dogon

Stoopid question ....how can I stop my pup from massacring his paper that I've put down as his toilet. He loves to shred it despite the fact that he has a bone and about 4 other tasty treats about the place hidden in plastic bottles and kongs. He does it whether I've left him for an hour or 5 hours. If it's a bordom thing...well so be it...but what would be a good alternative toilet? I've read that puppy pads are easy to chew up too. What do people do?

For what it's worth I really think that vacc info re how many and when to take pups out can vary. I talk to people, discuss it with my vet, I read about it here on DOL and no matter what, opinions always range from cautious to relaxed with everywhere in between. I'm not having a go at anybody btw, it just seems to be my experience.

Unless they choke on a chicken neck, I would think that so long as it goes down, they should be fine. The bone pieces in the necks are quite small, and once it goes down it will be digested as it passes through the intestines anyway. Most troubles happen when things pass through that can't be digested at all... And if they can't digest it ie. swallow before it is chewed properly, they will probably throw it up and start all over ... unless for some unknown reason the bones become impacted in the bowl and they can't pass them or they throw up a chunk of bone and it gets caught in it's throat - a definite risk according to my vet hence the anxious wait I had to go through. All was well. Just thought it might be worth saying is all. I still feed them btw.

Careful with chicken necks. I thought Rodney would be fine with them since he always chewed them before swallowing. One day he didnt chew, just swallowed very scary and anxious night of waiting! ....having said that, some people never have any problems!

The dog park I have been to (only three times, mind you) has been nothing but excellent. I researched the place by visiting it before hand. I chose the one I am taking him two because a friend takes her dog and has NEVER EVER had an issue with her dog in the park nor has she ever witnessed a dog attack or irresponsible behaviour from dog owners there.....and she's been going every day for several years. I did visit another dog park in the area but decided against it purely based on observation and the amount of dog droppings left behind far more than in the one that I use now. All the dog owners have all been extremely respectful and always place their dogs on leash or hold their dogs when approaching. As a consequence pup has never been rushed, pummeled or attacked. This is NOT to say that it isn't possible but I never let pup of the lead and won't do until I'm confident of his recall and his confidence. If I ever have a bad experience then I will have known that I did everything in my power to avoid it BUT that I did it in the name of healthy socialisation requirements. I'm not naive, just realistic I have DOL to thank for helping me to understand the risks and benefits of anything we choose as dog owners.

I hear you huski which is why I exercise caution at every turn! Today I'm not taking pup to a friends place because her dog has been 'known' to be a 'bit' aggresive with other dogs but 'probably wont' be with a puppy. Not worth it Thanks

Yup, that's what my vet said! I guess she bases it on experience and university training. Of course there are people out there who have had rotten experiences with diseases and have watched their dogs die as a result of early exposure. I agree with huski, I'm prepared to cautiously take that risk and expose our pup for the sake of safe and closely monitored socialisation opportunities. If this choice offends people then so be it. At the end of the day dog owners can only make choices based on the information they can get. This forum has a variety of opinions, which is great and the reason why I've made this thread, so now I can make a choice based on what I have decided is reasonable for my dog. If an experienced trainer, one that sees problem behaviours all the time, tells me that my dog would benefit from venturing out from the confines of a home environment, then it seems to me to be the right choice to do so. Parvo, for example, I am told can be brought in via peoples shoes or dropped by birds into your back yard. We take risks every day and our job is to navigate a way safely through those risks. In regards to fear stages I have read that sticky posted by k9 and it's very helpful. However I've read elsewhere (not sure where so I cant reference it)that a fear stage can start from 8 weeks to 11 weeks and then start again at 16 weeks. So once again as a dog owner I need to navigate my way through information that varies and make sensible decisions based on what I 'think' I know. To be on the safe side I'm treating puppyhood as a period of potential fear. That way I'm always alert to possible events that could trigger fear responses. Isnt this what any reasonable dog owner should do? Regarding information on exercise - the original purpose of this thread - this is something that I'll take very seriously. I know cockers can be prone to hip problems so I'll do what I can to minimise joint damage while he's young.

