Akitaowner

i didnt mean to sound harse in my first post but you are new here - and we know nothing about you or how well you are looking after your puppy it was just concern for your baby you need to make sure that he has an area where he cant get into mischief - i built my puppies a big pen about 2mx2m and put it onthe concrete in front of my garage (so they couldnt dig) they were quite happy in there while we were out or doing household stuff where we couldnt watch them - its important to make sure you confine pup while your home too so they dont come to associate a pen/crate/being shut outside with you leaving. lots of stimulting toys - i especially like the baby wiggle giggle from target and similar it makes noise when its moved/shaken my furkids LOVE them they keep them entertained for hrs. if you can get someone to come in everyday to have a play and do a little training/walking that would be great - but i would make sure you have a backup as things come up and someone/friends may not be able to make it 1 day. I would also suggest that you get quite friendly with your neighbours - explain that you have a new puppy and you dont want him to give them any trouble - if he barks or cries while you are out you want to know about it - they may also be able to make sure he is ok by just looking over the fence? i have found my neighbours to be great with this - my girls got out one day - out of their pen and then out from behind the garage (so i thought they were pretty secure in a pen and fully fenced yard!!) the neighbours found them playing in their yard and gave me a call - i moved and the first thing i did was make sure my neighbours have my phone number i work in the city which is now much further from home and i wanted to make sure if they ever got out he new they were fine and very approachable etc and he could call me if there was a problem. im sure ull pup will be fine but plannng is the key - puppies often outsmart us in the simplest of ways!

sounds like your on the right track - sometimes they just manage to slip thru the net - its not always obvious when your with them all the time - a bit more training and youll get there - ive gone back to basics with some things for my boy so i know how u feel!

errmmm i have a couple of questions - firstly why did you get a puppy if you are out for 10hrs a day ? do you think that is fair on the puppy? have you considered crate training him? does he have lots of toys/chews? Cocker spaniels are intelligent, as are many other breeds - and leaving him alone all that time he will get bored and destructive as well as lonely. unless you can make more time for you puppy i feel this may end badly...read up on training - you must not give in to whining - this encourages bad/undesirable behaviour and lets your dog get what it wants - he is training you...

sonds like you have got it sorted but i have found it can be controlled aswell - my 2 can get a be overexcited when i get home - not just dancing around talking but sometimes they jump up and carry on at which point i stand up and wait for them to settle before touching them again. i have recently moved and have glass doors so they can see in - if they carry on i stand in front of the door but wont open it - the minute they behave i go out - it doesnt take too long before you have them sat busting to jump around at the back door when you get home...but i do go straight out to them normally...

i would also suggest that this is just defence - does she crack it if you remove her bowl after you give it to her? (ie with food in it?) its a way they ensure they are higher in the pack than the others around - especially if the others dont live there. My boy does this every night with our pup - she tries to sneak in and steal his dinner so he snarls at her - never hurts her - very rarely touches her but it makes her back off (at least until hes had all he wants), although i know being boy and girl eventually he'll give in and she'll become alpha when ill prob have to feed them seperately so he gets some!!

Hi SS with my furkids i tend to say 'do you want to go outside' and they quickly pickup inside and outside - they are only allowed inside when i invite them! or tell them she knows outside and 'go pee' for actually going... when i ask if they want to go outside - i can generally tell by the reaction/expression if they do or not! also they then go to the door... ETA: at least ur pups obedient

when i got my puppies - initiallt it can be that they just really need to go - so i walk in calmly not making a fuss of pup in the house and let them out straight away and then lots of praise when they go in the right place - outside!! i guess all dogs are a little different but its important to keep comings and goings very low key especially if its the excitment thats making pup pee

sonds like our house - its a rental and loads of stuff underneath! not to mention when it rains there seems to be a large pit which fills with horrible rancid water - which of course they cant resist!! sonds like you have a plan im sure your baby will be fine - also make sure gates are covered so people cant see in and she cant see out that way she wont be disturbed by things going on outside and people cant see her (i was paranoid someone would steel my boy at my last house!)

i found toys r us or bigger toy shops have the pools/pits. probe get them cheaper atm coz of the time of year i was looking in the middle of winter !! my dogs love under the house but i blocked it off as i dont like them in the mud all the time i think coz its cooler. mine dont have a kennel i dont think they would use it! they do have shelter under the eves of the house should it rain or be too sunny.

i started using frontline then switched to advantix never had any probs with waterproofing my boy used to be bathed once a week and now swims regularly at the beach (altho his skin may not get wet) never had a flea. need to wait 24hrs before washing tho....

my boy takes a while to come out of anaethetics - hes had 2 both for 'accident/injury' reasons he took at least 24-36 hrs to get back to normal after coming home. First time i collected him he could only just about stand, i had to carry him to the car (about 30kgs!!) - i crated him when we got home to protect him from falling over and doing more damage. second time he was better when i collected him but still very groggy and unsteady on his feet - has never had any prolonged effects from either. i hate anaethetics anyway....no matter what the reason i sit on edge until i get the call that everything is ok...

