Another new owner

rootbeerlove · 04-28-2010, 10:45 AM

Hi, I'm Annemarie, and my husband and I are proud new parents/owners of a basset mix, Harriet.

She basset and... something. Born Feburary 5th, so she's almost 3 months. We'd appreciate any awesome tips you have. We already had a scare, she came home and puked the next day, stopped eating and was dehydrated. Vet fixed her up with some fluids and acid reducers and she's all better now. I find, however, that I'm having new puppy nerves! I worry I'm not feeding her right etc. Right now, she gets half a cup 3 times a day. I've heard both to reduce and increase that amount, and advice on that or general puppyness? Thanks!!!!

Here she is! (click for her picture, I tried to insert it, but something obviously went wrong)

rw02kr43 · 04-28-2010, 10:56 AM

Jason

FloppyToby · 04-28-2010, 01:17 PM

awww what a cutie!! puppies are a lot of work, i think the only thing getting me through toby's first year (he is currently 5 mos) is how stinkin' cute he is. he has a hamburger toy just like that! welcome to the forum!

Josie's Dad · 04-29-2010, 08:02 AM

She looks like a BAsset mixed with a Golden Retriever. I could be wrong.

FloppyToby · 04-29-2010, 08:44 AM

maybe some kind of heeler?

lvnMattie · 04-29-2010, 09:25 AM

Harriet is so cute. Welcome to the board, as long as Harriet is happy and healthy then you are doing a good job. Having a puppy is wonderful, you get to watch the first for them. I always tell everybody (when Mat was a puppy) that it is like having a newborn baby, cause you have to watch everything they do cause they get into everything, you have to feed them, I had to get up every two to four hours with Mat to let her out when she was a puppy. But it is the most rewarding experience to have something so cute that loves you so much back. And it feels so great to come home from a hard day at work or where ever and have a little creature so excited to see you.

Mikey T · 04-29-2010, 08:42 PM

Quote:

I've heard both to reduce and increase that amount, and advice on that

The only way to properly ascess how much or little to feed is by examining the effect it has on the dog's/puppy's body condition, that is percentage of body fat. That is if the dog is too fat feed less too thin feed more. however some caveats and links to judging body condition.

Many large breed orthopeadic conditions originating in puppyhood are liked to overnutrition, feed to much. It is therefore recommend the ideal body condition on a scale of 1-5 is a 2 i.e. thin for large breed puppies.

Dog Diet Do's and Don’t's
[quote]

Your dog's lifestage affects his energy needs.

According to Dr. Tony Buffington, Professor of Clinical Nutrition, Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, your puppy can be fed a regimen of specific caloric intake compared to his body condition score (BCS), using a simple one to five scale, from overly thin to obese. Using manufacturer feeding recommendations as an initial starting point, feed your puppy to a score of two and maintain this weight until he's fully grown. Feed whatever amount is necessary to maintain a BCS of two during the growth period, realizing that dogs have varying growth rates and activity levels. Once his adult stature is achieved, you may allow him to reach a score of three.

Feeding during growth & develop habits: Timing and training, watch the dog not the dish!

...
2 = Thin - Ribs easily palpated and may be visible with no palpable fat. Tops of lumbar vertebrae visible. Pelvic bones less prominent. Obvious waist and abdominal tuck. [/url]

Corpulent Canine

Quote:

People don't know how to determine the correct weight for their dogs. Dogs vary in height, bone structure, and muscularity, so there is no one correct weight for a dog of any given breed. The best way to determine whether a dog is overweight is to test 3 different parts of the body: the neck, the ribs, and the hips.

<LI type=a>To check the neck, press your thumb and index finger deep into the side of the neck just ahead of the shoulder, and pinch them together. If your fingers are more than 1/2" apart, the dog is overweight. (Note: this is where old dogs tend to carry most of their excess fat, and they may actually be thin in other locations.) <LI type=a>To check the ribs, stand with your dog beside you, facing his butt. Place your thumb on the middle of his spine half way down the back and spread your fingers out over his last few ribs. Then run your fingers up and down along his skin. You should be able to feel the bumps of his ribs without pressing in.
To check the hips, run your hand over your dog's croup. You should be able to feel the bumps of his two pelvic bones without pressing down.

Some of you may be reading this and thinking, "I would never want my dog to be that skinny!" Think about the Olympic athletes. If you want your dog to be an athlete then it is only fair that you do what you can to help him achieve the body that he will need to perform and stay healthy and injury free for many years.

Purina® Study Confirms Link Between Body Fat and Chronic Health Conditions

Quote:

Other Purina research found that most owners couldn't accurately assess their dogs' body conditions. When owner and expert scores were compared, only 28 percent of owners characterized their pets as above ideal body condition, while 79 percent of the experts scored those same animals to be above ideal body condition. Dr. Larson says this gap is serious because pet owners are not likely to recognize that their pets are overweight and even moderate excess body fat can lead to problems.

What this adds up to is if you don't think your puppy is thin it is likely overweight and should be fed less.

gsally · 04-29-2010, 10:26 PM

We were very careful not to feed our first pup anything but the food recommended by our vet. No table scraps, no bites of our food, very limited treats (only for training). We stuck to this really good for about three years. After that, we did give her treats of people food. Although she stalked us for food if we were eating in front of the TV or something, she never "hounded" us at the dining table. She did the typical food thief stunts but never in excess. The VET was always pleased with her weight, around 50 pounds, til she hit 9, then went up to 53-54. People would comment on how "fit" she looked. I think it all started because we strickly followed the Vet's recommendation and were very careful not to over feed when she was a pup. Mikey T is right on!

