New dog owner

BnB

Hi all

I have been planning on getting a dog for years and kept putting it off because we weren't set up right for them. Then last week I kind of rushed into it and I am just trying to catch up now.

We have 2 - 7 week old Lab puppies. They are really beautiful and we are all really looking forward to them being part of our family for many long years.

I have a few questions that I would really appreciate any advice on as I want to do the best by them and make sure they are treated right.

Food
I bought tins of a well known brand of dog food (Brandy) as well as a bag of dried food (Madra). They wolf down the tins and will eat the dried food but not as eagerly. However, I was shocked to hear, firstly by chance on the radio this morning, and then from searching this forum, how bad tinned food is for them. I though that by buying the branded stuff, I was doing well. So what food do you think I should be feeding them, and how much of it ?

Poo..!!!
They are pooing everywhere. Now, I don't mind at all as I knew it would happen. They are not in the house. They have a nice house (in a house - in the garage) outside which they seem well settled in. And they don't poo in there which is good. I go out every morning with a shovel and get rid of the poo from around the house. However, long term, I would like to train them to do their poos in the field up behind the house. My main question on this is, at what age should I start trying to train them for this....? As they are outside of the house of the time, I'm not worried about wee. The world is their oyster in that regard..!!!!

Breeding
I have a few questions on this. Firstly, they are brother and sister so obviously I don't ever want them to breed together. I think the best option would be to get the dog neutered. At what age should I do this ?
With the female pup, I have heard that it is bad for a bitch's health to have her seen to by the Vet without ever having a litter of pups. or to put it the other way, it is good for a bitch to have one litter of pups before having her seen to. Is this true or is it an old wives tale ?

Thanks in advance for any bits of advice you can give me.

Jennypops

BnB wrote: »

Hi all

I have been planning on getting a dog for years and kept putting it off because we weren't set up right for them. Then last week I kind of rushed into it and I am just trying to catch up now.

We have 2 - 7 week old Lab puppies. They are really beautiful and we are all really looking forward to them being part of our family for many long years.

I have a few questions that I would really appreciate any advice on as I want to do the best by them and make sure they are treated right.

Food
I bought tins of a well known brand of dog food (Brandy) as well as a bag of dried food (Madra). They wolf down the tins and will eat the dried food but not as eagerly. However, I was shocked to hear, firstly by chance on the radio this morning, and then from searching this forum, how bad tinned food is for them. I though that by buying the branded stuff, I was doing well. So what food do you think I should be feeding them, and how much of it ?

Poo..!!!
They are pooing everywhere. Now, I don't mind at all as I knew it would happen. They are not in the house. They have a nice house (in a house - in the garage) outside which they seem well settled in. And they don't poo in there which is good. I go out every morning with a shovel and get rid of the poo from around the house. However, long term, I would like to train them to do their poos in the field up behind the house. My main question on this is, at what age should I start trying to train them for this....? As they are outside of the house of the time, I'm not worried about wee. The world is their oyster in that regard..!!!!

Breeding
I have a few questions on this. Firstly, they are brother and sister so obviously I don't ever want them to breed together. I think the best option would be to get the dog neutered. At what age should I do this ?
With the female pup, I have heard that it is bad for a bitch's health to have her seen to by the Vet without ever having a litter of pups. or to put it the other way, it is good for a bitch to have one litter of pups before having her seen to. Is this true or is it an old wives tale ?

Thanks in advance for any bits of advice you can give me.

Firstly, congrats on your new dogs, Im sure they will be a brilliant addition to the family!

Food wise I find James Wellbeloved really good. I recently switched my dog onto this and find that he is not scratching himself so much or sneezing etc as he had been previously. James Wellbeloved is all natural and there are no fillers etc in it which can cause problems for some dogs. My dogs coat looks brilliant as well, his breath is not smelly and neither are his poos which is great.

Regarding training to go in one area I will be delighted to hear others tips on this as I am also hoping to start getting my guy to go in the same spot in the garden.

Neutering- that is an old wives tale about letting a female have one litter, in fact the earlier you get them done (think its usually at 6 months old) the better. I was very surprised talking to other dog owners who didnt get their dogs done, mostly men who didnt want to get their male dogs done as they wouldnt like it being done to them! Honestly, that was said to me by more than one bloke. Neutering is far kinder in my opinion, it reduces risks of certain cancers etc and also in terms of the male dog he wont be frustrated smelling all those bitches in heat where the scent carries for miles so I would definitely recommend getting them neutered.

All in all, plenty of exercise, some healthy food and lots of love and your pups will be perfectly happy!

andreac

Firstly, congrats on the pups, but you are going to ave your hands full with 2 puppies and esp littermates so you need to be prepared to put in a lot of training, socialisation and patience.
Experienced dog owners rarely recommend to get 2 pups at same time and even more so when they are littermates as they can develop a condition called littermate syndrome where they form a strong bond with each other and find it hard to bond with their owners so just be prepared for lots of hard work with them.

