Food
The Life's Abundance pictured below is the best chow for your puppy and any
other dogs you have. Soaked to start 3 times daily, then I will go to
dry three times a day and by the time you get them they will be dry two times
a day. Put down about 1 cup, more if they eat it all. I am a very big believer
in free choice feeding once potty trained. Dogs fed a few times daily
are hungry and excited. They are more likely to be obese, as they snarfle(is
that a word??)food up out of excitement rather than actual hunger. They are
more prone to food aggression, again hungry and possessive of food. This can
mean toward your toddler who may want a bite as well. They are also more likely
to suffer from bloat, large meals and exercise can cause this and it is a
killer. I leave food out at all times for my biggies and they are happy
and in great flesh. You will hear arguments both ways, I am just telling you
my experiences. Pups need to be monitored when they first arrive at
your home, just to be sure their intake is acceptable. I need to know they
are eating without sibling rivalry. After that go to a schedule that
suits your lifestyle and is good for your baby.
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If I could get everyone on board with ordering food, Life's Abundance is what I would feed all of my kids.
Best food anywhere in this country. Good people make
up this company and the holistic vet who formulates these dog/cat foods and
other excellent pet products is a Dear Soul. Jane Bicks is an advocate for
animals in need. Part of every purchase goes to the Dr.Jane's Healthy PetNet
Foundation . Then rescue leagues are granted funds after they apply and their
rescue organization is reviewed. Having food auto shipped is NO BIG
DEAL, and it ensures that the products you receive are FRESH.
http://www.mywellfedpet.com/
Any transition to a new food should be done over a period of two weeks, mix in a ¼ of new chow for a few days, then a ½ ratio, until you are weaned over. If your pup shows a depressed appetite do not add anything to their diet, other than the canned food I give you or a spoonful of chicken and rice baby food. They will get the runs easily with anything new added to their diet. Within three days of arriving at your home, they should be back to normal.
Wellness Food Supplement is a must in my opinion.............full of natural nutrients that absolutely promote wellness.
I give probiotics when I vaccinate. Natural enzymes to help digestive system. I use a salmon oil product or probios. Love them both. Not a bad investment for you to keep around. Like Yogurt, just aids in digestion.
Flea Control
Your pup will be given a Cap Star immediately before you get them. This kills
all fleas and eggs on them within 30 minutes. Another Texas gift, I live in
a 20 acre sandbox and with them running in and out of the doggie door the
fleas are a fact of life. Cap Star is cheap, safe, and can be bought from
your vet. It will work for 24 hours and I suggest getting another dose before
you start a flea and tick treatment at 12-16 weeks. Below is a very safe way
to dust your yard, your doggie areas and even your pup. You can buy
this at Home Depot or Lowe's(you can take your dog to these places, so big
favorites among my kids)without the shipping cost.
http://www.revivalanimal.com/Diatomaceous-Earth.html
•Diatomaceous Earth is made of the fossils of freshwater organisms
and crushed to a fine powder
•Deadly to fleas, ticks, lice, bed bugs, and other external pests
•Scratches the insect's waxy outer shell, causing death by dehydration
•Harmless and safe for all other animals
•Use as a topical dusting for animals, for environmental control or
for a supplement to improve problems associated with internal parasites
Diatomaceous Earth (D.E.) is made of the fossils of freshwater organisms and
crushed to a fine powder, but it's deadly to fleas, ticks, lice, bed bugs,
and other external pests. D.E. scratches the insect's waxy outer shell, eventually
causing death by dehydration. However, it's completely safe for all other
animals. Use as a topical dusting for animals or around the kennel and bedding
for environmental control. Also can be used as a supplement to improve health
and appearance problems associated with internal parasites.
Confining your pup
I prefer an exercise pen to a crate, or better, both. The babies are exposed
to crates from birth; I have them lined with towels around the house, doors
removed. They can go in and out as they please. They enjoy sleeping with Mom
in a crate, and once weaned they go in on their own. You will have to enforce
any crate time once they arrive at your home. X-pens are better as they can
be made small and then grow with your pup. Until your baby has their rabies
vaccination at 12 weeks they cannot be exposed to any feces from unknown dogs.
