hello everyone,got the call yesterday that we had to pick up are lab pup due to circumstances out of there control,she's hazel 6 weeks old weaned off mum,we' ve always had dogs well terriers so this is the first lab we have had, we would like to get some more books/dvds and get as much advice as possible so we don't make to many mistakes,we have 3 kids 2,6 and 12 and a small terrier. here she is first night and not a peep she slept all night until 5am shes not very happy to have the crate door shut even though she was in a crate since birth, shes pee'd and poo'd loads on kitchen floor, i feel that where shes only six weeks old she'll only dirty in her crate. She seems to like peeing on the doormat in the kitchen. if we had the choice we would rather have had her at eight-ten weeks old. Advice on food please, we are feeding her on science plan puppy food,her last two faeces were much runnier. We know she 'd had pedigree chum biscuit mix. Sorry for the novice questions but we want to get it right as she has many thanks golden
Re: just picked up are new puppy! Hi there, and welcome to the forum . How sad that your puppy had to be removed from his littermates at such a young age. However, if that cannot be helped now, then you will need to be aware of potential problems, and what you can do to avoid them. What I will do, is answer the tummy question first. I hope that's ok. Diahorrea in puppies As you probably know, upset tummies are very common in puppies when they first arrive in their new homes. This is largely due to the stress of being removed from all that is familiar to them. Use the same food as the breeder Are you feeding your puppy on the same food that the breeder used? If not, can you find out what this was and get some? Continuity will help her little tummy to settle sooner. Little and often A six week old pup needs very small meals spread throughout the day. She may not cope well with the four meals we give at eight weeks. So you might want to consider dividing her daily ration between five or even six mealtimes. This means her digestive system doesn't have to work so hard. But, if the diahorrea recurrs, you need to give her tummy a rest. Giving her tummy a rest You cannot starve a puppy for 24 hours like you would an adult dog with the runs, but you can miss one meal to give the tummy a bit of a break, then feed something very digestible, a little bit of chopped or minced boiled chicken for example. If all is well, then you can return to a tiny meal of her normal food at the next meal, and a normal meal after that. Warning signs Don't hesitate to get the puppy to the vet if she stops eating, is sick, or the diahorrea does not respond to the simple measures above. Vet check Has your puppy seen your vet yet? If not, it is a good idea to make an appointment as soon as possible. She needs a check up in any case, and he will be able to make sure there are no obvious underlying health issues (make sure she isn't running a fever for example) and reassure you that she is ok Do let us know how she gets on, and good luck Pippa
Re: just picked up are new puppy! Hello and welcome from me too What a dear little girl Hazel is , just a shame she is so young but I guess there must have been really good reasons as to why . I cant add to Pippas advice except to say that one of my young dogs was on Science Diet when he came to us from the rescue , he had terrible runny poo . I stuck it out for a few days and did as Pippa suggests , fed him boiled skinless chicken with a small ammount of rice , making up a days worth at a time and feeding him little and often . He settled immediately and so after a few days , I got him onto another food , CSJ , and the problem was resolved straight away . I`m not saying that Science Diet is bad, but what suits one may not suit another and you cant allow diarhorrea to carry on in tiny pups . Well done on your choice , I also have a Lab and a terrier and love the mix of the two and good for you for wanting to read up about the breed, lots of helpful articles on here If you want to look at feeding CSJ , you cant buy in shops which is why it is not expensive, but if you go to their website, you will see a list of nationwide stockists , I have fed their food to Labs and Terriers alike, it has no nasties in it ! www.csjk9.com
Re: just picked up are new puppy! If you are going to leave her with her crate door open, you might find it helpful to put newspaper down in place of your doormat, or you can buy purpose made puppy pads. Personally, I would probably shut the crate door and get up two or three times a night to let her out, rather than have her maybe getting into the habit of messing indoors. There is more info here: crate training and here: house-training that you might find useful And you might find it interesting to follow what I have been doing with my own puppy Rachael
Re: just picked up are new puppy! thanks Stacia for the heads up ,been a long day reading lots of info from this site!!I have been letting her out for some food and a walk around the garden then back in and she goes back into the crate i then close the door when she is relaxed, she has been good all day,as for toilet i have been taking her straight out and standing with her she goes to toilet(i prase and say hazel go wees) we go back in for food and play with toys,she gets tired very quick so soon wants to go back for a sleep,tomorrow is the day I am dreading as I am at work and can only get back at lunch :'(if we had had hazel at 8 weeks I would of had 6 weeks off,also rung the vets only to feel like i'm the bad guy for having a puppy at 6 weeks old,will ring another one on monday. many thanks golden.
