Sorry, more newbie questions re new Rottie...

[catembi]

We're getting on a lot better now - I think he's going to turn out to be a real sweetie. Doesn't bark, chew or pick up things that aren't his. Has calmed down a bit with o/h. I also put up a little jump in my school this morning & got him to sit & stay, then climbed over & called him to me. He was having a great time!

Current issues...

-how do I teach him to 'go' somewhere specific? I don't like him going on the gravel or in the long grass as it's hard to pick up. I held him on the lead first thing this morning where I wanted him to 'go', but he wouldn't, then when I let him off the lead, he went on the grass.

-sorry to be disgusting...his poo isn't properly formed.

I *thought* it should look like sausages

but 1/2 of it looks like very soft sausages & the other 1/2 is kind of shapeless.

V hard to pick up. Is this normal?? Obviously I don't know what's normal for him, altho it's been the same since I got him. He is getting 1 1/2 pint glasses of Baker's Complete dry food twice a day & maybe 3 of those treats that look like mini sausage rolls. This is what he was fed by the rehoming place.

-do those dog loo things work that you put in the ground, then put in the poo & then put biodegrading chemicals on top? I HATE dog poo.

Sorry to be obsessed with poo - if he was a horse, I'd know what was normal & how to deal with issues!!

And how do I get him to stop putting his great paws in my lap & trying to climb up? I read on here to stop him jumping up by turning my back on him, but when I'm sitting down, it's not so easy.

All advice much appreciated & I promise I'll stop posting every 2 minutes once I get the hang of this whole dog thing...

 

[CAYLA]

He may be used to passing his motions on grass, some dogs are very picky as to where they do their business, there is a spray you can get to encourage them to pass motions in certain areas, u could try that, I personally would prefer he, crapped on the grass

,u could also try sectioning off the place u want him to go, he will be loose if u have changed his diet, it's more ideal to change food gradually, just for the record, I hate Backers, I would put him on better diet, a good large breed diet, but tell me to mind my own

, it will take a while for him to firm up completely when u change diets or treats, esp id he has a sensetive tummy.

U need to be firm and block him from jumping on u, or molesting u

(that's what rotti's do) for cuddles, they force themselves upon u

Either block him and push away, without speaking, or ignore, if he does not get back when u ignore him, remove him to the kitchen, no speaking, just get his collar and remove him, leave him for 5 mins, then allow him back in, repeat this, if u have to, until he gets the message that, he only gets to stay in, if he lies down, and does not pester, it may be a good idea to get a bed, so u can send him away to his bed, i.e command bed, point, and give him a treat, this will teach him to retreat to the object(bed) when instructed.

 

[LynneB]

sorry, look..me again...

I am afraid I am also not a Bakers fan, it is full of colourings and my dogs have always had poorly bots if they have ever had to have it in an emergency (when useless mum has run out of proper stuff!). It can also make some dogs hyper due to colourings.
My two are on James Welbeloved but even that is not the best. Bailey also has nature diet which is excellent as a top up because, sigh, he is still growing.
He may also have funny bot as he is still adapting and is a bit stressed inside.
Really pleased to hear he is doing better. Talking of jumps, one of my friends competes one of Bailey's cousins in flyball and he loves it!!

 

[catembi]

I've just read the 'foods that are bad for dogs' post above & now I'm

This is all a million times more complicated than I thought.

 

[CAYLA]

Also Re read that.... my rotti gets one meal a day, prob, the equivlant of a scoop, as in the type u use to scoop horse food, and she maintains her 45kg weight, she is also very active, becarefull, with his weight, rotti's are prone to weight gain, and they are piggies

, they will eat as much as they are given

, he has been castrated, and once the hormone balance changes, his metabolism will, and he will pile the pounds on, so try to keep him nice and trim, it's better for him health wise.

Also, the better quality food, the better quality poo

, but like I mentioned, a food change or treats can cause loose faeces, I would lay of the treats, unless, it's for training purposes, and stick with the same one, like the bars u can snap into tiny pieces, so are not over feeding on treats.

