Jen21

I'd suggest something he'd like to chew on, rather than chase

^ Don't agree with you - the analogy with lollies is a bit extreme.... Premium wet food has the same makeup as Premium dried with just more water, which for some dogs is a lot easier to eat and digest. Chicken Bones made my pup sick, and the Vet put him back on good quality canned, and he's so much more healthier and happy now.

Why not do a mix of wet and dry? As long as they are both good quality, why shouldn't your dog get something he'd prefer.

Thanks Mel

I agree that most people that post here seem to be raw or dry food feeders, but you need to find what's right for your pup and you. :cool: Not all canned food is bad. There are many dogs (like mine) that won't eat enough dry food to gain weight, whereas they love good quality canned stuff. I tried my pup on chicken necks, wings and meaty bones, and he would chew them, bury them, and then make himself sick later chewing on them again when the meat was off. Many of the Premium dog food brands like Hills and Advance are now making specific puppy canned food, and according to the vet, it is just as good for dogs as their dried version (they even have identical ingredients). I would recommend Advance Puppy canned and dried food, which is what I use. I did a lot of research and worked out that Advance were the only ones which made a specific puppy brand of food available at my local store (where you can get pretty much anything) and had true meat sources as the first 4 ingredients, not meals, grains, or other scary sounding ingredients. My pup is happier and healthier on a mixture of Advance dry and canned food than anything else, so that works for us. Your puppy is very cute

I'm thinking about getting some insurance too. Any suggestions or links would help a lot

I had the same issue with my puppy initially, but after a week or 2 of me doing a "Ouch" noise, and withdrawing away from him whenever he tried to bite, he soon stopped. He is so well trained now, that if he accidently puts his teeth on me during play (even just touching my arm), he comes sucking up and licking like crazy, to make sure he's not in trouble. Good luck - I'm sure your pup will get there too.

Just wanted to say thanks to the people that offered me advice - I took Toby to the Vet tonight, and he does have a tummy upset, and a sore bottom from all the runny poo too. Since he has also been off his food for the last few days, he got an anti-nausea shot, and some antibiotics, and they gave me some really bland food to try to feed him over the next few days. They also tested him for Parvo and he doesn't have that - phew! He ate quite a bit of the bland food when we got home, so I'm really glad I took him to the vet - hopefully we're both on the road to recovery now, and will have a few quiet days at home resting up.

Thanks for all the advice - I did think that Toby might be sick too, so after I get home from the Doctor tomorrow, I might see if I can get him into the vet. Hope I didn't make him sick or vice versa Yep Toby is like that - he really only wants to please me, he is a total sweetie. Earlier tonight he was all of a sudden pawing at the back door in a great frenzy, and when I got him outside, he had a little explosion out the back, so he does try to do the right thing when he can.

Must be a difficult issue I guess.....21 views and no responses I have Toby in at the moment, and feel like I'm back on Puppy Patrol again - watching his every move.......

My 6 month old Maltese Poodle x has been toilet trained since about 3 months, and during his toilet training, never ever did a poo inside (only little wee incidents). He's a gorgeous boy, and has never been any trouble. However, yesterday he had 3 accidents and did poo in my bedroom, lounge room, and on a towel left near the door to dry his feet, as well as also doing a wee inside. He seems to have had an upset stomach (as his poo isn't totally solid, and is a little runny) and he has also been moping around looking depressed. He has also needed to be taken outside multiple times during the night to poo (he has been sleeping through the night for months). He hasn't had a change in diet, and the only things I can put it down to are either that he's having a reaction to me being quite sick and/or not being able to walk him, or is avoiding going outside because our weather has been so terrible (constant rain for days)!! It's just the 2 of us and since Friday I have had gastro and a nasty cold, so have been coughing, sneezing, & blowing my nose a lot, and since I have been so unwell he didn't get walked for a couple of days. He gets professionally walked this afternoon, and hopefully by tomorrow I'll be well enough to do a short walk, as he's used to going every day. I'm at my wits end, as the last thing I need when I'm so unwell is to be on hands and knees cleaning up poo from my carpet, as I had to do multiple times yesterday, and although he's usually inside with me all the time when I'm home, I'm hesitant to bring him inside today in case it all starts again. Does anyone have any experience with dogs either responding badly to going outside in bad weather, or losing their toilet training when their owner is sick, or when they haven't been walked for a day or 2? I would really appreciate some advice, as I don't know whether this is something I should be taking him to the vet for, or just to leave it a few days until I'm more well and things are back to normal in our home, to see if things return to normal.

