Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

The Miniature Schnauzer is a smallest dog in the Schnauzer breed and originated in the mid-to-late 19th Century from Germany. The Miniature Schnauzer is a cross between the Standard Schnauzer and other smaller breeds such as the Poodle. A miniature Schnauzer is a spunky, but aloof dog who does things their own way. They tend to be good guard dogs without the tendency to bite.
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WynneLottie
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Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by WynneLottie »

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Just thought I'd update you and share a new pic - she's getting big now. She's still amazing at night and doing her "business" outside and is a pleasure to have....most of the time. Also need advice on a few things:-

1. Has anyone ever used the no bite spray? I was thinking of putting this on the regular everyday items she keeps biting when in a naughty mood such as my kitchen blinds, curtains, back door mat etc! She also keeps trying to bite the marble hearth which I obviously don't want her doing 😳 I find its when she's being told off for these things and moved away from them that she turns on me.

2. The cup was a brilliant idea when she's launching herself at us, mainly me 🙄.... but how often should we give her this? I don't want her to associate the "fun" cup with bad behaviour.

3. Is it ok to give her an ice cube during this hot weather? If so, how many per day?

4. Any advice on leaving her alone while we're out? We have an indoor pen that we attach to her crate so leave her in this for her own safety and so that we come back to an untouched house. Should we make a fuss of her when we return or just ignore her for a few minutes until she's calmed down so that it's not a big thing about her being left?

5. We've kept her on the food the breeder suggested (Csj Little champ puppy food) and she's quite happy with this. We do soak it in water though to soften it up a bit for her. Is there any little titbits we could to add to this occasionally to give her a bit of variety? I put a couple of tuna flakes at the bottom of it the other day and she loved it.

6. Regarding healthy snacks, I give her a small carrot stick now and then but think she's getting a bit bored with it. Any other suggestions? Can she have one of our finished yoghurt pots to lick out as a treat?

7. How often should she be bathed? And what is a good dog shampoo? And does anyone use the grooming spray (baby powder) scent?

8. A friend has suggested soaking a tug toy in chicken stock and freezing for her to bite on. Is this recommended?

I think that's it for now but we really would welcome any advice, ideas during this very challenging puppy stage...I know exactly what I'm doing with babies/toddlers but feel totally clueless with this little fur baby ... Help!
Oscar 12345
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by Oscar 12345 »

Hi Nikki, sounds like you have a very normal puppy.

I wouldn't waste your money on no bite sprays, some dogs love the taste and it doesn't deter others. :-\ Keep saying no and swap with a toy or remove items, she will soon get it. The menacing biting period at its worst during teething normally lasts a couple of weeks I find then it settles and you find that she has stopped. Just keep reinforcing No or Leave It (my favourite command). I found that I could never leave Otto in a room unsupervised, a bored puppy on his own can get up to a lot of mischief :D Yes ice cubes, Otto has a couple a day but keep hold of one for the first few times so she gets used to them. You don't want a puppy swallowing a large piece of ice if they are not used to it. Another good way of keeping her cool is to buy some small lollipop moulds and sticks and freeze Greek no fat, no sugar yoghurt. One a day of those would be fine and a lovely treat. Give the plastic cup when she needs to burn off some energy and remove when you see her losing interest. Titbits to add to food, scrambled egg (plain), spring water tuna, plain cod, salmo (microwaved/steamed) sardines, pilchards (just watch the dressings), fruit (they advise not to add fruit to meals but I used to add a little fresh pineapple or apple which Otto absolutely adored). Apple is nice for a treat and slices of frozen apple are nice but again hold on to it until she is used to it. Freezing a wet face towel with water is a good way to help teething. Split antlers are good for teething pups. As for bathing, there will be different views. I think you should do it every couple of weeks just to get her used to it. Animalogy do a lovely puppy shampoo. Then when required but I do legs, bottom, belly and beard each week and an overall bath every few months. I don't use any grooming sprays. Now I just use an oatmeal shampoo. When you return from being out, try to ignore her just for a few seconds, wander through the room past her and then come back so it doesn't seem like a big deal. Other healthy snacks, you can find some healthy treats like dried sweet potato or dried papaya, they will keep her occupied for a few minutes.

Hope all that helps.
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zeta1454
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by zeta1454 »

Lottie sounds like a normal puppy for her age. She will be going through teething which is a very uncomfortable phase and pain is going to make her want to chew or gnaw on anything she can get her teeth into. This is a phase which she will naturally come through once she has her adult teeth. I would avoid using any sprays or similar but try to make sure Lottie does not have access to items that can be damaged when you are not there to supervise..and, when you are watching her, plenty of acceptable chew items to distract her. Antlers and anco roots are a favourite with ours and puffed dried chicken feet. There are some links below to the kind of items we use:

https://www.doggytreat.co.uk/antlers/64 ... small.html

https://www.doggytreat.co.uk/roots/24-a ... small.html

https://www.doggytreat.co.uk/32-naturals

There are some good suggestions for healthy snacks above but just now and again with carrots and fruit as both are high in (natural) sugar which in excess may lead to hyperactivity.

We usually bath puppies as and when needed rather than on a regular schedule but it will not do any harm and, as said above, will help to get her used to it which is good!

