Puppy Questions/Advice

[3catwoman3]

My 24 yr old younger son and his 2 roommates have just taken on the life-changing responsibility of acquiring a puppy - a golden retriever they have named Coop. Only one of the 3 grew up with dogs, and that roommate travels about 50% of the time. My son grew up with cats, as one might guess based on my screen name.

He's a cute little guy, and seems very mellow. 8 weeks old and already responds to "Sit." He likes his crate, and takes himself in there when it is time for a nap. He was one of a litter of 10, and was the firstborn.

They are feeding him Purina puppy chow, which is not high on the quality scale, if I am not mistaken.

I would appreciate any advice on being a puppy parent that I might pass on to my son and his buddies. A colleague at work, who has bouviers, recommended The Art Of Raising A Puppy, by the Monks of New Skete, and we already got them a copy.

We went to met him last week. It felt odd to pet something warm and furry and not hear purring - like the audio hadn't been installed.

[elleng]

1. WONDERFUL news!

Check with the 'specialists' here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1161

[ciaobaby]

2. Exercise !!!!

It is easy for young adults to have such a busy social life they tend to put the needs of a young pup (or older dog) on the back burner.
Just make sure they can commit to taking the dog on lots of long walks or runs and let the pup socialize with other dogs on a regular schedule.
Grain free dog food is best. Toys, attention and love.!
Congratulations.

[JustAnotherGen]

7. Plus 10001

[3catwoman3]

14. There is a large park...

...within walking distance of their 3rd floor walk up apartment. They live in a Chicago neighborhood, and it has been really cold lately, so I don't know if they have done a lot of outside stuff yet.

[madaboutharry]

3. They should ask the veterinarian

what to feed him. Also ask the veterinarian about puppy classes.

[Bayard]

4. Puppies are a big responsibility

They also add immeasurable value to our lives. They need training, exercise, proper food and vet care. They need play time with their humans, and socialization with other people and dogs. I'd suggest enrolling in a puppy training class for starters, and all 3 guys would need to be on the same page. I'm not a big fan of commercial dog food, so I cook for mine. That's not for everyone. I'd recommend research online, comparing different foods, and then get what they can afford. I do keep a small supply of commercial food on hand when there's no time to cook. 4-Health is pretty good, and is reasonably priced.

Its great that he's crate trained already. Is he housebroken? Do they have an apartment, house, a fence? Dogs are pretty adaptable with the right care and planning.

[3catwoman3]

15. Coop is not housebroken yet, so that is a major...

...focus of their training efforts right now. The non-traveling roomie has been sleeping on their big comfy cough in the living room, where the crate is, so if Coop gets restless during the night, he gets up to take him outside.

They have a 3rd floor apartment. Attached to the fence around their building is a container of plastic bags, and a receptacle for the bagged "deposits," supplied by the city of Chicago. Very handy.

[Warpy]

5. Best advice I can give is that praise works, punishment doesn't

IOW, when he does his business outside, he gets praise and maybe a treat. If he does it indoors, no praise, no treat, just clean it up and move on. He'll get the idea.

The wagging tail makes up for not purring. Almost.

Purina is well formulated with all the vitamins and amino acids he's going to need. Unless he has an allergy to one of the ingredients, it's just fine.

[JustAnotherGen]

6. 6 month old Maltese this Friday

They are off to a good start.

Chewy, chewy chewy. Lots of stuff to chew. Coop will explore his world with his mouth until he learns the power of his sniffer.



Keep the potty door closed and paper out of reach. Ruckus has been known to make confetti!

We feed Ruckus Canine Caviar puppy kibble but that could get cost prohibitive for a large dog.

Baby carrots and beef treats will be their friend in training.

That's all I've got. Fortunately they have one of the smartest breeds while my Uncle Ruckus is a dummy breed.

[3catwoman3]

13. Cooked carrots or...

...raw?

I am a pediatric nurse practitioner. It is well known that young humans also explore everything with their mouths. Child proofing and puppy proofing must be very similar. We can't keep toilet paper on a wall mounted holder because one of our 4 cats specializes in the art of unrolling and shredding.

So far, they are keeping all doors to bathrooms and bedrooms shut, so Coop has the range of their very large kitchen-living room space, and a long hallway only.

[JustAnotherGen]

18. A raw baby carrot

For Ruckus (again a tiny maltese mouth) I cut off enough for him to gnaw on. He's teething right now and he has a few coming in at the back of his mouth - he loves the carrot pieces to gnaw at the nibs coming in.

