bozthepup

Hi Kerryz Labs are the most beautiful pups, we have had one and getting another choc boy in 2 weeks time. He will be a gorgeous friend and huge part of your family in the futur When you're home, can you put him out to toilet at key times ? Very hard when you already have two other babies I"m sure but pups tend to toilet after they a) wake up, b) eat and c) play. Of course they like to go at other times as well but if you can try to put him outside in a designated area when you are at home and give him a command that he starts to recognise, then lots of praise when he goes. We used 'quick' in a high kind of voice to tell our boy we wanted him to go. This takes some persistence though like everything with pups ! It's a little more difficult if he's outside during the day on his own since he obviously can't be commanded to go. If he sleeps through the night, you have a very good starting point though. I would try to take him to pup school. If he isn't getting any other dog socialisation, he really needs it and this age is a crucial time for him to learn how to play nicely with both dogs and humans and experience as much of the outside world as possible once he's had vaccinations etc. I realise 3yo is quite a handful in terms of human babies, but perhaps you could take the 3yo along while OH looks after the baby ??! Our pup school had a number of kids and it's a lovely experience for them to see all the puppies as well. I have no idea of your circumstances but it's just a thought.

Ahahaha, they need to give their toys to me. where are you based iggie piggie ? We have some old puppy soft toys/collar/stuff etc. from our boy that is no longer with us (he was killed in an accident at 4 months in March). Understand if that's a little macabre or something for you, so feel free to say no, but we are throwing them out for our new beginning, and getting some new ones for our new pup who arrives 30 May. (Probably a bit luxurious in this economic climate but there you go). That said, our most popular toy was a large plastic milk container (mentioned elsewhere here), with some pebbles/dirt inside and tied to a bit of rope so we could swing it round. Lid on tightly, and might not be great when their teeth get stronger and can get lid off but good for the early days. I also highly recommend your local charity store as others have mentioned. I bought a couple of things, ripped the eyes out of the poor soft fluffy toys and sewed their eye sockets very tightly together. We borrowed a crate from my SIL from when their pups were little, you might find people may be willing to lend you crates that puppy has grown out of. good luck with your new pup -what breed is it ? I'm in Melbourne bozthepup. Not macabre at all. And I am worried i made myself out to be penniless. I have bought all the essentials. But I am going to discuss with my breeder, and we will figure it out, even if i have to wait a little longer. No, I don't think you appear 'penniless' ... I think the general gist of your thread is a great idea in this economic climate, even though some of us may have liked to spend our Krudd $900 on dog stuff ! We're in Sydney and just figured we're chucking out the stuff anyway, but may not be worth the price of the postage ! Feel free to PM if you want to follow up.

Ahahaha, they need to give their toys to me. where are you based iggie piggie ? We have some old puppy soft toys/collar/stuff etc. from our boy that is no longer with us (he was killed in an accident at 4 months in March). Understand if that's a little macabre or something for you, so feel free to say no, but we are throwing them out for our new beginning, and getting some new ones for our new pup who arrives 30 May. (Probably a bit luxurious in this economic climate but there you go). That said, our most popular toy was a large plastic milk container (mentioned elsewhere here), with some pebbles/dirt inside and tied to a bit of rope so we could swing it round. Lid on tightly, and might not be great when their teeth get stronger and can get lid off but good for the early days. I also highly recommend your local charity store as others have mentioned. I bought a couple of things, ripped the eyes out of the poor soft fluffy toys and sewed their eye sockets very tightly together. We borrowed a crate from my SIL from when their pups were little, you might find people may be willing to lend you crates that puppy has grown out of. good luck with your new pup -what breed is it ?

:) :rolleyes:

HI Cesar fans I posted this in general forum www.cesarmillaninc.com/interactive/aust_auditions.php

Another Daddy fan here !! Or, as Cesar says it 'Dardy'. Cesar is in Australia in June, my SIL bought us tix to his live show as a xmas pressie (no doggies can be taken along tho )

Shellectra, Shyla is a real cutie !! I hope all goes well with this latest 'phase' with her !! Good luck

catandgrant, you have alot of good advice already here. My only addition would be..... please try not to despair ! It will get better even though it seems right now like it won't. Both OH and I had so many times like this where we wondered why we even THOUGHT about getting our little monster. Try to be as patient as you can; if you're really exasperated (like it sounds you are just when he was nipping at you while typing), pop him outside or in a time out area for a bit, just to retain your own sanity ! The leash worked well for me - it's a pain in the butt to have him attached to you but worth a shot. Best of luck

What a terrible accident - I'm sure you're asking 'why' ? My deepest condolences, RIP Ruby Tuesday.

Hi all Our new boy arrives end of May and I'm looking for a good puppy school/instructor. We had one with our last pup that was okaaaaaay, but feel like we could maybe do better. If anyone can make good reccomendations (and why) - please PM me ? thanks alot.

The instructor should be controlling things a little better. Our personal experience was that most of the class was a free for all, which surprised us a little bit but of course we know better now - hindsight is wonderful. We had a lab so obviously no size issues there, but there were two tiny little pups, a puggle and a silkie who were pretty terrified at first. The puggle totally came out of his shell and gave as good as he got after 2 weeks or so but the silkie was scared, and to her credit, the instructor tried to keep an eye on that. You might want to make enquiries for another pup school in your area, and use the experience you have to gleaned through this to question the instructor before signing up so they know your personal situation. Where are you in Sydney ? Some places offer 'junior school' which is the next step to puppy school but pre obedience. An alternative, especially if your training is already going well at home, is to look at the local obedience clubs (if vaccinations are good, I think someone mentioned this earlier). At 16 weeks, maybe the pup is moving beyond pup school.

So so sorry for your loss. I just cried at the kids' reactions as well - it's so hard for everyone concerned. Our little boy Boz will be at Rainbow Bridge to play and rumble and show Rex around. :rolleyes:

How cute is she!! He's been pretty good lately and we have left him on his own when he comes in now. Only in the mornings if he wakes up really early we just put a treat in his crate for him and he'll eat that until he's tired again. Sometimes he will go toilet 2 hrs after we put him to bed and he won't wake up until 5.45-6am. It depends how much excitement he's had for the day too. Just waiting until he is ready to start short walks. That should tire him out a bit. He's had his 12 wk vaccination already. He is such a cutie Molz !! Not when he barks though I'll bet. If he's barking at a time when you can put him back outside, I'd suggest maybe that. We used to put him out and shut the curtains so there's no lookies and he shut up soon enough. His reward when he stopped barking was to come back in and he got pretty good at realising. It's a bit never ending when they're this age !!! If it's not one thing it's another - but the cuddles are your reward !!!

Yes !! Many pups (and dogs) do it - they are dreaming about conquering the doggie world, running very fast and chasing all kinds of creatures; and of course eating lots ! Our pup used to move his feet /legs quite alot and also make little noises. His eyes sometimes appeared to be a little bit open as well. Normal as i understand it.

Our choc lab changed colour quite alot. At one stage he had a 'strip' of almost orange colour on top of his head and down the top of his back where the sun bleached him a bit. It went away again though. I think they can change, due to sun but also just maturation.