Simply Grand

So some acquaintances of mine tell me they are getting a Rotti pup shortly, the bitch is currently pregnant. Apparently these breeders (I don't know who they are) breed from German lines to produce very large dogs. The sire of this litter is apparently 80kgs, the dam around 70kg. The phrase "nice big heads" also came up. Anyone know if there are reputable breeders around producing Rottis that big? Can they even be pure bred?

Oh and the washing, yep it's pretty constant :laugh: I just have several cheap dog beds and lots of towels, rugs and old sheets that I rotate around spots on the floor, couches and bed then chuck in the wash when they get dirty or smelly. I have become less house proud with each addition

Mine tend to share and swap around sleeping spots. They sleep in my room and the older one has graduated to my bed and the new pup went in a crate in my room until they could reliably go all night without toileting. In your case I'd probably crate the puppy in a different room at first, and like you said keep them apart outside when unsupervised until you're comfortable that they are fine together. It will depend alot on the relationship between the two individual dogs, size difference, play styles etc. how you'll need to manage them but with any luck they'll be happy to share beds or to sort out who sleeps where amongst themselves :)

Oh she's a little cuteness!! I don't think she sounds like a terror at all. From what you've said I think she would be ok with a new puppy coming in, I'd maybe ask the breeder for a laid back type of pup who isn't timid but isn't pushy either, so Maggie can set the pace for how she wants to interact. Then you need to be the boss so she doesn't get pushy or feel scared! Not as hard as it sounds, training, NILIF, boundaries etc should work :) Most importantly be confident that it will work and you can handle it, and be relaxed around the dogs, you'll be fine! Like they say prepare for the worst, expect the best! (maybe they don't say that but I do :laugh: )

Thanks murve, I will keep a close eye. She's not an escaper but I haven't extended the wooden fence yet and am vaguely worried she or a male could get over if desperate. I'm only letting her out of the house to the yard when I'm escorting her though so there won't be any hussy walks!

I haven't seen the show but would like to. I feel sad that she's been left like this for 12 weeks and been able to get to the point of sores and lying in her own waste And then apparently dumped on rescue. Whoever bred her should have made the decision to put her to sleep or treat her I'm inclined to agree with you Cos unless a very dedicated owner can be found. There seem to be stories about animals getting around with little wheelchairs or fake legs but it would be so much worse for her to get attached to a home then get dumped again. ETA - just thinking about the toileting issue, she won't be able to go on her own ever, unless she has to go all over her cart, or she has a human taking her and holding her up every hour while she's a pup then every few hours for her whole life. I just can't see how that's quality of life, even if someone actually did it, poor puppy.

Well MP, if it helps I took the same approach with number 3 as I did with number 2, chucked her in and assumed it would work out :laugh: Going from 2 to 3 had a bigger impact than 1 to 2 and Quinn gets bored and distructive when left alone more than the other 2 but I think alot of her ability to cause more problems comes from her size (not that she's huge, just going from small to medium changes everything). Are you planning another little one or a bigger one? I do sort of feel like going from 1 to 2 you're still a person with dogs, more than that means the dogs rule your life :laugh:

They did look so happy! Then when they got carried off they looked like they were going "ooh "

D'oh I hit reply instead of edit. Stupid iPhone.

Saxon seems to have forgotten that he's desexed, he's quite determined to hump her. He isn't aiming for anywhere near the right spot though, mostly her hips, back and shoulders :p She hasn't had any admirers hanging around yet that I've seen luckily. She's on day 6 now, is she more likely to try and get out to find a male and them more likely to try to get to her in week 2?

Quinn and Saxon have decided they're in love today *rollyeyes* They don't normally play together that much, Saxon finds her annoying and she has more fun with Riley. Today he's following her around, licking her ears, humping her and sitting on top of her when she's lying down, and she keeps grabbing him with her front paws and "hugging" him, licking him and lying on top of him (she's 4 times his size). They both seem to be loving it :laugh: (obviously I'm not leaving them together unattended).

Glad she got it out I've had success with feeding some tinned to get things moving too. The look of relief on Saxon's face when he finally pooed was so funny, and then he was jumping around like he felt so much lighter :laugh:

So cute!! He's got Quinny eyes by the look of it (one blue, one brown) :)

Lol at Woof :laugh:

I love the name Millie for a Golden! Have you done much puppy training before? If not I agree that a training DVD or two would be a good investment. And you want to start training the basics from day 1 so it's good you have time before she comes home. My favourite training DVD is Really Reliable Recall by Leslie Nelson. It makes it easy to get your dog to come every time you call, which is invaluable. The slicker brush should be ok while she's a baby but I'd suggest a pin brush and an under coat rake as she grows more coat. Get some doggy nail clippers too and practice clipping her nails each week while she's little, it will make it much easier when she grows up! And a camera so we can see pics :D

Crickets, your salon does sound great! I can definitely understand the distraction of having owners around, watching and intefering :laugh: Being able to at least see the set up is reassuring though. It sounds like you keep a good balance between reassuring your clients and keeping things calm, sensible and safe. The place I ended up taking Saxon had the washing/grooming area off the large shop area, through a barn style door where they left the top half open so I could see I and the bottom closed so dogs couldn't run out. I asked when I booked if I could stay and watch as it was the first time he was being groomed and they said that was fine. I'm sure it was a bit annoying for the groomer having me watch but she was good about it, and she ended up getting me to hold him still while she did his face.

I'm not sure if groomers in other states will know the answer to this, but the first time I booked to take Saxon to a groomer here in the ACT I arrived in the salon which had a small reception area and then a wall blocking any view of the working area. I asked them if I could stay and watch and they said no, I asked if I could at least see out the back and they said I wasn't allowed back there because their insurance wouldn't cover me. In the end I decided not to leave him there as I just didn't feel comfortable, but I'm wondering whether it could have been true that insurance wouldn't cover non-employees out the back or whether that was an excuse. Any thoughts?

If there are any trials on near you go along and watch too, it's fun and really helps you understand what you'll need to do and how it all works!

Ok I've decided to commit my goals to writing :laugh: Quinn CCD title RN title Seeing as all I've done with her so far is one session (term) of Obedience at the training club this may be a bit ambitious but I've no doubt she's capable of it, it will just be up to me to put the work in. The aim for her achieving some titles (and getting health tested) this year is so that we can hopefully breed her next January. She's having her first season now so if she has a six month cycle the timing will be good for next Jan, when she'll be 26 months old. Saxon RN title Maybe, and just for fun, Quinn will be the main focus (sorry boys). Riley Sort out his bullying aggression towards puppies Get him further with Flyball, depending on my time commitments with work. And mostly, keep it all fun and focus on the bond with each of them :)

Totally OT (sorry mantis) but I actually think that's fair enough. They have no option not to be there so they should be able to expect as safe an environment as possible.

Hahaha, he was helping you save! My Medicare card has a nice big tooth indentation in the corner too, Saxon got hold of it when it arrived in the mail before I even got to put it in my wallet *rolly eyes*

I'm realizing that I talk to my dogs and tell them what I'm / we're doing all the time, but I think it's just because I live alone and have no one else to talk to :laugh: Still, sounds like it's a good thing! Whenever I'm going out I tell them where I'm going and when I'll be back, and often tell them to be good and I love them

Gotta say, it's an odd experience taking off your dog's undies (???) so that she can go to the toilet :laugh:

Very smiley for a lion too! And thinking about it logically (which I suppose you might not if you thought you saw a lion loose... and/or were American) at that size it would have to have been a cub and cubs don't have manes, so it obviously wasn't really a lion.