poodlefan

He's very cute!!! I'm not sure about the impact of the worming drops... but just keep an eye on things. I expect when he does go, it might contain worms... not uncommon in unwormed puppies I gather. Did he have littermates?

Canned dog food is about 80% water... not much there to "produce". If he hadn't eliminated by this time tomorrow I'd be more concerned but canned food is pretty much guaranteed to cure any constipation. If his demeanor is OK, I'd not be too worried. Is there any chance he's done a sneaky poo somewhere you didn't notice? It would only be tiny.

Don't panic. If he hasn't had a solid meal in 6 hours, chances are he's not got anything to eliminate. Wait until after he's had a solid meal .. then take him out and expect results. 6 weeks is very young to get a pup. Has he had his first vaccination yet?

Yes... a dog's welfare is involved. But I'd try to be diplomatic... maybe something like "you know, I think Fido would find these exercises easier if he was a bit leaner." Option B is to print off Christine Zink's article on Corpulent Canines and give a copy to EVERYONE at training.

Yes, I've seen it. Clubs should not allow overweight dogs to train. Ours doesn't and I'm the "fat dog nazi" for intakes .. if I can't feel rib, the dog doesn't get to train. No exceptions. I hear "but my vet says my dog is fine" every intake.

I would suggest you teach heel as a static position first. The dog can understand 'heel' as sit in position by your left hand side before it learns it on the move. You can lure the exact position (sitting close and straight) and use barriers like walls or a piece of rope to assist. If you have already added the cue then I suggest you use another as "heel" has been tainted. Teach the dog that 'heel' means come from what ever position you are to sit in the correct position. Once you have that you use the cue and move forward.. one step or do static turns and reward the correct position. The dog will move and look to sit. After that, all you are doing is increasing the duration of your movement, the speed of your movement and adding turns or giving an alternate position when you stop. In my experience while ever you need to use the lead to gain the heel position, the dog doesn't understand what you want and certainly won't understand when the lead comes off. Personally, I'd be teaching it with the lead OFF first.. start in your back yard. If you cannot get a static heel, movement will be even more difficult.

Thanks Poodlefan I will let you know how it all goes. We are really wanting to get him into the agility cause he is really smart and learns things quickly but I will definatelt have to wait until I can sort this out first (don't want him to get any worse). I am working on the kids too encouraging them not to yell and squeal while he is inside but they are normal kids and forget easily. I am emailing K9 force now Kids are kids Ashan.. most dogs adjust to family life and all its loudness While you might succeed in training your kids to be quiet, visiting kids or kids in public are still going to yell and squeal.

I think seeing K9 is a great idea Ashan. Having a professional see your pup will give you an assessment to work from. I think your little guy may be timid. I own a timid dog (not that most people would say that now) and the great news is that there are just so many things you can do to help them develop confidence. I look forward to hearing how you go with K9 and to seeing this boy develop. I can tell you that provided you go in with the right attitude, agility is a fabulous confidence booster for dogs.

Ashan, I honestly think you would benefit from consulting a good behaviouralist about your pup. Whilst you say that he is in a "fear imprint" period, this shouldn't mean that he is constantly fearful, especially in what are for him familiar surroundings. I gather from this, and other posts, that fear is a big issue for this little guy. I'm not an expert on this (hopefully Erny or K9 or one of the other professionals will find this thread) but a constantly fearful pup sounds more like a temperament issue than a development phase. This link explains what I'm talking about. I'm not confident this is something your pup will simply grow out of. What's this pup's background? Where and when did you get him?

Hi Luvabull, I don't know how Ceasar Milan tackles the issue but I'd advise you to do it separately.. at least at first. You can't get your timing right with four dogs and timing is important in resolving the issue.

My dogs LOVE raw egg! If I have to beat one for a recipe, they scramble to lick out the bowl. ETA: I put it in or on their veggie mix.

No, no kibble at all. If you are feeding kibble, it's not a BARF diet.. more of a 'hybrid'. I feed mince and offal with the veggies for palatability and convenience. The only other meat my dogs get is RMBs.

Lots of people make their veggie mix using a blender only. A juicer just makes it easier. The importance of veggies is debated. Given that I only feed the BARF mix one meal in three (the other two are RMBs), I find it very useful to keep the dogs 'regular' as one does less well if fed more bone. I don't see the point of feeding meat off the bone unless it's with veggies.

