shellbyville

I had a red stumpy tail cattle dog that killed chickens. I tried every farmers remedy there was to stop the dog killing the chooks as the chooks were free range. Eventually after quite a few dead chooks I decided it was best to get rid of the chooks. We did have a small pen for the chooks but not big enough to lock them in permanently. While this was happening I had 3 very young children from 4 years old to a baby and my cattle dog adored my children, was always gentle, never showed any signs of aggression toward people, except as a protective thing when people first drove onto our property (she would bark and growl until she knew they were ok.) Never once snapped at my kids. My advice keep the dog, dog proof the chicken run!

Hi Puppy Wuppy, I have labs and I am sorry to say that unless you can curb the behaviour of mouthing, she may not grow out of it. With my young labs if they are a bit 'mouthy' I can overcome it pretty simply, by just giving her a signal that the behaviour is not acceptable. For my puppies a sharp, loud 'uh uh' usually does the trick, and then when puppy lets me pat them with no trying to mouth or bite I reward heaps with really enthusiastic 'good puppy' or something similiar. Sometimes though when you reward the puppy they may get excited and try to mouth again, just repeat the process and puppy will soon get the picture. It is not a difficult thing to teach as long as you and the other members of the household are consistent and never reward or play with the puppy when they mouth. Labs are pretty smart and learn really quickly. As for your 18 month old, I would never let the puppy and baby be alone on their own. Also toddlers tend to try to hit the dog or push them away when they do something naughty and the puppy would only see this as playing and possibly get more excited and could unintentionally hurt your bub. Some people grab the pups mouth and hold the mouth closed and reprimand, however I have found with labs that they tend to love any hands on and only see it is fun, so try the verbal reprimand and reward good behaviour and see how you go.

Hi, I think your dog will need confining at least for the first 4 - 5 days with just toilet break walks and to stretch her legs every 2 hours or so, on a lead and then keeping her quiet and not too much exercise until she gets her stitches removed which is usually about 10 days. I guess it depends if you have other dogs and whether she plays a lot with them and how active she is normally. If she is a pretty sedate dog and you have no others you could probably just monitor her exercise by keeping her in the house etc after the first few days of rest. The vet usually tells you to keep them pretty quiet with little exercise for a week. My last bitch I had desexed was a very lively dog and we have other dogs, so she was confined with very little exercise just a short walk for toilet breaks and a few other walks on a lead through the day until I took her stitches out 12 days later. Her wound healed really well with no lumps or bumps. Others might have more knowledge though.

In my opinion and from experience, once a lab has worked out a way of escape, they will keep doing it. Your friend probably needs to put something down into the ground to stop the dog from digging under. Whether that is concrete around the edges or dig a board or something into the ground around the perimeter. I have labs and we live on property, we have a huge yard over 1 acre I think, which is fenced all around, but once they decided they would dig under I had so much trouble keeping them in. Because our perimeter is so large, putting something all the way around to stop the digging was unfeasable, so we used an electric fence (I know it sounds terrible), but they only had to have one touch of it and now they don't go near the fence. It didn't hurt them for anymore than a second and has taught them to stay away from the fence. As I said though we are on property with no neighbours so we could do this!

