Novjan

Hello, We own two gorgeous Springers, I would like to learn how to groom them or at least maintain them better between grooming. My understanding is that they should not be clipped, they should be hand stripped? First I need recomendation for where to take them, we live in Werribee, VIC. Then I need advice on how to look after thier coat, I am hoping that if we find a decent groomer who knows their stuff then I will be able to learn from them? So now comes my confession, in Dec, just before christmas, they needed to be groomed as it was going to get hot and thier coats were getting long and thick, I could not get them into our usual groomers so I took them to a 'Pet store' grooming place and they clipped them all over, they looked good and they were nice a cool, which was the main reason I had them groomed. I think this has 'blown' thier coats as they now look very scruffy, the hair is all fluffy and not smooth at all. At the moment I am brushing them regularly with a slicker brush and combing their ears and we also have a Furminator but have not used that for a while. I have had them groomed at the usual place once since then, one of my poor dogs was attacked so could not be bathed etc for a good few weeks now the place we used to take them has changed and I am not sure if the person who used to look after them is still there :0( So now they are deperate for some proper TLC by someone who knows how to treat a Springer coat. Any help and suggestions very gratefully recieved. NovJan

Hi I need advice and recomendations on grooming my Springer spaniels, they are 11 months old, now that thier coats are getting long, and with the summer coming they are in need of a bit of a tidy up. I have a person who walks my dogs when I am out all day, once or twice a week and they also groom but they are not trained or experienced in grooming Springers. I read somewhere that a Springers coat should not be clipped? they need to be stripped? I would like to be able to do as much as I can to keep them well groomed but I think they may need a professional every so often? At the moment they are brushed daily with a slicker which removes a lot of loose hair and obviously thier ears need a good comb every day. We bath them occasionally, no real routine to it, just when they are bit ripe! Can anyone recomend a good groomer in or around the Western Suburbs of Melbourne? one that would be happy to give me some pointers on grooming them myself? thanks Karen

Very interesting thread - thank you Our two 9 month old Springers had very dry skin and were very itchy when we first got them, the were on Proplan as recommended by the breeder. So for a while they were on a very limited diet of Lamb and Roo plus turkey necks and lamb flaps then we introduced beef back in and they seem to be ok. I am going to try introducing chicken back in and see what happens to thier skin. Of course it may not be the food that made them itchy it could have been enviromental - we had already removed wool rugs in case it was that. Or it could be something they come into contact on walks. But they are not scratching at the moment, it will be interesting to see how they go Jan/Feb time as that was when we got them at 8 wks old. They get one of the following in the morning and in the evening Canine country BARF 1/2 1kg roll (250g each) mixed with beef mince from the pets shop and veggies (usually pumpkin, sweet potatoe and broccoli or spinach) Beef mince with veggies as above plus a tin of sardines - each turkey necks - 2 or 3 depending on the size roo tail beef brisket bones sometimes they have a small amount of beef mince and veggies as well with thier bone meal they have raw carrots or a head of broccoli most days too They have beautiful coats and loads of energy, hmmm maybe I should change their diet LOL oh and they poo once a day, nice and firm, sometime on the dry side AND given half a chance the little buggers eat it even with pumpkin and pineapple added to their food ! ! I would love some ideas for veggies to add for a bit of variety Karen

Our 9 month old Springers each had a couple of tablespoons of beef mince from the pet shop a table spoon of mashed pumpkin with pineapple juice (trying to stop the poo eating!!) a tin of sardines this morning they had Canine country BARF - half a roll, can't remember which flavour, beef or roo tablespoon of beef mince table spoon of mashed pumpkin and pineapple juice What is the best way to give them eggs???? and how many per week????

Thanks for the tips and info, I will try and get a video of them doing the muffin pan thing, then the challenge will be to post it !! I think the drying their feet works because we had to do it from the 2nd day we had them when Melbourne had the big hail storm, so they don't know any different LOL it is the way they come in. Sit on the towel and wait to have their feet dried or just sit for a short time while the towel absorbs the water. they know 'go potty' and even follow this command when they are very sleepy and do not want to leave their comfy Snooza bed in the lounge to ELIMINATE (I love that word too ) before going to 'bed' in their crates BUT they cannot seem to associate it with pooping even though I have spent ages saying potty, potty. potty while they poop. They always go near the dog loo but never on it. I am thinking maybe give them separate words for wee and poop Potty = wee and poop = poo. We are working on 'enough' now to stop the play fighting when it gets a bit rowdy. What do you use for treats? we feed our girls BARF and raw bones but they have Strasberg, cheese or cat treats as they love fish. Cheese gets under your finger nails and Strasberg is greasy. I used apple chopped up small once which seemed to go down well. Cooked chicken is good but I have them on a limited diet of beef and roo at the moment due to suspected allergies. The problem is none of the treats work very well when we are out as they are more interested in what is going on around them, people, birds, traffic etc love the vid's very inspirational