 

[CAYLA]

[ QUOTE ]
I've just read the 'foods that are bad for dogs' post above & now I'm

This is all a million times more complicated than I thought.

[/ QUOTE ]

Don't be daft missus, it's all a learning curve, It's best to steer clear of foods packed with colours and preservatives, basically coloured crap

, I call it, like bakers

Go for something with natural ingredients and not all

animal derivatives.
U will gets lots of people telling u what foods they feed, so pick one u think sounds best, I feed mine Chudley's working crunch, it's a plain greasy brown biscuits, with not alot of crap in it.
Royal canine, do a breed specific diet for all breeds, might be worth looking into that.

If u do cahnge his diet, do it gradually, half bakers, and half new, until it's changed completely, lessens the loose faeces.
Rotti's are prone to bone cancer later in life, so best to help him all u can diet wise.

 

[fmay]

I am also in the 'I don't feed Bakers camp'

I swapped a couple of years ago to Autarky.

 

[Bossdog]

I'm also not a fan of coloured dog foods, my GSD has a sensitive tummy and I've had good results with Chudleys and particuarly Autarky. He was on James Wellbeloved for a while but it was so tasty, he ate it twice (IYKWIM

) .

Just my opinion but I feed twice a day, gives them something to look forward to and I think it keeps blood sugars more stable. I also feed carrots during the day, Boss has the most amazing teeth at 8 years old and I put this down to a carrot a day. He loves them and they have little calorific value.

Re: the jumping up, try standing up, no eye contact, strong posture and when he is calm, sit down again. I had to do this a hundred times but my GSD finally got the idea!
I'm sure you can train him to go certain places but I've never managed it, Boss will ONLY go in long grass, not short grass, concrete etc, I think he finds it embarrassing!!

Sorry for the essay!

 

[catembi]

He's on Bakers atm as it is the closest to what he was being fed before. He was being fed Wagg, which I've managed to get hold of, but which will now prob turn out to be no better...

Done some hunting & I'm liking the look of the Burns natural dog food. Not sure I'm ready for the full blown BARF. And not everyone even seems to fully support BARF... Waaaaah.

 

[CAYLA]

Burns is a good choice, WAGG, is a swear word, u should never say that word

Just change gradually, and he should be ok.
I don't do the BARF, unless OH finds road kill

, it's fine, just not for me and my lot

 

[mattilda]

My vet recommended Purina ProPlan which has a food specifically for this type of breed. Large breed robust. I have all 3 of mine on it and they are bouncing with health. Also as CALA says watch how much you feed him. Mine get some of the horses carrots as treats rather than doggy treats and they love crunching on them. Horses aren't too pleased though!!

 

[catembi]

Just out of interest, why is Wagg a swear word??

The Doggy Boyz re-homing place TOLD me to give it to him!!! I was a bit suspicious when I saw how cheap it was, but they're the experts & I'm just a numpty...

So if I gradually swap him to Burns, it should dry up his poo?? If so, I might head off to GM Growers at lunchtime tomo...

What should he have to chew on / play with if rawhide bones are bad? He's got one, I'm afraid... It will be amazing if he's still alive by xmas with Bad Mummy in charge...

 

[moscow_mule]

Hi,you could try Supadog sensative...It is essentially rice,lamb and sugar beet,my three(gsd,belgian shepherd and black lab)all do fab on it.Poos are firm(helps to empty anal glands)few,and no more smelly farts...apart from the oh!! It's not too expensive, I give pigs ears and rawhide as treats...along with the odd pizza crust and leftovers.

 

[kirstyhen]

[ QUOTE ]

What should he have to chew on / play with if rawhide bones are bad? He's got one, I'm afraid... It will be amazing if he's still alive by xmas with Bad Mummy in charge...

[/ QUOTE ]

Get him a Kong!!

Otto loves his, currently he has sat working his hardest to get the cheese out of it and failing miserabley!
Get him a large (or Extra Large if they do them!) Extreme Kong, extra tough.
Otto gets through the extra big chews in a couple of hours, but his Kong keeps him occupied for ages!

