Cora

I just want my dog to be comfortable and know he could care less about aesthetics. If it didn't hurt then I am sure it wouldn't be illegal in certain countries. Not to mention it's a waste of money- I'm sure he'd prefer the money spent on treats! A little off topic but along the same lines- some vets are doing surgical implants of fake balls- silicone testicles called "neuticles". Talk about how superficial we are! :(

O.K, that helps a little. It has been 14 days and he is very active. Even when I had to contain him for the first 10 days he was hyper inside. I would feel like a crazy woman busting in asking if they took the other testicle. But you know how we can be about our dogs, a little occupied with their health beyond the norm. It's just that I love him! :oops:

O.K- my question is for people who have male neutered dogs. My dog got neutered 14 days ago. It seems half his sac is shriveled and the other side like before unscathed. I touched it thinking it would be filled with soft fluid, to see of he was really sensitive still or healing well. However it was a little bit bigger than his testicle last month and felt exactly like a testicle he had before (like a hard grape). Sorry, I have felt them. When I got him I thought he was female and observed balls growing over time as he hit 6 months last week. Well anyway..... How long does swelling last? Shouldn't the hard sacs there be gone with just an empty pouch? If I have to go in all over again and immobilize him while he heals up I will be VERY angry. I'd like to believe it's scar tissue but it is shaped too much like a gonad would be! Rrrr! And despite his neuter he has been getting erections more lately but maybe the testosterone takes a long time to stop going up. I don't know, sorry for a gross post. I will see the vet anyway but your thought on this til' then are appreciated.

Yeah, I realized my spelling error but I had already logged out. Glad I can make ya laugh though. Well, some people of the new school may be dissapointed but I have gone for the old school choke collar as my favorite choice. My dog does not pull when he is on it and it takes second to put on, not 20 minutes like the Sporn Halter. My dog seems to like it too because as long as he walks nicely, it is very comfortable. He usually puts his head right through the loop or picked the collar up to tell me he is ready for a walk! I have read up on the do's and don'ts as I can see it would be a device to use with caution and only for dogs with strong necks! I do not use it at the dog park or training class as he is still a little too jumpy and I am aware of damage it could cause but for every day walks it has made my life easier! I probably will use it to train but if he needs to have it on a regular basis I do not think that is so bad. And I have been using the treats to deter him from cats and other issues he is having, thanks everyone!

My dog would aim out of a crate to urinate, spraying it everywhere. He did this when he hit 5 months old. Sometimes he'd push the pan out with his feet and went on the floor. I wish I had neutered him when he was younger before this behavior began. He is 6 months and just got neutered last week. If you have a male dog you may want to neuter him before the marking behavior has gone on for a month, you may want to do it long before it even starts. Be cautious of puppy pads too unless you want your dog possibly eliminating in the same spot with that habit to break. My dogs favorite place is by the fireplace where I had the pads for him the first week I got him. I have used a scat mat so when he sneaks off to poop and pee in the area he gets an aversive reaction. My puppy is large and the setting is low, I tested it on my own hand and it is enough just to be unpleasant. So far he comes to me to go outside a lot more than he did before. My dog is hardly housetrained yet, but improved and I have come across unusual issues that I had to be creative on. Doing it by the books wouldn't work and it took me a while to realize that. Just because it is in a book doesn't make it right for you. Keep in mind too a dog that is 6 months can hold it for 7 hours, so he may wake you up at night and if you are in a deep sleep he may eliminate in the house. If you are at work and no one can take him out he will eliminate. I was naive in realizing how often puppies eliminate until they are at least several months old. Clean any area throughly with a pet deodorizer made for that purpose ASAP. And do whatever works for your dog. Some dogs it may take several months, other dogs 1 week. I would never hit my dog or shake him but a good tone of dissapointment and dissaproval at the time it happens go a long way. Ignoring the dog for a few minutes to show you are not happy with him works too. This has only been my experience I thought I'd share. It depends on the breed, the age, the personality. What works for my dog may not work for yours and don't be afraid to get creative.

Where are you finding these cool pictures of dog mixes? Adoption sites? Just curious.

OK, seriosuly I don't mean to offend anyone. I just neutered my 6 month old (today) puppy last week. When I come home or hug him and give him attention he gets an erection. Is that a dominance thing (he doesn't hump me though), is he horny or just plain excited? My last dog was female so I am just not sure why they do that. Now if he were human I would know what it meant, but well....he's not :-?

The treats work great, thanks for the suggestion. If he bothers people all I need is a "Sit" and Lie down"" command with a treat in hand. As well as it gets him moving again if he is distracted by anything else. He gets a treat if he listens to me. One of my problems is cats. I live in an urban area with lots of cats roaming and he really goes crazy, hair up and in shackles, growling, baring his teeth. I remain calm and say "leave it" and continue walking but he is very hard to control (as he is getting big) if there is a cat near by. I have even gotten up close to my friends cat from the window to show him they are nothing to feel aggressive toward but he flips out.

