Thanks. Well he went first thing 6am for a wee and I did keep him waiting for until 7:30 for breakfast but he's just gobbled it all up. Then he started sniffing round so took him outside and he's done a number 2 out there hooray as he also did half of one inside this morning before being carried out for the rest of it. Sorry for the toilet info but I feel we are doing mostly well. Will definitely try the eggs in a few weeks
Woo hoo an outside pooh! I remember the wonderful feeling of that myself! Make sure you have your camera/video ready as they are so funny when they are learning about new food! Well my boy is anyway! Have fun x
Hi Sarah, Loki looks beautiful. I hope all continues well today and that he had a better night. We are visiting our puppy today for the first time, also a yellow boy, and will be taking him home in 2 weeks, so I am following with interest your post. I wanted to ask you what soft crate did you get and what size for the car journey? I was thinking about getting one as well. I hope Loki settles quickly in his new home, enjoy him.
How exciting. It's lovely seeing them for the first time, and I found the waiting (3weeks for us) to pick him up seemed like forever! This is the soft crate we got, in Medium size https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0...SY200_QL40&dpPl=1&dpID=51oHiUR5lfL&ref=plSrch He had a go at nibbling at the sides but hasn't done any damage. It's a perfect size for him at the moment and he's also going in it at night in our room, with the top open, before we transfer him to his 24" crate downstairs. It will also be useful to take him to the vets on Wednesday. It probably won't be long before he grows out of it though, so we have a 30" sloping car crate for then
I think your timings are just right. Maybe give him a little of his breakfast - 10g or so when he gets up? It's a good idea not to feed straight away as they sometimes want to get up earlier and earlier for their meal! Glad you had a better night ...
Loki has been laying down and snoozing in his crate today rather than just the floor, so after a play in the garden, when he went in it for a longer snooze I started closing the door for short periods, a few seconds, then a minute while I popped in the next room, then longer for a few minutes when I went upstairs and he's still in there now sleeping while I'm making tea. He hasn't seen bothered at all. Hoping he continues like this this week for short times as I will need to leave him for the first time next Monday when the school runs start again. He can already go a couple of hours without needing the toilet so hopefully he will be fine next week
Sounds perfect - if you keep getting him used to the Kongs you'll be able to pop one in with him when you go they soon get used to digging the food out and then you can freeze them. ..
It's a good idea to get them to wee on command, then you can be sure they are 'empty' when you leave them. Say the command as they are weeing, then - after a week or two - just before. It's a very useful command to have! ...
No apology needed. I reckon more than half the posts on this site are about poo. Quantity, consistency, frequency, placing, producing it, eating it, rolling in it....and worse (I'm talking about YOU, Snowie @MF ) I have learned that this is part of becoming a labrador owner. Enjoy!
Just wondering how much to reduce food by when giving kongs? So obviously if it's just kibble then the same amount of grams, but what if it's something like banana or tuna and cheese, how do I know how many grams to reduce by? He weighed 4kg when we picked him up on Sat so currently have about 60g per feed
Yes I've been saying 'hurry up' in a nice happy way, as recommended by Pippa. At the moment saying it as he's doing it so hopefully in a short time as you say, I can say it before
Again a similarity when having babies or young children. One of the main topics of conversation between parents haha
I use about 5g in each Kong and reduce the meals by that much, depending on the number of Kongs. I only use kibble in Kongs, they seem just as happy with it as anything else. ...
You are doing all the right things Sarah, you should be proud of the way you are looking after this puppy
Thank you. It's really down to Pippa's books that have started us off on the right foot. And of course the advice on his forum. Otherwise I'm sure I wouldn't know what I'm doing
I see the charts provide images overleaf. Now that's something I could've used in the early days!! Actually I'm serious. I only realised we were feeding Snowie too much bone when we took a stool sample to the vet and he saw how dry it was. He said we must change the ratio of bone to meat. So lucky to have been guided to the right balance, but I did feel awful that we'd been feeding him the wrong balance up till then.
@Sarah B such a lovely boy! They grow so quickly, you'll find it hard to believe he once managed to fit on your lap like that!
Socialisation so far has just mainly been getting him settled into the home. He met my mum and step-dad yesterday. They have a re-homed Labrador cross which they got when he was about 7 who stayed at home. He once bit my Mum when they first got him so he's not allowed to be around my children. Not his fault, he was wary, and we don't know what sort of upbringing he had. He's a lot better now though but obviously I have to be careful. I'm sure Loki could smell him on my step-dad. The dog is fully vaccinated. Other than meeting them, so far no one else apart from my Hoover which I did quickly in the kitchen while he was out in the garden with the door open so he could hear it. And also I've mopped. He was a little interested in that but not too much. Yet. I might have friends and their children coming over tomorrow and Wednesday so does that count as socialisation if it's in our home? And his first trip out will be to the vets Wed morning. At the end of the week will be taking him out to see the traffic and other things
