The most exasperating pup on earth. lol

ferg

ferg

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Probably if we had to do it all over again, Laddie wouldn't be residing with us. My wife keeps reminding me of what we saw at the breeder's home when we visited to see if we wanted to bring him home. The ten or fifteen other dogs they had in the house were ushered outside on the deck only to constantly jump against the storm door.

Don't get me wrong though, he can be as loving as anything for about 30 seconds then he is "hell bent for leather". Chip must be the "Darling" of all Shelties. He does next to nothing wrong and understands pretty much anything we say to him. He loves most every human he meets and always gives them one of his special "Smiles". He begs for a lap to snuggle on just to get away from Laddie.

We have had many dogs in my life and quite a few cats, etc. Some have been bone headed and nearly impossible to train. Laddie is smart as most Shelties are. His worst problem is his attitude toward life. lol Everything is a big bowel of Cherries! He is happy except when I scold him. Chip never stepped into our many flower beds until Laddie arrived. At least Chip stops when you tell him to, not Laddie, he goes back into the flowers with dirt and new plants flying. Ohhhh it is such fun!!!!

I remind myself that he is only 6 1/2 months old and then pray that he will soon be more like Chip.
We had a problem with Chip eating everything, including the fringe on an oriental rug. Laddie didn't wish to be outdone I guess so he chewed a hole in a very expensive rag rug in the dining room. Wife placed a cast iron "IRON" on the hole, yesterday he moved the iron and continued to chew.

He loves to play on the bed, while I am in it of course. If I ignore him I get puppy kisses all over my face and neck until he becomes bored with that. He then jumps to the floor, grabs whatever toy or such he can find, jumps back onto the bed and drops the toy in my face or on my hand. PLAY TIME DAD!! One day he and Chip were playing, Laddie on the bed of course. Laddie had a toy that Chip wanted. After teasing for a bit he dropped the toy in front of Chip. When Chip picked it up Laddie jumped on him from the bed. Think I would beg for a lap also.

BTW: If any of you are wondering if he has calmed any since his Neutering, HaHaaHaaahHhhhaa!

Laddie has outstanding Mahogany coloring and he is going to be a beautiful adult, if he makes it there. I am sure when we tell folks that see them together, he is a Sheltie also, they don't believe it.
He walks like a Collie, he eats as a collie, his hair is like a collie, he looks like a collie. There is no hint of the "Sheltie Trot".

An Aside to this:

We have very little luck contacting the breeder. Wife sent them a letter over a week ago asking for Laddie's AKC papers, no response. The last e-mail I sent them, I mentioned that he looked an awful lot like a collie. Didn't receive a response to that either. lol Have no idea if they got it or not.

I am sure you can tell there is some disappointment for us. We normally do not fall into these types of situations because we do lots of checking on things.

Enclosing photo of Laddie and Chip on one of their strolls in the woods.

Chip&Laddie5-24-16.JPG
 
That is no collie in the picture! He will look more sheltie like soon as growth slows and coat matures... Althougb he is a beauty now.
I hear you on the exasperation! I have an 8 1/2 month old, neutered a month ago. Hormones take awhile to drop off and even then teen dogs have 7 x the tesosterone of a mature male dog. And some of this is youthful teen stuff they will mature out of. My teen has given me a run for my money but very differently than your guy. Sometimes i am exasperated too.
 
I know it can be exasperating, but keep telling yourself things will change. When Tully was 5mths old I was planning sending her back to the breeder. She was such a challenge, and I think it was harder because Deska was such an easy pup. But you know, looking back I think the problem was me, I didn't know how to handle her, I was used to laid back, easy going dogs and she was intense and high energy and at the time I thought she was recalcitrant, and it wasn't until I looked back that I realised she actually lacked confidence. I am so glad I didn't send her back - as an adult she is the most loving and easy dog. We just had to find our niche together. And you know she is actually better mannered and behaved than Deska - I do think the extra energy you have to put into a difficult puppy pays more dividends.

Not sure if you can contact the AKC about the papers, there must be some kind of rule about handing over papers. But I will say, he's definitely a sheltie.
 
He certainly looks like a Sheltie to me; in fact, he looks quite a bit like Dickens in that pose. People who have owned Shelties never mistake Dickens for a collie, while to people unfamiliar with the breed the first thing they say is ... my tagline. For the novices, it doesn't help that he's a big one.
 
It will improve...Savannah was my holy terror pup. I questioned her "sheltie-ness" daily. I even asked the breeder what is WRONG with her. They were very encouraging. They kept telling me, she will improve, let her age out and she will be fine. And of course I allowed her to live...now she is definitely becoming the sheltie she was destined to be. My 1st sheltie was a bigger one. Sturdy, solid, 40+. She resembles Laddie, but way more fur. My girls are experts at fur growing. Enjoy the puppy antics and energy it will ebb a bit as he ages.
 