Thanks, I also just wanted to show off his pics. He weighs 50 pounds now on his 6 months being today. He is my first puppy and I have grown up with lap dogs so he is an extra challenge. I was told he wouldn't get over 40 pounds and not know how puppies grow, I believed them. All those things little dogs do and get away with, big ones can't. It means more training. It's very exciting seeing his growth through time and how he changes over time. I wonder what he will look like (and have learned) in another month. I know he is a mutt of some type, hence he won't look totally like one breed. Whatever he is he gets in a tizzy over cats, is territorial (which I am working on) howls like a hound and can run as fast a speeding bullet!

I posted more pics of him on his website... [url]http://groups.msn.com/Dog-O-Maniaphotohosting/tobey.msnw?Page=1[/url] As he is getting older he is turning a little more reddish in color, leaner and longer. I don't see much lab in him, especially as he gets older but maybe I am wrong. I tried to get a side view without his neck turned toward the camera because I noticed he has an unusually strong, long neck. In any case I think he is very handsome (but a bit of a brat). He turned 6 months today so I expect he will fill out in shape even more.

My trainer said he was not being aggressive but I have had him for 3 months and would say differently. The other dog yelped and he continued disregading to to be gentle like I taught him. He has never been aggressive toward people thus far. Sometimes he growls when I walk him, but sometimes there is a cat hiding near by. I heard neutering helps which I will do but what are your other suggestions? I found this cool link.... [url]http://www.pethelp.net/aggdog.html[/url] :drinking:

My dog is going on 6 months and has been barking at little sounds. I live in a busy neighborhood. He acts like he's ready to bust the door down when he hears noises. I like him being protective of the house but do not want to annoy my neighboors so I usually tell him "No". I'd also love to give him a dog door when I am not home but letting a yappy dog outside alone is a bad idea. I wish I could get him to bark at people in my yard or at the door, not across the street or at the creaky door in the wind. Tonight in training class he jumped on a terrier 1/5 his size and grabbed them by the neck. I got to it quickly but was very embarassed (and mad). It felt aggressive and not a play mode I've seen him use with other dogs. Ironically the dog had peed minutes before. After the episode my dog peed in his spot twice. This also made me wonder if it was dominance and not "rough play". When I take him on walks he smells and marks. He is getting neutered in 2 weeks. How long have others found it takes for the marking and other aggressions to subside? I know my experience may be different but I wanted a general consensus. And any ideas on how to get him to use a dog door and be quiet at the right times? Or am I destined to let him bark or just not? Thanks!

I tried the gentle leader and he HATED it. He would put up a fuss even after a week and would refuse to walk, flop like a flounder, sit and dig his feet in the earth, so I gave up on it. He also has some kind of skin problem on his face. A training device is useless if it upsets your animal the first several weeks. Then I tried the Sporn halter. He doesn't mind it but still pulls a little. I will go to a choke chain if he does not do beter leash walking after 2 weeks. I would prefer a martingale collar over a choke but I hear they do not help serious pullers. The big problem is not even that he lunges or pulls, which he does on occassion. The problem is as a hound he wants to stop and smell EVERYTHING, it takes an hour to go anywhere and in the morning I can only spare so much time before work. I simply don't have several hours a day to walk, who does? I always pull on him gently and say "c'mon" or "leave it". On the flip side he needs to walk to be more calm as a puppy to release energy so he needs his walks! He does respond to voice commands more often than not but I must say these two commands 100 times. And I try to praise him when he is walking nicely. We shall see!

I think I will carry citronella spray with me, harmless but turns the other dog away. At least use it on the smaller dogs. I wouldn't do that to a pit bull though because your right they can be a little jumpy :P . BTW, your dog kind of looks like mine a little. Check out [url]http://groups.msn.com/Dog-O-Maniaphotohosting/tobey.msnw?Page=1[/url]

So I'm walking my dog and this other dog comes charging out of the yard gate with his owner. He charges my dog who is acting scared because the other dog is growling. I ask the guy if it is his dog and he says yes but he is harmless. Then the bastard child bites my dog and my dog yelps and tries to get away! And the guy is just standing there so I yelled at his dog and threw my foot in front of his dog's face. The owner tells me not to kick his dog and said if he had his dog on a leash and knew how to control him I wouldn't need to kick his damn dog. It was a great neighborhood conversation :( A dog charging, growling and biting my dog is not harmless or friendly, get a grip! :agrue:

I will keep these things in mind and thanks everyone for your advice. You are all great!

I think this can work and I have seen it work. But I also know dogs don't really know what size they are and my puppy likes to play with toy breeds and I need to be careful he doesn't pounce on them in play and hurt them. He play bit a Chihuahua and put the head inside his big mouth at training class! Just be prepared for an extra dose of discipline to stop things that may not be a big deal with a bigger dog and level of play will need to be a lot more controlled. I'm new here but that's my 2 cents...