You can freeze things, make your own little concoctions, etc, they are great!

 

[CAYLA]

It's just sh1t food to be honest hun, IMO,

others may love it, but it's just a cheap filler, full of colours, preservatives and rubbish, as a rescue, they where prob, going with the cheap option.

I would as Henmeister suggests, get a Kong, fill with, well check the kong fillers post...lol

, u can freeze them aswell, takes longer to get the food out.
Raw hide can be dangerous, it's turns to a horrible elasticy substance when swallowed, I had a staffi puke it back up and choke on it, he found a boarding dogs chew in the van and ate it, then drank alot, puked it and he choaked, as it got stuck, it's put me off them since then

Cooked butchers bones are ok, think huge cows leg, for your beastie

when left alone, always remove when u come home though, same as kong, just leave them as rewards are time passers, when u are not there, not as an ad lib gift.

Be aware the KOng for his size, will be humungus

, I have one for my rotti

, my OH stuffs them with road kill

pheasant, generally.

 

[catembi]

He's got a kong shaped like a dumb bell called a kong dental. It's for throwing games outside & it doesn't come in the house cos it's v heavy & not suited to indoor play...

Oh well, at least I've got one thing right...

 

[CAYLA]

[ QUOTE ]
He's got a kong shaped like a dumb bell called a kong dental. It's for throwing games outside & it doesn't come in the house cos it's v heavy & not suited to indoor play...

Oh well, at least I've got one thing right...

[/ QUOTE ]

You have more than one thing right, u have a huge heart, and u have offered it to a big dumb doggi

to help and guide him, to make u a lovely pet.

The honey comb shaped Kongs are a little different to the dental ones, u can stuff more food in them

And good on u re the indoor play, another step forward in making decisions as to what u accept in the house, no big toys indoors, sounds good to me, it's your home

 

[Patches]

I love how Baker's Complete is a swear word....Jasper's lived on it for 13 years!

He has the Baker's Senior now. I have tried other dog food, but he just doesn't like anything else and we always end up back on Baker's.

He's never had loose poops though, so it might not be the Baker's causing it.

The new dog is on Beta Puppy. I remember trying Jasper on Beta Field when the ex-hubby used to take him beating. He ate it once or twice before turning his nose up at it. finicky toad!

As for pooping....Bess (the border collie) will only poop on grass and Jasper's favourite place is on straw! None of them ever pick concrete to go on if there's an option.

You sound smitten with him already in the posts I've read so far. He's done very well to end up with you as his owners. Can't be the most easy breed of dog to re-home given their size.

 

[CAYLA]

No WAGG...is the swear word

, to me though, not to everyone, I just hate it when my boarders come with wagg.

 

[GT_02]

Burns food is great stuff!! My dog has a really funny tummy and this is the only stuff he will tolerate. If you decide to go for it, i find it's cheapest if you buy online, direct from them.

 

[Thistle]

I hate Bakers too.

I feed my boxer and lab on Chudleys working crunch too. It contains glucosamine so great for the joints of large dogs. Even better than that is it's cheap and VAT free (all working dogand greyhound food is)

I also have rules about large and smelly toys remaining outdoors.

 

[LynneB]

Burns is very good, thinking about it I can't for the life of me remember why I switched my dogs off it last year - will call and order more and get them back on it

Re feeding, I think everyone is different. I leave my dogs kibble bowl down all the time. I am very aware that big dogs can get bloat, the Bernese I used to have lost his mum through it. Mine tend to have a main meal for breakfast and dinner and then graze during the day, it stops them filling up in one go. They have always done this and really are good at self regulating their intake - the bowl can stand full for hours in a day.

 

[Bossdog]

You are not a bad mummy at all, you are a wonderful mummy because you are taking an interest in his health and wellbeing, you are making sure you do the best for him and most of all, you are open minded and willing to listen to other peoples opinions (you don't have to use them!!). As long as you keep it simple, natural and tasty, you won't go far wrong. Oh, and don't be scared to feed veg, it's filling, low in calories and great for teeth! You are doing a great job, he will make you very proud!

