karlin said:
What is that? It sounds like a a fashion profile for TV celebrities...
Something to do with vampires?
Just fyi a spay usually costs about a third more than a neuter as it is more involved. useful as a point of comparison with your daughter's dog.
Yes. Zack's neuter cost more than twice as much as Belle's spaying. It's staggering.
From the other thread on weeing outside -- just thought I'd sugges tworking to get Zack so that you can take him out on a lead. I'd be really concerned about having to put down wee pads every time it rains -- as he will then be like this all his life, considering it acceptab;le to go in the house if he decides he doesn't want to go outside.
good point! So far, when i've done that, he hasn't used the pads, he seems to take no notice of them, and he' didn't pee indoors when i put the pads down, so i haven't really thought about it creating problems. the times he did pee indoors after he was housetrained--three times so far--those were times when i did not have the pads out. so when i left the pads, i was hoping he'd pee on them instead of on inappropriate things. but yet, this is not the message i want to give.
The time to get him used to going on a lead is to take him out first thing in the morning and put him on an extensa-lead if needed so he has lots of freedom to move about and go. Because this is the point where he needs to go, having been inside all night, it is a good time to put him in a situation where he is very likely to have success for both you and him -- he will go, you can reward; thus setting a new pattern of behaviour for him. Then keep taking him out on that extensalead and wait for him to go -- you need to treat this as a total re-housetraining where you need to be surte he goes as youexpect so that he won;t have the option of going inside, EVER. Judy, you really, really, really do not want a dog that you will need to have weeing and defecating inside simply because of rain, throughout his life.
no way. i do not want that.!!!
it's clear to me that zack has always been easy and highly trainable, and any "issues" he's had have actually been my issues or misunderstanding, my own lack of knowedge or skill.
He's more than old enough now to be going out whether he likes it or not -- remember that he doesn;t run the house and make such decisions, you do.
Thanks. as obvious as that sounds, it sometimes helps to hear it in certain contexts where i wasn't seeing it like that. i think i will get him a raincoat
Take along some really nice treat like some bits of chicken or hotdog to treat him as soon as he wees and poops outside. better yet start to train him on a word that you repeat as he goes and then treat when he is done and praise. It is easy to get dogs trained to go on command in this way which is very useful! You will likely have to give some time tyo this initially, waiting for him to go, but you absolutely must do this or he is going to make your life very inconvenient.
thank you very much for this advice and inspiration. Today, i got out the retractable leash i have never used before, it was still in the packaging, the rain had cleared and it was a beautiful day, so out we went. I loved the retractable leash, it was lovely the way he could run more free ahead of me. I'd been using a 6' lead. walking him on the retractable leash felt so much more relaxed. He seemed to be walking with me, rather than being controlled by me. Before this, i didn't let him stop and sniff. I treated it more like exercise and just kept walking. Once in a while, i would feel him being drug along instead of coming with me when i tugged him forward, and i'd turn to find him trying to pee. :lol: I'm laughing at myself. I was not in a mode of using walks for toileting but just for exercise. So, today i was really enjoying him being so free and yet still under my control where i could keep him safe by being alert to what was going on and tighting up at intersections and things. It really felt nicer to be walking together without him being under such tight control. It's a 24 foot leash.
and glory be, he pooped!!
:rah: b*n*n* :fool: cl*p
i was totally stoked.
ever since i got him, inspired by what i read in John Ross's Puppy PreSchool, i would tell him to pee when i put him in the backyard, and would praise him for peeing when he did. I would also do the same wiht pooping but it happens much more infrequently, it hasn't seemed like he was learning it. but "Go pee" has at times seemed to be understood.
i can't wait til the next time it rains. I've always loved walking in the rain. I am looking forward to showing zack how fun it can be.