Thank you for your reply - I don't think I said anything about them being off lead. BUT I do like the suggestion of a long line, I will have a look for one, how long?? do they come in different lengths? At the moment some of thier walks are on a retractable lead and we call them back often and give them a treat, one of them comes back every time, as soon as she hears her name, she puts her head up and comes straight back. The other one takes no notice what so ever and wanders back in her own sweet time. I also treat them if they come back without being called, is that a good idea?? the ignoring happens when we are walking them, practicing loose lead walking, sit, watch etc while out and about around the streets. Obviously there are lots of distractions and I know we need high quality treats BUT some times it is very hard to even get thier attention. I would like to get to the stage where they do not react to a dog or a person walking by - how can we do this? All helpful suggestions very gratefully received. Have you tried working with them on a long line and calling them back and rewarding heavily? This way you're making yoruself way my fun than the other dogs and people. Really, a dog shouldn't be off lead if it can't recall back to its' owner.

We have a counter surfer too she has not managed to get any food yet as we use the 'never leave food out' method But she has managed to pinch the dish cloth or a tea towel several times when they have been left in reach. We are using the off command and we use out or out of the kitchen to keep them out of the kitchen area from under our feet while we cook or clean up. And a time out into the hall for 10, 20 0r 30 seconds at a time. My sister was in hysterics on Sunday as I had to keep putting her in time out, the roast pork was obviously too tempting and she kept going in for a sniff. She thought it was hilarious that I was giving a dog a time out. But she also used to think my child rearing methods of clear boundaries and consequences were funny too. But her kids (and mine obviously) always do as they are told for me and she wonders why. when I was looking after kids I used to say it was just like training a puppy, clear boundaries consistantly applied with a bit of bribery thrown in, EASY ! I do find her a challenge though, she can be very persistant and very good at ignoring.

Thanks for your reply's we took the wait and see option as there was nothing else going on, her usual bouncy self and ate her evening meal the same as usual. today when I got home at 4pm having left them in the yard at 12:30 there was some clear vomit on the concrete. so I rang the vet and they said it could be anything including kennal cough and best to take her in, we were still not overly worried but as it had happened again decided to be safe rather than sorry. $43 later - checked her temp etc everything OK nothing wrong ahhhhh well at least it gave them some good separate time, I took the other one on a nice long walk while hubbywas at the vet.

ahh thankyou, I thought it was probably something like that as there were no other 'symtoms' I had just got in so not sure when she last had a drink and the men of my house would not notice something like that LOL any way, they have been fed and are now having quality, cuddle time after being on thier own for most of the day thanks again :D

Should we be worried that one of our 9m old Springers has just coughed and then thrown up small amounts of clear, phlemy vomit?? This is after having some rough and tumble with the other one for about 20 min last food was 7:30am we are just about to feed them again not overly worried as she is otherwise 'normal' thanks Karen

I have found this thread very interesting, the good the bad and the ugly parts Could somebody give an idiots guide to helping a puppy/young dog approach and greet other dogs We have 2 Springers who are now 9 months old, when they were 16wks old they went puppy school for 5 weeks, before we could put them on the ground we would take them out in the car and let them experience things like, local shops, busy sports ovals etc and I would leave our front door open so they could watch the kids playing in the park opposite, the postie, the bin lorry etc I also took them to one of those puppy classes in a pet store, just for the socialization with other pups, the class was pants put they got to meet other pups in a safe environment. The reason I did this was because one of the pups spent most of the 'good' puppy class play time under our chair while her sister got in there and played. So I took the one who was not so confident on her own to the other class, she was different puppy! and I really think it did her good. We work very hard at giving them time apart, separate walks as well as walks together, more separate while they are still learning. If I am working at home they are put in different areas, we are lucky to have two sides of house suitable for them. They also have contact with my sisters two 'Lab/beagle cross dogs who are about 6yrs old, also litter sisters. The older dogs have corrected them on occassions when they have started playing boistrosly or getting in their faces too much, a growl, a snap with no contact and howling at them when start thier play fighting together. And now we are attending dog club, doing the socialisation walk and then the class most Sundays. Our problem is they get very excited when they see other dogs and people, they want to bounce up and say hello - I know that we should not let them do this and what we are working on at the moment is getting them to sit and 'watch' when we see anyone coming - is that the right thing to do?? the problem is it is very hard to get thier attention sometimes, most of the time!! whatever treats we have they just completely ignore them. OR we turn and walk in the other direction. I would like to get to the stage where they do not react to a dog or a person walking by - how can we do this? All helpful suggestions very gratefully received.