You can easily carry your x-pen around and put it out on the lawn to confine
pup where you would like them to go potty. Tractor Supply or Pets Mart have
x-pens. I would get a shorter one so you can step over it. The gates are a
pain. Any kennel should be for a large dog and then put a piece of wood in
it to confine pup to a smaller quarters. Later you will not want too small
a crate. Buy a large or extra large crate. No used ones from unknown source,
it could be contaminated.
Click here for answers(not really...)to nighttime woes.
The first few days may be difficult. Schedules are off, kids are over stimulated, and missing siblings and the comfort of the only home they have known since birth. This can cause stress, depression, lack of appetite or runs. Stress opens up a door for any environmental parasites to run rampant. Stool may be loose, sleep habits off.
You need to do a few things.
-First, always give the vaccination record to your vet, along with this printed
out. They need to know what has been done to your pup. It will save you money
and allow your vet to have a history. Do not forget this. Next, do poop checks
and keep in touch with me. I will want to hear about poop so be prepared.
-A radio with soft music near crate (if you are using x-pen or crate) will
help baby sleep. Try not to check them too much unless you have to, waking
a sleeping pup means potty break and even play time. You will probably not
feel like it at 2:00am.
-I know you will want to give them a bath and clean them up immediately. They
may be a little smelly, but they will have had a bath before leaving here.
Wait a day or two. Immersing a female in water can cause bladder infection
(for this a vet appointment and cranberry juice 1 part to 9 parts water),
just sponge wash them at first. This is because they can smell siblings and
home for a day or two, instead of your chosen cleanser. Also reduces stress.
-Take up food and water by 6:00 pm. I do not expect them to be on schedule
the first few days. I let them out about 6 times a day (every time they wake
up)and everyone tootles out with me to go potty. My doggie door helps, but
I close it off at night.
As far as the transition. I use Wal-Mart Parents Choice Scented baby wipes. I use them on myself, family, to clean up puppy bottoms and faces. A blanket or shred of material sounds great but would be a mess. When we meet I will give you a mass of wipes, use these to remind your baby of a familiar scent. Remember, Mom has been separated for at least two weeks, her smell is long gone, this is important as you do not want the stress of leaving home, siblings, Mom and us all at the same time. They need to be cut off milk long before you get them.
PUPPY'S FIRST COLLAR AND LEASH
A collar needs to be one of the first things you deal with when a new puppy comes home.
I usually purchase a cheap nylon collar long enough to allow room for the puppy to grow. I would put a collar on your pup within the first day or two home. The puppy collar is put on so I can just fit a couple of my fingers under it.
Puppies do not like strange, new things. This collar will cause quite a trauma! Since pups cannot express their displeasure, or take their "hands" and try to remove it, they will scratch at it. This does not mean it "itches" - it just means it feels strange and somewhat uncomfortable. Let your pup fuss and once over remove collar. The scratching may continue without collar, this is simply due to the rubbing it caused. They will eventually toughen up. Do this for three days, take the collar off once baby relaxes and then on the fifth day you can leave the collar on. Please see my favorites page for custom dog tags.
Puppies dislike a leash more than they do the collar. When you first attach the leash to puppy’s collar, let him drag it around for a little while (supervised, of course!). Next, pick up the end and let the puppy feel the resistance. You may experience anything at this point - from crying to twisting the neck, bucking, pawing, - some of the more resistant pups may actually urinate or defecate. Just remain calm and hold the leash. When the pup has calmed, you can either try the next step, or end the "lesson".
After the "big fight" is over, you can attempt to encourage the pup to follow you with gentle pressure and a lot of "good dog" vocal encouragement. If your pup steps back on the leash keep gentle pressure and go with your pup, do not release when your pup stops backing up, release after the very first forward step(this may be a rush forward, but never the less it is forward, so go with them). The release of pressure is the reward, if you release when they go back, lay down or stop in their tracks, they will think this is what you were asking. Then when you don't release the next time they do these things, the pup will get frustrated. Timing is key. I am not suggesting you hang your pup, only hold pressure enough that there is no slack in the leash until you get the forward step. You should be upbeat and positive with the pup and there should be a lot of praise for correct behavior (i.e. walking with you while on the leash). If you have a family member who has a relationship with your pup, have them stand in front of you and call to the baby. Anything to help get the forward step. Your first releases with those very first forward steps should be huge. Either drop the leash and love your pup, or take the leash off and quit for the day. One step at a time.
