The Spotted Devil

I have mother and daughter here. Daughter is very respectful of "Uncle Zig", my Dalmatian, but she has no manners around her Mum sometimes. Em is soft and Ginny is super confident so I'm really conscious of giving Em a break. Ginny is only 4.5 months but has several training sessions a day, gets to have free runs on her own or with Zig and spends a few hours in her pen/crate per day to eat and sleep. One inside, one outside/crated OR I will leave Em in the back half of the house. They still play together but get split up regularly.

Em is very proud of her half brothers and reckons it's the job of her DREAMS :laugh:

I think "as normal" depends on the dog. Mine wouldn't notice if she lost a limb so is not the best candidate for self-limiting :laugh: There's certainly an increased risk of ligament injuries associated with relaxin production - which is why I steer clear of twisting, turning and jumping.

Probably the best option would be an immunocontraceptive. However they've had difficulty developing one without awful side effects. TNR is not an option for the feral cat population. The problem with controlling cat populations is that it's NOT one size fits all. Take them out of some ecosystems and you'll be overrun by rabbits and rodents. The current approach is simplistic and ineffective long term.

I trained Em pretty hard because she's the sort of dog who will do herself an injury if you try to keep her quiet. Lots of retrieving work on the flat and a bit of swimming. No agility, limit crazy running as much as possible but substitute LOTS of brain work. She bounced back from whelping really well and was out training and running (on the flat of course) after a week or two despite being a devoted Mum. She had SO much milk but dried up beautifully as the pups went off to their new homes and was back competing in retrieving trials within another 6 weeks. And nailed it! Good luck!

They were good girls! Ginny is a shocker today - over tired, teething etc so I just keep putting her in her pen for a sleep. She's not very good at knowing when to rest and every time I turn around she's asleep! Mama knows best :)

That's one of the main reasons I have Springers :laugh:

I love the crazy too - it's definitely the best bit :D We had our first night back at agility school last night. Em did a great job considering she was returning after a long break (she's been working as a proper Gundog and competing in retrieving trials but no agility) and Ginny was just hilarious in her foundations class. She did really, really well - was a little overwhelmed by all the people and dogs training in the dark and shadows but then then quickly switched to being a social butterfly. She played all the games and was swapping between tug and treats beautifully UNTIL they brought out all the balance pods and discs. She was SOOOOOOO excited that she could NOT tug so we had to get a lot of distance from all the activity, get her to tug (finally!) and then let her play on all the balance pods :laugh: And even my instructor mistook her for Em :D

I should note that I use the Karcher only because water run off is into the forest - it's an environmental decision but it does seem to work.

I just use a pressure hose on the decking and crazy paving - pup has been peeing there when it rains and it's better than inside! The hose does a great job and I'm very sensitive to odours.

Very sorry for all involved.

I hope he knows more about measuring human health than he does about dog behaviour. Embarrassed and ashamed for pooping in the kitchen? *sigh*

So so pleased for you all Kirty. What a nightmare

Fortunately they've all found incredible homes Denali - geez it was tough work weeding out the inappropriate ones I can tell you! Ginny is a hoot! Very full on so perfect for me :D

My Dally is similar - won't start it and, in fact will ignore a dog fight next to him. But grab him by the throat and he will sure as heck finish it. What I like, however, is that as soon as I've stepped in he stops straight away and hands over responsibility. And would prefer to get back to training or whatever else we were doing. I don't think his behaviour is inappropriate given the circumstances BUT I really dislike seeing him put in that situation so I do everything in my power to avoid interactions with male dogs (most of whom take an intense dislike to him). I don't do dog parks unless the weather is crap and they are deserted but that's my choice.

I thought I best update this thread - I have 100s of photos but I reckon the videos are more fun :D Here's a bit of crazy... And a bit of training... Learning impulse control... And her first retrieving training sessions...I was thrilled as her first attempt but she's doing even better now! Playing with a gorgeous little girl on one of our outings...

Thank goodness xxxx So relieved I can't quite cheer yet xxx

Oh how awful Kirty!!!! Good to hear you've got some positive updates. Fingers crossed for you and your crew

Where does it say they want to breed her ? The Op says pup is for a family pet. It's in the OP - I missed it.

^ This.

I have never heard of pups losing hair when they start on solids. Did any other pups in the litter show hair loss?

Yep my Dad's dog smashed up her leg when she fell off the ute driving around the farm. Mine are only ever in built in or tied down crates on friends' utes.

Whatever you use, build value in a really quiet environment and work up to a high distraction one. Ginny is 16 weeks and we began playing tug in the bathroom - and teaching her to tug with the toy I've got plus choosing tug over food and vice versa - we moved into the lounge room, added dogs and cats as distractions, on the deck, at the oval, at the quiet shopping strip, on the busy footpath and a few weeks ago she nailed tug at Uni with a bunch of students leaving a tutorial.

I think there are a lot of answers to that Powerlegs and it probably depends on how hard wired the prey drive is and how much training the owner is willing to do. I think Maddy's example is very pertinent and the careful placement of a dog like that is critical - hats off for being realistic! My dogs grow up with cats and see them as part of the family. But they would absolutely chase a cat in the yard. They would recall off it because I've put a BUCKET load of training into recalls. I've called Zig off kangaroos and I've whistle stopped Em on a roaming pet rabbit (note to rabbits: don't hop temptingly past a dog training club!!!) - she is trained to retrieve game and is off the Richter scale in this regard. She stopped because she knows she will be helped to find a retrieve. But without me there - nope, not a chance. So I think it's achievable but not always realistic.