R.e. dog food, any dog food that is found in supermarkets isnt very good quality and is the equivalent of feeding mcdonalds to dogs. Its just full of low quality ingredients and fillers and not much of the nutritious stuff.
Tinned food is even worse as its made up of mostly water so has no nutritional value to a dog as its made up with the crappiest bit of meat so try and stay clear.

The best thing is to go to your local pet shop or vets and get a good quality food there. There are lots, eg Burns, Royal Canin, James Wellbeloved, Arden Grange, Red Mills and so on. Plenty to choose from.
Best to get a big bag, 15kg, as it works out much more economical in the long run.
When you get a good quality food just feed the dry on its own. It doesnt need to be mixed with anything. If you start mixing it with other stuff the dog can get fussy so best to just feed the complete dry food by itself.
You can, as a treat mix in a tin of sardines or tuna if you like every now and again.
With the pooing, you can start anytime to train, but you will obviously have to wait until they are over all their vaccinations before bringing them outside or up the field which wont be for a few weeks yet as they are only 7 weeks now.

Regarding breeding, i highly advise you get both dogs neutered as soon as you can. Males is usually from 6 months onwards. With bitches it can range as they can come into heat anytime from 6 months and vets generally wont spay when they are near a heat or have just come out of a heat as its too risky.
Yes, that is an old wives tale about breeding. It amazing how some people still think. Theres absol no need for a bitch to ever have pups so i would get her done as soon as shes old enough too.

Hope this helps, just shout if you want anymore info:)

Wisco

2 labs = madness! But fun madness
Also, since your pups will be due a vaccination soon, it might be a good idea to take all these questions to your vet- even write them down so you don't forget anything!
Definitely do avoid supermarket food. Go to a vets or petshop- the recommendations on here are usually spot on. It's also important to ensure you're feeding puppy food as adult food is not formulated for growing pups and can result in problems later on.
As for pooing in a specific spot- same idea as for house training in general- reward when the go where you want, you can even consider adding a cue word 'hurry up', etc. Try to avoid situations where they go in unwanted places (a challenge in 7wk olds!).
You should also educate yourself about worming/fleaing etc- vets is a good place for that adn will avoid misinformation and myths.
Speaking of myths...no need to leave bitch to have a season or pups! Total myth!!! But again, talk to your vet. Most vets recommend anytime over 6 months of age for both male and female dogs.

BnB

Thanks for the replies.

My main concern was the food. I was shocked when I heard on the radio how bad the cans were for them. I went to a good pet shop down the road from work today and got some good advice from the owner. I picked up a big bag of Chicken & Rice dried puppy food. They didn't cock their noses up at it and seemed to quite like it. Obviously didn't quite wolf it down the same as the cans, but ate it all up all the same with a wag on their little tails.

Glad to hear the litter of pups thing is only a rubbish. I don't want to breed them but I want to do the right thing for them too.

RE: getting 2 at the same time, I felt it would be unfair to just get one. I hear what you are saying about them bonding with each other possibly more than the family. But to be honest, I wouldn't see that as a completely bad thing.

I'm not sure how to put it. I suppose I want them to have a fairly organic upbringing. Don't get me wrong. I most certainly want them looked after properly, in terms of what they eat, taking them to the Vet for their check ups / shots / etc. But I also want to allow them to be dogs and not treat them as babies. The reason I waited so long to actually get dogs was because I wanted to wait untill we settled in our own house with loads of space. As they get bigger I plan to fence off, not just our site, but the whole field that the house is in. If that's not possible, I'll fence off a decent sized run for them and confine them to that while we are at work, and in the evening while we're around, let them off. I want to give them space to chase birds, dig holes, follow foxes, be boisterous, sleep under trees, just.... to be dogs.

Anyway, all is going well so far. They are simply beautiful. The kids are utterly mad about them. I have to stop the older 2 going out to them in the morning to try and keep their school uniforms clean. As soon as they come in the door from school, they are straight out the door to them. Our little boy (5) was a bit rough with them but we keep talking to him and he seems to have learnt now that they are not dolls and he has to take it easy. My wife usually goes to bed an hour or two before me and I'd often stay up watching TV. But since the "babies" (as my wife calls them) came, I end up sitting outside for hours talking to them. Daft I know, but even at only 7 weeks old, they're great company.

