243. The male Shih Tzu "cannot" be paper-trained?

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

Male Shih Tzu, Gold/White, 11 weeks.
Playpen. Water bottle at upper left. Cloth bed at lower right. Newspapers on floor. Feed bowl removed after eating. Puppy let out of the apartment, so he poops outside.

"Too much space," I said. "He does not know where his toilet location should be."



However, the owner said that they could not catch him about to pee or poop. When they saw signs of sniffing and turning, they wanted to catch him and put him onto the playpen. But not successful. So, now they put him inside the kitchen. At least this puppy will not soil the whole apartment.

But he would not be paper trained so easily. The cleaning up was stressful, the mother said. Besides the puppy likes to "bite" when disciplined. Some male puppies like the Shih Tzu knows who to bully and usually they test the ladies of the apartment by barking back or biting them.

It is hard for ladies to be firmer but this must be done. Confine to a very small area. He will bark a lot. Ignore his barking, if possible. Monitor signs of sniffing and turning. Carry him to the newspapers and say "pee here." Give treats. Praise lavishly.

In this type of cases, it may take 2 - 3 months to paper-train the puppy.

242. Heart-shaped Jack Russell sleeps inside the feed bowl

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

The female, 10-week-old Jack Russell had a heart-shaped patch making so so distinguished. Very clean. The owners wiped her paws and her body. She was kept inside a wire crate with pee tray below.

A male 2-year-old Jack Russell was paper-trained. He uses the pee pan on which newspapers were placed. "Lots of whacking," the young owner said, before the older dog was paper-trained.

But this new puppy was still not paper-trained after 1 month of purchase. Why?

WIRE CRATE. Water bottle on left lower corner. Feed bowl on right lower corner. Pooped mainly on upper middle top area. Bites and pees on cloth towel placed on right lower corner. Prefers to curl up and sleep inside the feed bowl with legs sticking out.



There was no newspapers to train her. Should papers be put inside the crate or on the pee pan?

I adivsed extending the wire crate by putting up 3 panels of fences outside the crate to give the Jack Russell additional play and sleeping clean area. Then she will use the crate as a toilet. Will this work?

It is best to feed outside the crate. Remove the feed bowl after eating. The clean area where the feed bowl or towel cloth bed is located is the sleeping area for the puppy. The feed bowl has been located on the sleeping area. So the puppy sleeps inside the feed bowl. Buy a puppy bed or remove the feed bowl and put on the towel cloth bed again. Will this work?

241. Beagle watched like a hawk: paper-trained in 7 days.

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore



"The puppy is paper-trained in 7 days?" I repeated my question. Such success stories are rare. What was the secret as the Beagle was kept in a crate in the pet shop and had no paper-training.

The Beagle was just purchased from a pet shop as a present for a 8-year-old Caucasian girl who has a younger sister.

"What did you do on the first day after purchase?" I asked. "Did the puppy pee and poop everywhere in the house?"

"On the first day, we let the Beagle out because she jumped and howled inside the playpen. She eliminated all over the house."

This is a common experience of first-time puppy owners. So what did the mother do to paper-train a puppy in 7 days?

"Whenever, she has accidents, we would say, 'No, Girl' and put her onto the newspapers."

I did not think it was that simple and asked more questions.

"We also watch her like a hawk. My husband, 2 children and the domestic worker. Everytime we see her sniffing or circling, we carry her to the papers. Lavish praises when she did her business."

This monitoring and teaching the puppy was the secret of success for paper-training in 7 days. Lots of work and time but worth all the trouble. The puppy slept in the kitchen and had newspapers there as well.

240. Singapore Pet Shop Surveys & Advertisers

January 10, 2006

From: Dr Sing Kong Yuen, Veterinary Surgeon, Toa Payoh Vets, www.toapayohvets.com
Blk 1002, Toa Payoh Lor 8, 01-1477, Singapore 319074. +65 6254 3326, +65 9668-6468, +65 6256 0501 (fax), judy@toapayohvets.com, www.toapayohvets.com

To: Pet shop operators, breeders and advertisers.

REFERENCE:
Dr Sing's Puppy Book: Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore
Dr Sing Kong Yuen, BVMS (Glasgow), MRCVS

PET SHOP SURVEY & ADVERTISEMENTS

1. When my book is published in 2006, over 300 puppy owners would have shared with me their ideas of puppy toilet training and challenges encountered after the purchase of a puppy.