Poodlefan’s BARF Veggie Mix I based this on Dr B's recipe for veggie patties in GYPWB. Lets see if I can explain it like a cook book does! Ingredients 1 small container of yogurt 2 tablespoons of flax seed oil 2 kg of mixed fruit and veggies (I use some root veggies, some fruit and some green veggies in every mix) 1 kg full fat beef mince 1 large piece of liver or a few kidneys Optional: Any nutritional supplement as per directions eg. Missing Link, Green Pet Method 1. Add yogurt, flax seed oil and supplement to a large container (I use a 20 litre bucket) and blend well 2. Add the mince and mix well . 3. Juice a little of the fruit and veggies. Add some of the juice to a blender and blend the offal until smooth. Resist urge to smell mix – you will regret it. Try not to vomit at result’s appearance and add to main ingredients. 4. Run the rest of the fruit and veggies through the juicer or blender. Add all the pulp to the mix and enough juice to obtain a firm but not sloppy consistency. You should end up with about 30% mince mix and the rest is veggies. 5. Put into storage containers and freeze. I find this mix feeds 5 mini poodles for 5 meals. My mix is evolving over time. I’ve used other additives like Power Blend, Barley Grass Power, Brewers Yeast, Vitamin C – I just change them from time to time. My large dog owning friends do all the stages from 1 to 3 and then freeze the mix, juicing fresh veggies separately to add to it. This cuts down on freezer space and the time taken to make the mix. I add one or two eggs to the thawed mix, blend them through and feed. If you find your dog is not accepting the mix, add a little more fresh mince to their feed and slowly reduce the amount of mince they receive.

I've had one refusal called because my signal was unclear and Booga went towards one jump and then corrected himself. I didn't think it was fair because he hadn't refused anything.. he changed his path towards the correct obstacle. But because I'm such a sportswoman, I didnt't snot the judge either Vickie.. aren't we lovely. :rolleyes: And yes Rom, this is ANKC agility.

I use the word "coach" a lot these days. :rolleyes: The day I use the word "guardian" in a training sense is the day you have my full permission to slap me silly.

Yep, Vickie I do think it's that inconsistent and the reason for it is that judges don't have a common understanding of what a "refusal" is. I think it varies a little depending on the obstacle but a complete halt in front of a jump is a no brainer.

When I think about leadership I remember that it's not just one way of encouraging the most out of people (or dogs) but finding the best way to do it for each individual. To me leadership is about developing an understanding of a dog and using the best way to guide and motivate and reward it to achieve what you want. I often try to picture a style of leadership (even to dogs) by picturing an inspirational leader. You can try the "my way or the highway" style but a lot of dogs will not respond. Calm, consistent but assertive coaching will get you where you want to be most of the time with dogs (and I would argue with people). I'd rather be like Ghandi than like Idi Amin. :rolleyes:

Heartworm is transmitted to dogs via an intermediate host: Mosquitoes If you have Mosquitos where you live or visit, your dog may be exposed. In hotter wetter areas there will therefore be a higher risk of exposure. I do know of at least one Canberra dog that's been tested positive for heartworm.

Most dogs fed cows milk as pups develop a tolerance for lactose. I give the odd bit of skim milk to my dogs. My oldest boy tends not to drink much when we travel but he will happily guzzle skim milk.. so he gets some.

Moirat: I really think you're right. It will be the dog that pays the highest price of her lack of understanding.. Does she understand that people who discipline and train their dogs don't love them any less than she does? I've had this stuff sprouted at me before. "Oh, I don't want to obedience train him, I want him to be a free spirit".... "Really?" I responded. "So you'll be letting him urinate and defecate all through you house then?"..

They've missed the boat in terms of teaching the dog to play appropriately. All that is left now is to ingrain a very good recall and to use it. I've seen a lot of extremely dominant behaviour displayed by dogs whose owners think they are "playing" when they are doing anything but. If this dog postures to the wrong dog, it could be on for young and old. Obedience training and more careful attention to their dogs activities at the park are called for. They also need to respect the fact that many people take their dogs to such parks to exercise them, not to have their dogs interact with others.

I'd not be leaving food down for him to pick at. This may be part of the problem. Try reducing the quantities a little. If that makes no difference, I'd be tempted to switch him to one meal a day. He's old enough.

They sound like neck verterbrae. They'd be fine for dogs. Here's a linky to a diagram of cuts of beef to give you an idea.

I use run to the contact zone and ride for see saw and run to zone and sit for dog walk I use 2o2o for the A-Frame.