Re: Cooper's criss cross walking It is perfectly natural for Cooper to give a growl when you tried to take something from his mouth as he is already aware of you taking him by the collar. A growl in dog language means "please go away". The best thing you could have done and do in the future, is to offer him a swop, you give something good to him in exchange for what he has in his mouth. It is far better to swop than have a confrontation.
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking He won't bite you Teena Ann, don't worry. He is not an aggressive dog, nor will he grow up to be one. You need to have a bit more faith in him! As he is nervous, you just need to help him become a bit more confident. Believe in him, and act accordingly. For instance, if he is scared of something on a walk, just say 'come on Cooper', in a cheerful way, and walk around whatever it is that has scared him, giving it a quite wide berth. Don't pat him or feel sorry for him, that will just make it worse. Once he has walked past the scary thing, then make sure you tell him what a good boy he is and give him lots of praise and treats. I know what I am talking about, as my dog is naturally quite a nervous character, but time and lots of encouragement has really built her self-confidence. As Stacia says, Cooper isn't showing aggression to you when you try to take something out of his mouth. If he has something you don't want him to have, do swap it for something else - for instance, if he has picked up a bone from somewhere, you will need to offer him a nice treat in exchange. I do this with Poppy, who is a very sweet-natured dog. I don't try to take a bone from her without swapping it for something else.
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Karen and Stacia thank u so much for your inputs its hard for me to differentiate his growl even if i tried to swap it before i could it he goes back to the same thing in his mouth so its difficult for me but im trying but y is he doin it is it bcoz he is bored or lonely i don knw to read his body language ???while he sleeps he sleeps curled on his feet which he has not done before and regarding the kibble he is getting 3 cups per day that is divided into 3 meals but he wont have it unless i pour over chicken stock or boiled chicken is it fyn for him to have it everyday im worried
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking If he is eating his kibble with stock on then in my opinion that is fine. However, make sure the stock isn't salty. Make sure three cups a day are not too much food for him, watch what his body looks like, if he starts to get plump, just reduce the amount. My 30kg Lab gets two coffee mugs of kibble a day, divided into two meals. If you swap the article he has with something more enticing, then you put the first article away so that he won't go back to the same thing.
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Oh Oh oh here we go again Cooper neva had is kibble yet again today even though i added boiled chicken to it im so damn irritated and goin nuts with this behaviour of his he aint thinning down nor becoming plump but im worried thinking tat giving him chicken daily would harm his health Stacia wat do you think do u think its obvious tat im thinking ryt or am i spoiling him his appetite is not tat great if u think 3 cups(one cup per meal) is too much how much do you think should i give him.... he is perfectly in gud health and active y does he refuse to eat
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Teena, he is BEAUTIFUL! Whoever thinks he's not a proper labrador needs their heads examining… I think I would just feed him twice a day. He obviously doesn't need all the food you are giving him, since he doesn't eat it. He looks perfect - not too thin, not too fat. I have had picky eaters before now; don't worry and just believe he won't starve himself!
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking He is just lovely Teena , a true Labrador and very fit looking too, he looks to be in great condition
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Thank you Lynell Karen and Katie hope he grows more in gud health his eating habits are bad he wont eat his kibble otherwise im happy he eats anything but the kibble but im trying to get a hold of it bcoz he is healthy and active don knw y he is refusing it today he neva had kibble though i poured over chicken stock and boiled chicken in it my woes keeps increasing day by day to think abt him not having a proper meal breaks my heart :-[
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Teena, do NOT weaken and start adding meat to it again! You will be back to where you started if you do. I know you worry if he has not eaten it... but the problem is that Cooper knows that now too! Stick with the kibble, he will eat it when he is hungry. He looks beautiful and just as he should - not too thin at all. Clare
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Clare actually he has started to eat it wen i poured something into it like chicken stock previously he wouldnt eat it for a week he had been eating it now again today he started to fuss over it again im going nuts here he doesnt eat even if its more than a week wat too d i mean there gotta be some way in making him to eat it na i tried the warm water method, i tried adding wet food tried the starving method wat else is to do
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking I think he isn't eating because he feels full up, just as we would do. Try giving him less food, feed twice a day, just barely a cup in the morning and a cup in the early evening. I am assuming he has been wormed? A little chicken stock on the kibble is OK but don't start giving more chicken than kibble as he will become fussy again. He also may be aware of your worried vibes and the more you try to make a dog eat, the less they will. If you get the balance of food right, he should tuck into his food with gusto. As we said before, you need to reduce the food until he is hungry again. Don't worry, he looks fine.
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking [quote author=Teena Ann link=topic=3493.msg45585#msg45585 date=1389274402] previously he wouldnt eat it for a week he had been eating it now again today he started to fuss over it again [/quote] Teena Ann, he didn't not eat for a week - after a couple of days, you said he was eating some kibble, then you started adding things to it again. You said that is what your vet told you to do. Has following the vet's advice worked?
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Teena Ann, you said on another thread that Cooper doesn't get any off lead exercise, thus he will need less food. My Lab has a good hour to hour and half free running a day and he has less food than Cooper.
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Stacia and Julie wat i meant abt him not eating for a week was wen i was trying to get him to eat the kibble by following the advice given by you and the vet and he started eating it wen i made it more palatable for him by adding chicken stock im continuing with it by adding a handful everytime he asks for more until he is full tat comes around 1 cup per day divided for 3 meals now suddenly he stopped eating yesterday i have wormed him and he gets a gud one hour free run around the house or in the terrace and plays fetch everyday i d on leave him off lead wen he is on the road bcoz its not possible and people are scared and its adviced tat we keep our dogs on leash wen out watelse am i making a mistake
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Yes Teen Ann, I do understand it is impossible for you to have Cooper off lead where you live; glad he does get to run about the house and terrace. I honestly wouldn't worry about him not wanting to eat for a day or two IF the vet has looked at him and said there is nothing wrong healthwise. How are his bowels, does he have diarrhoea anytime or loose poo? He may get a bit of a dicky tummy and not want to eat. My Lab has just had an episode of not wanting to eat, poo was perfect, took him to vet and he did have a stomach upset and was given antibiotics. I see nothing wrong with putting chicken stock on his food as he has to eat the kibble which is soaked in the stock and not pick out only chicken or whatever else you put on the food to tempt him. Maybe you should take him to the vet again and say he goes off his food for a day or two and to check him over. If he says he is fine, then just accept that is how your dog is.
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Yes Stacia ill have him examined by vet once again his poop is fyn i don find it runny he did have his kibble tdy around 5 or 6 handful but skipped his 2nd meal in order for him to not to pick up the chicken alone as he is eating i mix d food wid my hand so tat he eats everything instead of picking out things and also it may teach him not to bite or become possesive with his food bowl hope im doing the ryt thing..
Re: Cooper's criss cross walking Can anyone tell me wat this means i found a white like discharge on Cooper's private parts ryt after he urinated and he constantly keeps licking it wat does it mean does it mean he has urinar infection
