Hunbun

I'm really looking forward to trying Frontier, it sounds great, hopefully she likes it And yes, everyone's responses have been very helpful, lots of good info! Dame Danny - Hunbun is just a username I picked when I first joined, it's a reference to Pulp Fiction (movie) hahah Puppy is still nameless, we're struggling to choose just one perfect name, terrrible I know!

Thank you, I'm making sure I get as many puppy kisses as I can haha! I will be making my own raw eventually, just want to ease myself into it. I ended up getting the leading raw puppy barf patties, we'll see how that goes. Hopefully the photo works, thats her on the first day home

So at this stage I have ordered her a sample bag of Frontier Pets and picking up some raw patties today. My local shop has the Big Dog brand and also Complete Pet Food Company patties, has anyone heard of these or used them? http://www.completepet.com.au/pet/raw-food/about-our-raw-food/what-is-in-the-complete-meal-for-dogs Ingredients look simple and good and it's made locally.

Thanks for the tips everyone

Thank you! Yes definitely will take things slow and monitor her tummy. I actually like the half and half idea too, that might be a good starting point too and from what I have been reading there are some really decent kibble options. I think for now I will keep it simple and find a premade barf and a good puppy dry food. And just keep learning and tweaking it as we go .

Wow, thank you both so much! Dump away Scrappy, thats super helpful! I have plenty of reading to do now haha I did think that I might just do a pre-made barf for now, have been checking out some options. I will email the ones that look good, but are there any you would recommend for puppies? Instincto seems very good. Will try chicken wings, she's a little land shark at the moment so will probably loooove it ;) I have also seen a lot of people using high quality dry food for training, is that a good idea? I'm doing a few short training sessions a day and don't want to feed too much. What do raw feeding people use as treats?

I just brought home our new puppy a few days ago and would like to transition her to raw. She currently eats the kibble I got from the breeder, I forgot the name, but it's a breeders brand he buys bulk for all his dogs. I've been reading about raw, but most of the info seems to be more for bigger dogs. She's currently about 1.7kg at 8 weeks and a spitz mix, should grow to about 5-6kg. Ideally I'd like to make my own patties in bulk and freeze them to make life easier. Are there any websites or recipes you would recommend to get me started, I'm sure eventually I will have my own tried and tested recipe, but for now I just want some of the thinking done for me iykwim :D And would love opinions about treats to use, as there is obviously a lot of learning happening here every day. And before someone gets started about the mix breed etc, yes I am aware about dodgy backyard breeders and dogs etc, but I am very happy with where the dog came from and the care both the puppies and mum got. This "breeder" was more helpful than some of the purebred dog breeders I have spoken to.

Thank you! I'll check them out. 5kg is a decent size, anything between 3-5kg would be perfect for a small dog. I will go to the show on sunday though and will probably come back wanting all the big dogs haha

That particular dog was a purebred papered dog that the owners were advertising directly. I do keep an eye on all the rescue sites, but because I'm looking for a small young female with fluffy hair my chances of finding one like that are pretty slim.

Yes absolutely, I suppose that's more what I meant too and it's not a project I need tbh. She's 7 months, but the listing has been taken down now. There's a show on Sunday and I'm kid free, so will try to make it there. If anyone from Brisbane is going and wants a tag-along, let me know

Well that pup is gone already, ad went up yesterday! She hadn't been desexed either...

I think the location is set on default, I'm in QLD (Brisbane) Is there anyone around here you would recommend? I was surprised she was that big! The smallest foster we had was 3kg and my kids were completely fine with her, but something about 4-5kg is my own preference for size. And yes obviously kids and pup will need close supervision.

She did seem like a happy dog by the end of our visit, very energetic and was licking the kids hands and even whinged when we were leaving. But the nipping is a concern definitely. And if she has been kept mainly in the pen inside then she'll need a whole lot of socialising still. So you're all right, not the one for us unfortunately. My kids are a bit older now, 5&7 and while there is a bit of the usual rough boy stuff here, they know how to be very gentle with small animals. Saying that, I wouldn't want to get a tiny 2kg dog either, that particular pap was a good 5kg and not fragile looking at all.

I think the fact that I have such big doubts about it are a good indicator that it's not a good match. I have read there a some anxious and high strung paps out there.. I've been mainly looking at papillons and japanese/german spitz's. Not a huge fan of the shorter leg stocky terrier look I'm afraid. We're fairly active family, I like to walk a lot, we go camping a few times a year, go to the beach nearly every week in summer, just generally like to spend time outside. At home though we're more chilled. I'm keen to try some dog sports too, agility or flyball or something.

PossumCorner - we fostered a few more dogs, but then had some major life changes and I decidedto put a hold on any dogs until just recently. But due to house changes etc have settled on getting a small companion dog for now. My big dog dream will have to wait for a while.. I think in general she might be a good dog, but she apparently lives mainly in the pen and doesn't go out much. The nipping happened after the owner put her in my lap unexpectedly and my son quietly tried to pat her, so I absolutely understand why that happend. I asked about it and it has happened before with a 2 year old. I've been teaching my kids about dog body language and personal space etc, but I guess I want them to be able to really enjoy living with a dog and not have to worry constantly about upsetting a dog. We currently have a cat for that :D (Pet-sitting..)