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If it's any consolation, you're not alone. My prior sheltie, Lir, was calmness personified. Quiet, a bit aloof to people, was perfectly happy just lolling around.

Now Kel...oy...at 5 months he is a whirlwind/Tigger/bullhorn. He's always so excitedly HAPPY, racing and bounding along at full speed alongside his BFF, a 10-month old, 100 pound shiloh (puppy) and when they see me, I pretty much have to brace myself as their recall is good, but braking is non-existent. He barks LOUDLY and enthusiastically when he gets released from his crate, when he wants to play, when he races into his crate for dinner and when he finishes his meal in under 15 seconds (we've timed him) and wants seconds. He also is at a point where he bounces up and down like Tigger when we place him in the expen and has taken to leaping into my arms, often, when they are occupied.

I see several reasons why people confuse him with a collie: most people assume all shelties are blue merles (at least around where I live), not tris or sables. If you take out your boys together, and point out that Chip is an adult...Laddie seems to be about his height and when people hear that he's still a puppy, they assume that he's a collie.

If it's any consolation, I get the collie/border collie comments for my turbo-charged puppy. His growth spurt is putting him very close to heading to the oversize category, his muzzle is a bit long right now (not the sweet face that most shelties have) so some call him a collie, and the border collie comments come from his blue merle but looks like a tricolor coat.

Even though it IS exasperating, I am enjoying this. Like kids, they grow up too soon, and like kids, can have such different personalities.

I wish I could tell you what to do about the AKC paperwork. Is it possible that the breeder has yet to register the litter and has to wait for documentation?
 
That is definitely a Sheltie head, and he's quite a handsome boy. He may just be oversized. We had a Sheltie years ago, Bandit, who we swore was half Collie...he was nearly 40 pounds and solid. But he was all Sheltie. I think your Laddie is as well. Of the many Shelties we've had, no two have had the same personality. They are, like children, all different, with different traits and eccentricities. Give your boy some time to get through the teenage phase and you'll be surprised at the dog that emerges.

I'm sorry you can't reach your breeder. That is discouraging and disappointing. We expect to have an ongoing relationship with our breeders (and should!) for the life of the pup. You might try contacting the ASSA (American Shetland Sheepdog Association) which is the breed parent club and see if they have a listing for your breeder. www.assa.org

Meantime, hang in there. Puppyhood will pass! ;)
 
I remember when Piper was that age (it really wasn't that long ago) and now at almost 14 months old he's mellowed so much. Don't get me wrong, he still had his moments but now he actually listens to me. Just this week we were in the hardware store in the checkout line and as we got closer to the cashier I'd have him heel and sit, then a little boy asked if he could pat him and I was shocked when Piper maintained his sit and didn't try to jump on the boy (our number one problem) and allowed him to pet him! I was shocked and amazed and I thought, wow you are growing up (and he's not even neutered)! Also, Pipers papers weren't issued until 5 1/2 months after he was born ( the dates on the registration) so it could be that the breeder just hasn't gotten them back yet.
 
He's only the most exasperating puppy because Annabelle is now a dog. If she were still a puppy, she'd hold the title. As a grown-up, she could hold the title, "Sweetest Dog on Earth". So hang in there.
 
Laddie will be seven months old the fourth of June. Chip done more than his share of chewing things he shouldn't but stopped right at a year old.
As I have said before, Chip is the darling of Shelties, unfortunately he is picking up on some of Laddie's tricks.
We have decided that for the most part, Laddie is bored. He has many activities both physical and mental. His mind is "Turned On" all the time.
Laddie is 17" tall and weighs 35+ lbs. Cannot leave him alone for a minute. He will absolutely destroy anything and everything. Yet, he loves to lay on the porch with Chip as long as both mama and daddy are there. We have to leave the door onto our back porch "unlatched" when we let him out in their play yard so he can push it open when ready to come into the house. Otherwise, he will literally tear the trim around the door and peal the paint off the door. We were having good luck with him and Chip in the yard unencumbered. Laddie has decided to chase anything that moves, especially folks on bicycles. Now Chip has picked up on that and won't return to us when we call. We bought twenty foot cable line and tie him to it when we are in our yard and woods using it as a leash. Crazy thing? Wife ties the cable around her waste when mowing with the push mower, he is perfectly happy and just trots along.

Things are getting out of hand for Chip. He wants in our lap or up in a patio chair when we are on the porch and on the bed or in mama's lap in the lounge. He simply wants to get away from Laddie. Don't like this arrangement in the slightest.

BTW: We have owner of Laddie's Sire and another breeder trying to help us with Laddie's breeder to get the AKC papers. Sounds as though she never registered the litter.
 
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