Category: Top Dog

I’m trying to desensitise my 12 week old labradoodle to grooming but I feel like I’m failing.. I try to brush her then give a treat but every time she’s still biting at the brush.. any advice pls?

For context, my dog is 12ish years old and is a shepherd/staffy/boxer mix. He has what my vet described as a fatty cyst on his back right leg by his knee. My vet has told me that it isn’t something I need to worry about but it has continued to grow in size slightly the last few years. I have been getting targeted ads lately for all these different substances that allegedly treat these type of cysts/tumors, so I’m wondering if anyone has had any experience successfully treating these on their dogs. He has some arthritis in his hips and back legs but he still gets around pretty great considering his age, size and breed mix. I just don’t want to see this eventually grow to a point where it hinders his mobility, this cyst is in the range between a quarter and half dollar size wise at the moment and is the only one he has. Thanks in advance for any advice/help you can offer.

My dog had another aggressive episode resulting in the absolute heartbreaking decision of putting him to sleep. I’m crying as I write this. He’s young so it makes it even harder. But he’s bitten one to may and is attacking my daughter and I. He’s been my baby since he was 6 months and he’s almost 9 years old now. I just would like some advice on how to cope with this.

First time dog owner. My dog is 7 months old. We got a Kong retractable leash. I’ve heard great things about this brand so I thought I couldn’t go wrong. She’s high energy as still a puppy so we’re working on recall and not trying to run off. But she’s on a leash!! No problem, right?!?!?! Well, within 10 minutes my puppy was running in front of me and the leash snapped in half!! And she went running down the street!! Took me 5 minutes of chasing her down the street as I’m yelling at her to come back. She thought I was playing, so I know I’m not blaming her. But a leash that snaps on the first use?!?!?! She’s 8 lbs (I was going to attach a picture, but can’t). Leash is for dogs up to 45 lbs!!

I’m so, so lucky a car didn’t come through at that time, as cars usually zoom down this street. I’m traumatized now and don’t even know what kind of leash to get!

ETA: thank you all for telling me retractable leashes are a bad idea. I had no idea at all! However, thoughts on the fact that I wasn’t even using the retractable part?? The actual leash itself ripped in half (8 lb puppy and leash is meant for dogs up to 45 lbs).

Hello all! I need some advice on what to do with my dog while I’m at work.

My question is, from a health perspective, is it better for dogs to be at home and go out for walks as needed compared to being at a daycare where they might be surrounded by dogs of unknown health status? While I can pay for care, my priority is to keep my dog as healthy as possible because no matter how much I love her, it’s not an option to take off work for anything short of an absolute emergency (plus, I obviously don’t want her to be sick). Daycare has been for stimulation and socialization but I’m wondering if the nightmare of bodily fluids and constant monitoring of this weekend likely resulting from something she was exposed to while there is going to become a recurring theme 😬. I would rather pay for daily walkers and have some peace of mind that issues like this will be less likely as she is otherwise fully vaccinated and getting monthly preventatives.

Are there any breeds you recommend to a single person that does not have a yard, and will be gone during the day for work?

Or is this means for not having a dog. I don’t want them to be miserable.

I have a rough collie who is about 75-80 lbs and he has always been a huuuuggee baby when it comes to being groomed. I tried when he was small, but I should've tried harder because it only got more challenging as he got bigger. He'd literally /scream/ at me if I came near him with a brush and would thrash wildly from nail clippers.. and he'd arrooorrroooo and run away if I turned the dremel on two feet from him. He'd never bite me or intentionally hurt me, he really is the sweetest and most sensitive dog… but he would thrash wildly and even busted my lip once by accident when he threw his head back into me as I tried to touch up his nails. That was fun.

He was banned from multiple groomers because he's just so unruly… literally a big brat, but again my fault for not being more diligent when he was little. So I've done what I can at home, but started really trying to work with him this past year.. I had my biggest breakthrough like a month ago though!

I bought these slow cat feeders because my youngest kitties are little pigs and one day I decided to try to use them to smear wet food into them to distract my dog while I brushed him out. I've tried lick mats and stuff, but he'd get through it so quick. The slow feeders are deeper so I can really smear it in. One can of dog food buys me like 30 minutes of brushing, though I have to refill it 3-4 times.

Then I started to thinking about how it'd be nice to blow his undercoat out, so I ended up doing research and ordering a doggy headband that goes over his ears. I haven't tried it with that yet, but his nails have always been a battle and I hate nail clippers so I wondered if the band would make him less afraid of a dremel's noise.

Dude.. I've used the dremel /twice/ with the headband. First session I'd have to balance his leg on my leg as I used the dremel, but no fucks given really other than wanting to put his paw down sometimes to rebalance himself. Second session.. he's laying down for me and just letting me lift his paws while he licks at the slow feeder! I'm honestly stunned. No arroorrooooing and yelling at me and trying to run away.. literally just laid down and licked up his wet food while I went from nail to nail.

I'm just so happy and relieved.. I've always felt so bad when I found mats in his fur or when his nails got too long. He's looking so handsome and I just know he's gotta feel better tooo! ♥ It's sooo important to socialize and desensitize a puppy to being groomed and handled, I get that now, but I'm so glad we've been able to find a system that works for us.

My dog got neutered over half a year ago; why does he still occasionally like fully hump things & people’s legs?

Has anyone taken their dog to the vet for a tooth extraction and cleaning and had to leave them overnight to fast the night before? I plan on calling them tomorrow for clarification, but I just can’t help but think this is odd. They want him there at 4:50pm to start fasting him for his dental procedure the next day which then I can call at 3pm to see how he is and when I can pick him up.

Hi yall! I'm trying to find matching clothes for my dogs and I, the thing is I have bigger dogs (60-120lb) and it's so hard to find things other than matching hoodies. Does anyone have any recommendations?