OK I need to get some professional advice on this once and for all...because I keep hearing different things from different people.
My boxer, Ares, is 4 years old...and was a rescue who I got about a month ago. He definitely likes to play rough, and I like to play rough with him. I'll put my arm up and he'll just put his mouth near my arm, and I'll push him around a little, maybe grab him by the neck and so on...at any time if I say "NO" or "SIT" he stops and sits, so I'm always in control...
So anyway, my girlfriend, my mother, and my sister all say I shouldn't play rough with him. Of course all my friends who are guys think it's cool and say he's tough lol.
Ares definitely doesn't even think about doing anything like that with any of the ladies in my life, and he's never gotten out of control at any time.
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Anyway, is this "rough-playing" detrimental to his well-being, if so, I'd obviously stop for sure...There's no doubt I could control him if he got out of line too, so I mean I wouldn't worry about that...and I mean I kind of think the rough playing reminds him that he listens to me and shows him that I'm much tougher than him you know?
Thanks...any and all opinions are welcome.
My boxer, Ares, is 4 years old...and was a rescue who I got about a month ago. He definitely likes to play rough, and I like to play rough with him. I'll put my arm up and he'll just put his mouth near my arm, and I'll push him around a little, maybe grab him by the neck and so on...at any time if I say "NO" or "SIT" he stops and sits, so I'm always in control...
So anyway, my girlfriend, my mother, and my sister all say I shouldn't play rough with him. Of course all my friends who are guys think it's cool and say he's tough lol.
Ares definitely doesn't even think about doing anything like that with any of the ladies in my life, and he's never gotten out of control at any time.
--
Anyway, is this "rough-playing" detrimental to his well-being, if so, I'd obviously stop for sure...There's no doubt I could control him if he got out of line too, so I mean I wouldn't worry about that...and I mean I kind of think the rough playing reminds him that he listens to me and shows him that I'm much tougher than him you know?
Thanks...any and all opinions are welcome.