New dog, a few questions?

[Neothin]

To start off, we had to put our dog down a month ago due to being old and having bad hips, etc etc

So I come home this afternoon after the detailfest and walk in the house. I go upstairs to my room and what do I find? A beagle sleeping on my bed! I walk over the bed, the dog wakes up, sees me, and runs downstairs. I then proceed to ask the parents, and yes this is molly our new dog. She's a 1 year old beagle, pretty underweight (only weighs 12.3 lbs, should be about 17), and we can tell she's been beaten by the previous owner (she cowers whenever to make fast movements and/or move too quickly towards her).

1. How the heck do we put some weight on this dog? What would be a good brand to give her?

2. I know the cowering away thing is only going to go away with time (even then, it might not) but is there anything we can do to try and speed up the process?

3. House training. What works and what doesnt work? Since I got home around 4:30 i've already had to use my new PC brush attachment and 303 carpet and upholstery cleaner twice on accident spots.

[ZaneO]

Consult your vet about the proper food, but Health Science and Iams have always been good ones from my experience.

As for the cowering, just be as loving as possible and slow/calm until she grows familiar with you.

Potting training...a routine is what she needs. Take her outside through the same door on a regular schedule until she understands what is going on, where to go, etc.

[paco]

1. Puppy food can be used to help put weight on a dog. Brands, that's a high sensitive issue and cause a lot of debate.

(I just saw that ZaneO posted; definitely follow the vets advice; the only thing to be careful of is some vets push "their brand" of food since they make a decent penny selling their stuff. Unless your dog has a specific problem that requires a special diet, then you don't need to be Prescription Diet etc.

Iams, Solid Gold are 2 very very reputable companies.)

If you want further advice, just ask and I go into food choices more i.e. BARF, Home cooking, Premium Brands, standard fair and stuff to stay away from.

2. Cowering, the only thing is time and helping build trust. Never yell and be very careful with correction. You don't want her to be the Alpha in the house but you don't want over correct her right away. Get in touch with a professional dog trainer and make sure get her very socialized.

3. House training, ROUTINE. Get yourself a good puppy training book or go to a Barnes and Noble and leaf through one. It's pretty easy. Just takes time and a strict schedule.

Basically, take her out at the same time, first thing in the morning. Don't get properly dressed etc. Go out in your PJ etc. If she's goes #1 or 2, praise her till the cows come home immediately when she is done. Then feed her, wait 5 mins. Then let her out again. Watch her, if she goes #1 or #2, praise praise praise.

Then make sure she goes out every 3 hours.

Feed her 2x a day (1/2 the recommended daily serving 2x a day)

If she does have an accident and you catch her doing it, then say no and put her outside. No need to go severe. A simple "No". Take her out. Praise her if she continues. If not, bring her back in and ignore it.

Oh yeah, always let her out at the same door. That way, one she get the hang of it and she needs to go out, she'll hang by the door and you'll know to let her out.

Don't USE paper inside the house. NEVER EVER teach a dog that it's okay to go inside. That will make it very hard for a stubborn dog to be properly house broken,

Frequent outdoors and a lot of praise for a #1 or 2.

If accident occur, only say No when catching them in the act. Don't correct if you didn't see it happen.

Good luck.

[Neothin]

Just showed this thread to my parents. We have done most of the stuff you've suggested already! :clap We've brought her around to all the neighbors so thats good. We're taking her outside alot because she's always standing at the doorway. I don't think that she has to go to the bathroom but instead I think she's mesmerized by the mirror finish on the glass We'll be buying some IAMS tommorow. I had her laying on my bed with me while I surfed the net earlier. its so nice having a pet again

[Accumulator]

Neothin- Glad you've given the dog a nice home and that you're enjoying her company.

You've already got good advice. Socialization can't be over emphasized, help her learn that most people are good by having her meet lots of nice folks, just don't let her feel overwhelmed. Obedience classes with people and other dogs can be great, even if she just sits and watches. On the housebreaking:

Puppies almost always go to the bathroom after waking up and often after playing (besides the obvious after eating/drinking). If she seems "ornery"/hyper that's often a sign that she need to go too. Or else it might mean she's over-tired and needs some quiet time. But I'd see if she needs to go first Assuming she sleeps in a crate at night, if you hear her rustling about in there it probably means she needs to go. Crates work great for all sorts of things, and many dogs decide that they *like* being in their crate once they get used to it. Our 4.5 year old female still sleeps in her crate every night, we don't even bother latching the door.

