Akitaowner

i'll never get over the way his tongue hung out the side of his mouth like he was drunk! i hope the rest of the family are all well

our training club let you use any piece of equipement (check chains, prongs etc) providing you show adequete knowledge of how to use it effectively. otherwise we will show them how to use them or make appropriate suggestions. i was a little tentative when i first joined and showed up with a young girl in a prong - she was and still is very well behaved (i was weaning her off at the time) and they were happy for me to continue class. we do use hands on - also if a dog does not respond to the command in the first instance, or does not know what the command means. Its not rough just positioning. the first club i went to in sydney wouldnt let me use a check chain....or a martingale - i was expected to control a big pup on a flat collar with only treats - IMO that is as bad as the other extreme!!

i feed advance large breed growth (pale blue/purpleish bag). My 2 get bones for dinner and kibble for brekkie. Both are still on the large breed growth as this is what was recommended y my breeder she has all hers on the growth as its keeps their coats better than adult. I may change Rogue to a light adult dry food if she continues to pile on weight - i have currently just cut her ration back which she doesnt like!

head for crate training (as you indicated in the other thread) and reading this i would suggest in seperate crates that way you will know which is making a mess if they continue. Once you find out it may be necessary to go back to basics with crate training and let them out once during the night - make sure they go and put them back to bed....

yep you can crate train any age dog - i crate train all the fosters that come thru our place i would crate them seperately especially if toilet training - but it kinda depends on the actual dogs - its good for them to have somewhere to go alone if they feel the need...

hey Wajoma - check out 'drive training'....

hi folks - i would rather keep adolescent dogs a little on the lean side rather than anything else. I also wouldnt really consider a lab a large breed (??) as in the you 'should exercise til 12 months' size - from what i understand retrievers are generally a bit bigger? yep i would recommend speaking to someone that can show/indicate to you what you are looking for in your dogs weight - i have 2 very different dogs 1 i cant keep weight on and always looks a little underweight and the other piles it on at the drop of a hat!

youll soon get into a good routine - it helped for me having my OH working shifts so he usualy got home around 2 to let them out expect to be a zombie for a few days! but its soooo worth it when they are reliable in the house really young :D

with both my pups i crate trained. I let pup out at 10pm and we all went to bed, i set the alarm for 2am and let pup out - minimum fuss and interaction top up water bowl and reheat hot water bottle if necessary get up at 6am let up out and play brekkie for a couple of hours before work.... all the info i read reckoned 4 hours was about the maximum an 8 week old pup could last. its supposed to increase about an hour a week with age. i slowly moved the 2am stop forward until they were going right thru the night. :D another tip - make sure you have another blanket next to the crate for the night stops incase of accidents - means less fussing around in the night!

i agree with the above - i flew both my pups up from interstate at exactly 8 weeks old without any problems. I dont consider the flight such a problem but more the being away from home for a week so close to coming home....its tough enough on any family getting a new puppy and the first couple of weeks settling in and night-time crying etc. your family wont appreciate being kept awake at night, toilet training etc and having to adjust to your puppys need for a week. how lng between gettin gpup and travelling maybe he breeder could just hold onto the pup for an extra couple of weeks to save the stress

yeay we found a chi person :D

if you confine her she wont (or shouldnt) toilet where she is living/playing/sleeping inside, and will therefore hold it longer. what did you anticipate doing over the winter when you got her?

In my experience a 9 month old can hold for the duration of a work day anyway....(altho i have only had large breeds) i would not be giving her access to toilet pads inside at all, or the run of the house all day.

we brought home 2 baby girls from my breeder last year to get to know them better before making a choice. They were both from the same litter and were both treated exactly the same once home. One cried and cried and cried and cried (u get the idea!) all the time - not so much when she was out running around with us and other pup and Mav but anytime she was isolated (in a crate/play pen/seperate room) the other pup was fine never so much as a whinge just got on with the training and accepted where she was put and did as she was told! needless to say the crying all night ended with us keeping the quiet puppy :p well i was a lot of help wasnt i!! It has only been 2 days i would give her a bit more time to settle and get used to a strict routine with minimum fuss..!!

