opposite. The dominate pup. This is the pup that a trainer will pick. They try new things with ease. We have had a few become workers and the trainer wants the one that’s not scared of anything. They may be a little higher energy. But they train easily. They want to please. The con to this is if you give them too much confidence they become bossy. This type of pup is the one that excels in class or if you teach them a trick they master it. Let’s look at my girls personality. Curly is the dominate. I knew from a couple days old I wanted to keep her. She was the first to do anything. First one out of the whelping box first down the steps outside. She would go right up to our German Shepherd and sit beside him. She is still very much this way. She makes for a great mother. She knows what she wants and she does it. She loves to snuggle on my lap. She wants to please us. That makes her happy. Bella is similar. But not dominate. She was the adventurous one. Off poking around smelling looking watching. She is a perfect mix. Let look at Dolly. Dolly was the timid one. My style of training has to change with her. I needed to reward her with food and praise. Make her feel good. I couldn’t push her to hard either. In time she would do it. But I also couldn’t let her get away with stuff either. I had to apply simple rules and stick with them. Once I did this she got it. In new situations she now comforts herself by coming to me for my reaction. She is the silliest friendliest pup ever. Loves to play. But a loud noise or something strange and she barks or freezes. She is on the extreme timid side. None of my pups will be this timid. So I’m not worried about someone not being able to handle this. But she was a tough cookie to crack. I do not blame her breeder. I blame flying her cargo at 12 weeks in the middle of a fear period. If you need info on fear periods we can talk about that. But you can see how each personality uses a little different training and reaction from you.