I respect the views of all of you and thank you so much for taking the time to reply. I guess I'm one of those that has taken the 'risk' in favour of socialisation. My puppy school trainer suggested that pup needed to get out given a few worrying behaviours towards other pups (growling, shying away and snapping) Since being out I can see a new found confidence in him and he now seems a lot more relaxed when dogs approach him. Of course I'm always careful and have a watchful eye on him, and other dogs, at all times. Today we spent the day at a friends place and had a few short walks ( about 10 minutes each) that seemed to really knacker him. I used the time wisely to teach him not to pull on the lead which has seemed to work so far. Poochmad; yes we have floor boards and he does like to run and slide so I'll definitely begin to discourage this. Thanks again everybody

err....yes, oops! Thanks for your input Jesskah and danois. It seems that opinions vary a bit! so it's a matter of making sensible choices then. Waiting 2 weeks after the vacc? :rolleyes: that seems a little over the top! I've never heard that. My vet has given me the go ahead to let him out right away since I live in an area that has good vacc rates. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on that one. 15 minutes of free play? Then I've blown it already ....also the walks are NOT 'forced' - he loves every minute of it ETA: danois, I just saw that you added that info about pups not showing signs of tiredness due to over excitement. Great advice - I'll keep my eye on this definitely as maybe I'm interpreting his happiness to be walking as eagerness. Food for thought

Now that Rodney's been vaccinated we can take him out and about. He loves going out and so far performs excellently on the lead! So...how much is too much exercise for a 12 1/2 old cocker pup? Since we've had him he's been playing in our yard which is half paving and half grass. He's had to navigate two steps and there was never an alternative to this other than me picking him up and carrying him - something I didn't want to do. On the walks I've taken him on so far he's probably been walking for about 15 minutes but we've been out longer so I do carry him part of the way - especially on pavement areas. Saying that I do try to get him to walk on the grass when we are heading to the dog park. Sometimes I have driven to the dog park but that's just not as much fun!! :rolleyes: The thing is that he loves being out and about and I'd like him to be the sort of dog I take most places with me. I know he should be getting only 15 minutes of solid walking a day - for his age - but does this include running around in the yard too? How strict should I be? Obviously I don't want joint problems to occur in the future. Interested in DOLer opinions - cheers.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO...... I'm shouting too OMG...i've been avoiding the removal of this dang weed for years. Please sweet lord, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! :rolleyes:

Hi settrivr. I'll do my best to answer. I have noticed his scratching almost from day one so not sure how useful this will be. Will definitely give the breeder a call. Thanks so much settrivr. :rolleyes: Do you have a link to a site or a thread regarding plant hazards for dogs?

Hypothetically speaking (if he was allergic to these things), how the hell do you keep a dog off grass, weeds, plants in general

was afraid someone would say this. Thanks persephone.

Hi all. I didn't want to start a new topic so I'll add to my original one. Rodney is still a scratching and a biting I've asked the vet and she could find no evidence of fleas or mites. No dry skin, no eggs or other bits. I have used Advantage and given him an Aloveen bath. Nothing seems to help. His coat is lovely and soft and seems basically clean and shiny. Could it be the heat? Even though the temp. has fluctuated, he has small red spots on his tummy (nothing horrendous) and some have turned into scabs (one of which I picked off thinking it was a tick ) I'm pretty sure these have appeared from the constant agitation of his biting. Could he be bored? Is it a diet thing? so far I have fed him Eukenuba, chicken, lamb, cheese, sausage, peanut butter and frozen peas. (in order of amount he's been exposed to) It has become sooooo bad that I'm thinking of buying him a soft crate because his periodic scrathching at night and in the wee hours of the morning is making it very difficult to get any decent sleep. He sounds like a freight train with all that scratching, biting and snuffling! HELP!!! I'm seeing the vet on Saturday so I will ask again but just thought I'd throw this out to the wisdom of all you wonderful DOLers. If, for example, this could be an allergy what are the most common things that dogs could react to?

