What's with these crazy min pins?

Sorry to say but your min-pin needs some serious discipline AND maybe some medication....a can that emits a blast of air with a sound she hates.

:?

Respectively disagree that a dog barking at something going by needs serious discipline and requires reaching for pills to medicate a pet because it bothers the owner. And an air horn to stop barking? :(

Sorry to say but your min-pin needs some serious discipline AND maybe some medication. What has worked for us is 2 things
1. Medication to help calm. It doesn't make her a zombie it just calms her. We use Comicalm. Talk to your vet. Nothing else worked.
2. We use a fabulous thing called PET CORRECTOR. It is a can that emits a blast of air with a sound she hates. She stops immediately whatever she's doing. Now we just have to say CAN or show her and she stops. We even trained the dog across the street to stop barking and cats to stay out of our yard.
Try these. Hopefully they will work for you. We now have a pretty obedient and calmer dog.

Happytraveler wrote:
Are MinPins barkers? I swear a leaf can drop in front of my friends MinPin and the dog goes off. The dog is hyper, but barks at everything that moves. Actually, he's very cute and playful dog.

I think some of them are. I've heard min pins don't present well in shelters for that reason. They probably don't do well when they feel insecure,but our Darcy has a good, solid nervous system. She doesn't nuisance bark or startle at any new noise or situation. I have to say, she wasn't like that when we got her. She was pretty unstrung for awhile, but when she felt safe again, she turned into a very good dog. I think they will test the limits and when they get the message that their owner is in charge, they can relax and enjoy their spoiled doggy birthright. :B

Are MinPins barkers? I swear a leaf can drop in front of my friends MinPin and the dog goes off. The dog is hyper, but barks at everything that moves. Actually, he's very cute and playful dog.

...She does that funny thing with a blanket, spinning it over her head and wrapping herself up like a burrito...

Today it is 95 degrees outside and ac unit just trying to maintain a comfortable temp inside, and they still feel the need to do this! :C

The problem is she's not a dog, she's a Terrier.

Energy and hunting are two of the top character traits.

I've bred, raised and trained Parson Russell Terriers for 30+ years.

The two biggest mistakes I see people making is a) not giving the dog enough mental stimulation, the worst thing you can do is leave them alone, they get bored and sleep too much, a bad combination, and b) feeding them commercial dog food. I feed a homemade stew over a high-quality, low protein, grain-free kibble.

Get a book or video on training working terriers are start spending even just a few minutes twice a day on learning new commands. The more they learn and perform the calmer they get.

The one Jack that lives with us (DW is allergic to dogs, but loves them) is just shy of 15 years old and they walk ~3 miles a day, winter or summer.

A min pin on caffeine? Oh, good grief, that's a scary thought! Yes, if Darcy was a human 7 year old, I'm sure her teacher would suggest ADHD meds. She's a lot of fun, though. I've never seen a toy breed dog that could entertain herself so well. She will drag all her toys out of the toy bin every day. She'll take them back near the same place, but not put them away, darn it. The thing that surprised me is what a lap dog she turned out to be. Is that also typical of the breed? This one would sit wedged next to me or on my lap and watch Gone With The Wind, if I took a notion. I complain, but she is a great little dog.

CA POPPY wrote:
....We love her but somebody needs to 'splain these wacky min pins to me. She is a perpetual motion machine
...She does that funny thing with a blanket, spinning it over her head and wrapping herself up like a burrito that Rock describes
......BTW, she's about 7 now with no signs of slowing down.....

Want the good news first or the bad news? :B

EVERY Min Pin across the world does that spinning the blanket over their heads until they are wrapped up tight. It is truly unbelievable that they all do that. Just try and put a MinPin to bed without a blanket.

I have left my Min Pins out ALL day and well into the night to exhaust them to see if that would slow them down so I could have a peaceful evening...it does not. Valium for the owner is the only answer!

7 years old is NO where's near that little pup slowing down heck she's just in her prime. It simply is not in their genetic make up!

This breed usually does not succumb to leg problems as they age so they can be old, blind, senile, etc. and they will STILL run all over. And they are a long lived breed so get used to many more years of it!

One of my Min Pin's is 14 1/2 years old and with a little dose of Previcox just once a week he STILL drives me crazy running all over and bouncing and jumping from the couch to the chairs and back again all day long.

Just last night he drank my entire unattended cup of coffee again and needless to say the running and jumping did not stop until well after 2:00 in the morning when the caffeine wore off and he finally ran out of steam.

30 years of owning Great Danes and then making the decision that in 'my' later years a smaller breed would be better.....boy was I ever WRONG to choose the Min Pin and then to add insult to injury have 4 of them!!

Wouldn't have it any other way though. Never a dull day and never a day that is the same with a Min Pin. :C

Welcome to the wonderful world of the King of Toys!

Thanks for the tips! Beth, that game is a great idea. I tried that this morning with little tiny bits of Pupperoni. She saw me put the first one and ran around and found the others inside of a minute! They must have incredible noses.

I never found myself attracted to the breed and this one was as wild as a March hare when we acquired her. She had been boarded for two months due to a household disaster and was frantic from that. Then, apartment living was not appropriate for her at all. I took her on the promise to rehome her. We had two peaceful little chi mixes and a cat at the time. Darcy came in and kicked butt and took names. Bud said, "No, no, a thousand times no!" when I spoke of keeping Darcy. I listed her on Petfinders and found there were a LOT of min pins there. Nobody called. I suggested that we at least get her leash trained and a short while later, Bud asked if there were "gentle leaders" for toy breed dogs. Yes, there are! I ordered one and it made a world of difference. These are willful little rascals. Our two chi mixes have since gone to Rainbow Bridge and the 18 yr old kitty is still the queen of the house.

Darcy was flushing and eating way too many lizards so I got the idea that we should take her out in the yard only on leash. That has worked out well and she is now Bud's dog! She watches him for the little signs that he might be going outdoors, then runs for her leash. She's a different pooch than the one that came here a wreck. She's got sit, stay and shake hands down pat, not willing to comply with down or other commands yet. I am not sure at age 7 we can accomplish that. But she is an amazingly lovable, cuddly lap dog when she isn't being hyper. That surprised me. She and Edna (cat) appear to have come to a truce. I am glad nobody docked her tail as it looks like a windshield wiper when she's happy or excited. Likewise with her uncropped ears, she is so expressive with them. She's not a perfect specimen, but neither are we. Sometimes things just work out. Someone sent her to us so that we wouldn't be alone when Poquita and Rosie had to leave, in Rosie's case, much earlier than we ever could've imagined. Karma is pretty cool, don't you think?

We have a foster min pin. Yes, they have lots of unburned energy even after walks. Loves eating my flowers on my deck...fenced the flowers off from her. Killed a bird in the doggie pen, ate it, came back up, even challenged a 500 lb bear nose to nose with a fence between them. Very verbal...over excited to eat, go for walk etc...yappers. I keep hoping someone will adopte her. My house has been in a turmoil since she has been here. All part of the min pin breed. Changing small breed foster to chihauhuas. I have 6 of them that greet visiters and go to their beddies...mainly long hair chis that are very mellow.