QOTW QOTW #5 Do you have any goals you’d like to work toward with your dog going into 2026?

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As we wrap up the year and start thinking about what’s ahead, this week’s Question of the Week is all about goals, growth, and looking forward as we head into 2026.

This Week’s Question​

"Do you have any goals you’d like to work toward with your dog going into 2026?"

A few ideas to get you thinking:
  • Training goals (obedience, confidence, sports, consistency)
  • Lifestyle goals (more adventures, better structure, calmer routines)
  • Health or fitness goals for you and your dog
  • Bond-focused goals or things you want to experience together
  • Something you struggled with in 2025 that you want to approach differently in 2026
No dog right now?
You’re still very welcome to participate:
  • Share goals you had with a past dog
  • Goals you’re setting for a future dog
  • Or lessons you’ve learned that will shape how you approach things next time
There’s no right or wrong answer.

How It Works​

  • Winner will be chosen on Monday, January 5th
  • Likes help, but aren’t the main deciding factor
  • Winner gets to hold the QOTW Trophy Badge
    • Receive 3x permanent QOTW Trophies
    • PLUS: @murph has graciously offered to create a custom DOGUE magazine-style cover featuring the winner’s dog, similar to one she recently made that turned out incredible. Murph will also choose the next winner.
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recall/obedience in high arousal state has been my tough nut to crack. Also getting him to calm down after alerting or barking at something he deems a threat. Hoping to work with a trainer on those issues. Some of it is for sure age related, since he's still young.
 
My girl is a rescue, and getting older too, just like me, but also like me, I think she could get a lot of benefit from getting out more. What I want to do is find out what kinds of classes are available at the nearest kennel club where I know there are qualified and experienced trainers: something we could go to once a week for six to eight weeks. I find that without the commitment to actually show up, and do the work between times, I'm less disciplined toward myself than I used to be. I've been that kind of disciplined person for decades, and when I was finally able to retire recently I went all in on "every day is Saturday". Getting to a class would be good for both of us, in every way.

Edit: I made inquiries at the nearest Kennel Club. Just waiting on a reply. My guess is nobody is paying attention until Monday 1/5, hah. Meanwhile, in preparation, I'm already taking this a little more seriously, not because she's badly behaved - she's a total sweetheart - but because she gets such a kick out of being *mentally* close, and even a brief session keeps her (and me) happy for hours at a time.
 
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I am teaching her how to be less bossy and more flexible to reactive dogs and don't see other females as rivals

I am seeing progress and I hope she will be able to be more and more off leash with other dogs

Wish she could learn one thing my hound does to reactive dogs: knowing reactive dogs give some small bites when getting sniffed, my hound pushes his ass on their faces until they stop biting
 
sambravo said:
I am teaching her how to be less bossy and more flexible to reactive dogs and don't see other females as rivals

I am seeing progress and I hope she will be able to be more and more off leash with other dogs

Wish she could learn one thing my hound does to reactive dogs: knowing reactive dogs give some small bites when getting sniffed, my hound pushes his ass on their faces until they stop biting
Click to expand...
That last part made me LOL, your hound sounds like a character, and a master of diplomacy! XD
 
MalikethGSD said:
That last part made me LOL, your hound sounds like a character, and a master of diplomacy! XD
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yea he is something, people use to love him; on the other hand while my gsd love and respect confident dogs, that know everything about the dogs world rules and hierarchy, sometimes my hound get into fights with these ones
 
Hi Everyone! 😊
We rescued a little girl that is a shepherd mix - we weren’t sure what she was mixed with but it turns out that she is a Belgian/Dutch/German Shepherd (so says Embark?)
When we rescued her she was 7 weeks old and only 5.6 pounds - severely underweight and very obviously sick. Obviously the runt, most of the other puppies seemed to be much better off than her, so to save her life we took her home. She was severely underweight, and no surprise, she had a huge hookworm load, that made her completely anemic.
We took her to our vet, but a few days after multiple treatments for hookworms, we discovered that she was also suffering from Parvovirus. She was too weak to fight both and would have certainly died if the emergency vet had not suggested a treatment for Parvo called CPMA.
She survived (thank goodness), but because she had spent so much time getting well, gaining weight and gaining a little bit of muscle mass, she had no ability to socialize with other dogs or people. As a 5 month old puppy she is afraid of being away from the house, she is frightened of other people and very frightened of noises.
We are getting her a trainer on January 17th, to get her confidence level up to a normal level and then we are planning to go through the process of figuring out what she wants/needs as far as a sport or an activity that she will excel at. She is incredibly smart, is not at all destructive and while she likes being around us, she isn’t completely co-dependent. She’s the love of our lives & I’m so proud to have the opportunity to watch her blossom into the confident girl, I know she can be. 🥰❤️ I know she isn’t a purebred GSD but I truly appreciate having been invited here to be a small part of the GSD HQ family.
Thank you. 🙏🏼
 

