# Socializing in Rural Area



## cowgirlteach (Mar 17, 2012)

This is for those of you who have GSD in rural areas. What do you do to socialize your puppy? The nearest big town (with a wal-mart) is 65 miles away. I have been looking into puppy classes in Steamboat Springs, CO I can handle once a week trips while the puppy is young...but usually we go to town once a month.

I'm getting my puppy in 10 days and want to have a plan when he is old enough to go to class.

I know this is a long shot, but if anyone knows of good puppy class in Steamboat let me know!


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## Shade (Feb 20, 2012)

It takes effort regardless of where you live. You'll need to drive in, so why not make plans to spend several hours doing fun things. The main thing you need to be careful with is keeping the puppy away from walking around heavy dog traffic areas until they've finished their shots. 

A good source of help can be visits with friends and family, especially ones with stable dogs. Have small groups of people come over to your house as well


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Do you have any tractor supply type stores? They are usually dog friendly. A garden center or other venue would be my choice before a WM. Just be diligent on pup drinking puddled water or sniffing whatever when you are in those type places(fertilizer spills or other toxins are stay aways)
Socializing is more than going places where people are....different surfaces~ bridges,lakes ponds streams, farm or exotic animals, drain tunnels, playgrounds, railroad tracks, or other places that are just not the 'norm' will have a pup challenged to explore. 
Just don't pressure pup to try things that may be too much too soon. 
If your pup is of good genetics whatever is introduced will be accepted fairly easily. A pup that is a bit nervy will balk regardless of the exposure.

I agree, safe dogs with people you know are a better way to socialize than JQP.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

a 65 mile drive is a short distance compared to the
long haul you may encounter if you don't do it.

>>> are there any 24 hour stores, gas stations near you?
>>> schools.
>>> invite family, friends and neighbors to visit.
>>> puppy class. then invite people from the class to visit
with their pups.
>>> feed store.
>>> post office.
>>> supermarkets.

a dog is an inconvience. you have to go out of your way
for them to be happy.


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## cowgirlteach (Mar 17, 2012)

doggiedad said:


> a 65 mile drive is a short distance compared to the
> long haul you may encounter if you don't do it.
> 
> a dog is an inconvience. you have to go out of your way
> for them to be happy.


65 miles is my life...I can handle this. We have a feed store that I plan on trying, but other than that (in terms of businesses) there is nothing else that allows pets...they even put up signs because every farmer and his dog came into the bank, post office, and grocery store. 

School will be something that I can do in August (I'm a teacher ;-)

I also plan on visiting family and such this summer. I was just anxious because I don't want a dog that is fearful of everything because my options are *limited*.


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

Going to the vet's office and sitting in the waiting room is another way.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

get creative and your options will become unlimited.



cowgirlteach said:


> 65 miles is my life...I can handle this. We have a feed store that I plan on trying, but other than that (in terms of businesses) there is nothing else that allows pets...they even put up signs because every farmer and his dog came into the bank, post office, and grocery store.
> 
> School will be something that I can do in August (I'm a teacher ;-)
> 
> ...


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

you stand in front of the business.



cowgirlteach said:


> 65 miles is my life...I can handle this. We have a feed store that I plan on trying, but other than that (in terms of businesses)
> 
> >>>> there is nothing else that allows pets...they even put up signs because every farmer and his dog came into the bank, post office, and grocery store. <<<<
> 
> ...


