domina

You got great advice on this thread.

First, if your puppy's ears are not cropped, either crop them very soon, since her proper age time for that procedure is running out, or leave them alone. Did you see the thread that another member posted for you? Those have to be the one of the ugliest ears I've ever seen. You can clearly see that the shape doesn't match/suit the shape of his face ( when they're up like that ), and they just look ugly. The pup would be much better with his natural "unposted" ears. The dog in the thread looks like he's about to fly off any minute!

You said that you're not struggling financially, but that your hubby is worried about finances in general, which is normal for most people, including us. I've had my Dober girl for little over 3 weeks ( and we also have another dog, lab mix ), and let me tell you - Dobermans are an expensive breed!They may have a bunch of ( expensive ) health problems that you have to be prepared for. Also, like others have suggested, Puppy Chow isn't the best of foods - if you can afford, get a better one. The food rating website you were given is great - that's how I figured that my original food wasn't that good, and we upgraded to a 5 star food. While one can argue that we were still providing food for her, and there was "no need to change", especially since good-quality food is pricey, we disagree. While the new pricey food surely took away some of our spending money, it will be much better for our puppy in the long run. Not only is she getting a wholesome nutrition, her skin/coat improved dramatically when we switched to a quality food.

In summary, Dobermans are an expensive breed, that require a lot of attention. I have a toddler, and during the day, the three of us all play together for the most part. I also make sure to spend one-on-one time with my Dobie when my baby is asleep. Then, after Daddy gets home from work, he spends some one-on-one with the baby, and then we trade - he spends one-on-one with Domina ( Dobie ), while I do the same with the baby.

Hope you'll find these suggestions helpful. This forum helped me out a lot when it comes to the care of my puppy. Best of luck.

Rosemary

If you are going to leave her natural, I would start training her ears to lie down, instead of stand up. Natural ears from the UK!! Post number 5 on this thread shows an excellent method for training natural ears to lie properly.

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Lclesceri

Asmit- just because I said that a couple unexplected bills came up does not mean that we are struggling financially. Just because I was trying to see if anyone knew of free training does not mean that I don't want to spend money on my pup. I don't want to go out and spend a couple grand on the dog unless it's nessisary for her health. Obviously you were too focused on the fact that my husband and I wanted to try to get her ears to stand without getting them cropped to notice that we have decided to get them cropped and her appointment is on the 17th. My dog is not going to end up in a shelter. Just because I ask for advise and maybe how to keep her healthy on an inexpensive budget doesn't mean that I'm not willing to spend money on my pup. And I was only asking if someone knew how to go about getting Athena registered. If you do not have any tips or information, or if you have a negative view or opinion I do not want to hear it. Thank you and have a nice day.

Lclesceri

Domina- I have gotten a lot of great advise on this site and I am actually using that advise as much as possible. Thank you for understanding the whole thing on finances. It's my husbands job to worry about finances and my job to keep track and decide how we are going to spend and save and where we are going to spend lol. We have decided that we are going to get Athena's ears cropped. In fact, she goes in next Thursday to get it done. I understand that dobermans are an expensive breed. I have had a few expensive dogs myself although this is my first doberman. As far as the food, I am talking with my husband and we are going to talk to the vet about what food would be best for her and about how much we should feed her. I want to make sure that we get the right food and that we don't feed her too much or too little. And as far as training, I'm reading one book about training dogs and its pretty helpful. But the only things that Athena seems to have enough consentration for is sit, and shake "hands". Lol I think it might also be due to the fact that she is only two months and three weeks. As far as spending time with my husband the puppy and my daughter, every night when my husband comes home he lets me get two hours to my self. Then I get an hour with just Athena while he has our daughter and we switch after dinner.
Thank you for your advise it has been helpful. And thank you for your support its very appreciated.
Is Athena too young to start training?? How old should she be when we start training her or what is the right age to start??

falnfenix

unless your vet is a nutritionist, they probably won't have a clue other than "hill's science diet is good," and this information is incredibly incorrect. PLEASE take the time to educate YOURSELF on what is good and what isn't. you were given a very informative link regarding food on the first page of this thread, but in case you missed it, here it is: Dog Food Reviews and Ratings | Dog Food Advisor

Lclesceri

falnfenix- thank you for the tip... I'm looking at the site right now... I'm not sure if her vet is a nutritionist or not. we go in to meet Dr. Whitford next Thursday... Either way, if the doc is or is not a nutritionist at least we will know of a couple good dog foods to feed our little Athena... thank you

Has anyone heard of St. Bethlehem Animal Clinic in Clarksville, TN?? We are taking Athena there to get her ears cropped, and its where our breeder got her parents' ears done. He says that Dr. Whitford is great at cropping ears and is an exellent doctor... I havent found a whole lot of reviews in the past day or so due to my computer acting up (don't worry it does it all the time and will not hinder the finances... lol).

If anyone has heard of, or been to St. Bethlehem in Clarksville could you let me know what you think of the place and how the service and treatment of animals was?? thank you.

Lclesceri

I'm thinking about switching my puppy's food over to Artimis Mix Maximum food which is 4 to 5 stars depending on the kind/ flavor. would it harm her if i mixed it with the rest of the puppy chow?? I don't want the puppy chow to go to waste. We have about ten pounds of the puppy chow left. (we got a big bag like this in the first place due to the deal on the price of the food and we thought it would be a good food for her [obviously we were miss informed/ uneducated on the world of dog food lol]). Would it effect her more if we just switched her straight out to the other food?? I have heard "yes" and "no" to this question and I just want to clarify... I don't want Athena to get sick or go through any unnessisary hardships...