And BTW.........welcome and good luck, your pup is too cute! Love her name and name sake story!

hig4s · 04-30-2010, 07:38 AM

Our last Basset we allowed to eat as much as she wanted as often as she wanted, we also gave her treats regularly, and gave her people food, (but not table scraps, if it wasn't good enough for us to eat we wouldn't give it to her). I really think he knowing he food was always there, and knowing that should would regularly be getting something she liked better than the food is why she only at the dog food when she was really hungry, and she stayed right at 43lbs her whole adult life.

I don't understand why so many people are against feeding them human food, if you look at the ingredients of the better dog food and treats it is made from the same stuff we eat, (or at least the stuff we are suppose to be eating) unlike the cheap stuff.

Right now with our two new pups, we never pick up the food, and they do not seem to be over eating. We do give them a fair amount of treats a day, mostly in training situations, but we make sure it is better quality stuff and/or stuff that is good for them. They actually seem to get anxious and eat more when the bowl starts getting low, if we keep it full they seem to eat less. We will watch them in case they start to get to chubby, but so far so good.

rootbeerlove · 04-30-2010, 08:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikey T

...
2 = Thin - Ribs easily palpated and may be visible with no palpable fat. Tops of lumbar vertebrae visible. Pelvic bones less prominent. Obvious waist and abdominal tuck.
.

That's what I'm seeing, and I am convinced at this point that the problem is within me.

Bear with me guys, she is like a newborn, and this is my first one....

04-28-2010, 10:45 AM	#1 (permalink)
rootbeerlove Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 43	Another new owner Hi, I'm Annemarie, and my husband and I are proud new parents/owners of a basset mix, Harriet. She basset and... something. Born Feburary 5th, so she's almost 3 months. We'd appreciate any awesome tips you have. We already had a scare, she came home and puked the next day, stopped eating and was dehydrated. Vet fixed her up with some fluids and acid reducers and she's all better now. I find, however, that I'm having new puppy nerves! I worry I'm not feeding her right etc. Right now, she gets half a cup 3 times a day. I've heard both to reduce and increase that amount, and advice on that or general puppyness? Thanks!!!! Here she is! (click for her picture, I tried to insert it, but something obviously went wrong) Last edited by rootbeerlove; 04-28-2010 at 10:46 AM. Reason: added picture...

04-28-2010, 10:56 AM	#2 (permalink)
rw02kr43 Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 5	puppy Jason

04-28-2010, 01:17 PM	#3 (permalink)
FloppyToby Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Texas Posts: 186	awww what a cutie!! puppies are a lot of work, i think the only thing getting me through toby's first year (he is currently 5 mos) is how stinkin' cute he is. he has a hamburger toy just like that! welcome to the forum! __________________ A basset is an asset!

04-29-2010, 08:02 AM	#4 (permalink)
Josie's Dad Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 47	She looks like a BAsset mixed with a Golden Retriever. I could be wrong. __________________ When Josie comes home...it's so good!

04-29-2010, 08:44 AM	#5 (permalink)
FloppyToby Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Texas Posts: 186	maybe some kind of heeler? __________________ A basset is an asset!

04-29-2010, 09:25 AM	#6 (permalink)
lvnMattie Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Virginia Posts: 202	Harriet is so cute. Welcome to the board, as long as Harriet is happy and healthy then you are doing a good job. Having a puppy is wonderful, you get to watch the first for them. I always tell everybody (when Mat was a puppy) that it is like having a newborn baby, cause you have to watch everything they do cause they get into everything, you have to feed them, I had to get up every two to four hours with Mat to let her out when she was a puppy. But it is the most rewarding experience to have something so cute that loves you so much back. And it feels so great to come home from a hard day at work or where ever and have a little creature so excited to see you.

04-29-2010, 10:26 PM	#8 (permalink)
gsally Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: PA Posts: 275	We were very careful not to feed our first pup anything but the food recommended by our vet. No table scraps, no bites of our food, very limited treats (only for training). We stuck to this really good for about three years. After that, we did give her treats of people food. Although she stalked us for food if we were eating in front of the TV or something, she never "hounded" us at the dining table. She did the typical food thief stunts but never in excess. The VET was always pleased with her weight, around 50 pounds, til she hit 9, then went up to 53-54. People would comment on how "fit" she looked. I think it all started because we strickly followed the Vet's recommendation and were very careful not to over feed when she was a pup. Mikey T is right on! And BTW.........welcome and good luck, your pup is too cute! Love her name and name sake story!

04-30-2010, 07:38 AM	#9 (permalink)
hig4s Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 112	Our last Basset we allowed to eat as much as she wanted as often as she wanted, we also gave her treats regularly, and gave her people food, (but not table scraps, if it wasn't good enough for us to eat we wouldn't give it to her). I really think he knowing he food was always there, and knowing that should would regularly be getting something she liked better than the food is why she only at the dog food when she was really hungry, and she stayed right at 43lbs her whole adult life. I don't understand why so many people are against feeding them human food, if you look at the ingredients of the better dog food and treats it is made from the same stuff we eat, (or at least the stuff we are suppose to be eating) unlike the cheap stuff. Right now with our two new pups, we never pick up the food, and they do not seem to be over eating. We do give them a fair amount of treats a day, mostly in training situations, but we make sure it is better quality stuff and/or stuff that is good for them. They actually seem to get anxious and eat more when the bowl starts getting low, if we keep it full they seem to eat less. We will watch them in case they start to get to chubby, but so far so good.

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