Miranda

Dogs that are allergic to fleas react to the saliva and as Cavandra says it can take up to two weeks for the allergic reaction to die down. The original bites will still be itching even though the fleas that made them are long dead. I find Advantage to be very good, but if you have a lot of fleas in the environment it will take a while to eradicate them.

Well having read what's in it I don't think you'd get it through quarantine. Let's face it they even irradiate imported kibble unless it's received an exemption, I reckon they'd freak if they came across Angel's Eyes

Actually they have to eat quite a lot before they have a reaction, most cases of kidney failure have been reported in dogs that have consumed at least 300/500gms, mine eat the odd grape or two with no ill effects. Actually sultanas are more harmful because they are so concentrated. Interestingly no one actually knows what it is about grapes that cause this reaction, they don't know if it's something in the grape itself, the pesticides and fungicides used on them or some kind of mould or fungus.

Nutro, Eagle Pack Holistic or Royal Canin. I would never feed Science Diet, a lot of vets promote SD and Eukanuba because they sell it.

Tony has given you some excellent tips on crate training, it usually doesn't take very long especially for a puppy. All my dogs love their crates. They are a great house training aid because no dog likes to soil its sleeping area, but as Tony says, crates should be somewhere a dog likes to be, NEVER put your dog in a crate as a punishment. Regarding toilet training it sounds to me as if she isn't properly toilet trained yet, if I were you I'd go right back to basics and treat her as if she were a very young puppy. Take her out immediately on awakening, after eating and at least every hour if you have her inside. Stay outside with her until she goes, even if you're out there for an hour and then lots of praise. It is pointless just putting a dog outside and assuming that she's been, you MUST stay with her and praise her when she goes regardless of how long you have to wait. If you catch her starting to urinate or defecate inside tell her 'uh-uh' in a stern voice and take her out immediately, then once again lots of praise when she goes outside. If you can't supervise her inside keep her in her crate as every accident inside helps to reinforce the behaviour. And remember that a rolled up newspaper works wonders, make sure you hit YOURSELF over the head with it every time she goes inside because it's actually your fault for not being vigilant. This is a joke, but it's also very true

Ahona 4 days isn't very long at all, your puppy is still a tiny baby. It sounds as if you're doing all the right things, taking him out as soon as he wakes up, after eating and about every 1/2 hour during play. Don't forget that he has very little control over his bowel and bladder at this age and when either are full it will just come out. I would suggest that you crate train your puppy and confine him to his crate when you can't supervise him as every accident he has inside the house is a setback. Puppies don't like to soil their sleeping area and using a crate is one of the best toilet training aids you can use. When he's in the house and out of his crate watch him ALL THE TIME and as soon as you see him starting to go take him straight outside and stay with him until he goes even if it take an hour, then lots and lots of praise. It won't happen overnight but he will soon catch on, vigilance, patience and consistency are the keys to successful toilet training.

Why would the puppy want to drink water if you're providing milk? If I put down a bowl of water and a bowl of milk for any of my dogs (not that I ever do), they would choose the milk every time. Your dog needs to drink water to be healthy so stop giving him milk, he'll drink water when he's thirsty and realises that there is no alternative.

Have you checked her for lip fold dermatitis, it's quite common in dogs with pendulous flews especially if they salivate a lot.

Protexin is a probiotic which comes in liquid or powder form and helps to establish beneficial bacteria in the gut.

You could also add some Protexin to his food.

Thank you kbo, very interesting

Excellent, he's undoubtedly the best person to advise you. Good luck with your puppy.

Well Tony now you've got that little sanctimonious rant off your chest do you by any chance have any positive advice for the OP?

thank you, who is tonymc? and how do i contact him? i was just looking at the adt web page they sound awesome but yeah they are a fair way away. Talk about coincidence Tony is posting at this very moment

I highly doubt that ADT will travel to Sale and only charge $80, I may be wrong, but I think they are Melbourne based. If he hasn't already contacted you I would recommend that you contact Tonymc, he is experienced with these types of dog and should be able to advise you.

You don't have a breed, you have a crossbreed. Believe me biting and snapping isn't normal behaviour in a 10 week old puppy, even if the puppy was scared that is still no excuse for aggressive behaviour, most puppies will run away when frightened. Chances are that the next time the puppy is scared or challenged he will behave in exactly the same way, you have asked for advice and most have told you to return the puppy, if you want to keep it then that's entirely up to you.

You're doing very well, but remember that this puppy is only a tiny baby, don't expect too much of him at this very early age. Take it easy and enjoy the puppy and don't try to teach him too much too soon. I would also be taking the puppy out during the night, he's far too young to hold on and even though he's managing I would imagine that he's suffering considerable discomfort and holding on to a full bladder won't be good for him. All puppies race around for short periods of time and this is completely normal, to curb the biting I grab mine by the scruff and give them a sharp shake and say 'uh-uh' in a growly tone of voice, I find that this works well.

You have purchased a crossbreed from unknown origins for what I consider the highly exorbitant price of $600.00, I hope that at the very least the parents were health tested because both the so called 'breeds' can be prone to hip and elbow dysplasia, it's not a disease that's confined solely to purebreds. A normal puppy doesn't growl and snap because it's scared, in over thirty years of breeding I have never had a puppy that behaved in this way. A baby puppy that growls and snaps at 10 weeks of age is highly likely to continue the behavior into adulthood unless someone who knows what they're doing intervenes and even then there is no guarantee that the tendency will be completely eradicated. It sounds to me as if you have a very strong willed dominant puppy and unless you have a good thorough knowledge of dog behaviour and experience in dealing with this sort of dog I think it would be sensible to return the puppy to the 'breeders'. If you think that you can handle a puppy like this then good luck to you, go ahead, but personally I wouldn't have a puppy showing these tendencies in a house with young children.

I thought that bananas had a very low fat content, I have never heard of banana oil. I'll be interested to learn more.

I can relate to that, I've just done mine, 20 worm tablets (1 per 10kg) and 5 Advantage (dogs over 25kg), certainly not cheap.

Actually alanglen I agree with everything you say, but thought I'd give the OP the benefit of the doubt, most unusual for me I also wondered how a single mum on a pension could afford to pay out $600 for a puppy which appears to have been purchased without much thought, apparently an impulse buy. When you factor in food, worming/heartworm/flea medications, veterinary expenses etc. dogs aren't cheap to keep, owning three dogs can be pretty expensive.

Aggression in a puppy so young is serious stuff, especially if you have young children, no doubt you have other young children coming round all the time so you really need expert help sooner rather than later. I wouldn't rely on puppy school to help you deal with a problem like this especially if it's held at a vet surgery and run by nurses, many vet nurses have only a basic knowledge of dog behaviour. $600 is a lot of money to pay for a crossbreed, you could have bought a purebred, registered lab puppy for that amount.

What does the Pitcairn diet consist of, just curious.

I agree with settrlvr, I don't know why you'd want to involve your vet, don't stress so much it's really just a matter of common sense. If you're making a homemade puppy pen make sure that you use good strong fencing like ARC Weldmesh, whatever you do don't use any sort of bird wire, it just isn't strong enough and weis are very active boisterous puppies and they grow very quickly, he'll be over or under or through it in no time. I'd also recommend that you crate train your pup.

A hydrobath and a force dryer will help a lot.