I notice he has webbed feet so that is an indication of some kind of sporting dog. And he howls too, it's really cute. He has his "don't mess with me and my house" howl so low the floor practically rumbles as he presses his nose up against the door and then his yippy "Play with me I'm good" and his slight bark "Wake up I need to pee Cora".....

My dog is 5 months and in training school for puppies. He is 35 pounds and pulls on his leash a lot, he is muscular too. I figure next month he is 35-50 pounds and walking will be harder. I was dissapointed the class consists of lay, sit and stay as well as socializing the dogs. I wanted to address the leash pulling before he gets too big for me to handle. He has a buckle collar and a 4 foot cloth leash. I yell no when he pulls and jerk slightly but he seems to have no clue what I am yelling at him for. I thought of using the gentle leader or a training collar but my trainer said I should wait for the next class for it to be addressed because I don't want to overwhelm him. I wondered if she just wanted me to sign up for another class and shouldn't I nip things in the bud as soon as possible to be fair for me and him? My biggest question is why would a training collar or gentle leader not be a good thing for him? My pics of him are here and you can see he has the build where I don't think it would hurt him. Let me know what you think.....

My trainer said a dog door is fine, just try to learn what plants are in the yard to see if any of them are poisonous. ( I don't have too much in the yard). He does chew rocks but is at 5 months and I think in 1-2 months he will be past this when teething is done. I haven't seen him swallow anything but grass though.

My dog is a bit unruly too :-? . No formal training or attention the first few months of his life in a run down foster home. He is in school now and catching on, getting better. Just like people sometimes one being requires more discipline than the other. For this reason he will take two obedience courses. Have you considered enrolling him twice to learn commands and establish the relationship before resorting to this? I'm giving up every Tuesday for the next 5 or 6 months but it will be worth it in the next 10 years! Some people go for a few hours, a few weeks or a several months. He may have attention problems or get excited easily that slows down the process.

Hi thanks, I will let you know what my trainer says. Yes I do have a room I can close off and provide a doggie door too. My neighboors say he doesn't bark much when I leave my windows open and I don't think he will outside. And I could care less whether he digs my back yard up. (And my neighboors have fenced yards and know him if he should ever manage to get out). My only concern is he will eat something he shouldn't and I guess in time I will know whether or not he can be trusted. Life is about quality and being inside all day alone has to really suck for him. Once a week my friend takes him but the other 4 days bite. I sometimes feel guilty of my demands on him but I know his life here is better than what he had at the shelter that took ill care of his health.

He's in training right now. I will ask my trainer about this. I am wondering if he is too young to have a closed off back hallway and a doggie door to help himself out in my fenced yet. That would be ideal if he's ready......

Once a dog is done teething is is safe to leave them outside at their will? I wanted to get a doggie door for my pooch and am wondering if it is OK at 6 months. If not when is it OK? Currently I am single and work full time. I wish I could afford a pet sitter to come everyday and didn't consider these things at first. Right now I don't sleep 7 hours a night because I need to let him out. I know, my fault. I have epilepsy and worry the lack of sleep to let him out will affect me sooner or later and don't know if I can wait until his adulthood. Bottom line, is it better to crate him while I'm at work in a oversized crate with 2 small areas for sleep and pee or better to give him access to my back hall with food, shelter and water as well as a doggie door to a fenced off yard to keep himself occupied and defecate as needed. My 1/4 acre yard is fenced with a 6 foot fence, he has had all his shots and rabies, is microchipped and has my address and phone on his collar if it matters. When he is outside with me worst he does is eat grass. Despite my posts of grief at times I love him a lot and want to do what's best for us, thanks!

He gets a lot of exercise, 2-3 long walks a day and then sees my neighboor for 1-4 hours to run around in a fenced yard with her 2 dogs. However, I think hounds are very high energy and I am very inpatient for a doggie door where I can close off my back room and let him go outside in a fenced yard. He really only urinates when he is in the crate. Which also make me wonder if it is a fear reaction or anger from being away from me. (He likes to sleep in the crate when I am there). I have an appointment to get him neutered in the next month. I do not think 6 hours is a long time as I let him sleep with me and he usually waits longer than that before waking me up to go outside. As I said earlier too he will do it in 1 hour of being in there. I always thought the diaper was ridiculas but your right, bet that would stop him! I'll probably do the plastic though. I think more than anything because he is getting testosterone and teething at the same time I am just wanting support! I am single and work full time. I was silly to get a puppy but now my only choice is to give him back to the pound and that breaks my heart! He could get old and die there. I think he is better off with me. Three friends have told me to get rid of him but I really think once he gets neutered, teething is done and I give him a fenced yard he will be a lot better.