More on training....
I am probably not the smartest person in the world for posting this on the World Wide Web, but I have a tip that will help and want you to consider it. Few books or trainers will share this, but if you have big dogs they show you how to train your little one.
There comes a time in almost every puppy's life that they want to jump, chew and nip. It is aggravating, you want to control it but anything you do seems only to encourage them to "Play" harder. This is human talk, pointing of the finger accompanied by a harsh "no"(Pup lunges at finger and nips), time out,(pup feels isolated and doesn't get it), or even a spanking(Pup thinks either that you are playing or decides to challenge the rebuttal). I know, I have been through this a bunch, and seeing as I have a toddler I can't accept this behavior. Even if you are "Young Couple, no kids" or "Empty Nester" you too will tire of this activity. There is an answer. The babies try this with my adult dogs just a single time. Then they find a different outlet for their energy. My big dogs never, ever back away from the lunge-nip. They immediately match energy and lunge forward and growl. Backing away is a win for pup, or even just gives them the idea you are wanting to play too. Leaning into pup and snarling tells the pup in a language they understand that this is unacceptable behavior. Done correctly your pup will back off to a reasonable distance, then look to you for instruction. At this point you can take a breath, relax, invite your baby back and only give attention when pup is quiet.. Your immediate reaction is to think pup will fear you forever and not love you. Please trust that this is quite opposite from the truth. Leadership is everything to the babies, they would love to hand it over to you. They will be back without an apology or treat from you. Eventually your baby will grow out of most things, you will not have to speak pup language forever, they will learn your body language and voice tones pretty quick. Like human babies the pups crave attention, at this young age they do not understand the difference between negative human attention and positive human attention, so they go for either. Only reach for them, pick them up and love on them when they are in a calmer state. Play time is different, as long as the interaction suits your boundaries you can roughhouse your baby as much as you like. Think of two dogs playing together, when both are having fun it can be pretty silly and loud, but once the leader is done these is no question the follower needs to back off and settle down. They need to play, they need to play hard, but within acceptable boundaries, just as a pack of dogs would interact. Practice your growl!
Phases
We have chatted about the collar, leash and lunge/nip, but a big favorite is the deaf pup stage. This usually hits around 5 months. You have worked through some issues, are feeling pretty confident and all of the sudden your baby forgets their name. If taken personally this can hurt feelings, if not taken personally, this can make you mad. Remember, this is just a phase, it too will eventually correct itself, but if you live in the city or suburbs you need some control.
This is basically a do as I say, not as I do. I have 9 dogs, some are in their teens, not a single one comes running if there is something better going on. In 20 acres of puddles, ponds, critters who want to play chase(not really), and cow and horse poop, there is much to distract. I tried the hysterical high pitched scream, this was not effective, then I went to begging, even less effective. The only way I can get my furry ones to come, is to open a car door. This is ridiculous, but I do it 10 times a day. You may be thinking I am not the one to be giving tips on getting through the deaf phase, and you may be right.
Ninety percent of the time I can't get rid of my canine family. I am getting elbow bumps from both sides, a head on each knee and basically surrounded by panting faces. I actually don't mind the times everyone is busy, but if someone ever did get out on the road or a person was visiting, I would like a bit of control. You get this by going back to the leash. They can run from you and you can't win at liberty, get the leash back out, make distractions available so you are in a position to work on your problem, and get ready with your rewards. Repeat until you know your pup knows what you are asking/demanding and then try off leash. If you still do not have the response you want, back to leash. This is a 15 minute a day thing, we do not want to make the "here" command even less desirable. Never, ever call you dog and then give them heck. If they are being naughty you go to them. The "here" command is rewarded if followed through, for life. I see people with dogs that are running a fence barking call them and then yell or punish them for the fence running once they obey the last command they heard, "Here". Guess what that tells your pup?? It says "Here" means negative and they will not make the mistake of coming again. Be smart, you are teaching them with every move your body makes.
