Rileys mum

Hello, I have a quick question. My 6 month old gsp pup is raw fed. I'm kind of playing around with amnts but have a question. How do you measure weights of foods?? I feed chicken carcuses but the amnts of meat on them varies. Their weight also obviously includes bone. I have the same issue with meaty bones. How do I measure weights? Does it include bone weight too? Eg I need to feed approx 600g meat a day. If I feed a chicken carcus that weighs total meat and bone 600g is that a correct feed. I feed minces, offal etc too but just can't work out how to balance it with the meat and bone meals. I hope this all makes sense.

It's so interesting that this topic has come up lol. I was going to post something similar I'm a raw feeder but I too wanted a training 'biccie' that I could use. I got a holistic large dogs sample bag and my pup went nuts for it. Gonna get a bag for treats I think

Ok so my ultimate goal is to do agility with my pointer are there any games or training I can do with him. I know it's not good to do any jumping etc until they are fully developed but I'd like to do some basics with him while I'm still doing obedience training. I'd love some tips from other agility experts :-). Thanks

Thanks guys. All the con arguments are ones I have given a lot of thought to. Don't get me wrong, my pup is very obedient and calm in my presence. I do encourage and practice separation with him but I feel his pining now may more be due to loneliness as he settled instantly the moment another dog was with him. He will eventually quiet down but I hate the thought of him being alone. I'll keep thinking about the idea and continue with my separation training. I agree with the poster re: pointers being very clingy naturally to their owners. All my friends with pointers tell me their dogs were the same and settled when another dog was added to the family. Sigh. Thanks again guys.

I have a 6 month old pointer who is the most beautiful, loving boy ever. I have found however that he frets badly whenever I leave him outside. He will cry for hours n spend the whole time looking for me. I've tried the training methods to help his fretting, and they helped a little but he still cries all day. Anyway, my friend bought over her dogs the other day and he instantly settled. They stayed for 2 nights and he would play and sleep and wasn't worried about my absence at all so I have been thinking about getting another dog as a companion. I was planning to get another dog in any case but not so soon. What do others think of the idea? Has anyone done the same and got a second dog as a companion?

Ok thanks for all the help. I've cooked up some chicken pieces so I'll see how he goes with that. I think the key might be variety to keep him guessing what's coming next as his treat. I will also try out the training ideas too n keep you all posted. I did some training at home tonight and he didn't take his eyes off me for one second so I think I need to gradually expose him to distractions n keep on keeping on thanks again

Ok thanks guys. I'll get onto those treats. now that u are mentioning all the other treat options I could be using, dried liver just ain't that yummy lol. I don't blame him for turning up his nose. His mates are probably telling him what they get given and hes not Impressed with my choice lol Cheers

I'm using dried liver as treats and I give him a treat every time he looks at me and when I ask for a command and he does it I find that he LOVES cheese but it gives him the runs so I tend not to use it which is a bugger.

And sorry lol, his training sessions are only 5 mins. Not his attention span. I'd be stoked to get 5 mins from him lol at the moment it's about 5 seconds hehe.

Thanks so much for your reply. He is in puppy classes at the moment and they go for 30mins. At the moment I'm just getting him to do the "watch" command, getting him to look at me and then re asking for the command. He's great at home which i'm happy about so I guess I'll just try n keep things as fun as possible while still making sure he is attentive when I ask. he's a bundle of fun n is definately going to keep me on my toes

Hi my 6 month old GSP has just begin obedience training I'm very excited about it ( prob alot more than him lol) I find that he is very smart and picks things up quickly but once out the front door I really really struggle to keep his attention. He is not at all motivated by toys and, if distracted couldn't care less if I have food or not so I'm finding it tricky keeping his mind on the job lol ( I do realise he's only a bub but I still feel I should aim for his attention during any training , which at the moment is only for about 5 mins max at a time) Also, when walking he does pull a tad, which I'm working on, but he literally has his nose stuck to the ground the whole time. He loves scent and as much as I'm training him when were out of the house/yard, I'm reluctant to b too harsh on hi as he's still exploring the big wide world. I guess I'm just wondering if anyone had any ideas on how to keep, or get back his attention and whether or not I should be correcting him having his head on the ground during walks ( I guess by doing that it's another example of his innatention lol) Am I expecting too much from him for his age or should I aim for obedience at all times n just patiently re-try commands etc until he listens. Thanks in advance :p

