poodlefan

Oh.. the anticipation. I won't be able to go to bed until luvabull reports back in.

Now for a quiet walk around the block.. take a bag or six.

You could moisten it with some water. If he is really bad, I would probably add some olive oil as well. I added a little bit of milk and a little bit of water. He scoffed it down I'll grab the tin food now. Thanks everyone I don't think I want to see the results when he does loosen up.

Whatever you give, make sure it's got a lot of water or liquid in it - you need to get some moisture and bulk into the bowel. A nice big bowl of mashed pumpkin is moving stuff too.

Get the Pal.. it's 80% water.

Tinned dog food works a treat.. give him a can of Pal. Taking him for a walk may also help.

Shower water develops a pretty heavy bacteria load pretty quickly. I'd not be letting him drink it.

Slow for a doberdog maybe Monika. plenty fast enough for a Mini P.

Substitute the tug for your arm. The Aussie Dog Toy folk have some very tough tug toys that should be Staffy proof! The reason I'd always discourage a dog from mouthing is that it's far easier to teach "no biting" than "bite softly" and other folk may not understand if she mouths them in play.. .plus those staffy jaws are only going to get stronger!! I think she should be shedding milk teeth at about 4-5 months from memory..

Any children at home Luke? I'd recommend you teach your pup that no teeth on you are acceptable. A simple "argghh" and stopping the game often helps but there are quite a few threads here on mouthing. If you enjoy a full on game, I'd be teaching her to tug .. .but not on you!

I think it's worth bearing in mind that Centitout is showing the breed with the best scenting ability of any dog. These are dogs that can track a person being driven in a car! I'd be inclined to try to mask the scent of bitches by increasing your scent to drown it out - how does he react to you wearing perfume or deep heat linament? Sometimes it would be nice to be able to put a ring through the nose of a male dog wouldnt it. Bitches in season may not compete in dog sports for several reasons, one of which is rather obvious - they are offlead amongst a range of dogs and more often than not in unfenced public areas. No person in their right mind would let any bitch in season offlead in such a situation, regardless of how well trained it was.

Drop the speed to 10 kph Monika.. it pays to have the big dogs used to that test pace. I saw one dog who'd never gone that slow struggle to find rythym at the test pace in the ET Darcy did.

Yes, they'll survive. Dogs survive on quite an array of inappropriate diets... eg. all meat.

This is a tricky one. It's a hell of a lot easier to start with a pup and socialise it in controlled circumstances with known dogs than to start with an adult. You'll find it virtually impossible to teach an adult (or a pup) good social manners in a public offlead park. I'd not have a pup of any breed in a public dog park - too often they get rolled and rumbled, encouraging them to defend themselves from such rudeness. Its a bit like sending a toddler into a high school rugby match in some parks. With your dog I'd be starting with larger, non-reactive dogs whose owners have good control and working from there. The key thing is to practice and gain a solid recall so that you can end any interaction and get your dog under control if things aren't going as you planned. Too many people make the mistake of starting an unsocialised dog of with a "very friendly" dog which more often than not will be all over the new dog before it gets a chance to do the meets and greets that are polite canine social behaviour. As Erny says, this is where belonging to a good dog club with its own grounds and dog savvy owners is invaluable.

Your friend has bought a carnivore. The dog cannot get a balanced diet from non-animal sources.. Some necessary enzymes cannot be derived from non-meat sources. God forbid she tries to raise a puppy on a vegan diet - it will in all likelihood do it irrepairable harm. Soy the usual source of non-animal protein used in some dog foods. Dogs do not tolerate it well. If she won't eat animals for philosophical reasons, ask her to contemplate whether denying an animal a species appropriate diet due to her [human] beliefs is yet another from of animal abuse.

Did they check her hormone levels?

Yep, it sure is!! [spots excuse for posting agility pics]

Best person to ask is the breeder of your pup who can show you what to do and which brushes to use. The show clipped dogs are very high maintenance so unless you want to pay through the nose for professional grooming you won't achieve that look which has to be blow dried and brushed straight. I'd be thinking of a slicker brush and a fine/medium metal comb as basic requirements. Buy the best slicker you can afford (Doggyman brand is a good one) That fluffy head on the show bichons is probably done with a pin brush. metal pins on a rubber backed brush.

At his age DHL, the behaviour is more likely to be dominance, rather than sexually motivated. How to discourage.. a quick "aaaaggghhh". praise when he stops and divert into an acceptable game or mouthing an acceptable object like a toy might be good. Dogs know we ain't dogs.. just cos he isn't allowed to hump you doesn't mean he won't try to hump dogs. Is this a breeding dog we are talking about?

DHL, I'll ask the standard question I ask any puppy owner when they talk about behaviour: Is this something you'd want him to be doing as a fully grown dog? If not, then discourage it. Puppies generally don't grow out of behaviour they continue to find rewarding or enjoyable, despite what people will tell you. That goes for mouthing, excited barking at you, jumping up, humping and other 'charming' puppy habits.

Pick up the phone. If you really want to do it, you'll track them down. As a volunteer involved in running dog sports, with a full time job and training my own dogs, I know its possible to over look an email. People who administer these clubs are very busy people. Be prepared to do a lot of work helping lay tracks for others - I haven't been myself but I know it's very labour intensive and you have to spend a lot of time helping others.

Are they doing a test for hormonal incontinence too?

Urine burns people too. It has a fair bit to do with the development of nappy rash. Ok. I don't have kids so am not up with all of the nappy stuff. No kids here either. But have read some shocking stories about old folks homes and lack of care.

Urine burns people too. It has a fair bit to do with the development of nappy rash.

Great Rugs do padded vet bed dog mats (the blue vet bed stuff). I like these for crates and they are fully washable too. Check them out as "dry cushion beds" in the index.