New Puppy: wondering a few things.

[james298]

Hi guys so im going, on Saturday, to pick up a gorgeous little girl who just so happens to share the same birthday as me (it's like fate chose us), shell be 8 and a half weeks old. I want to clafiriy a few things so I can care for her in the best way possible.

1) How much should I exercise her to start off with and which types of exercise is best? I obviously do not want to over work her or make her lazy, so what would be optimal. (I understand dogs are different and the rest of it), also, when / how much should this exercise be increased as she ages ?

2) Food stuff. Whats best dry / wet / semi-wet? How would you go about changing diet once shes in my care so it doesnt upset her?

3) Spaying yes or no, im put off by my current dog who has incontinence due to beying spayed and its not much good for anyone least of all her who has to be washed down everyday and she hates water.

Thanks guys

 

[LifeofRubie]

All great questions!

We just got a puppy and we let him play when he feels like and sleep when he feels like it (with the exception of going into a crate when we say so). No leash walks. No stairs. Just 'noodling' around in the backyard, carried around the block, playing with our other dog very gently and for short periods, we've been doing about 30 second of 'sit' and treat here and there. I wouldn't even think of it as 'exercise' at this point.

The breeder should either send food home with you or tell you what they've been feeding. If you're not a fan of it, still get/buy some so you can transition the pup. If you feed kibble (we do) the best large breed puppy food you can afford is usually recommended. I think they can transition to adult food around 6 mos or so.

Do you research but a good breeder will give you a minimum requirement for spaying. We did Rubie at about 17 mos; 3 mos after her second heat - I BELIEVE there is a window of time for females were they've reaped the benefits of hormones but it's not past the point of diminishing return where it creates other issues (someone correct me if I'm wrong). Our boy (he's a lab) is required to be no younger than 14 mos by the breeder but she said if we decide to never neuter him, that's fine, too. That being said, both of our dogs have clauses in their contracts that said they were sold to pet homes and if either had/created puppies, we owed the breeder a LOT of money.

Other folks know more than me and will chime in, I'm sure.

Do you have a name picked out, yet!?

 

[Tropicalbri's]

To DCF
From Florida!

 

[Firestar Dobe]

As far as the spay question...we have 2 females, Dauntless turned 3 in January and Candor will be 3 in June. We had both spayed (after they were in heat and over 1 1/2yrs old) and since the Doc was in there, we had their stomachs tacked as well. We have not had any issue with incontinence, this is not the case for everyone though, it is a risk. Talk with your breeder and your vet. Do plenty of research. Everyone has different experiences with their dogs, so take all of the knowledge you can from this forum and then make the best decision for you and your little bundle of furry joy!

 

[james298]

Hello Florida, Thank you. Thanks Rubie, I have not got an exact name yet but im liking either princess, ebony or midnight, not yet decided. I think i will get her and call her different names on the drive home till i find one that suits her. Never heard of a contract with the breeder other than a welfare of the animal one which i don't think it includes breeding and spaying, but ill have to see i suppose. Although im rather inclined to breeding her when shes in her prime so I can keep a family line of dogs my whole life as that would just be amazing and would have loved to do it with our collie as she was the most beautiful dog ive ever seen, literately a perfect breed standard for a border collie including a extremely good natural ability to Shepard sheep at around 4 months old. Thanks for the help the exercise bit seems sensible and good.

Fire Thanks, ill ask the breeder if hes previously had ones spayed who have had issues in the bloodline and speak to the vet during vaccinationsand checkups to see what they think although im a bit sceptical of vets as they had our collie done before her first season, i think thats the problem.

 

[GOD'S GRACE]

Hi guys so im going, on Saturday, to pick up a gorgeous little girl who just so happens to share the same birthday as me (it's like fate chose us), shell be 8 and a half weeks old. I want to clafiriy a few things so I can care for her in the best way possible.

1) How much should I exercise her to start off with and which types of exercise is best? I obviously do not want to over work her or make her lazy, so what would be optimal. (I understand dogs are different and the rest of it), also, when / how much should this exercise be increased as she ages ?

2) Food stuff. Whats best dry / wet / semi-wet? How would you go about changing diet once shes in my care so it doesnt upset her?

3) Spaying yes or no, im put off by my current dog who has incontinence due to beying spayed and its not much good for anyone least of all her who has to be washed down everyday and she hates water.

Thanks guys

Welcome from NC
1) Puppies need play time and training...not exercise
2) #1 Raw #2 High quality can #3 High quality kibble....There's a ton of info here on DCF on this topic, use the search feature.
3) I leave mine intact for the Hormones, if you do spay try to wait 2-3 years, so she's done growing completely and can take advantage of the Hormones.

 

[james298]

Thanks Grace, I think you misunderstand my use of exercise, I do of course mean playing and training as to me exercise in a dog should include both mental and physical activities and am aware puppies should not do any moderate / hard physical work. I do agree to leave them a while at least before spaying.

 

[GOD'S GRACE]

Thanks Grace, I think you misunderstand my use of exercise, I do of course mean playing and training as to me exercise in a dog should include both mental and physical activities and am aware puppies should not do any moderate / hard physical work. I do agree to leave them a while at least before spaying.

There's one more thing...lot's of naps. (3 or 4 a day while small). They grow when sleeping...it's important with larger dogs.
I know with Grace, I had to put her to bed all the time... She's the Princess of Chaos and doesn't want to miss a lick...

