Staffygirl88

I have never given away a puppy. I had to give away my dog, he was 3 We have training sessions every day with lots of treats and praise, I'm still working on getting her to walk on leash but we're making progress. And play time with myself and my son

How was I complaining? And the Puppy Frustration thread was because the breeder led me to have high expectations. Your entitled to your opinion as is everybody in this country. You can post whatever you like on here, but I'll no longer read it or reply because I have NO time for people such as yourself.

Why don't you get all the facts before you make judgements then.

The breeder told me it could take up to 3 months for my papers to be given to me. My pup is on Main Register and is apparently co-ownership with the kennel. I want to show her and was hoping to get the papers sooner so I can register her in Tas. I'll try to get in contact with Dogs SA

That is so beautiful and sadly it's true. People think my baby girl is a Pit Bull and tell me to get rid of her before she attacks my son. Shes a papered Amstaff but they are very similar to Pit Bulls. But when I say she's an Amstaff, most of them heave a sigh of relief. The dog can't help being born wearing a Pit Bull suit. I hope that everyone does their own research into the breed and comes to their own conclusions instead of believing the crap they print in newspapers or air on tv.

None of us are. Damn difficult to give advice without asking clarifying questions. In the title of your thread you asked for advice, not sympathy. I wanted to probe how you are feeling about this pup. As I said, whatever. You said I sounded resentful. That's not a clarifying question that's a statement. I'm not asking for your sympathy, but I don't want nasty replies and your reply falls in the nasty bin. So if you've got nothing nice to post then don't post at all.

SA pups must be 8 weeks of age before leaving SA breeders also must transfer ownership of papers to knew owner this could be the reason your papers have not arrived yet after ringing the breeder with the prefix in hand it's a quick call to Dogs Sa to ask if they have been registered I'm going completely off topic here but my pup is meant to be registered and the breeder's informed me that she has to do the whole litter at once and she still has two pups out of the litter that haven't been sold yet. She said it could be 3 months before I get her papers is that norman? Breeder is in SA

That sounds a lot like resentment. Is it possible that a pup is just too much work right now? I came here for advice not criticism. You can't hear the tone of my keyboard so don't assume my mood please. Didn't you read the LOL as in I was having a joke about it not being resentful Perhaps you've assumed my motives for asking that question. Whatever. I didn't assume anything about your motive. I just get when people assume about me. One thing I've learned in life is that there is never a right time to have a baby or get a puppy. Life happens and you just have to deal with it the best you can. I'm doing the best I can, maybe someone else can do it better and good on em. I've never claimed to be perfect in any way.

It is hard looking after my boy through the day and always keeping an eye on Topaz in case she needs to go out and trying to do little training sessions with her through the day as well But I think I'll get there, giving up gets you nowhere (unless you're giving up smoking or something along those lines of course). I do love her but I just don't feel a connection yet. I'd do anything for the little rascal. I'm also having problems with family health and that adds to the daily stress. I do have good and bad days I'm not perfect and I don't claim to be. I'm hoping to re-enrol in college next year so don't put me off! But I'm also out of work at the moment I'm looking forward to her being an adult that's for sure! I'd like to be able to share my bed with her or not have to lock her in her crate at night for fear of her going to the toilet somewhere through the house and me not finding it or finding it by stepping in it ;) Right now she's curled up on her bed snoring so I'm pretty happy. She already knows to go straight to her bed when she's inside, now to just keep her there when the little one's going mad lol

I'm really hoping we can bond so I don't have to do that to her. I would only send her back to her breeder if she didn't bond with me or my son. They seem to get along really well already and my son's always asking for her

That sounds a lot like resentment. Is it possible that a pup is just too much work right now? I came here for advice not criticism. You can't hear the tone of my keyboard so don't assume my mood please. Didn't you read the LOL as in I was having a joke about it not being resentful