I would consider looking for a higher quality puppy / dog food as CSJ seems very low in meat / animal protein which is especially necessary for growing pups. Have a browse of the all about dog food website which has lots of useful information regarding ingredients and understanding labels on dog food. There is a link here to the page re the CSJ Puppy food but you can connect with the other pages from there:

https://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-f ... ttle-champ

Salt and flavourings are often added to dry kibble to try and make it palatable to dogs but these are not necessary in a quality diet and high cereal content is not really giving a growing puppy the best nutrition for development. Have a look at some of the higher meat/ fish content foods and, if you are feeding kibble (even soaked) do make sure Lottie has plenty of fresh water available in this hot weather.

To keep her cool try to make sure that she is in the shade as much as possible and not outside through the middle of the day. Have you thought of a paddling pool for the garden - you can buy small inflatable or solid walled pools and just put in enough water for Lottie to cover her paws. We have either filled our pool with lots of coloured floating balls or, if the puppy is reluctant to get in, try dropping some pieces of kibble into the water. The kibble sinks and, unless she is very water phobic, Lottie is likely to get in to find them :-)

You can also use scent games to interest her indoors or out (when it is cool outside) by hiding tiny pieces of kibble, flakes of dried sprats or capelin or similar under flower pots and behind items in the house or garden for her to sniff out and find. We had a great day on our oldest dog's 11th birthday with this game and all our eleven dogs had a whale of a time searching!


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Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

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Oscar 12345
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by Oscar 12345 »

Fab photo Leigh, what fun .... when I come back I want to be one of Leigh's dogs. :D
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zeta1454
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by zeta1454 »

Thank you Julie - sometimes I think I would like to come back as one of my dogs :-))
Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

Magic - Silversocks Sharade at Darksprite
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by Schnauzer Sam »

Leigh, given the dry spell we're having I assume that the lawn in artificial grass? If yes, how are you finding it to maintain. I was thinking about installing the same at home. If no then congratulations to whoever maintains it.
Country Girl at Heart (Molly) 8 April 2003 - 22 December 2018

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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by Schnauzer Sam »

Nikki, I love the mad hair day look that schnauzer puppies have before they get their first "schnauzer cut". Lottie carries the look very well.
Country Girl at Heart (Molly) 8 April 2003 - 22 December 2018

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zeta1454
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by zeta1454 »

Sam - the lawn is artificial grass. Our natural grass in the garden beyond the fence is scorched yellow currently!
Earlier this year we had a radical make-over of the back garden nearest the house to make more safe space for the dogs / puppies and an easier to maintain section for us too with patio and the artificial lawn. It is not too bad to maintain as it is porous and hardy but the main issue is obviously smell and cleanliness from the dogs peeing and pooing. With only two (female) dogs I would suspect it would be much easier than our current situation with our own pack which includes 3 males who always pee on top of where the others have been. We also have two male minis staying with us for a few weeks and an extra boy and girl mini due in a few days for their hols too making a total of 15!

However, there are products that can disinfect and remove smells from artificial turf relatively well even in this dry weather. We have found a concentrated one that is much more successful at long term removal of smells and another with a "fresh grass" scent that is disinfecting but the scent is soon dissipated. If you did decide to go with the artificial turf, I would recommend getting these products and a spray to use them on a regular basis even with just the girls. It is not as hard work as grass cutting if the weather is bad for sure and certainly in wet weather we have found a huge difference in the amount of dirt brought in on their paws. We do still have a "natural" garden for the dogs to use supervised which has planting and play logs etc as well as the fenced off hen run so the dogs do have a chance to sniff and dig at times too :-)

There is a link here to the kind of products you can use but there may be similar elsewhere:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B078YXDB8Y/ ... 1feeeff6b5
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by Robin black mini »

I love your garden Leigh...my neighbor has the plastic grass ,he power washes it once a month ,but just has the one Labrador.
We caved in and tiled ,easy to power wash,and we save on the water charges..seriously,I love grass,but you do need water to support it..over here it rains rarely.
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zeta1454
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by zeta1454 »

Jo - we are finding out about the need for water to keep grass going here just now. The unexpectedly hot and dry weather for the past couple of months has totally scorched the real grass. No need to mow the lawn but it does look awful :-(


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Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

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WynneLottie
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by WynneLottie »

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Saw this on Facebook .... 😮
Oscar 12345
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by Oscar 12345 »

Nikki, never heard that before. It seems to have the opposite affect on Otto. When he is hot and is panting I can give an ice cube and panting stops and he looks considerably cooler. I would have thought that there would have been lots of stuff on internet if this was true. Interested in other owners observations of their dogs with cold water and ice cubes.
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we also need a schnauzer.
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zeta1454
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by zeta1454 »

Re the FB post, it has been confirmed by a number of vets that this is possibly a hoax but the information is certainly not true for normally healthy dogs. There can be an issue with a very overheated dog drinking excessively to cool down which may cause a bloating problem in some dogs and there is certainly need to be cautious with any dog suffering severe heatstroke which requires veterinary intervention but there should be no concerns about offering iced or frozen treats or water to a normally healthy dog that is just feeling a bit hot. :-)

Some tips from a vet on this link re keeping your dog cool including freezing treats in a Kong:

https://www.davecumbervets.co.uk/top-ti ... is-summer/

And this from the Battersea website:

https://www.battersea.org.uk/pet-advice ... r-dog-care
Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

Magic - Silversocks Sharade at Darksprite
Trilby - Darksprite Rosa Bud


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WynneLottie
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by WynneLottie »

That’s a relief - made me worry about doing this
Oscar 12345
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Re: Lottie update aged 14.5 weeks

Post by Oscar 12345 »

Leigh thanks. It didn't make sense to me either.
Man cannot survive with wine alone...
we also need a schnauzer.
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