 

[james298]

I did not think of that, I think our last 2 pups naturally went to sleep but I was young so dont remember and our last one was a rescue (love to rescue It feels good but doberman is my dream dog and this is my very first dog thats fully my own so im having a little pup), thank you very good idea that I shall follow and didn't realise.

Do you mind if I ask if dobermans can do agility like a border collie, with my collie I used to do 2 hours of agility with her after school every night, give everyone great exercise. This is something I would love to do with the doberman, i started the collie at around 5 or 6 months and she loved it and gradually built up and it would tire her and they are hard to tire dogs although she had a long walk every day and a short one. Sadly she's now 14 and her back legs have slight arthritis and cant do it any more but still likes a bit of fetch and 2 short walks a day.

 

[LifeofRubie]

yes, we do agility. We didn't start until 18 months though. Partially because I'm new to it and didn't know you could train fundamental stuff younger and, two, to wait until the growth plates were closed before doing the hard impact work. Hope to start competing soon!

 

[james298]

Thank you thats great news, we only did the tunnel and a tiny jump to begin with until she got full control of it and it took until was around 2 and half to have her do exceptionally so it was all pretty low impact to begin with and she was a verry jumpy pup so we didnt see a slight obsicale to be an issue and shes not turned out to bad in her old age althogh it very much depends on the pup in general and how hardy they are and resilient.

 

[Kaiser2016]

So what kind of Doberman are you getting?

 

[Oh Little Oji]

Welcome from Ohio!

Exercise: Let them sort of romp, play and be active as comes naturally to a pup. I wouldn't worry about making them lazy. As they get a few weeks under their belts, and all of their vaccinations (I'm not an expert on those) you can take them for walks but most people say not too much distance. The accepted wisdom is no taking them for runs with you on hard surfaces until, what, 18 months? This is not only to protect joints, but the long bones of the body. I fudged on that one though – could not wait that long. I've not had any problems doing this, and am on my 3rd Doberman. Then again, my first two died in their 8th year so who knows if they would have developed joint problems in the future.

Food: A lot of people in the know feed raw these days. I just won't go to that trouble, and we are vegetarians. So I get a good quality dry kibble and nothing could be simpler.

Spay/Neuter: I have not neutered any of my Dobes yet and have not plans to. I have had zero of the problems people are warned about that supposedly come from not neutering. Now, I understand that keeping a female intact is a lot more work and hassle than a male. Still, I firmly believe (and research bears this out) that they should be kept intact until they are mature and probably beyond.

 

[Oh Little Oji]

Of course, there is "Ovary-sparing Spay" for the girls and vasectomy for the boys. If you have the money. This keeps their hormones available to them (right?) while eliminating the risk of pregnancy and the risks that come with leaving intact.

 

[DN2017]

The rule for walking on end is a minute per week of age. So a 15 week old pup may walk 15 minutes on end before needing a break. They exceed this pretty quickly so you have to keep an eye on that! Good luck with your girl! My boy is 6 months now, it's a lot of work ;-)

 

[james298]

Kaiser im getting a black and tan european little girl, even got a time to pick up, cant control the exitedness. Thanks everyone all great advise. Im sure ill be posting photos of her.

 

[Viemarangelrock]

Hi fellow UK member

You must be very excited for your new addition to your family. Only 1 more day to go *Whoop!*

As for exercise I think it’s important to take note of the picture below...



This is an X-Ray of a puppy, see how far their bones have to grow! Forced exercise is detrimental to not only the growing long bones of a puppy, but is bad on their unformed joints.

Playtime and training is sufficient for a young pup.

No forced exercise - running, excessive ball/stick/frisbee chasing, constant jumping..... (exercise that is defined as "anything beyond what the dog would engage in with dogs of the same age.") until they're about 18 months, or until their growth plates are closed. That doesn't mean they don't need exercise and lots of stimulation but it needs to be limited while on leash.
This will allow you to enjoy many more years of exercising her by allowing adequate skeletal development.

As for food take a look at All About Dog Food.co.uk

A really good, helpful dog food directory.

Your vet will push for a spay. I can pretty much guarantee that (6 months or even earlier) Stand your ground!! I say wait until your girl is mentally and physically mature (2 yrs!) if at all.

Do your research on early spay and neutering. There are health benefits to be derived from waiting until after puberty.

I wish you all the very best with your little girl and keep in touch! I Would love to follow her journey and of course, take lots of pics and post them here. We love pictures

 

[GennyB]

while eliminating the risk of pregnancy and the risks that come with leaving intact.

It is an option, however it does not eliminate cancer. While it is becoming more popular, not all vets do the surgery. So finding one might be a problem depending on where you live.
it's definitely a decision that needs lots of research.
I have a phone consultation scheduled with a vet that does do it to see if it's a good option for Rumor.

 

[Oh Little Oji]

It is an option, however it does not eliminate cancer. While it is becoming more popular, not all vets do the surgery. So finding one might be a problem depending on where you live.
it's definitely a decision that needs lots of research.
I have a phone consultation scheduled with a vet that does do it to see if it's a good option for Rumor.

Thank you for correcting my lack of knowledge. I shouldn't have used the word "eliminates." I usually don't speak when I don't know for sure what I'm talking about.

 

[strykerdobe]

To some of us on this site a Raw Diet is the way to feed.

Lots of articles in the Nutritional Section of this site.
Doberman Nutritional Care

Spaying/Neutering NO!!!

Also I would Not be Over-Vaccinating!



Diagram of Bone Growth Plates Closures Average Times