i would suggest confining her while you are not home - in a play pen or similar. Put the pad in the pen and see what happens - that way shes less likely to run off and go in a corner. sorry i dont have more to suggest - i have always had grass and used crates with training pups :p

my first suggestion is that you need to be in control of her - so sort out the loose leash first. my personal favourite exercise is very simple and ive found very effective: i would also use a martingale collar rather than a harness... dont 'go for a walk' outside your house (or even start in your backyard) do the following... Sit the dog in the heel position to your left and wait until calm (if the dog is fussing around) watch the dogs face all the time - eventually the dog will look at you even if its for 1 sec with a puzzled look coz your not walking, at that moment say your command 'look/focus/watching' whatever you choose. and say heel in a bright chirpy voice start walking at your pace....as soon as the dog hits the end of the lead turn around and walk the other direction - everytime the dog reaches the end of the lead change direction. everytime you do this the dog has to pass you to get back out in front, at the point the dog is by your side praise the dog. For this exercise the dog does not need to actually stay on your left at your heel - just close enough to keep the leash loose. Do this for 2x15 minutes sessions a day and the dog will be mentally stimulated while it tries to work out whats happening and you eventually get a loose leash walking dog!! i have now built up to running in all different directions and the dog is very focussed on me, once they understand make it a game try to get away from them and they will follow! be warned tho your neighbours will think you are crazy!! ETA: re the aggressive behaviour - i would suggest you seek professional advice to understand where the aggression is coming from.

desexed?? i havent heard that one before!! what are people supposed to do with dogs they want to keep entire - never take them out to socialise and learn?? i would find somewhere else.... at our club we will accept ANY dog that is brought, providing there is proof of vaccination status. We may request that a dog be muzzled if aggressive or any other individual treatment that may be necessary.

it may have been chipped for ages? do you kow this is a recent thing?? ring the previous owner if u can and see if they know anything about it? if its not sore it should be fine. You can 'fix' teeth but its massively expensive and unless shes a show bitch (event then...) i wouldnt bother. take her to the vet if your worried...

canines can be worn or chipped quite a long way down before the dog feels anything - usualy they will go off hard food like bones... if shes happy in herself i doubt she can feel anything - get the vet to check next time your nearby .....on a side note - is she an akita? looks a bit akita-ish in your avatar

i was very pleased with myself (and Rogue) last night we started some 'box' work and then i taught her to catch i tried a week or so ago - and the treats just bounced off her head but i went back to basics yesterday and now shes got it ;) i had them both in down positions and called their name and alternated throwing treats - yeay now i can reward from a distance - it was great for Mav (and he picked up catching really quick) Rogue was a little slower...

i think the paw trick was on here recently - it was really simple - my 2 are both very paw-ry anyway - they always test things with their paws. i use a command, action and then picked up her paw and shook it clicked and treat. repeat a couple of times then only offer the command and action and see what happens - it may not happen first try but as soon as they lift the paw off the ground - reward and keep going til its perfect - move the goal posts a little each time to get the rewards :p now i can command and offer a hand (i modified the action a little). i think the bang your dead is a bit harder - you have to teach the down first then the roll then put it together and add the command...

i taught Rogue to paw/hand (for right and left) and it took her a litle while but now she offers it all the time - its very cute - she does it to Mav too!! u can see the penny drop when they understand - and yes very rewarding i want to teach roll over altho i dont like my chances :p

i bought a sponge cake from woolies for my boys bday both had to sit and wait for their plate and inhaled it

Tangwyn - it depends which states you are in as to the legal side. In NSW you can buy and use them - but only licensed (?) trainers are allowed to supply them....the idea being that they ensure your responsible enough to use it correctly and to show you how.

Erny the OP answering what the question was im not particularly interested in trying to educate people that clearly have no basic understanding and still feel their opinion may be valid (thats not you denis BTW!!)