As far as which bones i would recommend dried roo tails, which can be picked up from most pet shops, my girl loves them and theyre not as messy as raw to be left in the yard for a while. I also found it take her about a week to completely strip them - whereas she take about a hour with raw!! !! my girl has been chewing my window frames so maybe ill try the aeroguard!! (my boy licked all the 'no chew' off everything it was put on - what is with that stuff - ive yet to find someone that had any success with it! surely thats false advertising!

try it while you are home for an hr or 2!! that way you can check that they arent getting up to mischeif - also make sure pup has a nice big juicy bone to chew instead. personally i dont use any chilli or tabasco sauce which i have heard can be a deterrant but my furkids love the spicyness and chew more!!

the more you do the things they dont like the more they get used to them and what to expect. My baby girl doesnt like me teething her but i persist as i need to be able to do it without her carrying on. Its the same with bathing - i showed my boy so he was bathed weekly from day 1 really and has no problem standing there til ive finished as he knows what to expect and if he fusses it takes longer! i would be getting your pup to a groomers in a hurry - get her done regularly, she should be used to you brushing her anyway also take pup to these places without getting anything done - if everytime u step in the vet they get poked and prodded they arent going to like it!! take her in just to weigh her for example. This is all to do with socialising and exposing pup to new things.

whilst on the subject - i had a good chat with a breeder at the pet expo at the w/e when i told him i would more than likely desex my girl as it would be toomuch trouble have 2 entire dogs (1M & 1F) in the house - he said chemical castration was great! would swear by it! he has a newfy and said it takes about 4-6 weeks for it to take full effect at which time the dog settles much more easily and is not interested in ripe bitches at all! he said it worked out to about $12 a month and it seriously changed his dog temperament (settled, calmed from strong alpha of the pack) he said only downside is that it can sometimes be permanent (not so good for a breeder, but most have stores of their boys) im thinking of trying this for a little while until we decide if my girl is good enough to breed with - which will probably be well after her first season. If you have no intention of breeding - i would suggest surgical castration instead, cheaper in the long run and better for the dog.

Hi Guys My baby girl is starting to mature and seems to have a very itchy nipple! - it was a bit red and inflamed last week where she has been scratching it - but that seems to have gone down now - but shes still scratching a bit...is this normal? she doesnt have any rash or obvious sign of allergy anywhere else? is there anything else i should be watching for as she matures (were expecting to maybe desex her in the next month or so, depending on how she looks)

Mav will still steal a toilet roll from the bathroom and shred it into a million pieces! he obviously enjoys it - they are kept in the cupboard usually but if we forget or it isnt actually attached to the holder - he reminds us!

i bought a big crate for my boy which was massive for him at 8 weeks so i put an upturned stack box in one half and just a bit of blanket in the other. When he eventually got too big for half i took the box out. He never chewed it and was toilet trained very quickly.

just thought i would add - that ive been using the poo in the hole method after reading this a couple of weeks ago and it has worked a treat she tried a few other areas but we filled them up with poo too! no more digging ;) has taken to chewing the window frame instead!! !!! shes teething so im now proving new bones everyday!! the joys of puppyhood

my boy is always disciplining my baby - who is often full of herself! i usually only get involved if i think he is being too physical with her when she is charging around and literally throwing herslef at him - only coz i worry about her growing joints and too much rough play with a much bigger dog but i know he would never hurt her intentionally but he often holds her by the scruff and 'tells her off!' i think it would depend on the age gap - mine are 2.5yrs different so my boys still quite young himself. Make sure if its an older dog - you give them both sometime out seperated so he can have some quiet time too!!

My boy was quite bitey as a baby - i took to a quick knock on the top of the nose with my knuckles and a loud serious Ouch! he got the message - took about 3 hrs!! he now has the softest mouth and altho he still nibbles gently - if i stick my fingers in his mouth he will automatically try to gently tongue them out again my new pup seems to have taken to eating out rental house to solve teething issues OH went to the shops to get more bones asap!!! the joys....

i can definately confirm that having another dog around that WILL eat it makes them eat more - Mav has never been a big eater and would often leave stuff for a second sitting - never since Rogue arrived!! even licks the bowl clean (as she does anyway, just to check!!)

my boy wasnt really into kibble as a pup - i tried leaving it and taking it away, all thats suggested above - i started to mix a little tinned fish in and it worked a treat all gone straight down - and he still wont eat plain kibble (i dont blaim him!!!) he still gets a cup of kibble with fish for brekkie and barf for dinner good luck - itll be worth it!!! otherwise youll be chasing your tail for thing he will eat!!

thats great H2O - it doesnt take long - i find they eventually decide its better to travel up the yard a bit on their own - it also doesnt take long before they know they should be running outside as soon as you let them out of the crate - my girl is almost 16 weeks and i cant/dont carry her anymore!! she knows the ropes!!

my first thought was growing pains too - but its not really a large breed - my breeder told me not to worry to much if they wake up stiff and sore as its probably just growing pains - but im sure the vet will know whats best!