Poodle wrangler

At least you had the surgery done. I couldn't help but overhear one of the local checkout girls saying to one of her workmates how she thinks she'll have to put her dog down after he'd done his cruciate ligament as she couldn't afford the $1500 op .

A couple of dogs from the same household in our beginner obedience class also needed to be separated as one was extremely attached to the other. Sorry, I'm no expert on training, but keeping them separate would have to be preferable to allowing 40 minutes of pulling? You don't allow them to pull for that long ? The fact that they will only walk nicely under some circumstances (separately) lets you know both need more training. Our trainer says the phrase, "But they do it perfectly at home" (no distractions) always means owner and dog needs more work. Dog needs more practice paying attention to you ALL the time, including with distractions (the other pup).

Here, we just tell them to stop humping shortly after it starts. The lesser-known : "NO SHAG!" command ;) . Both dogs desexed. It's not a frequent behaviour. The little one had a brief obsession with shagging quilts. Banned from bedrooms, bedrooms doors shut, but not before he managed to ruin a few quilt covers. Kids can make shutting doors difficult, but they can be trained, too . Call me crazy, but I wouldn't want to live with a biting dog who makes you glad it's humping instead of getting into some other mischief

The laundry is likely to be way way too cold, as others have said. Cold stress can kill an otherwise healthy pup. Pups need to be kept warm and dry, together with their Mum and littermates. Keep pups with the Mum as much as possible to allow feeding. You'll be needing a strong stomach, lots of old towels, newspaper and frequent clean ups. Lots of fluids will be involved. First litter? Not all Mums are "naturals", even experienced breeders who call the vet at the right time can lose pups and/or the mothers. Fingers crossed. Why not have the dogs desexed after this? Makes life so much simpler, especially if your Mum's unwell.

I'm having trouble keeping up with how fast the dogs' nails grow, just using the dremel to file them down about weekly-fortnightly. When I shave their paws, I'm always horrified how much longer the nails look with no fur to disguise them . Don't get me wrong, they're not talons, but sometimes get to the "clicking" on the floor stage . What are the best type of nail clippers to use? For a large dog (he's 20kg at 6 months ). I'll continue to dremel the mini as his nails are black and I can't see the quick. I can see the standard's as they're a lighter colour, so thought clippers may help.

If it's fluid, it shouldn't feel hard. Impossible to say, really. Any photos?

Liquid paraffin is a laxative. If your dog's stools are fine now, keep giving that mixed with food as it's only a small amount. You could try adding a little flaxseed oil to his porridge-kibble meal. Is his porridge oats+milk? I wouldn't feed it to my dogs as many dogs have trouble digesting milk and dogs don't need so much carbohydrate/ grains (you're already giving rice). That said, your dogs sensitive stomach is OK with what you're giving right now, so why change? I don't think the extra flaxseed will upset him, but go slow and see how he goes.

Sorry, double post

She needs to sort out this behaviour ASAP. Pups grow quickly and she does NOT want to be dealing with this in any dog, let alone a boxer-sized dog. After talking with the breeder and following their advice, if she's still have difficulties, it's time to bring in the professionals. Ask back here for a referral in her area (hopefully). Can you be a bit more specific about what pup is doing with the 5 year old? Other dogs? How many in the family, how much time alone the puppy spends most days etc.?

Sorry, I don't know if ginger is OK for dogs? Most human medications are based on the body weight of an adult male, in case that helps. Problem is that dogs don't necessarily metabolise things the same as we do. I check with the vet b4 giving human meds. Our vet is really good with that sort of thing and finding more economical solutions where possible. ETA: I don't think dogs need the high amounts of vitC we do. Don't they produce it for themselves (unlike humans).

It sounds like he needs more stimulation. Kong toy, raw meaty bones etc. How much exercise and company does he get at the moment? Other options include building a dog run for him. Not cheap, initially, but think of the destruction- $ + inconvenience- that will be avoided. Still have to tackle the behavioural side, also. Best wishes .

I don't think that's right. I've found it harder to keep the right weight with normal stools on the standard poodle (20 kg at 6 months). Never any problem with the mini poodle (adult weight 7-8kg). Mini's even been fed the dreaded Supercoat exclusively with no drama (now I think I know a bit better). Best wishes for your dog!

Could be something stuck in her mouth/nose/ear? One of my dogs had a stick stuck across the top of his mouth- no signs at all it was there, other than I looked in his mouth after an injury. Other dog got a piece of bone stuck across the roof of mouth and there was a lot of head shaking, pawing face going on. Hope all's fine. Let us know how you go..

This isn't the same as hip scoring both dam and sire. Hip problems won't show in a pup until they're at least a few months old (plenty of heartbreaking stories on DOL ) , so that's why it's so important to health test parents, not pups. Too late once they're born . Perhaps she does this? Only mentioning it as a lot of BYB, pet shops pups and DDs advertise pups as "vet checked", but it doesn't mean much.

I see it now you point it out . He's got a mini-pom right at the end

Thankyou so much ~Harminee~ and Freckles. Love it . Oscar, the black one, was having some serious hair issues in the original pic . Do I want to know how much Photoshop is to buy ?

I like it because it's so like him (the big one, Charlie)- big, goofy dufus, only 6 months old. What happens when you change the background? Is it suitable for a frame, or wrong for that? Dunno (brain meltdown ).

I don't even know where to start? I spend too much time at the computer as it is :D .