I actually never started any of my pups inside (except for the pups I breed myself). The last puppy I bought here went straight outside into the kennels, which are very secure.) However I have quite a few dogs, so they get their security from each other. So I don't know if how I do it will apply to you. However You could try putting the crate in the laundry or garage area if you have one, that is away from your direct living space for sleeping at night. That way when you want puppy to sleep outside it isn't such a shock as it would be if you put the crate in the living area or bedroom for example. Sometimes you could bring your crate into the living area and let the pup spend some time in the crate with toys, maybe a bone to chew etc but locked in so he gets used to being confined in the crate, but close to you as well. Never let him out though when he is crying or whinging to get out, only let him out when he is content in there. Sometimes this might be for 5 minutes then gradually work up to longer. (unless you think he obviously needs to go to the toilet) you don't want him to toilet in his crate, can be a very hard habit to break. He will need regular toilet breaks overnight. Even now I have a crate set up inside and everynow and then will let one of my dogs in for some one on one time, when I have given them lots of attention they go into the crate while we watch tv at night, while they are confined they are in our company and they seem to enjoy it, as well as it being good training for them. It really is just using the crate as a safe place for him, a place he will want to go into. At first, each time you put him in give him a treat or a bone to chew, so he sees the crate as a place of reward. (I just reread your posts and realise your puppy is a girl, sorry for saying him all the time.) My dogs spend a lot of time in crates at shows and then if I am staying overnight at a show, spend a lot of time in their trailer, which is just like a crate anyway. I have found they love their crate. When they were young I just put them in it when I thought about it with a bone or pigs ear, and they quickly get used to the crate and know they get a reward when they go in. Hope some of this is helpful. What works for one may not work for another, but if you persist with the crate idea you will find it so useful. I am not advocating leaving dogs locked in crates all day or for hours on end, but they are great for those times when you can't fully supervise, or your visiting where there are other dogs etc.

I think teaching any puppy crate training is a great idea, whether they will sleep in it as a permanent kennel or just using it at odd times. All my dogs are crate trained! They all sleep outside in their kennels, but knowing I can put them in a crate is fantastic. One of my boys hurt his back and all he needed was rest, because he loves his crate he spent a week in their with no problems at all, with only walks to toilet. Also if I go away to my family and want to take a dog, I take the crate and they happily sleep in there with no crying, whinging etc. All my dogs walk into their crates freely and never have to be coaxed in. To crate train, make the crate a fun, comforting place. Feed your puppy in the crate. Never put the puppy in the crate for discipline reasons. Make him feel like it is his den, his place of safety. Put his toys in their etc. Crate training is a great idea and don't be put off using it. You will find it will make life much easier.

If you can get a small syringe (not with a needle on it, just the syringe) from your vet or produce store and use liquid betadine. Suck some up into the syringe and squeeze it right into the wound, actually put the head of the syringe into the hole. It will help keep the wound open and actually puts the betadine right into the wound and not just on the outside as wiping it would do. Someone mentioned lotigen ointment, which will help it heal without proud flesh, which is the wound healing all lumpy. I would do the betadine/syringe thing at least twice a day until the wound doesn't show any pus at all and use the lotigen regularly. I had a dog with very similiar wounds and they healed with no scarring at all.

Thanks for the replies. I am looking to find someone in my area to help me. I am in the Northern Rivers area of Northern NSW. I am actually taking my boy to his first class of beginner obedience tonight, so I will ask there whether they know of someone to help. I also think going to a class regularly will help him. He is not 'uncontrollably' aggressive, more wary than anything. So I am hoping being around other dogs on a regular basis will also help. Cute Simpsons joke! It wasn't really the inspiration to my name though!!! I very rarely watch the show, but occasionally I listen to it while cooking dinner(The kids have it on in another room) and always manage to laugh out loud!

Hi, I have a 1 year old lab who has started showing some aggression towards other dogs. I bred him myself, his mum and litter sister have absolutely flawless natures, they love people and other dogs. I must say he is not aggressive toward people at all, so that is not an issue. He absolutely loves people. I show him and he has in the past put his hackles up at other dogs and I usually reprimand him, and distract him to watching me and calming down, so up until this weekend has not really shown any real aggression he has just been very wary of other dogs. However this weekend at a show, while waiting to go in the ring another exhibitor walked their male lab very close to my boy. My boy spun around and growled and snapped at the other dog, he didn't actually make physical contact as I was very quick to pull him back to me and into line, and apologised profusely to the other exhibitor, I felt so bad! I am unsure what I should be doing to stop this behaviour before it becomes any worse. I have 7 dogs here and he is not aggressive to any at home. I show him on average once a month, so he doesn't get out that often. I did socialise him well as a puppy, took him to town walking, to show training when I could and as a young pup he did quite a bit of showing. His behaviour really took me by surprise this weekend and I noticed for the rest of the day that he does look at other dogs 'with attitude' holds his tail high etc, so I just made sure we kept a wide berth of other dogs. Advice would be greatly appreciated. I don't want my beautiful, sweet boy to be nasty with other dogs.