...except it's eight already and pup is asleep having had a half arsed attempt at play and a big drink. Yep puppies sleep a lot but EVEN more in the heat. I need the break!

Mine has been asleep pretty much all day too. He's 12 weeks. It's the heat methinks. What I hate is the cooler evenings when Rodney wakes up and goes from sweet pup to monster pup

Hi poochmad. Did you feed this diet from puppyhood? Yes, Rodney eats less in the mornings too.

Oh boy I feel your pain. This morning I had to teach a bunch of kids that pushing the pup away or simply throwing him a toy AFTER he bites was only rewarding him. Eventually one of them decided to take on a sit/down/off/take it routine BEFORE throwing a toy and BEFORE biting. Made the little bugger work for it and needless to say - biting was stopped and he's now asleep!! Sure is exhausting

i haz falva, can you tell us what the correction is? cheers.

Hi. Poor Bruno. Look at the thread 'Puppy terrified of other dogs'. In it is a discussion about how to help a dog in a fear situation. There are heaps of knowledgeable people here who can help you but I do recommend a book by Ian Dunbar called 'After you get your Puppy" it's available online free at dogstardalily.com. Free only in January. I think that you should consider taking it very slowly with your pup and maybe limit known scary situations to perhaps one per day. Dunbar advocates praising and treating the dog when something potentially scary is coming up. In the other thread there is a discussion about whether to give treats once the dog is terrified and I think the consensus is that you should not since this would reinforce being scared. Perhaps also consider getting an opinion from a dog behaviourist too. I am a new puppy owner with a dog that has displayed a few worrying fears to certain things too. I'm sure a more experienced person will be able to give you some advice soon. Good luck and hugs to little Bruno.

Just a thought. which might help OP and other novices like me I would add that perhaps owners should take note of how scared their dog is at any given time. If petrified (ie. tail between legs, growling etc) then a removal from a situation would be in order and begin a program of desensitization (using praise and treats) slowly to the thing that causes fear. If a dog is showing anxiousness BUT more due to being unsure rather than full blown terrified then a treat might well be the thing to get the dog back into confidence mode. Still interested to see what Dunbar's take would be on this.

hmmm...it would be really interesting to see what he says about this. This is an excerpt from the book: ..."Offer your dog a piece of kibble every time a car, big truck, or noisy motorcycle goes by. Offer your dog a couple of pieces of kibble every time another dog or person passes. Praise your dog and offer a treat whenever she greets another dog or person in a friendly fashion. Praise your dog and offer three tasty treats whenever a child approaches. And when a child whizzes by on a skateboard or dirt bike, handfeed her the whole bag of food. " Ok, so I take this to mean that you are PREVENTING a fearful reaction. But how many times does something unknown happen and a dog is already in a tizz. I know this has happened to me and I've treated him which then helps to build confidence. At least this is what I've observed. I'd really like to know if Dunbar would advocate against treats ONCE a dog is already fearful.

"After You get your Puppy" - page 122 is one example. I do this with Rodney all the time and he turns from an anxious/ frightened pup (in the face of a new experience) to a tail wagging pup. I had a similar experience to the OP at my puppy school. After he had a treat he was more willing to venture out into the circle whereas previously he wanted to hide behind me. He also growled a lot which, I assume, was a fear response. I agree though that puppies should not be put into situation where they are backed into corners. Not sure that a treat would work if this was happening. Any animal would want to exercise either the fight or flight response in this case. My trainer put Rodney in a pen on his own, as you mentioned you do Cosmolo, and this was a better solution for him. He was able to watch and feel safe at the same time. When he came out I treated him and praised him and he was able to be a bit bolder with the more active dogs in the group.

Well yes, I've been doing this too. Ian Dunbar recommends it as does my trainer at puppy school. It is supposed to give them a happy experience in the face of something potentially frightening. I do, however, think that it's best to remain calm for the sake of the dog - let them know you're there but not molly coddle - if you know what I mean.