Maya!!!!!!

Are you holding a crazy, hyper, cute, sweet Boxer puppy in your arms in your avatar???

I am a dog loving freak....fill me in on your little guy!

I think that's here doggy Rocky I think his name is...he is cute isn't he?

He is adorable!!!

Seriously lady! I want to hear about your boxer baby. I'm a dog-loving fanatic with three of my own:

The boys:

Rommel Roy (Miniature Pinscher/Chihuahua) and Panzer Lee (Whippet/???)


My girl:

Tia Marie (German Shepherd/Dalmatian)

WOW how do you do it Teri??? 3 big dogs a kid and all this house reno your doing? You must be wonder woman

btw your dogs are beautiful

pinkfrog wrote:

WOW how do you do it Teri??? 3 big dogs a kid and all this house reno your doing? You must be wonder woman

btw your dogs are beautiful

Mostly I'm insane.

Tia is 9.5, Panzer is almost 8 and Rommel just turned 6....so they are beyond the puppy stages and young dog hyperactivity thankfully! And I'm a nut about dogs that behave so I have good control over them and they are pretty obedient. (Rommel the little one is the least and actually annoys me a great deal. He is SOOOOO DH's dog! ) The obedience and lack of hyperactivity makes them pretty easy to have around!

Otherwise I do my work when Sean naps. I do put on my cape and fly around like a maniac trying to maximize the 2 to 3 hours I have then! That's why all the projects are taking so long.

Oh, and thanks. I love all three of them fiercely (even the annoying little one!) and can't imagine our insane life without our three pound mutts!

LMAO
Sorry, can't keep up with everything that's going on.
Yes that's the love of my life right now
Rocky. 7 months.
Posted a video of him on my blog. Look at my siggy

Did some tricks with him although he was having an off day but for 7 months I'm so proud

Yours are so yummy cute!!!!
I love dogs too!
People think I'm crazy lol
I'll be rushing to get to work and miss the bus to pet a puppy

LOL! I loved the video of him turning cause he didn't know what you wanted. When we were teaching Panzer to shake, he would cycle through everything he knew all the while staring VERY intently at the treat we had. He figured he'd get to the one we wanted eventually.

They are so much fun!!

I love seeing high energy smart dogs being worked with like you are with Rocky! They do so much better as pets if they are challenged and exercised. You are on your way to having a star example of a Boxer I think.

You cracked me up about Panzer!
LMAO!!!!

When I first taught Rocky to turn I would get so so psyched so now he's always turning
I tried doing roll over with him but he gets feisty when I do so I'll have to wait to do it somewhere with an incline.

But he IS very smart.

He's still has MANY accidents in the house but he doesn't hide it from me and he comes right upstairs to signal me that he made a boo boo.
I guess he knows it's important to clean it up immediately.

How did you house break?

I'm trying to teach him to ring a bell but I just don't have the time to be consistent with it

Most of mine came to me housebroken....my little one was puppy pad trained...which is awful. But anyway...

The general idea is to take them out every couple hours, after naps, after eating and after playing so they don't get a chance to have an accident in the house. And then praise like crazy (which Rocky obviously responds to! But I know you're a busy busy lady! Do you have a yard or do you have to walk him to do his business?

I've never tried to bell training, but I have a dog trainer friend who taught her two dogs to do that! It's just a consistency thing...which is hard if you have a life outside of your dogs. lol

I guess the only thing I can say is take him outside as often and regularly as you can, using a command for him to "go potty" or whatever. Then dance around like a crazy person (and clicking, since you clicker train) and treats so he will want to do it outside! Also keep an eye on his cues. He might not be a dog that comes to get you. My little one didn't for a long time. I just knew when he started sniffing by the door he needed out and I would let him out and eventually he figured that outside was the place to go...and that we weren't going to put newpaper down!

Oh, and don't get onto him for going in the house unless you catch him in the act. Research shows that dogs' memories don't work that way...so they won't associate getting in trouble with the urine on the floor from two hours ago.

I could go on about that in particular withone of our dogs, but I'll stop rambling.

