puppy

sock-knitter

hi, i am new to having a dog, but i have been thinking about it for along time. have been to view a puppy that is absolutly adorable, and is 6 months old. he is a jack russell terier, and isnt yet properly house trained, he has been wormed and fleed, and is on pedigree puppy food, when should i change him to adult food, obciously will be buying the puppy food first to start off with.
will also be buying bed, bowls, collar, tag and lead, toys,
can anybody think of anything else?

vroombroom

I've never had my dogs from pups so cant advise on the food, but has he had his puppy jabs? I *think* they are at 8 weeks and 10 weeks - if not, you will need to get him to the vet sharpish for them.

Also insurance. You can't afford to be without it x

good luck

gettingready

Why is someone selling a 6 month pup I wonder?

Should have his vaccinations by now...at 6 months also can be neutered.. has he got a microchip?

Not house trained at 6 months? Is it why they are selling him/her perhaps?

vroombroom

Oh my doG, microchip!! how could I forget that??! thanks gettingready! x

Beckyy

Why are they selling him? This is a very, very important question. Forget how cute he is, there will be a reason they don't want him anymore and it could mean that he needs an experienced home. How much are they asking for him? Don't be fooled into paying over the odds because he's cute.

When they say not toilet trained how far off it is he? Just the odd accident or going everywhere all the time? Realistically he should be almost fully trained now with only the odd accident here and there if he can't make it out ontime.

Pedigree dog food is rubbish and I would be changing it asap.

Did they breed the puppy? If not find out who the breeder was and get in touch with them first
Is he kennel club registered? If so make sure you have his papers so that you can change the name to you. Many people rehoming a dog 'lose' the papers just before they sell the dog.

If I'm honest I would be very wary, but good luck if you choose to go for him. Ask lots of questions!

Caroline_a

At 6 months he should be well socialised and house trained. If you are an inexperienced owner, personally I would stay well clear, as most people don't get rid of a young dog like that unless there is a very good reason. Why is he not housetrained? Normally it should take no longer than a few weeks or so at the most if you are diligent and prepared to get up early in the morning, and take him out at every opportunity.

Has he been to training classes? What is he like with other dogs? Too many unknowns I would say! The basic equipment isn't that difficult to get, and surely if they have owned him for 6 months and are getting rid, why would they want his collar, lead, bed, etc?

hethmar

Are you home most of the day as it sounds like this pup hasnt had the attention he should have had. He should be pretty much house trained by now which can involve a lot of work by the owner. As also said, he should be well socialised too to avoid any problems with dogs/people/traffic.

Also Pedigree is not good food, so do slowly change that for him. Go for a vet check up when you get him and insure him immediately.

Get yourself a copy of the Perfect Puppy by Gwen Bailey - pronto to help with all the puppy problems. You can get second hand copies on amazon.

sock-knitter

they had a litter of 3 puppies, the owner's dog, had a litter of three puppies, he has been busy building his own house from scratch, i've seen it, its a shell, at the moment. all the puppies looked happy and healthy, but the couple who had them, hadnt had enough time, as they should have to devote to them.
i am at home all day, and am able to take care of him, and meet his needs, and take him to local training classes.
thanks everyone for your advice
sharon x

sock-knitter

well i got puppy last night, and have named him jack, he is very quiet, and dosent seem to like going outside, so i pick him up to take him into the garden, to wee, and poo, maybe he is just quiet after coming to a new home. overnight he didnt whine like i expected him to and this morning when i got up, he hadnt messed in the house. of course first thing i did was take him out. he's eaten and been out again, but other than that just seems to love lying in his bed.
he is booked in at the vets in the morning for his injection, and i will be buying dry food for him and slowly mixing it into his wet food, to get him used to it.
i have ordered the perfect puppy book from amazon, as recommended on here.
also have the number of the guy who runs local training classes, who has been doing it for 20 plus years, and was well recommended
any more tips?

gettingready

Wellll... LOL

Does he pee/poo when you take him out?

Congratulations on your new friend... get us some photos now so we can all go "wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww"

mr_knight

We got a 6 month puppy after the breeder had him returned. We didn't know this when we got him and he had proably been abused. He is now 5 and I have just had the most lovely cuddle with him. He is the most loving fab dog now.

We now foster lost of dogs and the easiest way I personally think to help train a dog is praise the good and ignore the bad. We fostered a dog who urinated for attention. She could wee outside but chose to do it in the kitchen (or on me actually). We had her weeing outside in 2 days. Just have lots of treats in your pocket and when Jack wee's/poo's outside treat him staight away. Sounds like you are doing ok though.

Also I would say don't push him. So many people get a dog and they want to fuss the dog when actually the dog needs to learn things for himself. Our dog wouldn't come to us for a fuss for months. He spent most of his time under the stairs, table or bed (if we left the door open ). Eventually he came to us for love and cuddles but we didn't force it on him. We also had to pop a tennis bal in his food as he literally inhaled it and would choke lol.

Everyone has advice but you also have to do what works for you. Becareful of dog training that involves shaking bottles of stones or anything which isn't positive praise. We took are dog to one and I went twice it was awful. Socialisation is a brill idea.

Godd luck I'm sure you and Jack will have loads of fun together.