Rosemary

No advice on the vet you've chosen to do her ears, but some on getting her registerd. You should have gotten the registration application when you picked her up. It is the breeder's responsibility to register the litter and give the individual application slips to the new owners. Conversely, it is up to the new owner to make sure that the breeder gives them the proper paperwork.

Now, a bit more information about registration. The only way she can be registered is if the litter was registered. The only way the litter can be registered is if both parents had full registration. If one or both parents has limited registration, she can't be registered.

So, you need to contact your breeder, and have them give you the registration application. If they can't give it to you, and you want to do stuff like obedience, rally CATs, and the like, you can always apply for a Purebred Aleternative Listing after she's been spayed.

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falnfenix

gradual food changes are best.

Rosemary

Personally, I've always gone "Well guys, the other bag is gone, so here's your new food" with very few problems. Other people have to switch their dog's food carefully, over a long period of time. I'd say, try her on the new food, and if she handles it okay, just give the rest of the Puppy Chow to your local humane society. Just makes sure the food you are switching her to is either an "all life stage" food, or a "large breed puppy" food, not regular puppy food.

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domina

I second this. My vet told me to give Hill's Science Diet, which is what I originally did. Boy, was he wrong...I looked at the nutrition on the web site given, and it had a bunch of crap. But then again, they promote Science Diet at the vet's offices, so I'm assuming that that's the very first food they will recommend, even though it's not that good. Which is a damn shame, cause you are supposed to trust your vet, to provide you with the best for your pet...not always the case.

falnfenix

the problem is vets simply aren't nutrition specialists. i understand holistic vets are more likely to know a bit about nutrition, but still, they're not necessarily on top of what information is out there.

this is where personal responsibility comes in. same thing goes for doctors for people - you have a responsibility to educate yourself on things, rather than taking everything your doctor says at face value. Lclesceri is willing to self-educate, at least with food, so she's already on a great path.

Lclesceri

I went to petsmart with Athena this morning and weighed her on the scale. She weighs 12.5lbs. she is 2 1/2 months old. Is she underweight?? The people there wouldn't tell me anything besides "her coat is healthy" and i would have had to pay $50 to get her even looked at by a vet there. I've been trying to find a weight chart or some sort of article or something to see if she is about normal but the only thing that I've found is a couple paragraphs on Puppy development of Dobermans that states that she should be around 10lbs by the time she is a month old and 17lbs at 1 1/2 months... should I be concerned??

falnfenix

take pictures and post them...or take her to your vet and have THEM check her out.

Lclesceri

While I was at Petsmart I am proud to say that I found the only high rating dog food there. So I got Athena a couple cans of Nutro Ultra Large Breed Puppy food. Nurto Ultra has a four star rating. So yes I am using the advise given and I am doing my homework. I'm currently looking online for any place that sells dog food that isn't just the regular "puppy chow" stuff.

Lclesceri

I will post pictures of her here in about 30 minutes or so. she just got done eating so she looks a little fat at the moment because her belly is completely full. lol. She is eating well, it just doesn't look like she is gaining any weight... I'm hoping that this new food will have some sort of positive effect on her health and her weight, and that if she is underweight, the vet will figure out what is wrong with her tomorrow. Her appointment is at 7:15 pm tomorrow night.

domina

My little girl is 10 weeks 5 days old, so very similar to your girl...And my baby is 18lbs already. She usually gains steady 2 lbs a week ( sometimes more, but usually a steady 2lbs per week ). Did your vet check her for worms? That's the first thing that came to my mind, as you said that she doesn't seem like she's gaining much weight. Keep us posted on your puppy's health and what the vet says...Good luck...

RottenVonSpotten

If you have a Costco nearby, they sell a 4 star food. I think it's called Nature's Domain. Anyways, it's a really affordable, good quality food.

Lclesceri

I take her in to see the Vet tomorrow. I will explain to the doc what is going on and hopefully we can figure it out... They said that they will grab a stool sample from her and do a regular check up plus a little extra because it is her first time seeing them.... I'm really hoping that it's just the food, or if it is something like worms, that it's nothing life threatening or super serious... I don't want her to go through any harm or hardship at this young of an age...
Thanks for the good luck.

Lclesceri

We don't have a costco nearby. We do have a Sam's Club, any idea if they sell 4 star food there?? I'm going to look...

Lclesceri

Just looked on Sam's Club and sadly the only dog food they have is .5 to 2.5 star dog food... kind of sad. but there is a tractor supply that sells four and five star food... I just have to call and find out the price...

Adara

It's hard to say without pictures but I can tell you my Vizslas were both the smallest in their litters at 11 lbs at 8 weeks. I got my female Dobe at 10 weeks and she grew big fast and was 22 lbs.

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Rosemary

Tractor Supply has pretty good prices. Their 4Health is about $50 for a 30ish pound bag.

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Rosemary

What do you mean that you bought her the "only" high rating food there? Petsmart carries Avoderm, Blue, Innova, Wellness, Castor & Pollux, and Simply Nourish, all of which are rated 4 or 5 stars on Dog Food Advisor.

Petco carries most of the same brands, plus some other 4 and 5 star foods that Petsmart doesn't.

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Lclesceri

Rosemary- Sorry I ment to say that I found the only high rating dog food that i could remember. I was distracted by my daughter. lol My bad... We went and got her some better food at the tractor supply store.