2. This "How-To Toilet-Train Your Singaporean Puppy" is based on Singaporean situations. It will be a very useful educational book for Singapore pet shop operators, puppy sellers, breeders, first-time puppy owners, domestic workers caring for the new puppies and children given puppies as presents.

3. PET SHOP SURVEY. I need some local information from pet shop operators. Please give me a list of the top 5 products (brands, types, names etc) you sell in 2004 -2005. I need more information on the following to complete my book.

Food, Treats, Bowls, Feeders, Water Bottles, Chew Toys, Leashes (Nylon, Leather, Others), Crates, Beds, Fleas and Tick. Medicines. Your information will be kept confidential. Your pet shop's name will be acknowledged in the book.

4. ADVERTISEMENTS. Full page: $1,200. Half page: $700. Quarter page: $500.
Inside front page: $3,000. Back page: $4,000. Front page (middle 1/3): $6,000. E-mail to judy@sinpets.com, tel: +65 9668-6468 to confirm your advertisements.

Read their fascinating stories and see pictures, from my research from 2004 - 2006, recorded in http://puppytoilettraining.blogspot.com/
Contact judy@toapayohvets.com, +65 9668-6468 if you need more details.

239. Stale canned food causing diarrhoea? Roundworms in Yorkshire Terrier

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

"Have you dewormed your puppy?" I asked. Loose stools and some blood were seen for the past 4 days after purchase. During the first 4 days, the stools were well formed.

"I think the diarrhoea is due to my husband feeding him some stale canned food."

"How do you know it is stale?" I asked her.

"The colour is different," she said. Food poisoning, licking the surroundings, change of feed formula, viruses, bacteria, and stress could be causing this diarrhoea, other than worms.

On day 10, 2 roundworms were passed out. So, one major cause of the loose stools could be worms. The owner was given deworming tablets.



TOILET TRAINING

1. ROUNDWORMS. Diarrhoea would upset the toilet training schedule.

2. FREEDOM TO ROAM the kitchen, living area and utility area. This affected the success of paper training. The puppy needed to be supervised closely as he might chew wires.

3. BARKING DURING THE FIRST 7 DAYS. When his barking to come out of the crate at night was ignored, he settled down and slept inside the crate. However, the puppy barks a lot when the owner is home. So, he was let out of the crate.

By reacting to misbehaviour (barking), the puppy is rewarded by being let out of the crate. This will make it harder to stop barking behaviour. The ideal method would be:

3.1 Ignore barking. Don't make eye contact or touch him or react to him.
3.2 Reward him for not barking by letting him out.
3.3 If he barks, put back into the playpen.


4. FEEDING 3 - 4X/DAY. Very small breeds like the Yorkshire, Pomeranian, mini-Maltese and Chihuahua may have low blood sugar at 2-4 months of age. Feeding more than 2X per day is a good idea. In this case, the Yorkshire finished the dry food fast. So, the amount eaten per day can be monitored. The feedbowl is taken out after feeding.

5. TOO YOUNG TO TOILET TRAIN?

The young lady owner seemed to think 4 months is too young to be toilet train. After all, babies do not get toilet training till 18 - 24 months of age.

He is ready for paper-training. The owner needed to know how to do it. He poops 3-4 x/day because he is fed 3 - 4 x/day. Watch for signs of sniffing, turning and squatting. Bring him to the papers, say "Poop here". Praise and reward him with a food treat for his performance.

238. Carrot & Cudgel for a puppy Cocker Spaniel. An adult Cocker Spaniel Rage

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore



"She spanked the puppy on top of his head," to my amazement when the fidgety Cocker Spaniel wanted to leap off the consulting table, shooting like a golf ball high up in the greens, as if trying to get out of a danger situation.

The Cocker Spaniel seemed to be having a veterinary consultation table phobia as he was quiet when he was in the waiting room. I don't know if he had a bad experience earlier. Excellent condition. Very well groomed. No dirty ear canals, glossy coat. One or two pimples in his thigh. The working couple were the internet generation, in their late twenties. No children. Researched a lot on the internet.

I was thus surprised that the slim lady owner with black-framed glasses were not aware that the spanking of the top of the head might cause brain bleeding or damage.
I advised against spanking on the head.

