Tunsafun Boxers

My pups stay with me until they are at least 8 weeks old. I prefer them to be a little older, so will often hang onto them for another week or two. In my experience, puppies that haven't stayed with their family until at least 8 weeks old tend to have more difficulties than others. Im NOT saying that they get sick, or have temperament issues, but from personal experience, pups that stay with their mum until weaning and then their brothers and sisters until at least 8 weeks old tend to do better. JMH

I usually pick what would be their lunchtime suckle off mum to give them a try on puppy food. i take mum out for about half an hour beforehand, let them toilet and then give them a bit of a play, then introduce food one at a time. Jenna

at 3 weeks of age is when i start introducing puppy food. only one small meal a day, sometimes two if their bellies are handling it well and they are enjoying it. as they grow, the number of solid feeding increases until they are only on mum at night, usually around the 5 or 6 week mark. Jenna

We had a maltese that did this. In the end we put perspex on the areas she was scratching. it saved the door & door frame, made enough noise that we were aware she needed to go out and cost very little to do. i encourage my guys to scratch at the door (our doors are old and battered anyway lol) to be let out, but not in. they understand the difference somehow, not quite sure how tho lol anyway, its worth a shot and a cheaper alternative than replacing doors and architraves. Jenna

i get gastrolyte sachets from the chemist and give 1/4 teaspoon in a cup of water. couldn't get to the vet once (he was doing surgery on a horse) and he said to use that. its a pink and purple box. if i can lay my hands on it again, i'll give you all the details. Jenna

if one of mine is a bit off colour, i offer electrolytes, give them a bath and then give them bland food for 24 hours. of course if there's something more severe going on, we're off to the vets, otherwise its lots of cuddles and the above remedy. Jenna

My mum always taped her puppies ears with surgical tape. it didn't hurt when you took it off and she never had a floppy ear after that. She still does it now, and in still showing and breeding chi's with success. Jenna

My jack russell X whippet was diagnosed with a heart murmur at 3 years old. Im not sure what grade. She went onto medication eventually, at about 11 i think, and lived to be 16. our old Boffa (recently passed away) had a serious heart murmur and was diagnosed at about 4 years old. he passed at the age of 10 or 11. He was a rescue so im not sure he never went onto medication.

Thankyou all for your kind words and thoughts. We miss Boffa dearly, and the house seems empty without him. The other dogs are missing him too, especially Cooper and Pippa who are constantly looking for him. Cuddles for them seems to help. Thankyou once again Jenna & The Tunsafun Clan

Thankyou Petal. I could have written pages upon pages on Boffa, but it was very difficult writing even that.

This photo was taken today, its the last one we have and will always be cherished.

Thankyou Portia. I cant believe how much we miss him, and the other dogs. Pippa wont stop looking for him, and cooper is whimpering lots, so they are both on the couch getting cuddles from everyone. Im still crying, which I'm sure will go on for a while. I am so thankful that we had so many fantastic years with the boy, and he got a second chance on life.

To my darling Boffa. Some 7 years ago you came into our life from the RSPCA. You were skinny and dirty, but you smiled the minute you saw us. We went for a quick walk behind the adoption pens and you strutted your stuff. You quickly made friends with the kids and us, and seemed very disappointed when we took you back to the pen. You must have thought we were leaving you. Little did you know that as soon as we put you back in the pen, we went up to the office and paid for your adoption. The kids were disappointed that we didn't get to take you home straight away, and quite frankly, so was I. You had to stay so that you could be desexed, and you seemed a little unimpressed with this, but didn't whimper. We picked you up the next morning, and on the way home we promised that you would never spend another day in a pound. You settled into our house really well, and took up residence on the couch within minutes. we had a bit of an argument over who actually owned the couch, and you were content to sleep in the arm chair. For many years, you played with the kids, chased possums and the torch light. you taught many puppies the ways of the world, and tolerated them hanging off all parts of your body. You protected your family and property fiercely, including any other dogs we brought onto the property. you always loved a ride in the car and loved the sound of us picking up the keys. you excelled in obedience training, and were happy to try new tricks, including some that you thought pretty silly, but you'd give it a go just to see us smile. In your last days, you spent a lot of time sleeping in your arm chair, but were always ready to have a play. Rest In Peace old man, you will forever be missed and loved in our hearts. Thankyou for all the love that you gave us, and I just hope that we made you as happy as you made us. Goodbye My Boffa

a few years ago i was watching harry's practice and he had an ACD that kept sneezing. turned out the darling had a grass seed stuck up one nostril. might be worth a trip to the vets for a checkup, if only for peace of mind. also, why dont you weigh your darling while you're there. something i always do. Jenna

