Stewie_the_Frenchie

oh wow...what a little cutie! I bet he was freshly shampooed for those pics, I hope so other wise you're doing a hell of a job keeping him clean, and making me jealous! Georgous!!!!

Thank you so much to everyone - wow, what a forum of constructive and particular advice! Erny, you in particular, I have noticed in the past, are such a thorough thoughtful dog owner when giving advice. Thank you for the step by step. Also blitznbear, showdog, percyk and reddii, thank you for for such great advice. Socialization is something that is really important to me, and I must admit that I stress about him getting enough (oh man, it's like having kids!). Cazablanca - during the dry months, he's not too bad. But it is starting to get quite hot now and the aircons are working over time, so I think the break over Christmas will be a welcome one for him. I tell you though, he loves his paddle pool and the dam! Percyk, ah yes a fellow remote-worker! We are enjoying it very much - the kids love Turtle, they have never seen a dog like him before! And joypod, thank you for the compliments on my boy - I will never get sick of them! I will keep you guys posted after Christmas and let you know how your advice went! I'm sure he will be fine if I am atuned to his feelings.

Turtle is 5 1/2 months old and lives with us in the remote Kimberley. He has had a little bit of interaction with other dogs, but they are mainly camp dogs (I live and teach in an Aboriginal community). The camp dogs are fine (they have regular shots), most of them, but I do worry about them snapping at him so I don't let him play with them. I am a little bit worried about how he is going with socialization. He is a Newfoundland, so his temperament is nice, but I know how important it is. I am spending a couple of weeks at my father's property in Melbourne over christmas, where he will interact with two greyhounds and two Jack Russells (he will be 6MO at this stage). My query is, is this too late for him to be learning how to be around other dogs? As I live in a remote area, there is no possibility for puppy preschool or obedience school (he has been steadily trained by me since I got him, though). I am very jealous of people that get to even take their dog to the park! Not that he has a lesser life, he's got the outback at his back door! He has been OK with the camp dogs, but tries to become dominant over some (and then gets growled at, which I have no problem with as he needs to learn). Any advice or info would be greatly appreciated! 5 Months

persephone, that's such an awesome idea! being from the outback too (the kimberley), the red sand gets a bit much - but i can definitely pop it onto the back porch. that will take Turtle ages - hopefully, he's a 5mo newfie, and goes through a sow's ear in 10min, so here's hoping!

thanks cassie - you always have good advice! that's true about the distance, when I go for a walk it is usually 30 mins and 3kms. that's quite far! i will test him out with a short 10min walk to start with i think, and see how he goes from there. i think it will really be about trial and error!

thanks guys - for both compliments and advice, re: beach walks - the breeder thought that the shifting surface of sand would be bad for growing joints and bones in the giant breeds. my vet said there's a lot of advice out there but there's no guarantee for any of it, and even if I don't walk him on the beach now, he might still get dispalsia and if I do he might not. i think you just have to take what is relevent to your situation and go from there. thanks again guys, you're a big help

we have just finished our third week of consistent outside toilet training with Turtle. Before, we had him go on the newspaper in his room - and I agree with erny, it's just another step in the way of the final goal. We take him out every hour or so, or just after he's woken up or had a play. We stand there with him and say "toilet" in the same tone of voice every time. It didn't take long for him to work it out. It was interesting actually, the other day I was out there with him and he got distracted and as soon as I said the magic word, he went straight away. I think you probably need to be really direct and consistent with what you want her to do. Also, try making her wait until you go through the back door first (make her work for the things she wants - it does make a difference!).

ha ha, no worries poodle wrangler...i'll always take the compliment for him! Sticks1977, that sounds like a great formula to use...i'll still wait till he's 6 months, but then 30 mins sounds good (it'll get my butt moving too! ) Thanks for that! ps. fraser is sooo cute, i've always loved chocolate labs...awesome name too

Hi guys, another one for the giant breeds (maybe not). Turtle is now 5 months old, yay! ;) In another month, my breeder's book says that I can start walking him for exercise. I was just wondering can anyone recommend how long for and how frequently? I have been really careful to not take him for walks until now and I'm really excited that I can finally take him for walks. I know that it's not advisable to beach walk him until he's 10 months, and as we are surrounded by sand (the Kimberley), I'll take him out to the gravel road. Anyhoo, any suggestions would be appreciated.

hmmm...I live in the remote Kimberley, so maybe I am out of the loop here, but daycare? for dogs? I understand that dogs need stimulation and socialisation, but I agree with others when they say that 5 days is too much, especially for a pup. He must be over-stimulated. I know as a first time pup owner, you want to do everything right by them (believe me, I stress out like a mother!), but sometimes (I've learned along the way), you must realise that they are dogs and they're not human children. Having said that, I completely understand that you want the best for your little one. Reading this thread, I am quite astounded that the day care people have the nerve to lecture your OH - isn't it their job to do all of that? Aren't they trained and paid for that? As I said, I'm perhaps naive about daycare. I think your decision to pull him out is probably a wise one. But I'm sure you realise that pups/dogs do need socialisation, so maybe the puppy school one day a week would be better. Have a go at leaving him at home - I found with ours, as long as he has things to do (or even a window to look out - although he's outside most of the day), he ends up sleeping all day anyway. But my breeder did say that it's really important to let pups sleep, as they need it. Anyway, this is a rather long reply and probably I hope it works out for you - it can be stressful! 5 months

