[purplesully]

I need some advice please, but first a little background....

I am strongly considering adopting a five week old puppy who's mother was hit by a car. The person is a hunting dog enthusiast and a hunter. She does not want the puppies because they aren't purebred walker hounds. She has pictures of her dogs on facebook. The person lives on a busy highway so she seems to be telling the truth about her puppies.

The mother was a treeing walker coonhound
The father is a Black Labrador retriever

If I choose to bring home one of these puppies...
(1) how to I prevent it from developing unwanted behavior associated with puppies that are separated from their mothers at such a young age?
(2) what should I feed the puppy?

Thank you all so very much!

 

[Chas]

I would think even without a mother they shouldn't be given away before 8 weeks, they learn skills from siblings.

 

[purplesully]

I would think even without a mother they shouldn't be given away before 8 weeks, they learn skills from siblings.

I agree with you, but what we think isn't going to stop the person from getting rid of the puppies one or another. I just need some advice about how take care a puppy this age if I decide to get one of them.

 

[Chas]

Could you arrange to foster the lot for three weeks? If you can't a rescue might be interested in this case. A huge ask I know but I'm still figuring out Echo's kinks from a bad start, lots of socialization and consistency with ignoring mouthing has helped. I think food wise puppy food is good as long as they were weened.

 

[purplesully]

Could you arrange to foster the lot for three weeks? If you can't a rescue might be interested in this case. A huge ask I know but I'm still figuring out Echo's kinks from a bad start, lots of socialization and consistency with ignoring mouthing has helped. I think food wise puppy food is good as long as they were weened.

They were weaned with puppy replacer milk and then transitioned to softened puppy food last week.

Thank you Chas. I know the situation is not ideal, and there will be some difficulty. It's just that I've been looking for a puppy for some time now, and these guys would end up as someone's part time hunting dogs that live in a muddy kennel the rest of their lives if no one accepts the responsibility. There are a lot of hunters responding to the ad, and I've seen how most hunters around my area treat their dogs.

I decided to get two girls. I know, two puppies at the same age won't be easy either, but I will not quit on them! If there is one thing that I cannot tolerate is someone who quits on a life just because the individual had a bad start.

Sorry to get preachy. It's a sore spot.

 

[Aspen726]

@purplesully how sad!

They are so cute! What are their names?

 

[purplesully]

@purplesully how sad!

They are so cute! What are their names?

The one with more black is Cricket and the other is Hopper. I took them to the vet as soon as I got them to get wormer. He said they looked like they have worms pretty bad. They are already more lively then they were a this morning!

 

[Chas]

It's fine, they are adorable! I know the feeling, I can't say I didn't know better with Echo, she was too young, held in unsanitary conditions and obviously sick in hindsight. I'm pretty certain she would have died within 24hrs if she'd been left at the breeder, given how gravely ill she turned out to be. I was not prepared for the extent of health issues, difficulty house training and serious mouthing we ended up with. I still don't know if I could leave another puppy in that situation if I came across it.

Having two seems like the best idea given the circumstances, good luck!

 

[traciek88]

It's smart you got two so they can still learn from each other. And I think you know this and mentioned it but they should be eating puppy "mush", the 2nd level of puppy formula. In another week or so they can start eating normal puppy food. I would also be careful if you keep them both. Two sisters can often get very...nasty to each other as they mature, especially in adolescence. Good luck!

 

[purplesully]

Now that I'm done being angry at the person who gave Cricket and Hopper to me, I can tell you guys some of what their original home was like.

All five puppies were in a less than three foot square wire cage under a carport. There was a blanket over the cage, but it's been so windy the last couple of days that it did close to nothing to keep them warm. The person said that she rane out of replacer milk so she's fed them twice a day with a puppy food and whole milk mixture for the last few days. The bowls in the cage were filthy. There were three adult dogs tied out in the yard. Only one had the energy to notice that I was there... a treeing walker coonhound female. The lady shook one of the puppies and called him a bad boy - not violently, but enough for the baby's ears to flop around.

Right now they are sort of quarantined to a large laundry basket with a blanket next to my big chair in the living room. When they are feeling better I'll let them move around the house some.

Cricket and Hopper have mostly slept all day. Every one to two hours since they came home I've woken them to drink and eat, then go out to potty. I play with them lightly for a few minutes before and after they 'go'. Then I put them back to bed in their basket.
Hopper was so dehydrated when I got her. Her skin is not staying in place when I do the pinch test anymore. Also, I can tell that the wormer from the vet is working (yuck).

Despite everything, I can tell that they are going to be fast learners. Hopper is quick to 'come here' when I call her, and Cricket showed her potential by learning the 'down' command very quickly.