Leave the puppy milk on the shelf. Healthy dogs will not starve themselves. There's not much point feeding milk and cheese if they don't digest it very well. Kibble is food of last resort for most dogs. That's normal ;) . My larger dog took 2 days to realise following me to the fridge would not produce more tasty, raw food, before eating the kibble again. Dogs aren't silly :D .

Have to say a couple of the beginner classes at out local club left me bored. Dog lost the plot after 2 X 30 minutes bouts of mostly heelwork in a large class. He's only 6 months old and I didn't enjoy trying to drag a 20kg dog around a wet oval, so just watched the second half next time, after asking the instructor if it was OK (they said that's the best to do when dog's younger. A few people clearly thought they knew it all, despite the fact their dog weren't very obedient . One said, "Oh, I don't need to do that, he does it all the time at home" . Overall, worth sticking with, though. About 70% of the class had dropped out by the end. It's run by volunteers, so you can't expect miracles. It was great once the numbers were down .

Sorry, no. I'm not sure why they'd send it off for tests if they weren't worried about it earlier? Probably a good idea to see how much the tests cost, also. Might be better to simply have it cut off unless it looks suspicious to the vet.

I use Interceptor Spectrum for my dogs, too, but the packet says it does only heartworm and most intestinal worms. I just checked as I wasn't sure. I use Advantix (spot-on) for fleas monthly and ticks fortnightly in high tick risk weather. Also cover mozzies. Good for my area as dogs sleep outside and many mozzies in warmer weather. pricelesspets.com.au have the best prices I've found on this sort of stuff. If something kills fleas it has to be some kind of poison, even the "natural" and "herbal" treatments. If it wasn't, it wouldn't work. Flea rinses also can be harsh on skin if pup has sensitive skin. I prefer a spot-on, though I'm thinking it might not be necessary in the middle of winter. Advantix starts killing fleas in 20 minutes, so doesn't always need to be used as a preventative, you could just use it IF fleas were found. All the different flea prevention products will say from what age they're safe to give. I think most are OK for over 8 weeks.

No, I don't feed from cans. No good reason, other than I hate the smell and texture of canned dog food . It's also relatively expensive considering the contents and moisture content. Some have quite high sugar content, also, but it's something you can check per brand. My pup tried the "I'm too posh for kibble" performance, but took only 2 days before he figured out he'd be hungry on 50% rations, and " the face" (I'm pathetic and going to look this way whenever you open the fridge) wasn't going to work . No further problems. Kibble and raw for me. Check the ingredients list and try to find what seems the best food in your price range. All will have fillers in varying amounts/ types. If you have a small dog or puppy, most foods are suitable. Larger breeds have more specific needs. Once you've found something that suits your dog well, stick to it. Dogs don't need the same variety we do. A smorgasboard is a good way to create a fussy eater. If you're not too fussy, Purina One have a deal where you get reimbursed for the first bag of food (up to 4kg for the adult one) for signing up for a "30day challenge" online. I put in for it and tried it on my dogs- they seemed to like it, but the puppy food no good for a large breed pup. DVD that goes with it actually had some decent info about how to assess your dog's healthy weight. Corn third ingredient, however, I think, though my dogs had no bowel problems on it. I'm in no way qualified to say whether or not it's a good food, it's a supermarket food, just my limited experience.

Wet inside soon after coming in? You need to stay out longer. It's not over til it's over . Use flashlight if needed to see he's done the deed. Go out when he wakes up after a nap (even if short), after meals, if he hasn't been out recently. Treat and praise for weeing/ pooing outside and give it a name you're OK with. I sound like an idiot because I chose "wee wee" with my pup who's now a large dog . Ignore accidents. If you catch them mid-act say a non-hysterical "no" and take outside immediately. They'll then be too shocked to do anything, probably, but get the idea inside isn't the right place. Stay warm yourself on these "adventures" and set an alarm for overnight pit stops. My first dog was a winter puppy. So much better going outside in the warmer months with no. 2. I'm sure he'll be fine for toileting, but I'd not leave a pup outside in sub-10degrees for more than an hour or so. Best wishes .

OMG. People will give you all sorts of conflicting opinions here. Some DOLers are also involved with selling some of the "super premium" foods. Nothing wrong with that, but just so you know. My understanding is that dogs are carnivores- they have large teeth and short digestive tracts suited to this sort of diet. Most dry and canned foods are more carbohydrate than meat, however, as meat is an expensive ingredient. Yes, the grains like corn are poorly digested by dogs and are fillers as dogs really need very little grain in their diet. Many dog foods are made in the USA where corn is a well-subsidised crop, so an excess is available. What are you happy to feed your dog? Raw meats and bones OK? Prefer kibble only? How big is your freezer if you don't mind the raw food option? I give my 2 a mix of raw bones and meat e.g. chicken necks/ frames/ carcasses, brisket bones, occasional marrow bones with meat left on. Some pet mince from the supply store and also kibble, so it's about 50:50 raw-kibble (dry) food. No matter how "super premium", it doesn't make sense to me that the best food is exclusively kibble which stays "fresh" in a bag for many months. You'll probably have suggestions like BARF diet (easiest to do a search: Biologically Appropriate Raw Food diet), Nutro, Eagle Pack, Ziwipeak (all sold by DOLers) and Royal Canin. These foods are upwards of $80/ 15 kg bag, so budget is also a consideration? Good luck .