I've already rushed her to the vet twice since I got her. First time wasn't even three days after getting her home I took her to the vet (a 2 hour drive for me with a 2yr old boy as well) and it turned out she had worms, vet had already prescribed medicine to thicken her stool etc which wasnt needed after i got home and out came the worms Then I had to rush her down again just last week, she stopped eating and drinking and was really lethargic. Turned out she chewed a tap pipe in my backyard that had a glue or something covering it to stop it freezing, she'd eaten that and gotten really sick and had to stay at the vet overnight. I was worried for her then and I do care about her, I just don't feel a bond yet. I'm hoping it will just take a little more time

Thanks for that I was beginning to think I was just a horrible person. Everyone else sees her and loves her (she is absolutely beautiful) but they haven't had to clean poop out of their house or off their back porch or explain to their landlord why there's wood missing from the house etc etc lol I really want this to work. I gave away a dog probably four months before I got Topaz. He was too high energy for me and my son, he was always hyper it was unreal! But that's a different (and sad) story. But basically, I really want this to work for me and my son.

Hi My Amstaff pup is 13 weeks old. She's settled in well, especially with my son which is great because he used to be scared of dogs. This is a strange question and I don't know if anyone else can answer it for me or not but any ADVICE would be great. I don't feel like I've bonded with her at all. She's been with me for 5 weeks now. She follows me when we're outside (when inside she's on her bed unless having a play or training session) and I have her on my lap for a cuddle most nights but I don't feel like I love her. Am I just a bad person or is it normal? Since I had my son I haven't gone ga ga over any type of baby, expecially pups because I know how much work they can be. Will it just take more time or will it never happen? Any advice on how to create a bond would be good as well.

I did do some more research into the breed and registered breeders who breed Amstaffs and was pretty upset when I realised I was paying a LOT of money for mine. As she is a 'blue' pup I paid top dollar. Admittedly I went by the breeder's website and she seemed to have a lot of happy customers and happy dogs which I'm sure she does. Am I allowed to ask for copies of my pup's parents' papers? I would have gone with a different breeder but I had already paid a decent deposit and was informed that there were no refunds. So next time I will definitely do a lot more research into the breeder before I contact them about a pup. And warn anyone I know to do the same if they're considering buying a puppy from a registered breeder.

Considering the amount of dogs Cesar Millan has rehabilitated, I wouldn't toss everything he does anywhere. He's not aggressive towards the dogs, he's dominant it's very different. I do agree that if it gets worse, go to a local pro

Yes she did. I was going to recommend her to my sister because she's interested in a British Bulldog but I've told her not to now. I'll do the leg work for her and find a different breeder if it stops her going to the same one my dog came from. No puppy should have to go through that

Try upping the reward to a treat. I'd forgotten the most important thing about owning a puppy. ALWAYS have treats on hand :D

:D *whispers* probably not a good game to play .. as she will rapidly grow , and still want to play chase and bounce Pups chasing kids and getting excited when they see kids running can often end in tears . You might enjoy reading this little ebook -it's free LINK Oh.. and puppy photos are always appreciated How do I put photos of my pup on here?

PF this will end in tears and i agree with you. raining on a parade is what happens when people do not understand why dogs and puppies do what they do. wait until the child squeals.....the OP might find out it has a high prey drive as well... :D Ignore me and be done already

Maybe get him to kick a ball or two .. or a rattly toy she can chase? Doesn't matter of she just chases it Digging is great! they can share digging for toys ! God I hate raining on this parade but I'd discourage this game too. (I sound so negative) She's going to be a big powerful dog. She needs to learn that chasing kids is not OK. If she does it to the wrong child she could bowl them over AND her behaviour can be misinterpreted. You need to introduce some other games to this friendship. Will she case a toy. I tried getting her to chase a toy, I was successful on ONE occasion and she actually brought the stick back four times before she got over it :D How can I get her to play something else with him? He just loves to run it's all he does when he's outside really. That and digging, which he was just doing with her in his sandbox A stick really isn't a good thing for her to be fetching, how about a tennis ball or fluffy toy? Or...do you have a big soccer ball that your little boy can kick for her and he can run around while doing that? Puppy should be more interested in chasing the ball he's kicking than chasing him that way. She's better off with toys than sticks.. vets remove lots of sticks from dog's soft palates and worse. You'd have to back chain teaching her to retrieve. A trainer could teach you this. Did you reward her for bringing it back? He could drag something for her to pounce on. My dogs have a large fur snake that's popular for that game. Or you could get a kids play tunnel and they can crawl through that. The stick was the only thing she was interested in ;) Yes PF she got lots of praise when she brought it back I will have to work on my son and the pup playing together I think. He gets a bit freaked out around her when she tried to play, they both need work ;) I thought the digging would have been great for them to do together in the sand box, but my son quickly got sick of her digging in his spot and told her to get out