ooooo, ooooo, we keep saying we are going to teach them to tidy up. do you guys just go for it or do you have a book or something that helps to get you started?? I feel like we have neglected our girls, we have not taught them any tricks. Unless you count sitting pretty on a towel to dry thier feet when it is wet outside, LOL oh and peeing on the dogloo - would love to know how to get them to poo on it too though, the go near it but not on it for some reason. thanks again

Great thread, BUT it is costing me loads of money!! I have just ordered the squirrel and cube toy for my girls, will probably have to only let them have it when we are around because they are becoming very good at de stuffing! Suspisious chicken lasted a while, but once they made a hole and the stuffing was coming out I emptied it and they had it for another week before they were ripping bits of material - makes for interesting poo!!! We do the muffin tin thing, I bought some tennis balls from the $2 shop and the smelled - sort of petrol smell. I was worried they would not know there was a treat under but they soon sorted it out. We use it when they are having time apart to stop them fretting. One will use her paws and the other her nose to remove the balls, occassionally they pick a ball up, they are no where near as fast as Elbie and my tin has double the amount of 'holes' We have two Springers who are now 9 months old. Thanks for all the ideas

We have two puppies that we got at 8weeks of age, they are now 9 months old. They have been to puppy school and we have joined a club so training is progressing well. We try and give them individual attention every day and at least one walk on thier own a day. My work pattern has had to change from working at home more often that at the office to working at the office 2 or 3 full days, at least for the next couple of months. Now the dogs have to be left on thier own from 8am until around 5ish some days. So my question is how can I organise the yard so that they are occupied and happy?? I have set up a video camera so I know that they play fight for about an hour after I leave, then they go off camera into the garage where they have a small area with a bed in it. They then surface again around 2 or 3 hours later, then they mooch a bit around the yard and usually play fight some more until I get home. I know they are still puppies and of course they will play fight but I want to try and give them other things to occupy them. Kongs are out as I am sure there would be squabbles. They do not seem to squabble over carrots, but have been know to growl at each other over bones. any suggestions??

Hello, We will need the services of a dog walker a couple of times a week to walk our two active Springers. I work from home most of the time and I am usually out of the house for no more that 4 or 5 hours at a time, mostly I am in my office sat at my computer with the girls at my feet or running around the yard outside my window. They get a short walk first thing with hubby and another short walk (20-30 min) and/or a play session at lunch time and then we walk them separatley for 30-40 min in the eve usually before dinner. But my job role has been changed recently and I will be having at least one day a week when I am out for the full day. So I want to make sure that the girls do not suffer from lack of exercise or bordom, even though they have each other. Does anyone have any recommendations for reliable walkers in the Western suburbs, Sunshine/Deer park area. What should I look for?? is it reasonable to ask for a Police check? references? how do I know if a reference is real?? The walker will have access to our garage and possibly the whole house, this makes me a little nervous but there is no other way that they would be able to get the dogs and take them for a walk while I am out. thanks Karen

Very interesting discussion, thank you We have two bitches, we got them at 8 wks and they are now 6 months old. I have to say although experienced dog owners (but it had been about 15 years since we had a dog in the house) we were a little naive and under estimated the extra work two puppies would bring. Reactions from people when we tell them we have two puppies vary from OMG you have to rehome one of them NOW!! to how nice they are company for each other. So far they are doing great, learning commands well, toilet trained (pretty much, we get the odd accident, usually when we have not read the signs or taken them out when we should have) they are very different characters but both pretty laid back. We try to give them separate time with us, we take them to different parts of the house to do our daily training and take them off in different directions for thier walks as well as some time walking together. They usually sleep together but we are crating them overnight and during the day because they were desexed yesterday and we don't want them play fighting and pulling thier stitches!! We were leaving them in our large hall when we went out but after coming back to find corners chewed and a chunk out of the middle of a wall we now crate them separately while we go out. There has been a couple of minor squabbles, once over an ice cube and once over a toy. In both instances I yelled and they stopped, the first time, ice cube, one growled and snapped at the other, not that loud or nasty, more a warning and the other growled back, after I yelled they backed off and looked very sheepish, they were subdued afterwards. When one growled at the other over a toy, I yelled and removed the toy, since then I have been watching them and removing toys if they seem to be getting possessive over a particular toy. I cannot imagine them tearing into each other but I realise that it is a possiblility so any comments, advise on stratagies and training would be very much appreciated. We are trying to train them in as positive a way as possible so no dominating or choke collars, lots of praise and treats for wanted behaviour and ignoring the unwanted. We even have them sitting on a towel when it is raining and they come in from outside to dry thier feet. thanks for listening S and K