As I'm always saying, get the book "The Art of Raising a Puppy" by the monks of New Skete. It covers all the basics and while nobody's always right about everything (since all dogs are different) those guys aren't really *wrong* about anything.

[Lowejackson]

Congratulations on your new dog. I cannot think of anything more to add except most dogs can be socialised given enough time. My last dog was a rescued one, she had been very badly treated, it took her several years to accept that all men are not a threat but eventually she became a happy and social member of our home.

[Sarcazmo]

Stay away from Iams, trust me. http://www.healthyplanetrx.com/articles.asp?id=137

As far as brands of food, I can recommend a few. Solid Gold, Canidae, Innova, Natures Variety, and my favorite, Timberwolf Organics.

And for house training, I'd highly recommend the use of a crate, can't be beat!

[HRP]

My wife added a 2 month old puppy to our menagerie in June. She is a Standard Parti Poodle and is now 45 lbs at 8 months. If you want to see what they look like, the website is:

http://standardpartipoodles.homestead.com/

These are champion dogs and very intelligent. I use this as info re: dog food.
Don't look and don't show these dogs to your wife unless you want to end up with one of them. The breeder uses

Joy Brand professional Chicken and Rice food

exclusively from puppyhood right on up to "old age" and has absolutely gorgeous and healthy dogs (27 of them with more on the way). We ended up calling the company to find out the nearest distributor.
Website: http://www.joypetfood.com/
It was a feed mill 3 miles away from us and the food is $19.75 for 50 lbs and lasts our 2 dogs 3-4 weeks. Our 90 lb 8 year old Bouvier loves it; my son's 2 year old Bouvier loves it, and his wife's 8 week old Schitzu also loves it. We've found that many breeders use this food and get it for $13 bucks a bag in quantity. Check it out! Oh, and the dog's BM's are firm and easy to clean up. And it greatly improved our Bouvier's "gas problems". You really have to be a bouvier afficianado to live with one (you really can blame the dog!), but they're great dogs. The boo is my dog, I like our poodle, but still feel weird riding alone with her in the car. Some of you really macho guys can probably feel comfortable with it, but I still feel a bit strange. But she is an incredible chick magnet and I'm too old and too married to do anything but enjoy looking. (And so far no men have hit on me.)

For the "cowering thing" socialize the dog. Obedience classes are great for this. Take the "wee beastie" out with you for walks, particularly in parks or areas where there are other people and dogs. Pet stores are also great for this. Our dogs love to go to PetSmart. Handle the dog and play with her so she looks forward to you and your touch. Discipline, when necessary, immediately with your voice. We only use physical punishment for snapping at children (a major crime). Immediately and harshly. And our dogs love kids. The bouvier looks like a muppet; the parti poodle looks like something Barbie would keep.

House breaking: walk the beagle frequently, and give immediate praise when she does her business. You cannot use "delayed" punishment or reward. It has to be immediate. Don't feed late in the evening and it won't hurt to limit water after supper and withold it for an hour or two before bedtime. Also, limit her "living" area. A dog will not foul its own "home" if it can help it. We use child gates propped up aginst the door; they don't like the noise when it falls. You can then gradually expand her "living" area to include more of your home as she stops having "accidents". Our female dogs (and we've had a bunch) were all well housebroken by 4 - 6 months. But it took a lot of walks, praise, and dog biscuits. The males always want to mark their territory, even the neutered ones.

[Neothin]

Thanks for all the replies guys but I've got some bad news. My mom has cried her eyes out the past two days whenever she sees molly laying in the doggy bed that our old dog used to sleep in. That, and the fact that she howls for all hours of the night. My mom talked with my dad this morning and took her back to the humane society this morning before I even woke up. So now our house is petless again :'( It's got me all bummed out again because I was the one picking up the little toys and pig ears and putting them back in the cabinet. anyways, thanks for the advice, but Molly is gone

[Accumulator]

Sorry to hear that, sounds like poor Molly just can't catch a break

[White95Max]

Well that sucks. Any idea why Molly was howling all night?

[LightngSVT]

Thats to bad!