I don't fast my dogs, but sometimes I give them a raw meaty bone and that is it for that day. It is usually done when I am in a huge hurry and can't prepare their proper meal for them, so it is not very often.

I have a lab who does exactly the same thing. She is very loveable and friendly, and licks a lot, which is ok, but when she gets excited she does tend to mouth and jump. I was pushing her away and giving her verbal correction. A trainer told me to not push her away as this to her is more attention. She is getting better, I growl at her, turn my back on her, until she settles and then give her the opportunity to make a better choice the 2nd time. Seems to be working. If she mouths I go through the same thing again.

I show my lab and he free stands really well. He is almost 1 year old and I realised I have never really taught him to sit. I always have used stand as my main command, for the same reason as others I did not want him to sit. I am starting a beginners obedience class with him soon and am having a challenge teaching him to sit. Sometimes he gets it and other times he looks at me as though to say 'What the..." Any suggestions. Sorry to but in on someone elses thread!

Maybe if you take him to the toilet about 10 - 11pm or just before you go to bed, then maybe once again at 2 or 3 am and then again as soon as you get out of bed. You will probably only need to get up through the night for a little while, puppies quickly learn to hold until morning. Be patient and consistent and he will soon get the idea. I suggested a crate because that is the method I use to train puppies and have had success with it. I find that puppies generally won't go to the toilet where they sleep and will hold until they are let out. I usually take the puppies to the toilet once during the night like I suggested above. If you can teach him to go to the toilet outside as soon as possible and not provide newspaper as an alternative you won't have any bad habits to try to break, he will get the idea that he has to be outside to go to the toilet. Good luck!

How old is your puppy? My advice would be not to give so much if any puppy milk. Milk is quite filling and being a small dog, he might think he has had enough. You could try some human grade chicken mince, all my pups love it! Try a tablespoon with a little bit of dry food and see how he goes. Mix in a little bit of puppy milk with the dry food to soften it. Gradually increase the amount if he eats it. I wouldn't give him raw carrots to chew on, why not give him a chicken wing or neck (just watch him with it). I don't think the carrot will hurt, but soft bones are much better for dogs teeth, also soft brisket bones are great for young pups as well. My butcher cuts them into the sizes I want, smaller for littlies and bigger for the adults. I haven't seen a puppy pass up chicken mince yet. If he likes it, gradually introduce some beef mince if you like. Being a little pup, 1 tablespoon or so of mince with a small handful of dry biscuits 3 times a day should be enough. I also add natural yohurt & cottage cheese to my pups diet, just a little each day with the mince. You can add veges once his appetite is strong and he is eating well. As well as sardines & an egg occasionally.

My advice would be to buy him a crate, and train him to sleep in there. They are not too expensive and really do come in very handy over the entire dogs life. You could keep the crate in the same room you have him in now. Make it nice and cosy, with his bedding, favourite toy etc, even put a blanket over the top to give it a 'den' like feel, and teach him this is his place. Lock him in the crate last thing before you go to bed. At least you will know he is safe and can't hurt his paws scratching on doors etc. My dogs all love their crates, and I think consider it their 'safe' place. If you don't like the crate idea (which I think is the best option) you could try putting some form of a barrier so he can't scratch on the door, because it may become a habit and staffies like any larger dog, can do a fair bit of damage if they are given the opportunity. Hope this helps, others may have other ideas. Good luck with your pup!

I use the word 'wait' to get my dogs to stop what they are doing and focus on me. I use 'wait' for lots of things, I get them to stand & wait in the showring, to wait when I put their food dishes down, I get them to look at me and not at the food, when I feel they are waiting patiently and looking to me for instruction. I then simply say 'ok' and they can eat. I do the same thing when I let them out of their runs. I get them to 'wait' at the gate, I then open the gate, and they can't run out until I say 'ok!' Then they race out and have fun. Since I have taught my dogs this, it has made life so much easier. Before they would jump all around me while I put their food down, I would open their runs and they would nearly knock me over on their way out. LIfe is much safer now!

