Hero the Cocker Update! (And another plea for advice!)

[Karran]

Hero the Cocker that I adopted two weeks ago is so amazingly good!

She's learnt in two weeks to come (unless there's a particularly exciting squirrel to chase) and then that must come first, she's almost grasped the idea of walking nicely on the lead (unless she's on the road home or the road to the park). She knows now to sit when we're leaving the house and not drag me out the door. Not being allowed on the sofa is a work in process though.....

I tried to look into puppy training classes but they're all on Tuesdays when I'm at the yard with my part loan and cannot make it in time, so we've basically been adapting policies that I've used on horses in the past to reasonable effect.
So when she pulls, I make her "Heel!" and walk in a circle around me (I got quite dizzy to begin with!) and incorporating walking past our house as part of our two evening walks as that helps with my naughty mare when its time to go home when we hack!

She came to the yard and got sneezed on by a pony so now she stays a good distance away from them, which is good!

My OH who I don't think has ever stroked a dog before last Saturday is utterly, utterly besotted with her. Its taken me 7 years to convince him to get a dog and now all I get is "Why didn't you tell me a dog would be so much fun?"
I get texts at work to tell me excitedly that she sat for him, for the first time and came for the first time....

We spent a ridiculous amount of time at Pets at Home on Monday while he examined the quality of Kong toys and then had a discussion about whether she'd get bored eating the same flavour food.
"It's like only being allowed to eat Cheese and Onion crisps and never Salt and Vinegar."

She is very skinny though, I feed her Arden Grange dry food, breakfast and dinner about 110g each meal and then when she's home alone (for about 4/5 hours) she has a half a wainwrights pouch or a section from Natures Harvest inserted into a Kong, she rarely eats all of it though, her coat is good quality silky and shiny and she's bright eyed so is this a normal thing for growing spaniels?

She has also come into season (Booo!) We've had about 7 or 8 days of little blood spots peppered on the floor (thank God for wooden flooring). She has been really good about keeping herself clean, but its still a bit minging!

I've never had a dog in season before, so how long would this stage last? Am I right in thinking that the season lasts about three weeks?
I've read all sorts of horror stories about dogs bashing down doors and leaping fences to get to a bitch in heat and that I shouldn't walk her near to home as that means Entire males will be able to follow us home?
How long after the season can I book her into be spayed?

I'd love to get involved in something like flyball or agility with her. So if anyone has any ideas of places near to Greenwich/Bexley SE London/NW Kent area that would easy to drive too, I'd love to know. Didn't have much joy when trying to Google.

And finally videos! (hopefully will work if you click the links!)
Playtime!

http://tinypic.com/r/rsznes/8

Treats at home!

http://tinypic.com/r/2vv6npu/8

 

[Clodagh]

Sounds like she is doing great. I am glad your OH is in love, it makes life so much easier!
Season - they bleed for about 2 weeks then stop and the swelling gradually goes down. It is when they have stopped bleeding they are at their most fertile so be very vigilant. If it is her first it may go on longer than 3 weeks. I always carry a stick and keep on lead for the third week, am just careful before then.
Spay about 2/3 months after it is all over.
Have fun with her!

 

[CarolineJ]

She's gorgeous! We adopted our cocker when she was 12 months old and for the first couple of months she ran so much (having constant access to fields and a beach after growing up in a town was Just Too Exciting!) that she went really ribby. She's three and a quarter now and still very slender, but she's all muscle, no visible ribs any more and at her last boosters in January the vets said she was at the perfect weight. If she's otherwise well and full of energy, I wouldn't worry This was ours at 12 months:

 

[Cinnamontoast]

Re weight/eating, my first two springers didn't care about food when they were little but then became very food obsessed. All of mine were skinny wretches as youngsters. I don't know what Arden Grange is like, but if she's not putting on weight, you could simply add more food if she'll eat it, or try her on raw chicken wings a few times a week, or a fatty food like raw lamb.

 

[Kaylum]

Just walk her as normal try and keep her on the lead and away from other dogs and you will be fine. If she goes on the furniture cover with throws you can wash. Beware afterwards she may have a phantom pregnancy. It takes a good month or so after but it might happen. They can also get infections from having a phantom, stop eating, carrying toys and being possessive. It might not happen. X