Re: just picked up are new puppy! well, that was night 2, crate door closed and hazel woke up twice straight out for toilet then straight back to bed a very good night just had breakfast and a toilet then a play in the garden (with and without robin the terrier)so far all seems to good to be true she goes towards the back door and sniffs I open the door and take her to the toilet area she goes to toilet i'm very happy, thanks pippa been reading all about rachel some very good information indeed. golden
Re: just picked up are new puppy! update, she was born on 30th may that made her 7 weeks old when i got her!I have been reading all day,she is so good i cant fault her I will keep updating on my progress!cant wait for the books i have ordered to arrive!! golden
Re: just picked up are new puppy! Hi Golden, and welcome to you and Hazel. Hazel is very sweet. It's such a shame the vet made you feel bad. Sometimes they act like they think we have a time machine, and can reverse what has already happened! You are obviously trying really hard to do the right things for your pup, so I expect she will be just fine! Sam.
Re: just picked up our new puppy! [quote author=Sam link=topic=608.msg2848#msg2848 date=1342212671] Hi Golden, and welcome to you and Hazel. Hazel is very sweet. It's such a shame the vet made you feel bad. Sometimes they act like they think we have a time machine, and can reverse what has already happened! You are obviously trying really hard to do the right things for your pup, so I expect she will be just fine! Sam. [/quote] Thanks for you comment,that extra week means a lot to me,and yes she has me(I have her)and i am loving it,so different from having terriers,she is so intelligent,receptive and calm,we will keep this forum up to date with our progress. golden
Re: just picked up are new puppy! It's just like having a baby in the house, isn't it. ;D She won't stay calm for long and will be up to all sorts of mischieve in no time at all. It seems to go on for about 3 years with Labs, but make the most of it as I think they are great fun at that stage. For what it's worth, we inherited our dog, Lady, from my daughter who's health was not good at the time. She had Lady from 8 weeks old and later on we got unhelpful remarks about that being too young but "it's what they do with gun dogs" etc etc. Well apart from not being properly socialised with other dogs which was our fault (she goes hyper-submissive until she finds out they are no threat and then gets up and plays), she's turned out to be a lovely gentle dog. Good luck with her and I'm sure she will be fine especially with all the loving attention you are giving her.
Re: just picked up our new puppy! just another update,last night was fantastic she slept all night was dry in the morning she was straight out for wees and a play back in for breakfast, she follows me everywhere(probably because i give her lots of attention)today was also very good I made one mistake and she weed on the kitchen floor, I have so much to learn,she is biting everything so might have to re-read the right start.also she is starting to wee anywhere on the lawn its hard to keep up with her as once she starts she don't stop!! will update again later thats if anyone is interested. golden
Re: just picked up are new puppy! Ooh, yes please. It would be lovely to hear how you are getting on. Maybe start a thread in the puppy section? Glad you are getting some sleep! Pippa
Re: just picked up are new puppy! Definately interested , more please My Lab Sam is a year old now , no longer a puppy :'(, but I do love reading about them
Re: just picked up are new puppy! yes she is doing very well,she is going for her second jabs next thursday,we are just starting her on a lead which she just wants to bite,we are trying to put a training menu together as we keep on calling her and telling her to sit which is a no no but we are getting there slowly. will update more later. golden
Re: just picked up are new puppy! The problems we seem to be having are nipping and biting and thats it. The books we have are very good but what we were hoping for was a step by step training plan with things to achieve within a certain time i.e sit, lead work, also what goals for a 9 week old pup and so on. the one thing we are noticing is that she is very happy to just go off into the garden and its a big garden. golden
Re: just picked up are new puppy! Hi Golden I think the trouble with goals for specific ages is that every dog is different - and every owner wants to start training their pup at a different age, so you'll struggle to find a book that gives you those targets. But the Gundog Club guides are step-by-step, so that's do-able at least. Which books do you have at the moment? Sam