That does sound like a great outcome I think you should always listen to your gut, and do things in the best interests of your pup - so you have totally done the right thing

I had a similar experience with puppy school, where my puppy was scared of all of the others, so I only let him play with one other dog at a time in the socialisation, and would be very nearby, so could take him out if the situation got uncomfortable for him. I always used his tail as my cue, the minute it was between his legs, he was frightened so I would grab him. As he's grown older (he's now 6 months), he has got more and more confident with other dogs, he is walked with 2 other dogs once a week, and has had some play dates in the park, and he loves them. So don't worry things can get better if you are careful with what you expose him/her to. Follow your gut and don't take him back to that class, and look for a best option for socialisation. (By the way, there's a new site where you can meet other dog owners and get your pups together for play dates, socialisation, walks, etc. It's a great solution if you don't have the money/time/space for 2 dogs, but want your dog to get regular contact with other friendly dogs. http://www.dogtree.com.au

I was so anxious about going back to work after I got my pup too - so I sympathise. I was a bundle of nerves for at least the first couple of weeks worrying about him being home along for 9-10 hours a day. I had about 14 days off work when I got him, and tried to condition him a bit by putting him outside for small periods of time building up for longer and longer each day in the second week, so he probably coped better with the separation than I did. Make sure your pup has some toys, somewhere comfy to sleep and maybe something to chew on, and he will nap most of the time and be totally fine.

I did Puppy School with Pet Pals in Chelsea in a doggy day centre in February, and it was ok - lots of positive reinforcement with treats, and no sign of tarps, etc. Maybe with puppies, it's different though. I did find the opposite issue though - my pup was very timid, so she wouldn't interact with him as much as the other dogs, and he didn't get to join in with much of the socialisation/play at the end of the class with the others. It would have been great to have got some help with the timid issue, rather than just not try. I did decide to not go back for the next level of her group training, and try some one-on-one work with a trainer recommended here instead, as in a class with 6-8 I didn't feel I got much quality training time in a group, and there's some issues I want expert help with.

I had been feeding Toby my puppy Hill's Science dry and canned dog food, on the recommendation of the vet, but then after reading the responses from many of the posters on this form about Hill's Science, I've done some research and have decided that if I want to buy Premium, I want something better. I have read that the first 4 ingredients on the label are the most important, and that the more straight meat sources in that top 4, the better (do people agree with that)? So, not liking the Ingredients in Hill's, I spent a while at the pet store today checking out all the premium brands, and the only one with 4 meats in its ingredients list is Advance. However, the shop also had Optimum, which is a little cheaper, and I have seen in my local Coles, but upon reading that label it is not only manufactured by the same people, the ingredients are identical!! Does anyone know if they are the same or not?

I have been leaving my puppy outside while I'm at work (9-10 hours per day) since he was 10 weeks old, and as long as I provide him with different things to keep him entertained - bones, toys, sunbed and kennel, etc - I haven't had any issues. The few times I popped home to spy on him in the early days to make sure he was ok, he was sleeping anyway. The other thing you may want to consider, and I do twice a week, is to get him professionally walked. The lady who took our puppy classes is also a walker so I have her come and take him out for 1/2 hour walks every Tuesday and Thursday - just to break the week up for him a bit. She brings other friendly dogs around to walk/play with him too, so it's great to get some extra socialisation in there. It works well for me, as if I need to make after work appointments, I tend to make them Tuesday or Thursday nights, as that way I'm home early to walk him on the off days.

