It's finally happening - after years of begging, cajoling, and making numerous promises that will be nearly impossible to keep (jk ), my husband has conceded and we have placed a deposit on a baby Shiba Inu! We are so excited! I haven't had a dog in such a long time and plan to take a puppy training class at Petco in Danada. But, I know there are many very wise dog owners on this BB so, here is the plan so far:
1. Nice, big crate, toys, stainless steel bowls, doggie bed that fits inside the crate, brush, collar, harnass, leash.
2. Ordered a travel crate that is soft and breaks down into a flat carrying case.
3. Will make a first check up appointment with either Wheaton Animal Hospital, Lombard AH, or Danada Vet Hosp, per earlier BB recommendations...though if you know one of these vet groups are particularly good with Shiba's, let me know.
4. Will buy the same food the family is starting him on so as to not upset his little tummy when he moves to our home.
5. Will keep him only on the main floor of the house and will ALWAYS have him on a leash when he goes outside.
6. Do I need to get little paw booties for his tiny little feet in the snow and ice?

What am I forgetting?

Many thanks!!

Amy, you will need another crate for house breaking. This crate should be just big enough for your dog to turn around in. (you can get a larger cage to allow for growth and put a partition in it.) Crate the puppy, when you get home, don't go directly to the puppy, wait ten minutes (this will prevent all sorts of issues trust me on this one.) Then take the puppy directly out to do his business. Reward with praises! Repeat . . . . .

Congrats and good luck, Amy (and the Amy fam)!

I wish I could offer some words of wisdom, but having been a virtually lifetime apartment-dweller, I've been stuck with the cat-person title :s

Have fun!!!!

Health insurance is great... our dog's is better than our family's. About $50/month. We had a $2,000+ “hit” it covered when our guy was a puppy. We're on our fifth dog in 40 years... wish we had insurance in years past!

Sounds like you're getting yours through a breeder; if so insurance s available through the AKC. If not, it's available through other agents.

Definitely go with “Crate Training.” Much better, faster, cleaner etc. than paper training. You train them where to go, not where not to go. Google for details

Good luck! —Ted E.

Don't forget to introduce that puppy to neighbors and friends who may also possibly be future pet-sitters. I know of many puppies in my life that literally grew up with me and my husband!
Otherwise, start young and find a nice kennel for those longer family trips on a plane. I can recommend a few but they may not be close.
Last-Lombard Veterinary or Addison Animal Hospital are the BEST.

Cute dogs! They look like foxes. Gem covered what I was going to say about the crate size. Check out insurance plans. The ones I looked at had deductibles for this and for that. I chose to set up a separate "dog" account. The amount I was going to spend on premiums ($100/month for 3 dogs)every month was automatically transferred to their account. Then if anything bad happens, they are covered. It's a health savings account only for dogs.

How fun! We've only had our dog for a year (adopted as an adult), and she's really made a big impact on our family. Two things I learned:

1) don't go for the pricey dog bed for the crate at first. Our dog was not too wild about the crate or being left alone in it and ate the first bed we put in there.

2) Our crafty dog was somehow able to undo a buckle collar and broke through the plastic connector of the other kind of collar - twice - when running after a squirrel in the back yard (we don't have a fence and use the basic tie out for bathroom breaks during the day). We found a collar like the ones with the plastic connector, except the connector is metal, at Pet Supplies Plus on Roosevelt and haven't had any more problems.

Have fun with your new addition!

HI,
Amy that is great news! How fun! By now I am sure you've heard that it's common for a puppy to cry during the night (or even during the day sometimes) as they get used to being away from their littermates, and mommy dog. This stage passes quickly, so not to worry.

I agree with Ted's advice about the pet insurance. Our dog passed away last year after an illness. He was an older guy, but we sometimes wonder if we'd had unlimited funds, perhaps he would still be with us. Or at least have had a few more months. Either way, pet insurance is the way to go.

Any idea on names yet?

All great advice - thank you! I've been reading and hearing about crate training (which was the main reason we got one) but thanks for that link, Ted! Once we get him, you are all welcome to come by and meet him!
Keep the good advice coming!!!

Cool Collars and Tags

I found collars by this company at the defunct dog store next to Einstein. Didn't have the size I needed so I ordered it. Didn't hear back from the owner, so I stopped back in. Didn't hear from the owner again...so I went in and scoped out the company (this time I remembered) and went online. Was delivered to my house within a few days. The dog store is now out of business. Coincidence? I think not. Another small retailer success story.

Anyway...collars are made of rubber and they ain't got no dog smell on them. Lio is currently sport the Chai Latte Arrrrgyle with a pink crossbones tag. She is a bad a$$. She is also, for the most part, an idiot. Good thing for her that she is cute.

My understanding is that the "defunct" store changed direction and location. I believe they are now concentrating on training etc. north of here. I want to say Hoffman Estates but not positive.

I know they sold they biz and the new owners moved around the corner to a smaller space that was once the running store. Last I saw...it was still there.

Either way...another example of buying online in less time with less hassle. That place may have permanently ruined me is a brick and mortar consumer. I hope they are happy.

I would recommend a safety stretch collar.
Acts like a regular collar when attached to a leash, BUT provides safety for the dog. That's my humble recommend.

Stretch Collar

Never seen these. Seems like a good idea. Can you get one with a skull and crossbones pattern?

I have never used the collar to attach a leash. Collar is nothing more than a tag holder. Used to use a simple choker, then discovered the Gentle Leader and dog walking was transformed. Never seen a pulling, tugging dog become so absolutely compliant before.

Ooooooo.Those are cool! When he gets a little bigger, those would be great!

wait-puparazzi is gone?

One more medical thing... sorry to bring up negative vibes at such a puppy-happy time, but over the years we've learned to always hope for the best but plan for the worst.

The region's emergency vet is Arboretum View on Warrenville Road in Downers Grove (between Rte. 53 and Findley). 630-963-0424

They're open and fully staffed nights, weekends, holidays... all the times the typical dog or cat gets in trouble. Extraordinary people; they operated on our puppy's broken kneecap on a Sunday evening. Did a great job; he's good as new. Saved our cat's life some years earlier.

I'd suggest that — next time you're in that area — you find out exactly where they are and stop in, if only for comfort level.

(FWIW, they're also a great vet during normal business hours... but not exactly handy.)

May you never need their services! —Ted E.

If one of your better friends is watching your lab while you are in South Carolina and refuses to close the door of the laundry room where he stores the food...Arborview will remove 4 pounds of dog food from your dog's stomach on a Sunday afternoon...for about $600. Or you can leave the food impacted in its stomach and wait for it to croak.

They certainly seem to know what they are doing. And if you are a shareholder...they really seem to know what they are doing.

I skipped the pet insurance and married a Vet.



I'M STILL PAYING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Consistency is very important!

Make sure everyone in the family uses the same One Word commands and don't mix multiple commands in a sentence.

Down= lay down

Come= come here

Off= off the couch, off the rug or off of me (it doesn't mean down) it means off.

Stay= stay (pretty simple)

Free= exercise over or at ease

These are just a few of the basic commands One word commands work best.

Positive reinforcement is ever so important!

The number one command (for the safety of your pet) is Halt (or Stop if you have one of those off breeds, i.e. anything other than a German Shepherd )

Make sure you really work on this one it may save your dogs life if it decides to run off or into the street after a wildlife or another dog.

Good luck!