The carrot and cudgel treatment to modify this Cocker's Spaniel behaviour seemed to work in toilet training. It took 4 weeks to paper-train him. He would invariably bark after peeing on the papers in the toilet, waiting for a treat to be given.

I assumed he would do the same for after pooping. No, he would just eat his poop if the owner did not stop him fast enough.

"How to stop his poop-eating?" the young lady asked. "The internet research offered no solutions."

"Nobody has a sure way to stop this habit," I said. "Taking away the stools quickly seems to be the only recommendation."

I continued, "You could try giving him slices of pineapples inside his food. When he eats stools, he may not like the taste of pineapples, according to some owners. I don't guarantee it will work."

The young lady said, "The puppy disliked pineapples when I first gave him. He would ask for apples and other fruit."

Could the pineapples really work in this case? I asked her to let me know.

The other method is to put a can of coins on top of the door or someplace in the toilet. When the puppy opens his mouth to eat stools, the can drops on the floor. He stops eating the stools. Using loud noise to modify his behaviour. Or use a water pistol to squirt water into his face when he is about to eat stools.

"You may need to install a video cam," I guessed. "Otherwise the puppy would know you are the one making the can drop."

These ideas were from other dog owners or from dog books. Too troublesome. Wait for pineapples. The owner presently spanked him when he ate stools. The interesting behaviour is that the puppy never asked for treats in the toilet after pooping. Only for peeing.

So, is there some idea on how to resolve this coprophagia problem? The owners work, so it is hard for them to stop this behaviour.

On writing this report, I think there is one way in this situation.

As the puppy is fed twice a day, and he usually poops within 30 minutes after eating, why not bring him downstairs to the grass and let him poop downstairs. Give him a treat. Exercise him. He will then forget about eating his poop as he breaks out of his bad habit.

BITING PEOPLE. The puppy bit me when I restrained him on the consultation table. This puppy may bite people when he grows bigger and stronger if not trained. I just neutered a 2-year-old male Cocker Spaniel this morning. The owner did not accept my advice to neuter at 9 months of age. He just got bitten on his finger when the Spaniel was moody.

So, he wanted to euthanase it. His wife did not want him to do it. The seller, a dog breeder advised him to give the dog a last chance. To ask me to neuter him.

This was a dog he could not handle for tranquilisation. He would not allow him to be muzzled. So what to do?

My veterinary assistant Annie did not say much but her eyes widened and her heart must be beating furiously as I asked her to handle the dog for me to tranquilise. I would never let her be bitten but she had got to learn how to handle fierce dogs if she wanted to be a good veterinarian when she set up practice in her country. What should she do?

I taught her the secrets without her getting bitten. We seldom have such cases. Still, her heart must be beating furiously. The dog was tranquilised. She put him on the operating table and put a gas mask onto his face.

"You cannot anaesthesia the dog wearing the muzzle," I said to Annie. I let her do without spoon-feeding so that she would be able to learn. I took off the muzzle. The dog was too weak to bite anybody. The dog was neutered. The owner took the chance to ask us to clip the nails. Annie clipped the nails. Some nail bleeding but not serious. The owner trimmed the matted ear hairs on his left ear.

The dog stirred. "Put on the gas anaesthetic," I told Annie. I did not want the dog to spring up and bite the owner. Ideally he should just let the dog groomer do everything.

He hesitated in engaging the groomer. I said, "This dog would need a tranquiliser to be groomed in the future and it would cost you at least $50.00. Now, he is knocked out, it is best you let the groomer cleaned his ears and clipped his matted hairs."

In the end, I phoned the groomer and brought the rates down to $55.00 from $60.00 for him. The groomer would shave the whole body, squeezed the oil gland, no bathing (as the dog was neutered today). He drove his van to the groomer. I went to check on the groomer 15 minutes later.

The groomer started clipping his back first! "How about the face?" I asked him. "You ought to clip the face first as the dog has been tranquilised." The dog lifted up his head and looked at us.

The groomer had no intention of clipping the face but he should. I presumed he did. An Elizabeth collar was given to the dog to prevent him licking his operation wound.

I hope he would not bite his family members. "No guarantee," I said to the owner so as to prevent misunderstanding. "If you had neutered him at 6 months of age, he might not be so ferocious or moody. Every member of his family got bitten."

"Last chance for him," the owner said. I hope this dog could settle down. The reason he did not bite outsiders was that the owner warned everybody not to pat him or go near him.