When you say a table, do you mean something high, so I am standing - like a dining room table or kitchen bench? I have tried a few different brushes, and the one with the soft bristles (like a human hair brush) seems to be best. It's just Toby and I, so I need to learn to find a way to do some basic maintenance on my own - cleaning the tear marks, and trimming around his eyes at least. I did have him professionally washed and clipped at about 4 months, as his hair was long and everything was getting caught in it, but I'll probably only do this every few months. Toby was shaking, but his tail wagged the whole time, and he behaved really well, and the only thing he tried to bite were the scissors when she was trimming around his eyes. Thanks for that, will definitely try some of those tips, and up it to daily to try to get him used to it. I guess every little snip with the scissors is a move in the right direction. I just don't like forcing his head to stay still, it feels cruel, even though I know I'm not hurting him.

Actually I tried that last night and did manage to give him a decent brush, so I'm going to stick to nights now too. Thanks Yes it is, from when he was about 10 weeks. He's a gorgeous boy. Thanks for the advice Nekhbet, but it's not quite as bad as that. I can handle him everywhere, and even take things out of his mouth, and he never bites at me. I read up online about puppies a bit before I got him, so have done it from day one. The main issue is really trimming or cleaning the hair around his eyes, as he twists and turns his head away and struggles to get away from me, when something is coming at his eyes. I have tried to hold his nose, but it's rare for him to stop struggling and concede and let me do much. I will up the praising and treating though - it worked well with the other training stuff, so makes sense. Thanks.

Hi, I have a Maltese Poodle X, 5 months old, and he is a gorgeous ball of fluff that can sit, drop, fetch a ball, is toilet trained and walks on a lead pretty well. My biggest issue is grooming him - brushing his hair, or removing the dirt stains under his eyes, as he struggles like crazy, or tries to bite the brush/scissors, etc Does anyone have any advice of a good way to train him to keep still and not bite at whatever I'm holding when I come near him. Thanks heaps

I have a 5 month old Maltese Poodle X, and taught him to stop mouthing/biting me by saying ouch loudly and taking my hand away from him any time he tried. He now just licks me to death instead. Toby (my puppy) is my little shadow, so I worried how he would cope with me working fulltime, but he seems fine. I always leave him with a bone, a few toys (he has a few, so I change them each day), and usually hide something in his sandpit to keep him occupied during the day, and after putting all of this outside with him, he doesn't really notice me leaving. He gets pretty excited when I come home, but after 9ish hours on his own, that's fair enough, and he calms down in 5 minutes, I don't encourage it, just give him a pat and carry on opening up the house. Toilet training can be a bit difficult, but Toby had it within a few weeks at home. I spent a lot of time outside telling him to "Go Wee", but he eventually got the hang of it. Giving him lots of praise and a treat or 2 when he managed to wee outside worked a treat for me.

Funny you should say that, I cancelled our travel plans, and have decided that we are just going to take it one day at a time, and build up to short drives, etc I didn't want to risk the 30 minutes each way travel and have a bad experience for him, and set us back A few weeks is nothing really, when you consider I want to travel with him for 15+ years. He was a very timid fella when I got him - the runt of the litter that noone wanted, and he shook like a leaf around people, but he has come so far in a couple of months, and now is the most friendly, affectionate little thing that everyone falls in love with I really want our trips to the beach, park, to friend's place, etc to be great for him, so will keep going. I drive like a Nanna when he's in the car But the footwell sounds good, we might play in there tomorrow and see how we go Thanks! Will grab some this weekend - did you crush them in food or get your dog to take them as a tablet?

So sad but you did your best

Thanks for those suggestions I bought some ginger nut buscuits and Toby like them, so we'll definitely have a couple before we next travel. So far we've eaten a trail of small treats across the backseat, and we've both sat in the backseat for a pat for a while, but he's still seems pretty frightened of the car, and isn't even interested in chewing his most favourite toy (the one he carries around in his mouth inside all the time) while in the car. There isn't any need for us to go anywhere in the car for another week, so we'll keep at it, and hopefully we'll have a break through before then. :rolleyes:

Where do you buy the sand from? Is there a particular type that they like to dig in? I have the clam shell as a pool currently, but as it gets cooler, we might convert to a sand pit. :D