LucyBliss

Our rescue dog was with us only nine weeks when she had her litter and we kept two of the pups. People said we were mad, they made out like they would be pulling chunks off one another and us. In some cases the reaction was as if I'd said I was a heroine addict! But with correct supervision and consistent training, they are excellent together but enjoy their own space when needs be. In fact, one of them is like my shadow and instead follows me everywhere! Now it helped that in my case I was home all the time so when they wouldn't do what I told them, it wasn't like I was in a rush to be somewhere else. They had my undivided attention!
It's a lot of work with two, but it's so much fun to watch them interact together and grow up. Once you're consistent, they cop on very quickly to what you want them to do. At first, a lot of the time they're just chancing their arm to see what they can get away with. Expect them to try and pull fast ones and you'll be fine!

I use 'Barking Mad' dog food for mine. It's free from additives and any fillers and my three, one of whom has a sensitive stomach, love it. They have a puppy food and it's pretty reasonable. I get mine in Petworld.

I would definitely get them neutered. I got mine done at 8 months, the boy and the girl. It's being responsible if you're not looking to breed them and lessens the chance of any accidental pregnancies or the boy getting overwhelmed by his hormones and doing a runner.

As regards toilet training, I think you'll have to bring them up to the field a lot, after eating, after they run around, etc until they get the idea that this is where they poop. It's pretty much the standard drill you have if they were to be house dogs. As soon as they look like they're searching for a spot, take them up there. Again, consistency: they catch on a lot quicker than people give them credit for.

Best of luck with the new dogs. I wish you and your family every joy with the new arrivals!

CreedonsDogDayc

Hi Op,

Best of luck with the two new pups, but I don't think you realise what you've gotten yourself in for!!!

A couple of points...
you say you'll fence in an area for them when they're older, are they left loose at the moment to wander? I probably picked you up wrong, but puppies can easily wander under cars / get stolen etc. so it might be a good idea to build that run now so they don't go missing.

Also, with regards to their 'organic life', I know what you're implying, let them be dogs, but a wandering dog can easily get into danger. Its perfectly legal for a farmer to kill your dogs if he 'thinks' your dogs are worrying hes sheep. As in, the dogs can just be sitting watching the sheep from a distance and he can shoot them, ans some farmers happily will.

Also, you mentioned that you have kids. A dog left to its own devices can kill birds and small animals, not very pleasant for your kids to find.

Labs are big dogs, and by 6 months of age they will easily be able to knock your kids over / scrawl them when jumping up.

Your pups are young so it's the perfect time to get set up for your lives together in the future.
I really am not judging you as I don't know you at all and am only going by two posts across the internet, so please please take this as friendly advice (and feel free to completely ignore my ramblings if you choose), but your current situation scarily reminds me of many many posts we see here from new dog owners who say 'everything was great at the start, cute puppies, kids loved them, but now 1 year later we have to get rid of the dogs because ... they are gone wild / dont listen to a thing / destroy the garden / hurt the kids etc.

You should use this time, while they are young, to put a plan together for their future.

1. You should be very careful with your kids around the dogs, the dogs can hurt the kids/ kids can hurt the dogs very easily. You should teach your kids how to play nicely, play fetch, handle them nicely etc/

2. Dogs are dogs as you say, but they are also domesticated, and most would choose cuddling on the sofa over chasing birds any day. Do you plan on letting them inside at all?

3. You should start training your dogs now. Have one on one sessions with the dogs individually, teaching them 'sit' 'down' 'come' etc now so they both bond with you and use their brains. It will give you a sense of achievement and set you up for well behaved dogs in later life.

4. You should never let them jump up on you, starting now. This is especially important with the kids. At the mo I bet the puppies jump up, and the kids sequel and give them loads of cuddles. Cute now but picture a full grown lab jumping on your kids! No longer cute! You should start with teaching the 'sit' command, then teach your kids to teach the dogs 'sit'. Next, any time the puppies jump up, COMPLETELY ignore them. You (and the kids) should stand perfectly still, turn your face upward, and keep your arms up around your chest. This will show the dog that jumping means the end of fun. When the pup eventually calms down and stops jumping, ask the dog to 'sit' then come down to its level for cuddles.
DO THE SAME WHEN THE PUPPY BITES/PLAYS USING ITS TEETH.

If you put the time and effort into training now, you'll have much happier dogs when they are older, dogs that you can be proud of!!!

Also, if you build them a run / fence off the garden that will be great for them when you are out of the house, but would you conceder keeping them in the house? Thats where they'll be happier and they will stay clean there. You could fence off an area / keep them in the utility room until they are calmer.

You should also bring them for short walks (once they've had all their vaccinations) to train them to walk on the leash and socialise them around other environments. Its so important to give them positive interactions with other dogs people animals places smells traffic etc while they are young to avoid irrational fears when they are older!!

Last of all, enjoy them when they are young, they grow soo bloody fast! At least you get a few years of cuteness out of kids, with puppies it seems more like weeks!!

If you have any questions / want any advise you can email me on info@creedonsdoggiedaycare.com