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Id like to put some more muscle on Maliketh. I was slacking slightly and his weight was starting to climb abit, to around 86. I got him back to where I want him at around 83, but I'd like to see some more defined muscle
 
Glad you said something about this. I keep forgetting that classes are an option at any life stage. I was looking for a way to get myself motivated to get him out and about. This is an option I didn't think of until now.
In the North said:
My girl is a rescue, and getting older too, just like me, but also like me, I think she could get a lot of benefit from getting out more. What I want to do is find out what kinds of classes are available at the nearest kennel club where I know there are qualified and experienced trainers: something we could go to once a week for six to eight weeks. I find that without the commitment to actually show up, and do the work between times, I'm less disciplined toward myself than I used to be. I've been that kind of disciplined person for decades, and when I was finally able to retire recently I went all in on "every day is Saturday". Getting to a class would be good for both of us, in every way.
Click to expand...
 
Im glad you are still working on socializing her. Training is so important for these type of dogs. They can easily call the shots and cause harm. I see it as a vet tech all the time.
 
Aumalthia said:
Glad you said something about this. I keep forgetting that classes are an option at any life stage. I was looking for a way to get myself motivated to get him out and about. This is an option I didn't think of until now.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I'm looking forward to it. Even just thinking about doing it takes me back to my old days of showing in AKC Obedience, and I'm remembering the training routines, and starting to do a little with her every day. I think I want to enroll us in a Novice class: she'll already know a lot of what I expect from her, but she'll have to learn how to do it in a strange place, and in the presence of (gasp) other animals and people.

I used to be pretty serious about this kind of training, and once the fundamentals were done I took my girl (this was in the 1990s) to all kinds of different places, with various distractions, so as to "proof" the behaviors. It's quite the journey; and that dog was only 2 years old at the time. I think my present rescue, at some unknown age (probably around 7-8-9), might be a whole different story. It'll be interesting for us both. I will have to remind myself that "it's about the journey" though. I tend to get achievement-oriented, and that's not really the ultimate goal here.
 
SavageVictoria said:
Hi Everyone! 😊
We rescued a little girl that is a shepherd mix - we weren’t sure what she was mixed with but it turns out that she is a Belgian/Dutch/German Shepherd (so says Embark?)
Click to expand...

That's awfully close to GSD in most ways, so I think all of us here will understand the issues. From your description of her temperament so far, and given all that she's been through, I'd bet she's going to mature wonderfully, with your help in socializing and training. And a lot of that training is going to be just paying attention to her and caring about understanding what she's experiencing in every new place. I wish you all the best! 2026 is going to be a very exciting time for your family.
 
I look forward to hearing about your journey. I hope you share as much as you’re comfortable with. The good and the bad. I think we’re all here to learn from each other
 
Big thanks to everyone who joined this QOTW. Special thanks to @murph for making the prize and choosing the winner.

This week’s winner is…
@In the North 🎊

In the North said:
My girl is a rescue, and getting older too, just like me, but also like me, I think she could get a lot of benefit from getting out more. What I want to do is find out what kinds of classes are available at the nearest kennel club where I know there are qualified and experienced trainers: something we could go to once a week for six to eight weeks. I find that without the commitment to actually show up, and do the work between times, I'm less disciplined toward myself than I used to be. I've been that kind of disciplined person for decades, and when I was finally able to retire recently I went all in on "every day is Saturday". Getting to a class would be good for both of us, in every way.

Edit: I made inquiries at the nearest Kennel Club. Just waiting on a reply. My guess is nobody is paying attention until Monday 1/5, hah. Meanwhile, in preparation, I'm already taking this a little more seriously, not because she's badly behaved - she's a total sweetheart - but because she gets such a kick out of being *mentally* close, and even a brief session keeps her (and me) happy for hours at a time.
Click to expand...

Congratulations @In the North! Along with your DOGUE Magazine cover prize, you will also receive 3× QOTW Champion Trophies and hold the QOTW badge until the next winner is announced.

Please check your DM's for more info.
 
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