What a day. Could the young puppy grow up to be this older one? With a Cocker Spaniel Rage?

237. Sheltie barks to wake owner up at 3- 4 a.m.

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore



Some useful tips from the 40-something owner. He said, My Sheltie climbs out of the open-top crate many times. No fear of falling down."

"He might fracture his leg," I said. How he prevented the puppy from escaping?

"Use a golf ball holder tube," he said. "Put it through the loops on the sides of the crate. The tube cross the top and prevents the puppy from getting out." This must be any ordingary tube including those used by elecricians.

The only problem with this Sheltie is that she barks everytime the newspapers are soiled. Even at 3-4 a.m and the owner could not get up. Barked again till the owner got up to change the papers.

"You will need to suffer for 2 - 4 weeks," I said. "Till he is able to control his bladder." It is worth the trouble. Other owners complain of puppy with smelly shit on body and feet, but this owner worried about not getting a good night's sleep.

"Why not put the collie inside the kitchen at night?" I asked.
"She still barks to get papers changed," the man said. "I have 2 pieces on the floor."

"Maybe to cover the whole kitchen floor with newspapers?" I suggested an impractical solution.

Another problem is the Sheltie poops 5-6 X per day. 2-3 X at night. May be the quality of the feed. May be eating at other times? May be not dewormed?

"Most puppies at this age poop 2x/day," I said. Why would this Sheltie poop a little at a time? Most likely the owner did distract her after eating. So she withheld her poop till later and at various times.

236. A o.m.o dog groomer and a senior citizen who would write if there was money to be made.

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

January 8th 2006 was a Sunday. The clouds were dark. Rain drops sprinkled onto me as I visited a pet shop at 5 p.m.

A thin fair girl bent her head and upper body down to clip a Miniature Schnauzer. The grooming table was too low for her. She had 10 dogs to groom on this Sunday. It was nearing 6 p.m and she had 4 more dogs to groom.

"Why don't you get a hydraulic grooming table so that you can adjust the height of the table. Then you can clip comfortably and will not get back ache later on?" I asked. "I do surgery on a hydraulic operating table and surgery less stressful for me. You have to groom 10 dogs like a hunch-back." She said that a hydraulic table cost as much as an ordinary grooming table, around S$300. I disagreed.

She was a o.m.o. A one-man-operator. In Singapore many years ago, the buses were o.m.o. That is why I remember this o.m.o.

She had lost a lot of weight. Her cheeks no longer had that pad of fat. Her eyes were bright and appeared bigger. A worn out white T-shirt and loose shorts. I saw her bare toes amongst the abundant dog's hairs on the floor. "Why don't you wear slippers?" I asked. "Do you not want to look professional like wearing a proper grooming uniform?"

"It is too hot," she said. So far, no back ache. So no need to bother about a fancy hydraulic grooming table. I note that all groomers in Singapore do not have such tables. Not only will they get back aches, their fingers become sprained and they may not be able to groom long.

"Why don't you advertise and get some 'O' level girls to help you as part-timers?" I asked. It was difficult for a person to groom, bathe, keep the pet shop clean, answer phone calls and feed the dogs on a Sunday. It was better to have one helper. I visited one pet shop owned by 2 ladies. They do not seem to have a shortage of part-timers.

"Why did you accept so many dogs when you are a o.m.o?" I asked the groomer whose face looked a bit like the Japanese anime magazine girls. "You just over-stress yourself."

"One owner booked an appointment for 3 dogs and came with 5." she said. "On other times, I do not have so many dogs to groom." It was either feast or famine.

I did not disturb her further. I saw an older person doing obedience training of a Golden Retriever. He was over 50 years old. In Singapore, anybody over 50 years old is a Senior Citizen. He was doing pet food and accessory sales but he was very interested in dog training. Even if there was one case, he would turn up at the pet shop to do obedience training.

"How's your book sales?" I asked. He was selling a book by a famous TV vet in Australia to pet shops in Singapore for his company. "About 300 books sold and then the sales declined."

"Could it be the price?" I asked. "The books sells at S$30.00 each in the pet shop". He did not comment.

"Some people asked me to write a dog book, get advertising support to publish it." he said. "It is a waste of my time. Selling 300 books cannot make an author rich. In Singapore, selling 3,000 books calls for celebration. Overseas, they sell few thousands."