 

[SchnauzerGirl8810]

I'm sure they are enjoying having a warm harm, full bellies, and a loving owner.

I will echo the caution you received about sisters. My neighbor got two chows, sisters, and they fight each other to the point of drawing blood, regularly. It's awful.

So, please spay them when they are older, train them (individually), and give them space from each other so they develop into confident, self sufficient adults.

 

[SchnauzerGirl8810]

**warm home

 

[yoshiposhi]

OMYGOODNESS THEY ARE SOOOO CUTE!!!!!! That is such a heartbreaking story but I'm glad you were able to rescue these two and give them a wonderful new home. Please update us with lots of puppy pics so we can watch them grow!!!!

 

[sullyrules]

Now that I'm done being angry at the person who gave Cricket and Hopper to me, I can tell you guys some of what their original home was like.

All five puppies were in a less than three foot square wire cage under a carport. There was a blanket over the cage, but it's been so windy the last couple of days that it did close to nothing to keep them warm. The person said that she rane out of replacer milk so she's fed them twice a day with a puppy food and whole milk mixture for the last few days. The bowls in the cage were filthy. There were three adult dogs tied out in the yard. Only one had the energy to notice that I was there... a treeing walker coonhound female. The lady shook one of the puppies and called him a bad boy - not violently, but enough for the baby's ears to flop around.

Right now they are sort of quarantined to a large laundry basket with a blanket next to my big chair in the living room. When they are feeling better I'll let them move around the house some.

Cricket and Hopper have mostly slept all day. Every one to two hours since they came home I've woken them to drink and eat, then go out to potty. I play with them lightly for a few minutes before and after they 'go'. Then I put them back to bed in their basket.
Hopper was so dehydrated when I got her. Her skin is not staying in place when I do the pinch test anymore. Also, I can tell that the wormer from the vet is working (yuck).

Despite everything, I can tell that they are going to be fast learners. Hopper is quick to 'come here' when I call her, and Cricket showed her potential by learning the 'down' command very quickly.

Very cool! One quick suggestion I can make is to lay the towels over the side of the laundry basket. They are going to start chewing on everything soon and that basket looks like it will not hold up well!

For food I suggest using the esbilac 2nd step stuff(http://amzn.to/1VWzLYF) and when that is close to being done, I usually get a good puppy food(my go to choice for quality/price is Taste of the Wild), mix it with water in a blender with a bit of the formula powder.

when mixing the dry food with water in a blender you'll noticed the liquid level drop after about a minute(you'll know what im talking about when you see it) that's when it's mixed enough.

another valuable resource for food choice is Best 5-Star Wet Puppy Foods

One other thing about feeding, use a platter type plate to when you feed them. In my experience, if they have to "posture" with each other to get at the food it can sometimes lead to problematic food related behavior. You can see the one we use for our fosters in this video: https://twitter.com/4daall/status/711931346558566400

I'm somewhat of a seasoned pro on puppies these days so I'll be happy to help with any questions you may have....ill keep a close eye on this thread!

 

[purplesully]

Thank you everyone for the great tips!!! I've also been reading some here and there, but hearing it from experienced dog owners really helps.

 

[JudyG]

Gorgeous little girls so glad you got to them before they were passed on to someone with not so good intentions. :huddle:

 

[purplesully]

Good morning!!!!! I moved Cricket and Hopper to a big clear plastic storage bin with taller sides (thank you SullyRules for your suggestions). The girls slept well through the night. They did not have any accidents. Around four in the morning they woke me so I took them out, fed them a small meal, and took them out again. They had lots of normal puppy energy (finally!) so they played for about half an hour. Then one more potty break before I put them back to bed.

Yesterday evening I introduced the girls (one at a time) to the baby chickens that hatched three weeks ago. A couple of the chicks were so very curious of the new 'people' in their home and got real close to investigate.
Hopper sniffed, then turned her head. She was immediately rewarded with a tiny piece of soft dog treat and words to praise to encourage that same reaction in the future.
Cricket watched for a minute, leaned forward to sniff, and was pecked on the nose! LOL It did not deter her though. She sniffed again, licked, and turned her head. She was immediately rewarded for her non-obsessive behavior.

The girls' fur is getting so shiny, and their bellies are much less bloated.

 

[Jenibelle]

Such polite little girls!

 

[purplesully]

Such polite little girls!

Thank you! I'm hoping that with lots of consistency and patients they will learn that watching the chickens is better than chasing them. fingers crossed

 

[purplesully]

Here is a video of Cricket showing off how smart she is. From looking at her, you wouldn't even guess how she started life! Hopper was playing with one of the kids during this fun mini training session. I can't believe how fast they're recovering.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6qFA6ps3pA&feature=youtu.be