 

[foxviewstud]

ok havent read all the other posts so sorry if im repeating what others have said. i got my rottie from a boarding/stray kennels, when i got him he was very loose which turned out to be because he was wormy so make sure you worm him regular and not with rubbish from pet shops because they really do not work if the dog has worms, we have also found that the only food he can eat and be solid and put some weight on(he was very skinny could see his ribs and backbone) is cheap working dog mix anything else just will not keep his weight. as cala said rotties are very pushy when they want cuddles try standingup and walking towards him everythime he does it so you are pushing him out of your area with no contact and then sit down again keep doing til he stays away until you call him over for fuss and as soon as the paws come up repeat, he should soon click on thats your personal space and he is not welcome to climp all over it. good luck im sure you will have lots of fun with him.

 

[EllieBeast]

We used to feed our rottie bitch on Eukanuba, but found it to work a bit like rocket fuel (and believe me, the monster needs no encouragement to be a nutter!). Shes now on Burns dry dog food - as its good for sensitive stomachs (all 3 of our rotties have had sensitive tums).
I hope your enjoying him

Its a wonderful breed to have. Just watch that most of them like to think theyre lap dogs, i had my 30kg rottie trying to fit in my lap last week - needless to say it ended up with me rolling around on the floor laughing my head off whilst she looked most offended at my comments about her weight

 

[sloulou]

Is good that you really thinking about his food - alot of people don't really consider it

Basically - all I have to add is this - Listen to CALA she talks the most sense

My doggie gets a natural/ BARF type diet - or natures harvest/ naturediet if am travelling and need something in a packet. I have heard burns is really good - but there are lots of good comercial foods, so long as you look at the ingredients and don't buy cr@p

re: Bakers - sorry Patches - please don't take offence - but just cos your dog has eaten Bakers for 13 years doesn't make it good... My mum fed her dog on it for 11 years and then when I got my dog and researched food - she changed PDQ and we noticed a difference in behaviour and coat condition - although I'm sure your dog is fine, that was just our experience.

My personal take on Bakers after lots of research in the last 2 years is that it is full of additives and colourings and has lots of sugars so dogs absolutely love it (like sweeties/ macDonalds every day). I would avoid it

Each to their own tho. I just want my dog to live a long and healthy life, hence why I have looked into this alot - can recommend some good books

 

[matthew]

Snap- my dog has had bakers complete for 16 years, no runny poos at all and she is still going strong!

 

[kirstyhen]

My Friends dog was fed Bakers, until he started fitting, the vet said he would need to be on high doses of medication for the rest of his life. They changed his diet and have got him down to 1 tablets every twelve hours.
He fitted last week for the first time in a year, the only thing that changed from his normal routine was he had Bakers by accident!

Otto is fed on Chudleys, when I got him he was fed on an Adult dog high protein working mix AND tinned dog food! I hate tinned dog food, and was concerned the high protein food would a) send him bonkers and b) make him grow to quick. So I swapped him on to Chudleys, he loves it! (Not that, that is saying much, typical springer would eat anything you put in his dish!)

My Mum fed her IWS on Arden Grange Large Breed dog food which was lovely food, but he just refused to eat it!

 

[sloulou]

[ QUOTE ]
Snap- my dog has had bakers complete for 16 years, no runny poos at all and she is still going strong!

[/ QUOTE ]

Bakers has 'stool hardening agent' in it... yuk... no wonder no runny poo

Is a bit sad that people buy food that has that in it just so the poo is easier to pick up

(not saying that's whjy you feed it, but I know people that do feed foods like Bakers for that reason)

 

[matthew]

I am sure that someone further up on the post just said that bakers causes sloppy poo's- which is it?
To be honest, although I love my dog I am not going to be ordering fancy organic food from the internet when she is perfect as she is. Each to their own of course but mine is happy