"Authors seldom make money," I said. "Very rarely is there an author so successful as the Harry Potter's author." From what I read in writing magazines, the book's content must be in demand. Then lots of money and time spent on promotion and advertisement by publishers and the authors themselves.

"What do you want to write about?" I asked him.

"Don't let the dog lead you, pick up the poop as you might step on it yourself on the way back, what rubbish to say that dogs are allergic to chicken, consult your vet when your dogs have problems..."

Would a tips book for Singapore dog owners sell? I don't know. In any case, this gentleman was writing to make money. Since he concluded that you cannot make money from writing books, there was no point to encourage him to write.

In this world, there are too many people who have good ideas. After getting good ideas, they do not know how to implement to make the idea successful. They need to do research and talk to many people to find out whether the ideas can work. Even if they find that, from feedback, that the ideas cannot work, they should not give up hope. They must start writing their ideas on paper and do more research. This takes up a lot of free time. Many people just will not do research. So, their concepts never bear fruits.

It was a waste of my time advising him just as my advice to the lady groomer to get a hydraulic grooming table fell on deaf ears.

The thunderstorm clouds burst, forcing me to make my way home. To write this story for 2 people who are just starting new careers.

One is a very good computer expert and the other is a heart surgeon. Both have over 30 years of experience. Can they share their knowledge in writing their experiences in books? Interesting people they have met? Problems they have had solved? Such books will sell. Nobody knows whether they will be best sellers.

As for writing, those who want to make money must know the craft of writing and the audience and spend a lot of lonely time writing and writing. Without thinking of making money. Once you think of making money, you cannot excel in your profession because you are always calculating.

When you go into a profession or work for a new employer or partnership, you must have passion. However, with passion, you must know how to work smart in terms of managing your time and stress. Looking after your long-term health and using the correct tools to make your working life easier. Read lots of books and magazines on other professions. You can pick out the best practices and experiences of problem solving by other professiona and trades and make your own work so much fun and enjoyable.

235. E-mail. Leg lifting in male dogs.

Toilet Training Your First Puppy in Singapore

LIVING WITH A URINE MARKING AND INTACT MALE DOG


....@yahoo.co.uk> wrote:

Hi Judy

I am thrilled with your potty training for pets blog. Just shows how much Dr Sing Kong Yuen cares for dogs. Mine was owned by a pub owner whose plan was to make (dog's first name) (dog's second name was known by that name!!) the pub mascot. Alas, he lost interest as the owner got busy running the pub and the dog was up for adoption. I took him on and he and been a source of joy. We renamed him (dog's second name, XXX Pereira and he carries the name with great dignity playful as he is.

He is pretty good for a dog that now lives in a three room HDB and we have some difficult times when he lifts his leg in several awkward places. I do not scold him if i discover the mess after the offense has been commited. However he slinks away when he sees me mop the puddle.

There's a problem that's bothering me as i have been told that he is allergic to protein, carbohydrate, meat, chicken and fish. He is on kibbles named (pet food name). I am concerned and would like to make as appointment to have XXX looked at by Dr Sing.
Please let me have contact details.

Many thanks and wish you a Happy New Year,
(name not published).

REPLY TO E-MAIL

Thanks for compliments.

Urine marking by male dogs is a common complaint. It is a natural territorial marking behaviour and most male dogs will lift their legs to define the boundaries of their territories (in this case, your apartment).

Have you tried using a urine neutraliser available at petshops or use vinegar 1:2 to spray onto the soiled area. Make sure your mop is thoroughly cleaned by lots of water and/or vinegar to neutralise the ammonia of dog's urine. However, some male dogs seem to be unable to control their natural urine marking instinct.

Some owners have great ideas on how to prevent this behaviour before the male dog reaches 6 months of age, but you may need to read the over 200 blogs in the research on toilet training blog to locate the case study. One solution was to not let the less than 6-month-old puppy see other male dogs marking lifting their legs when the owner brings him downstairs to the outdoors. Another suggestion from an owner was not to walk the puppy near the lamp post or trees! In this way, the puppy will pee like female dogs! I do not know how effective such methods are.

In any case, yours is 4 years old. So, the recommendations may not be appropriate for your case. Castration when the behaviour has not manifested may be a solution. Once the behaviour is established, castration may or may not resolve your problem.

Please phone 6254 3326 for an appointment to consult. More information on surgery hours is at www.toapayohvets.com


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