The secret to success with Maremmas as companions, particularly in suburban environments, is socialisation and training from an early age. Maremmas are adaptive and will live happily in many different circumstances as long as they are understood, respected and taught appropriate behaviour.
Socialisation - start early!
But socialisation does
not end with puppyhood. Often the most difficult time for companion Maremmas is the "teens", when their guarding behaviour is becoming established
but they still do not have enough maturity to deal with it and their hormones are raging! You need to continue your Maremma's socialisation
through this point as well, giving them controlled positive experiences of a range of different things. Attending training classes, as long as they take a positive,
non-aggressive approach, can be beneficial throughout these early years.
Maremmas are naturally suspicious of anything that they do not know because if it is unknown it is potentially a threat to their charges.
This is why it is so important that the puppy that is to be a companion dog has the opportunity to become familiar with as many different things
as possible while it is still young and curious. So once you have your puppy socialise, socialise, socialise! Do this from the beginning, as early
as possible, ideally not waiting until the "all clear" after vaccinations at 14-16 weeks. Socialisation (taking sensible precautions against infection)
can begin immediately. Our puppies have been vaccinated at 6-8 weeks against Parvovirus (in the UK still the most widespread of the canine diseases)
and then taken out as soon as possible (usually from the time they arrive at 8 weeks). Outings include trips to town, into shops, to school,
to the office, to puppy classes, dog shows and training. They go out in the car, on foot or (if the disease risk is high) in our arms!
They are visited at home by as many people as are willing - men, women, children, other dogs. We try to ensure our puppies have at
least one new experience each day. The more they experience in the first 18 weeks or so of life the better.
Training
It is vital that Maremmas learn the ground rules early. They need firm, kind and consistent training from an early age, continuing
well past puppy hood. If you are expecting to exercise him in public places, make sure he meets and plays with good natured older dogs
as much as possible as well.
Don't expect an obedience style recall from a Maremma – but you must ensure that you have control over your dog if you are letting him
off lead in public. He should be reliable with people and other dogs and understand commands such as “come” and “stay. Bear in mind that this is about control and
be creative. We quickly learned that Florence's stay was more reliable than her recall. So if we need to retrieve her we get her to stay and go and get her.
Always remember that a Maremma is a guarding breed and if he
switches into guarding mode he will act on his own initiative and not respond to commands. So you need to learn to read your dog and always stay one
step ahead. It is worth learning to read canine calming signals so that you understand your dog's body language.
We prefer the concept of teaching boundaries to establishing dominance. Your dog knows you are not a dog - and you can't begin to reproduce the subtleties of communication that dogs have between
themselves. However you do need to be the one who sets the rules and you do need to have the respect of your dog.
So decide on your rules, be consistent and fair in applying them from the very beginning, respect the dog and use positive reinforcement rather than punishment.
Your Maremma will quickly learn.
Despite some suggestions, Maremmas are not "untrainable". Granted they would not be the first choice for a competitive obedience dog (at least if you have any
ambitions to win!) but they are highly intelligent and will quickly learn if they are motivated to do so (they also bore extremely easily!).
They can be playful and enjoy interacting with their owners. They also give respect
when they are treated well (and have very long memories when they are treated badly).
Site design and content
by Selladore © 20052006
No text or images from this site may be reproduced in any form, except for personal individual use, without
our permission. If you wish to use any part of this site please contact us.
Last updated January 2006