Actually, he knows.
When he does come to get me after the accident, he won't come downstairs with me because he knowwwws.
The dog is so smart!

I'll make him feel guilty for the most part so his ears droop and he gives me the sad puppy face that has me turning around smiling

I do have a yard now but I fear letting him out too often will keep him from being able to hold it.
As of right now impressively enough he CAN hold it for quite a while.

And he knows "go potty" and "go poopie" but he'll pee outside then barely 2 hours pass and he's peeing in the dining room.

I also have water and food out for him all the time.
I know some people regulate mealtime both with food and water so that they CAN be on top of taking the dog out but I can't bring myself to not give him water and food freely.

He's still a puppy and needs to grow so I also don't wanna limit his food intake just yet. Not to mention he doesn't inhale, he eats when he wants and stops when he's full.

I guess it's just a matter of time.... too much time

Ah yeah.

All of that makes sense.

I would never withhold water (unless they are being crated). I do raw feeding, so I can't have food out all the time. I didn't do that even when I fed kibble, but I don't think one way or the other is the "right" way to feed. As long as the dog isn't obese then whatever works!

In your situation I'd just take him out a lot.

I haven't heard or read anything that would make me think letting them out in the yard a lot would make them unable to hold it. Though maybe unable to be willing to hold it. lol! My dogs are in and out allll day long but can be in the house for 8+ hours easily without having accidents. I don't like for them to have to wait that long, but they are capable of it.

I am a huge fan and advocate of crate training from the beginning for housebreaking, safety, training and absences. I might be bias though because seriously that is the ONLY thing that let us keep our first dog, Tia. We have crate trained with our other two and I will never have another dog who isn't crate trained. It's great for them to have a "safe place" to go and does prevent a lot of possible issues later in life. (And now I'll step off that soap box! Sorry!!! )

Maya wrote:

You cracked me up about Panzer!
LMAO!!!!

When I first taught Rocky to turn I would get so so psyched so now he's always turning
I tried doing roll over with him but he gets feisty when I do so I'll have to wait to do it somewhere with an incline.

But he IS very smart.

He's still has MANY accidents in the house but he doesn't hide it from me and he comes right upstairs to signal me that he made a boo boo.
I guess he knows it's important to clean it up immediately.

How did you house break?

I'm trying to teach him to ring a bell but I just don't have the time to be consistent with it

see Maya dogs are just like kids sometimes better LMAO

I am laughing sitting here about the house breaking because I am doing the same thing oops actually I mean I am potty training ds too

I'm sure Rocky will pick the ring the bell signal a lot quicker than ds will in calling me when he's finished

LOL
I have a long way ahead that's for sure!
I love it when he just sleeps next to my feet and doesn't tear up the house lol

I let him out this morning then let him in.
Went up to shower only to come down to his stuffed toy RIPPED to shreds!
The cotton was ALL OVER!
It looked like a sheet of snow on my living room floor!

Came from work, went up to organize the laundry to find yet ANOTHER toy's stuffing sheeted over the living room floor.

I even have the HEAVY duty toys.... he's making his sweet way to tearing them into pieces as well!
Crazy puppy!

Maya do you keep him in a crate or is it a cage (ok hopefully you know what i'm asking lol) while your at work?

I'm crate training him.... I call it a cage though lol
I'm evil

He's so stubborn with everything but he know what go to bed means and does it no problem which is nice

awww makes me want a dog even more, but maybe when we buy a bit bigger house and Liam is a bit older we might consider it.

I LOVE pugs and cocker spaniels, anyone had or have one and care to share?

My brother had a cocker! WONDERFUL pet!
Sheds a lot but they are so much fun.
The one he had would dash around the house chasing the sun shapes on the floor knowing he would never catch them
He did pee from excitement though. Rocky does that too.... I guess it just has to do with the dog himself, not the breed?

He was SUCH a fun dog!!!!
They bought him from a pet shop though so he ended up having health issues which is what I've heard many say about pet shop pets.
They're specially bred and have many heath problems

They then got a beagle.... CRAZY dog.
He didn't like the kids much and was overly playful with the adults so it was overbearing in a way. They ended up giving him away to another family member.