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## sparra (Jun 27, 2011)

_*"I also plan on visiting family and such this summer. I was just anxious because I don't want a dog that is fearful of everything because my options are **limited."*_

We live remotely..........when I go to town it is not practical to take my dog....I have young kids etc so cannot afford the luxury of standing outside shops etc to socialize my dog and a trip to town for us is an all day outing, not just a quick trip to the shops  I did make a big effort to go to puppy pre-school with him and found him to be the most confident pup in the class then did some obedience in the early days and again found him to be unfazed by anything then his socialization pretty much consisted of meeting neighbors/friends etc while out on the farm and of course living with all creatures great and small here and we do have a lot of people coming and going on the farm but.....that is about it. He is 15 months old now and BOMBPROOF and it had nothing to do with socialization and all to do with his genetics....you may find your pup is the same or you may find your pup needs more socialization. If it has good genetics he will not be fearful even if you do little socialization so hopefully you have done your research and chosen a good breeder


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## Good_Karma (Jun 28, 2009)

Good luck, we faced the same challenges with our dogs and despite a lot of effort on our part, we ended up with some issues.

All I can say is that any socializing you do early is like money in the bank. And also, socializing is never really over. You can't do it for the first year and then expect your dog to be done needing it. You have gotten a lot of good tips so far. You are lucky to be getting your puppy in the summer, there are always lots of holiday/summer events going on like parades, BBQ's, tractor pulls, etc. Just don't take your puppy to a Civil War re-enactment like we did, lol. The cannons are a bit much.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

looks like you did socialize. i wouldn't count on having
strong nerves means you don't have to socialize a lot.



sparra said:


> _*"I also plan on visiting family and such this summer. I was just anxious because I don't want a dog that is fearful of everything because my options are **limited."*_
> 
> We live remotely..........when I go to town it is not practical to take my dog....I have young kids etc so cannot afford the luxury of standing outside shops etc to socialize my dog and a trip to town for us is an all day outing, not just a quick trip to the shops
> 
> ...


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## cowgirlteach (Mar 17, 2012)

Thanks for all of your suggestions everyone!!






doggiedad said:


> you stand in front of the business.


 My town is way too small for this! I would be standing there all day and see only a handful of people. Our population is around 600 with the majority living outside of city limits.


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## Blanketback (Apr 27, 2012)

It's also about the puppy seeing new things in usual situations. I live in a somewhat rural area, and on a nice quiet walk he saw a pair of geese where he didn't expect to see them. He saw an old beach ball lying in the ditch. He saw the fluttering garbage bags on pick-up day...stuff like this doesn't seem like much to us, but it's a big deal for a little guy/gal.


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## wyominggrandma (Jan 2, 2011)

cowgirlteach: I feel for you. I live in a town that has nothing going on, no stoplights, no big stores, just the "main street".. Thats it. Plus it closes down on Saturday night and doesn't reappear until Monday morning. The biggest draw to my town is "The worlds largest elkhorn arch" which goes across main street.
I took my puppy to town, to the library, to the schools, to the park, walk around the fairgrounds, if you call them that, along the road so they see critters. Hear cars go by. Take them everywhere in the car, even to just sit and watch cars go by. Our streets have benches on them, I would go sit on one, watch the cars and people go by and give goodies . 
Lots of good experiences, however you can get them. I even drove 2 hours away(one way) to just go to a big town to see "big, noisy" things... Walked around the mall, went to Petsmart.


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## Lilie (Feb 3, 2010)

You could look up in your local classifieds for garage sales etc. that you could 'lurk' around. Just mind the fact that the people might have their own dogs hanging out. Make a day of it on a Saturday going from place to place. 

Watch for any semi local fairs, flea markets, carnivals that you can go to that allows leashed pets. I go to a lot of flea markets just so I can walk around with my dog. Sometimes I even find a good buy! Just go early before the crowds come in and linger around long enough for your pup to be comfortable, but not put a lot of pressure on it. 

I would contact local dog clubs and see what advice they could offer you. They might know of some really good trails that people visit on the weekends, which would be good for your pup. 

Make sure your pup is fully vaccinated before you go to any of the places I mentioned!


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## wyominggrandma (Jan 2, 2011)

I wish we had a local dog club, flea markets, etc. The problem with garage sales around here is nobody keeps their dogs on leashes or in yards, so youngsters might get more tramatized than socialized.
Every experience you can give will help socialize your puppy.


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