Hi All!
Thank you so much for the responses so far. Didnt write too much at the beginning, cos wasnt sure if I would get any replies.
Used to have a beautiful white alsatian, who lived til 12 years of age, so do have experience of dealing with large dogs. My daughter was desparate for another dog and, as she was going through a very bad time medically, my ex husband agreed to purchase one for her and chose the dog his late mother used to have when she lived in Turkey. As he obviously had some knowledge about this type of dog, my daughter and I trusted him and bought the dog with great joy! Have to say that the breeder was not too honest about some things, i.e, recall is NONE EXISTANT. This is totally true. I had so many people tell me that any dog can be taught recall, but this command is just not understood by this breed. They are guard dogs used in South Africa to protect the cattle. Well, to cut a long story short, I tried self training and I also took Cara to several professional training groups, all to no avail. I have taught her basic commands. She sits, lies and, to some extent, will stop barking when I talk to her sternly. She always waits for her food. She will take my hand, very, very gently, in her mouth and lead me to the door when she knows it is time for her walk! Yet at other times, she will lunge at me or my daughter when we are playing football with her.
However, she hates most other dogs. I socialised her alot as a puppy and she had lots of playmates and we would stay out for 2 hours at a time, but always with a 10 metre lead attached to her, so I could catch her when it was time to go home. Then, at 7 months old, she was bitten by a Jack Russell on her underbelly. She was playing with 2 greyhounds (both of them muzzled) when this JR kept nipping at her. Three times Cara nudged it away. I warned the owner that it probably wasnt a good idea, but he laughed and told me his JR thought it was a lion! Oh boy! Next minute Cara and one of the greyhounds went for the little dog and it was saved purely by the intervention of my ex. Snce then, Cara goes ballistic when she sees small, yapping dogs. We can no longer EVER walk her off lead. She gets two 30 minute walks a day (I cannot cope with longer) and the rest of the time runs about in my ex's garden, which is about half an acre. I also play with her a fair amount too.
The main problem is, that my ex is now working away from home, so I have sole responsibility for Cara. As she pulls every time she sees another dog, (or fox, or car, or suspicious looking person....) which of course she does, because sometimes she genuinely wants to meet them and play, at 51 kilos, she has damaged by neck and strained my back. I am so nervous that I will not be able to control her (again, negative, because she picks up those vibes and is then on guard even more), that I am continuously under stress and try to walk her at night or in the rain when there are not so many people around. This is not an enjoyable experience for either of us. She also barks in the car whenever we see a dog, and scratches wildly at the window to get out. She wont let anyone in the house, although she loves people we meet outside.
I do have some help from a previous breeder who lets me use his 10 acre ground once in a while. But she doesnt run much because I think she gets bored on her own. This gentlemen has 4 of these dogs, but is not very well and hasnt got the strength to let the dogs mix, in case Cara attacks. He understands Cara because he took her once to a dog training session and, although she was well behaved, towards the end when she got tired, she went to attack every dog in the group!
She is a beautiful, gentle and intelligent dog, but I really cannot cope with her and I know I am not giving her a good quality life.
Also, I took her once, on recommendation, to an ex police dog trainer. I know Alsatians are a totally different breed, but thought it might help. It seemed to make her worse. He tried the 'clicking' method, which drove her crazy. The outcome was, that he told me to have her put down!
And lastly, at my ex's house, she hates one set of neighbours. They never liked her and when she would jump at the fence, as a puppy, to greet them, they started hitting her with sticks. Now she attacks the fence every time they are in the garden, so we had to raise it to 7ft! And still they throw water over at her and poke sticks through gaps at her. I have reported this. But now she seems to hate the other side too. They are a youngish family with 2 small children. She has met them all and got on well with them. But one day the husband came into the garden, unannounced, (we forgot to lock the side gate) to borrow some ladders. Cara went to attack him and my ex had to intervene. Now she attacks the fence that side, too, when they are in the garden. We raised that side to 7ft also, but get extremely concerned because of the young children.
Sorry to have gone on so much, but really need help and wanted to get everything straight.
. I have tried many times to find a better home for her, but without luck. The ex breeder has also had no luck. I DO NOT want to give her back to the breeder we bought her from!