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I slip a choker chain on at the start, with strict supervision as it is something that i will be using for showing and/or trialing. I dont tend to leave collars on my dogs. they are always getting up to some sort of mischief and i guess i worry they'll get it caught on something. Maybe you could try what i did with one from my last litter? I put a collar on Jet, then called him, when he came i gave him a treat. i did this ALOT and in the end, he wouldn't stop to scratch at the collar because he learnt that a collar meant treats. the collar was left on for a maximum of about 3 minutes at a time. he'd scratch at it, but as soon as he stopped, i'd praise him and then take the collar off. after a while, the collar could be left on longer with him not reacting. i believe that he now wears his collar most of the time. (he's in his new home and came back for training).

deleted due to correspondence. PS. Cooper is fine, no UTI

Im a fan of science diet, maybe look into that also?

I use Polaramine if i have it, but in an emergency i will give my dog/s Benadryl as it is fast acting. For my adult dogs, i'll give 5mls, my youngsters will only get 2.5mls. its a shortstop if its desperate and i need something in the interim for the trip to the vet. Ive uesd phenergen when i've had to but im not keen on it. Jenna

Does she have a teddy in her crate with her? or something with your smell on it? My cooper did that for a couple of weeks, and after looking like the living dead for a week or so, i decided to try something different. i put a stuffed toy in his pen with a clock in it, and put a t-shirt in there that i had been wearing. he would then go 3 or 4 hours before waking up. i also changed his night routine. at about 10pm i'd wake him up and put him outside to go to the loo. when he came in, we'd have a play and a run around the loungeroom, then it was off to bed. he's learnt that if the lights are off, its quiet time. he'd still whinge occasionally, but if he kept it up for more than five minutes, i'd get up and take him out, if he shut up, i'd go back to sleep. i finally caught up on sleep, and he learnt that i wasn't going to come running at every whimper. good luck !

Personally i would keep them together overnight until you think they need their own pens. I put my babies in with one of the older dogs as soon as they come home, it helps keep them warm overnight, gives them company etc. Make sure you spend plenty of time with them, both together and separately and do lots of training (age appropriate). But the most important thing, if they are to sleep outside is to protect them from the elements. rain, hail or shine, they need warmth, shade, and somewhere to sleep that is out of the wind. The waterproof cover may help with this but bear in mind that bored puppies are destructive puppies, so if they get the chance to get hold of even one part of the cover, they'll have an absolute ball ripping and shredding it, given the chance. good luck with your babies! Jenna

maybe i'll give it a go lol ive got foil, and sandpaper. might try it on the old wrecked ones first and see what happens lol

my mum is the same with hers, but she's a professional groomer, so i can understand that. i just have two pairs that are pretty blunt and was wondering if it would work. Jenna

Hi Guys, I was reading the handy hints in a mag some time ago. cant remember which one unfortunately, but it said to sharpen scissors to cut aluminium foil with them repeatedly until you get the desired sharpness. Has anyone ever tried this? also, i have diamond etched or is it edged scissors. do you think it would work? Jenna PS. was gunna give it a go but didn't want to waste all my foil if it didn't work lol

Hi Koe'vu, She's gotten a book from her vet about raising sibes. according to the vet, its likely that sheeka swallowed it either the day before, or the day that sheeka went to her new home. whenever it was though, doesn't really matter now. i went over to her house yesterday and we puppy proofed the house. that took some doing lol i wasn't aware just how many things are enticing to a puppy of that size. here we were thinking certain items were safe until we got on the floor and looked up. from a puppy's point of view, all the stuff supposedly out of reach is pretty enticing! lol Jenna