I am the proud owner of a 9 month old male Viszla. The breed was highly recommended to me by a neighbor who currently has 4 of them. I have several concerns, though with my puppy. One is his amazing strength, another is his propensity to tear everything in his mouth to shreds, which makes it tough to find appropriate toys for him that will last more than 20 minutes (this includes beds). He is also a dominant dog and I have had to "up" my training intensity to survive. I guess the point of this note is does anyone have ideas or suggestions (or empathy)to help. I am obedience training him, walking him, and taking him for a run as often as time allows.
blueboys
11-11-2007, 09:06 AM
hi and a very big warm welcome to you:)
21meg
11-11-2007, 10:23 AM
All pups are like this. My schipperke was biting everything when she was a puppy, and yesterday when I went to PetLand that was exactly what one of the puppies were doing. It's a puppy habbit that they grow out of. Try getting those bones that are tough to chew up, and they're healthy and good eats for puppies and dogs. [They're edible]. And welcome. :cool:
lschefkowitz
11-11-2007, 01:10 PM
Hi Meg,
Thanks for your input, but I haven't found the toy he can't destroy. He's 55 lbs. at this point.
Working Dog
11-13-2007, 08:03 AM
Hi Ischefkowitz,
I got this for my dog.
http://www.leerburg.com/788.htm
It seems pretty much indestructible...and I've had it for over two years! I would like to add that I don't leave toys laying around for my dog to play with at his leisure. They are my toys that I allow him to play with at prescribed times. My dog has alot of prey/ball drive so I use the toys for training purposes and playing a good ol' game of fetch with him. Hope this helps. Good luck.
lschefkowitz
11-13-2007, 08:27 AM
Thank you very much! I will definitely look into this product and let you know what happens.
Louise
siberianhusky101
11-13-2007, 08:00 PM
All pups are like this. My schipperke was biting everything when she was a puppy, and yesterday when I went to PetLand that was exactly what one of the puppies were doing. It's a puppy habbit that they grow out of. Try getting those bones that are tough to chew up, and they're healthy and good eats for puppies and dogs. [They're edible]. And welcome. :cool:
Petland is not a good place to judge puppy behavior. Petland SELLS puppies who likely come from puppy mills and thereby contribute to the thousands of euthanized puppies and dog who could not find homes. not to mention the spread of poorly bred and often ill dogs. If your looking for a new puppy, check out your local humane society where all dogs and puppies are given temperament tests. Puppies biting you can be a show of dominance and should be dealt with firmly, even if it is "cute" (pretty soon that cute mouthy puppy may turn into a big mouthy dog that doesn't know that he is hurting you). it is rarely a "habbit". If a puppy is chewing on furniture, it may also be teething. i recommend tying a washcloth in a knot, get it wet and leave it in the freezer until it is solid. by giving this to your puppy to chew on, a lot of his discomfort will be relieved while his new adult teeth are coming in.
As for rawhides and bones being edible, they are not. Rawhide can be chewed and swallowed, but because they do not digest, they can block the intestines, become lodged in the throat, and cause your dog to vomit it up. do not let your dog eat the rawhide, chewing is fine, but make sure that you take it away if it goes into swallowing.
21meg
11-17-2007, 03:48 PM
siberianhusky101, I'm not pointing fingers to Pet-Land. I'm just saying that mostly all puppies are so young that they are growing out their teeth and need things to nibble on. All of my friends had puppies that chewed on things, just because their teeth are forming and growing so that they need to chew on things so that helps. Because their adult teeth are growing, they bite things. Also, for the edible bones, my mom used to give those to my dog and she really stopped biting things. Neither of my dogs have choked on them or anything like that. Sorry if that was rude or anything but Pet-Land has normal dogs that breeders breed and donate [half of the time]. Anyway, lschefkowitz, how is the puppy doing?
lschefkowitz
11-17-2007, 05:15 PM
Hi Meg,
Jeni is 9 1/2 months old and a very big puppy. He loves to tear things, like rope and mats etc to shreds. He is also a stubborn and strong willed dog. This combination has created a great deal of stress and frustration for me, which was why I joined this forum to begin with. Still hunting around for better chew toys and I have an Orbee ball on order now.
Thanks for checking in!
Louise
Peanut
11-21-2007, 03:02 PM
Just stopping in to say hello. I just got a Brussels Griffon on Oct 2nd and love her so much. She is now close to 4 months old and is very smart and funny. Just wanted to join a forum to talk with other and learn more about their breed. :) Happy Thanksgiving to you all.
kinderwood
11-21-2007, 07:52 PM
Hello and Welcome lschefkowitz! The destruction thing is puppy related, but I would start putting a curb on it. You need to set boundries on what is appropriate to chew and what is not.
21meg, I don't want to sound rude or be highjacking this thread but absolutely NO responsible/reputable breeders donate puppies to petstores. They don't need to. Most will have waiting lists and their puppies are sold before they are born. Besides that, most know exactly where and whom to announce litters as they are pretty active in their choosen sport(s) and, therefore, know exactly what crowd they are looking to attract for their litters. However, if we were to broaden our range of the word "breeder", I suppose there are some who do donate puppies- but none I'd want a puppy from in the first place.
I occassionally give my dogs compressed bones and I've never had a problem. However, I've always supervised them too. They also have a nylabone that they've just about chewed to a nub, so I'll have to get a new one soon as they enjoy them.