I DID have a coat on my boy overnight but he decided it could be AWESOME if he chewed the chest strap off. He is a short coated pointer so does feel the cold. Any tips on keeping a dog from chewing. ( he is only 6 months old mind u so I'll prob just have to deal with it lol)

I have made the decision, after some detailed research that I'm going to start feeding a prey model diet to my boy. I already basically have him on one ( feeding beef mince, chicken mince, lamb shanks, necks, chicken carcuses and turkey necks, along with liver, kidney and heart. I was just wondering if I need to be sourcing things like whole rabbits and other animals for him. What do other raw feeders give their dogs?

My 5 month old is exactly the same. Not interested in kongs. Will play a bit with toys but gets over it all quickly. I've started spreading his food out around the yard so he searches for it. I also give him a meaty bone ( my pups on a raw diet so it works well for me ) which keeps him occupied for a bit. The best thing I find is to take my pup for a walk before I go to work. Excercise is the real key I feel. It's an in built thing for a dog to excercise, eat and then sleep. I find the hardest thing for my guy is entertaining him once he wakes up lol. He is not ball orientated so I just provide a few different toys every few days to keep him interested ( eg put 3 out, take 3 away so the toys always vary) hope that helps :-)

Wonderful thankyou. As I said, I'm very happy they were done but just thought I'd ask

I have a 5 mnth old pup who I got from a wonderful and highly respected breeder. I notice that my pup has had his dew claws removed by them. Is this a common thing? I am happy they were removed as I have had dogs with dew claw issues in the past but I just wondered if it was a common thing? Cheers :-)

Ok thanks guys is it just a matter of asking their permission to show him or do they need to do something on their end?

Don't tempt me dotty lol. I'm already considering adding another member to my family ;)

I did get him from a registered breeder but He is on a limited register. Is it a matter of asking his breeder if she deems him suitable or do I make the decision?? Are there any people/instructors in sa I could learn the ropes off or get an opinion on his suitability? Having shown horses I'm realistic about it all and don't want to show him if he's not going to shine positive light on his breeder. I purchased him to do some basic obedience and agility with but showing is just in my damn blood lol.

Hey guys. Bit of a nuff nuff question but how does one get into showing dogs? I have shown horses for about 20 years ( Jees I've never really sat back n counted the years. My that's flown by) and have only recently sold the horses for a bit of a break. I have always been interested in getting into showing dogs too though n perhaps now might be the ideal time. I have a 5 month old German short haired pointer who I just adore.... But how do u know what type of dog is show quality? Put me in front of a horse n I can tell if it's any good. But dogs are a whole other kettle of fish. Can anyone just show their dog or does the breeder have to agree? What's the process involved in getting started?? Sorry to hijack. Reading all the posts has got me keen to give it a go ( eventually)

Wow. Thanks for all the replies n advice. I'm in SA which is why i was asking about the spray collars. I was walking my boy every morning but haven't been able to recently which probably isn't helping things. I guess I am really just thinking would using such a collar now, before things get established be any use??

After thinking my dog was well behaved while I'm at work I have discovered today that he barks the minute I drive off. I really dislike chronic barking dogs and I want my poor neighbours to be able to continue sleeping after I go to work. Do those citronella spray collars work?? He is good whilst I'm home and will stop barking if I tell him off but unfortunately I can't be there to stop the behaviour while I'm at work. He is 5 months old..... Can I still use such a device safely on a pup?? I know barking is a normal dog behaviour but I'm not happy to put up with him constantly doing it all day. Cheers guys.

Ah that's great. Thanks guys I'll keep on giving him the bones

This might be a really stupid question but I notice that when I give my pup a bone or chew toy there is a small Amt of blood on it. Is this ok or are the bones damaging his mouth. He doesn't stop chewing so it can't be causing him any discomfort at all. He is definately teething ATM so I really wanna help him cut his new teeth, just not if I'm making things worse Thanks guys

Awesome. Thanks guys. I'll steer well clear then.