My newfoundland (5 months) has been on eukanubah since 8 weeks. i have 3 vets (work has us travelling) and they all recommend euk. my vet in broome was actually relieved to hear he was a 'eukanubah baby' at his first visit. it may be because of the added calcium that is needed for giant breeds such as mine. my breeder also recommended it. i do notice he is more regular, but when he is on something from the supermarket (we live in remote kimberley - euk is not always available), he gets backed up. i'd rather he do 2-3 poos a day than 1 every two days. plus, i only feed him the dry stuff - to go with meat and veg. i guess it depends on the individual dog though, and what suits them best

Thanks MyCatMilo, I will!! :rolleyes:

thanks for that guys, it was just something little that was niggling away in the back of my mind! makes sense

Hi all, just a quick one, i was reading austen's query re crates and matresses and it occurred to me that my Newfie Turtle doesn't sleep on anything but the hard floor. I have tried putting a mat down for him and have resisted buying a bed for him as I'm not sure he'd use it. Is it bad for his bones? We live in the Kimberley so there's no fear of draft or anything like that. just an odd little thought that popped into my head!

thanks poodle wrangler, it's nice to be reassured. ashka1, that's so exciting about your little one coming home. to answer your question, turtle gets fed 3x a day: b'fast - 1 cup of mince, 1 cup of dry (usually eukanubah), 1 cup of veg/rice lunch - sardines or egg with 1 cup of dry dinner - same as b'fast he also gets a cup of milk twice a day and a vitamin c twice a day.

Ah, yes Turtle has been shedding his puppy fur at the moment, so that is a relief to know that you went through the same taffy! I think he has just had a growth spurt, but will still check with breeder/vet when I can. Thanks Molasseslass and austen for your thoughts, that chart is very very handy! thanks again guys

Hi there everyone, This may only be for those who know giant breeds, but I have been trying to get in contact with my breeder and can't reach her so I thought I'd throw it out there. My 17 and a half week old Newfoundland was weighed last week at 25kgs (is this normal for this age? under?). However, I'm worried he's a bit thin as even though there's the typical thin layer of fat on his ribs, his spine and hips jutt out quite a bit when I run my hand down his spine. I'm worried he's too thin, the vet didn't say anything when he had his 16 week shots, but as these breeds have trouble with joints and bones I don't want to take any chances. I noticed he was thin when he came back from the boarding kennels where he was there for 10 days and they only fed him twice a day (he's usually 3x a day). Is this just normal for a puppy going into adolescence? Anyway, any help would be appreciated. Here's a recent pic at 17 weeks. Thanks guys! Turtle at 17 weeks...he's starting to change

my friends own a couple of pugs and they used to do the same, but it wasn't anything to worry about - they didn't stanrt breeding until about a year later (the girl was younger than the boy). It's a shock though isn't it? You don't know if maybe you should look away and give them some privacy????!!!!

thanks erny, i live in the remote kimberley so a trainer or behaviourist is not really an option...thank you anyway, you have shed some light on why might be doing it

Hi again everyone, Turtle (14 weeks old) is really starting to get to me with his barking. First it was the barking for attention and we ignored it and it is slowly working (i think!). But now whenever he gets told off (with a NO!), he barks really defiantly at me...it drives me insane, because then I have to ignore him coz he's barking! AAAARRGGHHH!!! He's like one of the smart ass kids I teach at school, but it's worse! Ha! Has anyone got any insight into this? Why? What to do? It feels like a catch 22 Thanks

Name: Turtle sex: Male Age: 17 and a half weeks Colour: Black Breed: Newfoundland Hobbies: just learned the joy of chasing one's tail, Loves: slobbering on mum after drinking milk...mmmm Hates: when dad gets stern (he just laughs when mum does!) No current pics 9 weeks old 11 weeks old 16 weeks 17 weeks

Ha ha!! we were worried at first when our 13 week old pup starting doing it, but I asked the vet and he said it's nothing. it's very funny

ha ha, thanks patch! it's still appreciated!!

Hi Mark, I am a very new puppy owner myself so my advice is probably to be taken lightly. Regarding the toilet training, I think you really need to catch them in the act for it to take any affect. We have just got Turtle peeing on the newspaper in his room and are yet to move it outside, so it can be a slow process. Turtle has a really short memory and I don't think he understands when we get mad at him for weeing 10 minutes ago when we didn't see him. The snapping and biting - whenever he mouths or bites we hold his muzzle shut and growl at him and then put him in time out for a couple of minutes. He seems to settle down in that time (sometimes not though!). He is just playing but we don't want him doing it and the vet said to do this procedure. It's only been a week and there is a little bit of improvement. I know what you mean about the 9pm red cordial hype-up! 9.30 is our crazy time - oh man it's full on! Anyway I hope that helps, it probably doesn't! Good luck

Excellent..thank you everyone - that has made up my mind for me! Thanks for taking the time to explain it to the naive 1st time puppy owner!!!