I had a white lab growing up, best dog I had ever had! I don't have many memories of him but the ones I do hit home!

Had a doberman (not sure I spelled that correctly) he was surprisingly good with me as a child and was fun. He loved snow lol

Cocker.... go for cocker

thanks Maya, I really love cockers but its sooo hard to choose the right dog...I did hear about the shedding of cockers and because of their ears being droppy they get a lot of ear aches

I also LOVE golden retrievers and labs, anyone had or have one and care to share this info that would be great too ?

MY mistake! It wasn't a lab it was a white retriever!

And I researched labs and goldens.
In comparison to most dogs they have less issues as far as health.
They both love being outside "to retrieve"
Give them a pool and they're happy
Great with kids and VERY loyal
They shed as well though- generally almost all dogs will shed no matter what when the seasons change. They naturally change up their coats to accommodate the weather changes
Labs tend to bark from what I read so that's something to work on earlier on
Quick learners so training is a piece of cake- key is persistence as with any dog (I'm being bad with Rocky lately

Great dogs!

Crate training is awesome! Yay for crate trained dogs!

Pugs are fantastic dogs too Lexi. They are one of the only dog breeds whose sole purpose has always been companionship! They were used by Chinese royalty as companions and good luck because of their wrinkles.

They are psychotically hyper as puppies but mellow to be great, silly, laid back lap dogs. They do shed like maniacs though....but so do labs and goldens.

Maya's right...stay far far faaaaar away from pet stores. People who care about the health and well being of their puppies breed and choose for themselves who gets the puppies, they do not sell to a pet store to sell to anybody who walks in with a wad of cash. Pet stores get their puppies from puppy mills and often come from disgusting conditions from females who are simply puppy making machines. They don't screen for genetic problems, often have socialization problems and can have a wide variety of health problems. Not to mention they charge insane prices for these puppies (that most of the time aren't even really purebreds....)

Socialization problems!!!
The cocker had that!
He would bark defensively at anyone at first. Took him too long to warm up to people and that isn't typical of cockers. They're usually shy but super friendly. A few attempts and they can't get enough of you.

Definitely no pup stores.

I can't even imagine what happens to the pups that don't get sold.
Where do they end up?!?!

Just posted a video of Rocky in the shower. He is SO cute!

Maya wrote:

Socialization problems!!!
The cocker had that!
He would bark defensively at anyone at first. Took him too long to warm up to people and that isn't typical of cockers. They're usually shy but super friendly. A few attempts and they can't get enough of you.

Definitely no pup stores.

I can't even imagine what happens to the pups that don't get sold.
Where do they end up?!?!

I actually worked in a pet store that sold puppies....before I realized the horrors. To be honest, there was never any shortage of people coming in with too much cash and who didn't know better walking out with puppies.

It's one of those deals though that as long as people feel like they need to "rescue" these pet store puppies, puppy mills will continue to mass produce them and millions more dogs will suffer as a result. There isn't any good way to end it unless government steps in and shuts it down. (Not saying that's a great solution either). It's just sad.

If any puppies did get "too old" before they were purchased, they went back to the "breeder" (puppy mill). Who knows what happened there. They joined the breeding program, went to another pet store or were killed??? I really have no idea. The whole thing is just disgusting.

ugh! terrible!
I don't even want to think about it.
I was actually trying to adopt a shelter pup but the system is so irritating that after paying way too much for cabs to the shelter back and forth I decided against it.
There was such a cute pup, older than I had hoped for but the way he looked at me with those puppy eyes... I fell in love.
They said they needed to keep him there one more day and I would have to come in the morning to put my name in. I told them I'll offer them the money I would pay to BUY a pup just to hold him for me. A donation! And they said no!
Missed out of course. Got there when they opened but wasn't first in line.
Happened a second time too!
The first time I went down, they didn't even have the pup there that I had seen online and called about half an hour before!!!!
Made me jump through hoops to keep a pup off the streets.
UGH!

Happy with Rocky though! In love with him!!!!