God I hate raining on this parade but I'd discourage this game too. (I sound so negative) She's going to be a big powerful dog. She needs to learn that chasing kids is not OK. If she does it to the wrong child she could bowl them over AND her behaviour can be misinterpreted. You need to introduce some other games to this friendship. Will she case a toy. I tried getting her to chase a toy, I was successful on ONE occasion and she actually brought the stick back four times before she got over it :D How can I get her to play something else with him? He just loves to run it's all he does when he's outside really. That and digging, which he was just doing with her in his sandbox

Being offended happens here all the time. Ignore those that offend - retaliation will get you a one way trip out the door or a holiday at the least. There really are situations where people realise they've taken on way too much and that its in both theirs and the pups interests that it be returned. Most of your early posts in this thread have expressed total frustration and (lets be frank) very unrealistic expectations of your puppy. You also said if you had your time again, you'd not have got her now. What did you think folk were to conclude? You say you're venting but we have to take these things as you paint them. Were those views not to change then return WOULD be the way to go. Sift through the advice in this thread and use the gems. That's what the rest of us do. Yes my earlier posts did express total frustration. But when I went through some of the advice I was given, things didn't look so bad :D But then when people start going off at me I got my back up as most people do. And she's still outside, but now playing with my son (well my son is running and she's chasing him) lol she doesn't jump on him very often at all now so atleast she's getting something from our training

Normal. And not a bad thing. A food driven dog is an easy dog to train ;) No puppy is going to have a naturally calm and placid temp, they are excitable, bouncy and stupid. Start with TOT (pinned at the top of this forum or the training forum, I can't remember) It WILL fix your problem immediately as the puppy is tied out and can't jump - they learn very quickly Don't take food from the pup, it's not natural for a pack leader to take food away. Don't allow your son to either. You can easily teach the pup an out or give command outside of meal times. Normal. NO 8 week puppy is going to be completely toilet trained, it's not possible, it takes months. The breeder can start it but you need to continue and be consitant. Take the pup out to toilet every HOUR to start with. ALWAYS on leash, so she can't bolt, take her to where you want her to go and PRAISE when she does. Toileting in the crate after 4 hours - also normal. Baby pups can't hold that long, and yep, it set toilet training back too so more work for you. I understand that you need to keep her safe if you must go out. Perhaps (if you can't keep her outside) invest in a pen instead so that she can toilet away from her bed if she must. Normal. Only a very dominant, confident puppy is going to stare you in the eyes, it's not a natural behaviour. You will need to gain confidence in the puppy before you will get eye contact. No. You need to be there to teach her or she'll never learn anything. But it's okay to put here out in the yard/pen/crate when you are not able to supervise and need a break. No, not normal. But not rare. Worms happen. Yes disappointing, but easy to treat. you have wormed her now and will keep it up. Puppy will be fine and it's unlikely to affect her long term health. In short yes, I think you are expecting way too much from a baby puppy. Have a look at this vid: http://www.youtube.com/user/leerburg#p/u/138/rNQuqY1oXpE You may find it useful. Thanks I shouldn't have expected any more from her than I would any other pup just because she cost a lot more. Breeders should not advertise that their pups are wormed and or toilet trained when they're not.