Bringing your pup/young dog into contact with other dogs

[Officially Retired]

Thanks for everyone's input and jack, that was a nice read!
That's the stuff you want to hear and encourages big time to be patient with your dogs

Well, that's the thing, how a dog "acts" really doesn't mean a thing. In fact, that's the whole point.

It's like a big mouth wise-ass human being. Just because some guy runs his mouth a lot, and puffs-up and pushes other people around all the time, doesn't mean he is actually a talented fighter ... nor does it mean he truly has exceptional courage when tested in the trenches by someone who is bigger and badder than he is. It just means the guy has a big mouth and is always looking to start shit. And, actually, this personality type is often the sign of a coward at heart.

By contrast, oftentimes it's the calm, quiet guy sitting in the corner (who doesn't say much) ... and who doesn't really respond to being provoked lightly ... who will ultimately prove to be the most dangerous of all ... because, if you push him too far, he will get up and beat the absolute dogshit out of you, and will not stop once he's been triggered to go. Hence the expression, "Still water runs deep" ...

So you're saying all of her negative experiences with aggressive and dominant dogs didn't seem to touch her self confidence in the ring because she was smart and well socialized enough to knew the difference between those situations

Ruby never had any negative experiences. She just hunkered down to bully-threat displays, to avoid trouble, and then happily went about her walks.

However, when she saw a real threat, she met it head-on and demolished it.

Would she also finish a cur / make a deep game scratch when the other dog was wasted or stopped? I mean did her mentality change allot when she got more experienced?
Cheers

Well, I don't agree with letting dogs "finish" other dogs (though I do like to see them try to). But no, Ruby wasn't a finisher she was a destroyer, a face dog that would stop whatever she put her horrible mouth on. Poncho had an average mouth, but was very longwinded and very savvy, where his two sisters Missy and Ruby had devastating mouths.

Ruby would scratch as hard as bitches can scratch, and again stopped every bitch she was put in there with, but never went to true finish spots. Still, there wasn't much left of her opponents, when she was done with them, and her "gained experience" had absolutely no bearing on how she acted when back outside in the neighborhood. She always remained the sweet, gentle dog that could be walked off-lead ... and who would chase bunny-rabbits in the hills

Jack