poodlefan

SHEPPO I don't feed kibble at all.. but I do feed a balanced BARF diet. If that's the way you'd prefer to go, you can feed him 50% raw meaty bones (he really should get the bulk of his meat on the bone) and a home made BARF mix. I can provide a recipe if required. To ensure the diet is balanced, I do feed a nutritional supplement also.

A generic brand olive oil - it doesn't have to be extra virgin or anything special. Of course you can always buy the good stuff in bulk - that makes it cheaper.

No, I'll only fast a dog that has an upset stomach. One of my dogs has a tendency to vomit bile if his stomach gets too empty so I like to prevent that too. I believe in feeding a species appropriate diet - up to a point. You won't find poodles feeding on animal carcasses in my back yard either.

SS you can always turn it around and say "the pain of doing this dog's nails unsedated may lead him to bite me and I won't risk my health and income".. .you need veterinary intervention.

These websites might help: http://www.petcaretips.net/stages-puppy-development.html http://www.bestfriends.org/theanimals/pdfs...development.pdf If you Google "canine development" you'll hit many more. The 8 week age has been settled on in the Code of Ethics for all registered breeders because it strikes the balance between the ideal age to rehome and when the pup has developed some immunity to contagious diseases via vaccination. If your pup is available at 7 weeks, your breeder is either not registered, or not adhering to the Code of Ethics required of registered breeders. Are its parents hipscored?

Saintly Susan: Surely it's an option to say "this dog needs to be sedated for his nails to be done and only a vet can do that"

Put the lack of biting down to your training Rebecca. I've yet to see a dog that grew out of it with no training at all. A 10 month old Lab with no bite inhibition is not a fun dog to be around and I've met one..

I gather you aren't buying from a registered breeder? I'd call 7 weeks less than ideal. The primary lesson pups learn from each other is bite inhibition. s you have no doubt already learned, gundogs can be very mouthy and bite inhibition not learned on siblings will have to be taught by you. Have the parents of your pup been hip scored?

Peibe you may be right but I've not located anything specific that gives a minimum age for sale of pups. Any petshop not selling before 6 weeks may be waiting for first vaccs to kick in. They certainly have pups in the shop that are removed from Mum before 6 weeks and the PIAA code of ethics is silent on the subject.

There is no law directly relating to the age pups can be sold in any state. Responsible breeders do not rehome pups before the age of 8 weeks.. sometimes longer in the case of smaller breeds. The reasons for that relate to the welfare and development of the pups. Any younger and they have no immunity from their first vaccination and they also learn important lessons from their siblings between weaning and rehoming.

I'd take the dog to the vet. ETA - so the job could be done with sedation or anaethesia if necessary.

I doubt your vet is motivated purely by profit.. however I don't doubt that he or she thinks that Hills Science Diet will solve the problem. If you arent' going to feed a premium kibble, you will need to make some adjustments to your dog's diet. The carbs and Wheatbix are just fillers with no real nutritional value to a dog. I'd either research raw/home cooked meals a bit more carefully or add the best quality kibble you can afford to his diet. Fish oil capsules are also a fabulous source of Omega oils. Staffies can have sensitive skins so doing a bit of homework should see you with a glowing pet in about 6 weeks.

Where do you live? What breed or crossbreed of dog do you have? The reason I ask is that some climates and some breeds are not a good mix for an outside dog.

Do you want to clip them or strip them? Or are the clippers just for tidying up? I'd be more inclined to use a Coat King on the body of a CKCS as it prevents hair growing back all curly. I'm sure some grooming pros will be along to advise shortly but I recommend Andis clippers. Single speed would probably be sufficient for trimming but the higher speed is better for clipping body coat.

Unless this has been recommended by your vet, I wouldn't touch it. I thought this kind of issue required topical or oral antibiotics. Have you seen a vet?

I was wondering how you were going Ness - great news Just out of interest, do you practice "wrap" style heeling?

Rainey the best reward is something the dog can suck down quickly, rather than having to pause and chew. I'd be looking at something soft like devon or cheese.. in very small cubes. Any food should please a Lab - one of the Labs at our club trains on carrots.

With undesirable behaviours, you have two choices.. to try to extinguish it or to channel it into other directions. Personally, with an adolescent gundog (regardless of breed) I don't think a walk every second day is enough. I think this dog is understimulated both mentally and physically. If you walk her every day or even twice a day (even 5 minutes outside the yard is better than nothing) you should see a decline. I'd also be looking to engage that very capable Cocker brain in some kind of training.. have you thought about joining a dog club. Both she and you will benefit from the process of learning new behaviours. I'd also be trying her out on chewable toys or bones.. better than than the woodwork. If you remember that a tired dog is a good dog, I think you may be able to manage this at least until she's a bit older.

My primary concern would be heat stress ML. Maternal heat stress can increase embryo mortality. I'd certainly not be doing anything more active than obedience and definitely not in warmer weather.

It's all about risk management. You weigh the risks of over vaccination against the risks that your dog, given where you take it and what you do with it, will be exposed to the diseases. Right now I vaccinate annually in accordance with the advice of my trusted vet. When she starts vaccinating her dogs three yearly, so will I. Other people weigh the risks differently - vive la difference.

And people wondered why I added "brandy" to the "bringing home the puppy kit" in Rainey's thread.

I don't think the light makes a lot of difference. Put something that smells like you in there.. a T-Shirt or similar. I leave the radio on... try ABC Classic FM He's too young to be kept awake all day but I'd be having a play, putting him in his crate and letting him get used to time out while you are still doing things around the house.

Either tough it out or move the crate into your bedroom. What ever you do, keep him where you intend he will sleep. Is the crate covered?

No. The lower the number, the more hair the blade leaves on the dog.. ie the longer the clip.

The shortest blade I use on my dogs bodies is a 7# in summer on the blacks. For a short all over, I'd probably go no shorter than 4 or 5#.