[A HERETIC I AM]

8. "Good Owners, Great Dogs" by Brian Kilcommons

Kilcommons was a student of Barbara Woodhouse

↖ I used his methods with Mr BB, my last Boston Terrier and they WORK.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0446675385/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486307608&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=good+owners+great+dogs&dpPl=1&dpID=51crRW0J7-L&ref=plSrch

[Alpeduez21]

9. To whom does the dog belong?

"My 24 yr old younger son and his 2 roommates have just taken on the life-changing responsibility of acquiring a puppy." It's only life changing for one person. Who is taking the dog out at 4:00am. Is it old enough at 8 weeks to not go out during the night? When it pukes, pees, or craps on the rug who cleans up? How are the vet bills paid? Who pays for the food? During the holidays at whose house will the dog be staying?

Puppies need attention, distraction, guidance, and training all done with love. Play, play play and then play some more. If you don't want a 100lb dog in your lap when watching the game don't let it on the couch now. Decisions the owner makes regarding where it sleeps, what it eats, where it eats are best made now. It is hard to change habits later both the humans and the dogs. An obedience class is a must. Ask lots of questions. The only dumb question is the one not asked.

My dog has never eaten from the table. I put scraps in her bowl, that is where she eats. She comes when I call, sits when I say sit and stays when I say stay. These are must know commands.

Dogs are NEVER to jump up on people. Never.

The Art of Raising A Puppy is indeed a very good book.

[mnhtnbb]

11. Yes. One person needs to be designated as trainer and responsible for the dog.

Dogs are pack animals and they respond to the alpha.

Yes to finding a puppy obedience class right away. Yes to positive reinforcement. Yes to excitement
in the voice when praising--and praise all the time for puppy following commands.

Yes to lots of regular exercise. Yes to setting boundaries (on the couch? in the bed?).

Ask the vet for recommendation on food, or, if you have a good independent pet store ask them.

[3catwoman3]

16. To whom does the dog belong?

A very good question. It was the first one that came to mind when our son told us about the puppy, who was already a fait accompli by the time we were told about him. Our son and one roommate shared the costs involved in getting the little guy. My son has wanted a dog since he was about 8, but I was not willing to take on the work of a dog (because I knewwho would be doing all that work, and who would inherit the dog when he went off to college). I did ask this very question just yesterday, and is has not been discussed yet

He told us that they had been thinking about this "for a long time," but I don't know how much thinking about equates to planning for. I would not be surprised if there was at least a little bit of impulse involved in this decision.

The non-traveling roomie does breakfast/AM duty, as my son leaves for work quite early. My son must have a boss who loves dogs, because she had agreed to him having a 90 minute lunch break so he can go home and take the midday shift. He bikes to work, so he should be in really good shape with 2 round trips per day. He is home by late afternoon. Evening responsibilities are shared. Non-traveling roomie is also sleeping on the cough in their living room, where the crate is, so if Coop wakes up/gets restless in the middle of the night, he gets taken outside.

They are planning obedience classes, and know about doggy daycare. I expect they will be sharing all the assorted expenses. Our son is lucky enough not to have any student loan debt, so he has more disposable income than many of his peers.

I did tell him that the one absolute MUST, as far as I was concerned, was that Coop not jump up and sniff my nether regions, which grosses me out.

There is a big dog in our neighborhood whom I find rather intimidating. She runs toward me growling, with teeth bared, when I am walking for exercise. She stops before making any contact, so maybe there is an electric fence. One day, the owner was out when this happened, and he said to me, "She just wants to play." I said to him, "That's not what it feels like from this end."

[femmocrat]

10. Goldens are wonderful dogs.

But, around 6 months of age (or sooner), they become very rambunctious. They need a lot of training and exercise. I hope the roommates are prepared that this cute cuddly puppy will grow into a 75-lb. bulldozer and will need puppy kindergarten, beginning, and advanced obedience classes. And lots and lots of grooming. They shed like crazy.

And as soon as he starts teething, he will need a mountain of chew toys. As far as food, they should check to see what the breeder recommends or check with their vet. He will need "large breed" puppy food. They also need to know about genetic health risks, as Goldens have a number of them.

The first year is a lot of work, but after that, Goldens are big, lovable and loyal companions. What will happen to Coop if these roommates decide to go their separate ways?

[Hassin Bin Sober]

12. Never any table scraps. Ever. It's not cute and it's not funny.

There are several human foods that are toxic to dogs.

As a cat owner I'm sure you know this.

Please make sure they don't forget it and they tell their guests. It's really hard when you have a house full of friends or a party. Believe me.

Our vet warned us right off the bat and we followed it to a t. My partner's in laws feed their dog all kinds of junk and recently spent $6k on pancreatitis treatments. The poor dog looks like a barrel with legs.

Get a good collar with all the names/numbers and get chipped.

[csziggy]

17. Show people this video - they will get the message about feeding dogs people food!