Korean Job Discussion Forums

[driftingfocus]

There is a stray Jindo in my town that I am seriously considering adopting, but I have one major concern. Two days a week I am gone from 8am to 4-5pm, without a way to get home. Do any of you have experience with keeping dogs inside for longish periods of time like that?

[bobranger]

It�s possible to leave a dog for an eight hour period. Some things you must consider: How old is the dog. What is its temperament (jindo dogs are very independent and not good for inexperienced handlers). Are you willing to pay for the vet bill (neutering, de-worming, ect.)? What will you do when you go home? As for leaving the dog alone for eight hours, you will need a secure place for it to stay such as a dog crate or your bathroom and some sort of entertainment (dog toys). Always have water for it. You should have sufficient time before you go to work and after work for exercise and obedience training. It�s time consuming and somewhat expensive at first but the rewards are high.
The good news about jindos is they are easy to housetrain and groom themselves like cats. But you still need to give them a good brush.
Good luck
http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/jindo.htm

[sineface]

I second what the last poster said. Be sure you do your homework on the pros and cons of jindos particularly, not just dogs in general. We almost adopted one last year, but after a lot of research found out that their prey drive is extremely high (having originally been bred for as a hunting weapon in themselves). This wouldn't correlate well with our two rambunctious cats and small dog, who like to speed around the apartment. In the future, that may mean they are not well suited around small children, whether yours or not. I've also read that they, being an extremely smart and curious breed, will inevitably find something to 'play with' (read, perhaps, 'destroy') if left alone for extended periods of time. Our friend adopted a stray Jindo early this year, and has taken him back to the US with him. He's settled in pretty well, is the star of the neighbourhood of course, but has in inbuilt talent for climbing very high fences, escaping, and chasing anything that moves.

The only more important piece of advice I can give is, there are always dogs that don't live up to their breed. Some may be too lazy to chase, too old to tear your apartment up when you're gone, and might just prefer to go for their walks and act like a gentleman. Just make sure to get to know the individual dog, perhaps try a trial foster of it?

[driftingfocus]

[driftingfocus]

[driftingfocus]

By the way, for those curious, here's the little guy:

http://www.driftingfocus.com/sangaysastray.jpg


And here's some other photos of him: http://flickr.com/photos/antipeople/tags/sangaysastray/

[spliff]

A pet is something a TEFlER should not consider.

[driftingfocus]

[Draz]

He's very cute, but that's not what I thought a jindo dog looks like.

[driftingfocus]

[Join Me]

Your considering taking a stray dog (which I assume lives outside) and locking it in your apartment for eight hours at a shot? Sound fair to you? What about paying a neighbor to take it out for a walk on those days? Also, I would look into the cost of shipping a dog home before you get involved. I see many, many pets who are left in Korea due to "cost of shipping them home."

[MUOhio82]

If you are able to take care of him, and you want him, then do it.

I have a puppy here, and I work 3 to 9 during the week. I managed to littler box train the little guy, so he uses that to go to the bathroom. I'm sure with an adult dog that's not really an option though. He goes on long walks in the morning, before I leave, and when I come home. Time that I'm not work is spent with the puppy, and seriously, in a strange country it's a JOY to have that little guy with me, we do everything together, haha.

I make sure he's got plenty of toys to keep himself occupied while I'm at work, so as long as you do that, I don't foresee there being a problem. The only thing I was really worried about was getting the shot papers in English so I can take him home when my contract is up.

I think owning an animal, even in a foreign country, is a grea thing. If you're able to care for it, love it, and treat it like a member of your family, there's no reason you shouldn't go for it just because you're not in your home country, that's rubbish.

Best of luck!

[driftingfocus]

[majolica]

[Kikomom]

As long as you, DF, are recognized as the pack leader, he'll be happy in whatever situation he is in. Dogs love pack leaders, and if they don't have one will naturally try to dominate the situation in their quest for survival.

As long as your pack (you and him, any wife and kids?) is better than his last pack (right now, none?) he'll be happy. If he was a circus dog (wow, I want one!), that should have him well-schooled in the pack mentality.

Cesar's Way: Exercise, Discipline, and Affection. <always in that order. Ask him to sit, stay, preforming commands is a mental exercise and shows discipline before being rewarded. A meal is reward, affection is reward, a treat, a pet, etc. But first you should exercise him to the point of exhaustion. Cesar roller blades, bikes, skateboards, jogs with them to establish leadership. And does a 'bite' with his fingers to their neck to focus their attention and establish control. (me hero, he's amazing)


Before you bring him home, get him leash trained to walk and you should be able to walk him right inside the door. If he stalls, give him a nudge (not kick, nudge) with your foot to get him refocused on you. Walking on a leash, you should always be out front, HE is the follower. He'll catch on to that fast.

Then get him crate trained. It's his special sanctuary so break him in gently to it, lure him in with a treat or let him explore it on his own. Leave an old t-shirt with your scent on it in the crate when you're gone the first day. This will make him feel not so all alone. Put that with some toys and water in the spare room and he should be fine. Crate training now will go a long way when it comes time to take him home.

Cesar Milan is me hero, I worship his words on dog psychology... Look him up sometime, The Dog Whisperer. And if you get a chance to catch the show on National Geographic