I also use Sentinel Spectrum, it is great because it is a monthly tablet that does all and I have dogs that love to swim, so I don'thave to keep them away from water for any length of time like you have to when you use a spot on. I did have a flea problem in the environment, but since using sentinel spectrum that seems to be under control.

I would take him to the vet and have it checked out, 8 days is a long time and some dogs have a very high pain threshold. If you really don't want to take him to the vets you could confine him for sometime in a crate or another very small area where he cannot move too much and take him to the toilet on a lead so he cannot run around etc and see if it improves with complete rest. You should be able to tell after a week. However I just read your thread again and realised you have been resting him, so I think a trip to the vet might be best.

I treat mine all the same. I don't consciously choose who I will pat first etc, but it is usually the one who behaves & settles the quickest. I feed mine in their separate kennels and don't have an order who I feed first, but I definitely leave any that are barking or making noise until last. I try to spend equal amounts of time with them all, although often the youngest gets the most attention, because all time you spend with a baby is training. The oldest often gets a lot of attention as well, for sentimental reasons. Mine all get along pretty well and I can't see a real pack order except for the oldest who is the definite leader of the pack & who is a very little desexed fox terrier male. The rest are all labs.

How & where do you buy Ascorbic Acid? I am assuming it is a powder form.

Wow, your electricity bill will be sky high, if you keep the dog inside over the whole of summer. I am not sure what your backyard is like, but during the summer, as long as the dog has plenty of shade (tree cover etc, or garage/carport area etc, and not just the dog kennel as shade) I would think that would be adequate, along with lots of water to drink. Maybe during the extreme heat of summer around the Christmas/January period, when it is really hot, the dog could be inside in those times. My dogs are outside during summer, but we live in a rural area and have a huge area for them. We have plenty of shade trees and cool gardens etc where they can lie. I also have one of those clam shell wading pools, that I keep filled with water for them to cool down in. In the extreme heat my dogs like to come inside on the tiled floor and that is ok, because I am at home most of the time.

Plenty of dry sand where I am the moment, we would love some rain in Northern NSW.

Thanks for the replies. I would rather try to alleviate the problem with supplements and the right balance with raw natural foods, than go along the processed food route. Have tried that in the past and didn't like the results either) Will look at getting more balance with the chicken carcasses and some Vit. C like some have said. I have other dogs, and one that is the same age, that don't have this problem at all and have developed really well. Thanks again.

Hi, I have an 11 month old labrador bitch that is down on her pasterns. I did read a topic somewhere about a pup that had east/west feet and their was some advice about what to feed/supplement if a pup was down on their pasterns in that topic, but I can't find it now. She is also still slightly east/west, but I think is getting better as she grows. What should I be adding to her diet to help with this problem. At the moment she is on a mainly raw diet. Each day she gets raw mince (sometimes chicken, sometimes beef), a chicken wing, a raw meaty bone and a cup of supercoat dry food. She also gets once or twice a week added to her normal meal a can of sardines in oil, natural yoghurt, sometimes an egg. She is otherwise healthy and happy, very energetic, and is slightly on the lean side, but I don't mind at this stage.

He is doing just what he was bred to do, but it does become annoying and can be dangerous, so you need to get on top of it while he is young. I had a working breed that did the same thing, he was older when I got him, and although I never fully got him out of the habit, I think I could have if I had him younger. With mine, I would give a loud 'uh uh' everytime he nippped and straight away with no delay (which is easy because it can hurt) I would get him to look at me while we walked (I held a treat so he could see it up near my face) when he walked a certain distance looking at me I gave him the treat and praised him. After a while he did stop nipping and would happily trot along beside me looking at me expecting his treat. He only ever nipped again when he got really excited!!! Others might have better more 'technical & experienced' advice but this worked for me. You have to be consistent though and not let him get away with nipping, and give him an alternative.