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View Full Version : Update #20: Talk to me about having a small dog!



AnnieW625
02-07-2017, 11:06 AM
So we adopted a Chihuahua/Doxen/Shiba Inu (?) mix (the curly tail, pointy ears, and tall legs makes us think he is part Shiba Inu) on Saturday from our local shelter and my DH picks him up today. He is about 18 months old and so I am hoping he is housr trained, but we bought pee pads as well. I have never had a small dog and this guy weighs about 15lbs now. We do have a dog door (the prior owners of our house had a small dog), but other than that I am not sure what to do. From what we could tell the dog has an awesome temperament, doesn't jump and is good with my kids which is why we adopted him. DH is still convinced he can be an outside dog when we are at work but I am not so sure especially now with all of the rain we are having right now so I am thinking of buying a small to medium crate or giving him free range of our kitchen (we have a door on one side and will have to get a baby gate for the other side and he can get to the dog door from the kiarchenemy) at least on days when it rains.

Any help or suggestions would be great! Thanks so much! Also any suggestions for dog food. We have a bag of Hills Science Diet Active dog food for small dogs and it gets good reviews on chewy.com and it is what he was fed at the shelter.

specialp
02-07-2017, 11:23 AM
Do not do pee pads because it is so hard to train dogs to go outside after you've used pee pads. Train to go outside just like you would a large dog. I would use a crate to crate train at first and once that is established, you can use the dog door/section off the kitchen. Even if he is house trained, he still has to be house trained in your house so do not give him free reign anywhere until you get the house trained down pat. [ETA: we had a shelter dog that after 2 days, I felt fine letting her roam the house. She never ever used the bathroom in the house her entire life. So it may take a long time or a short time. ] Food - I haven't checked the rating in 4 years, but we use Core wellness for small breeds.

zukeypur
02-07-2017, 12:26 PM
Yes to everything specialp said. We use Wellness Core as well. My dogs vomited on science diet and iams. I buy our food from amazon subscribe and save. We have a metal crate that the dogs sleep in every night at home, and they use a fabric crate for camping and traveling.

Kindra178
02-07-2017, 12:48 PM
No dog should be an outside dog. As for food, check out Horizon Pulsar. Available at Chewy - it's affordable and grain free. Iams and Science Diet are not good foods. The trick is finding a high quality affordable food that works. Generally speaking, avoid soy, preservatives, by products.

AnnieW625
02-07-2017, 02:39 PM
Thank so for the help so far.

I think I will get a metal crate in medium size and try a small bag of the Wellness Core Small Breeds food to try. I do like the look of the portable canvas crates I saw on Amazon as well.

I plan on using the pee pads as pads and simply train him to go outside as well.

Our old dog (80lb lab) had access to our garage 24/7 where she would sleep most days and nights unless the weather was bad and then we would bring her in the house. Lots of people here keep their dogs outside during the day, and dog runs or outdoor shelters are common, but then again we have 300 days of no rain or lots of sunshine most years.

Tenasparkl
02-07-2017, 02:44 PM
We just adopted a dog around the same size, but a little younger on Saturday. Perfect timing on this thread, thanks!

citymama
02-07-2017, 02:57 PM
Aww, congrats! He sounds awesome! My girls LOVE our rescue who we adopted a year ago at age 1. Can't imagine life without him!

Our guy is about 22 lbs and gets a mix of Hill's Science Diet for small dogs (same as your dog) and Nature's Variety grain free kibble. No complaints with either. If/when you introduce any new dog food be sure to do so gradually over time or it can upset their stomachs.

Get him a dog bed if he doesn't have one already. Our dog loves his and our wood floors aren't so cozy for him to sleep on (we don't let him on the furniture). He had never been crated and he hated being constrained but was very trainable in understanding where he was allowed to be and not be). I highly recommend investing in some dog training once he's settled in - we took our guy to Petco (sign up for their deals, we got 6 sessions for $60!) - it was supposed to be a group session but he was the only dog signed up so it ended up being private lessons.

Important to take him to a vet to get him up to date on shots (distemper and rabies if he doesn't already have them); we got ours microchipped as well. They will start him on heartworm pills and tick/flea medication - really needed the latter because our guy is shaggy and we go on a lot of hikes in the woods.

Borrow a book on dog training from the library - we used "our adopted dog" or something like that, which really helped me establish a few ground rules for the dog around our kids. Enjoy!

zukeypur
02-07-2017, 03:17 PM
This is the portable crate we got.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JRH0MQO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

doberbrat
02-07-2017, 05:10 PM
the soft sided crates are awesome for crate trained dogs - they are very easily destroyed by dogs who like to dig/chew etc.

I also agree with 'no dog should be an outside dog' but the smaller the dog, the more dangerous it is for them. 15lb dogs are prey and can be attacked by coyotes (which are common even in many suburban areas) even hawks and some owls could go after a 15lb dog. Plus, small dogs can easily dig out of their yards..... we've had dogs for nearly 20yrs and the only dog who's ever gotten out is Princess - at 14lbs, she can squeeze through the tiniest holes. Even though she's only out for ~5min at a time, she's gotten out several times.

specialp
02-07-2017, 05:27 PM
even hawks and some owls could go after a 15lb dog.

This was off my radar until we brought home a small dog and the vet warned us about it at the first visit. The vet warned us that dogs are usually killed by the fall, not the an attack of a hawk. The bird picks up because it’s interesting looking starts to fly off then drops the dog. All the ones she saw/tried to save were usually found in a neighbor’s yard b/c the dog was dropped fairly soon after the grab. She felt after 10-12 lbs, the threat was a lot less for the birds in our area.

Green_Tea
02-07-2017, 06:03 PM
We have a small dog (13 lbs) and the vet expressly warned against leaving him outside unattended. Please do not adopt another dog if you can't provide a home inside. Small dogs typically adore their humans and are not happy to be separated from them.

Green_Tea
02-07-2017, 06:08 PM
This is what we feed our small dog: Merrick Grain Free Real Lamb + Sweet Potato Recipe Dry Dog Food, 4-Pound https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KMQ5NUY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_.oKMyb8NQ9TXR


Smaller breeds are notoriously picky eaters so expect some trial and error. They also are more likely to graze throughout the day (another reason why keeping the dog outside is problematic.)

mmsmom
02-07-2017, 06:43 PM
We have a small dog (13 lbs) and the vet expressly warned against leaving him outside unattended. Please do not adopt another dog if you can't provide a home inside. Small dogs typically adore their humans and are not happy to be separated from them.

I have never known a shelter or rescue group to allow a dog to be adopted to an outdoor home. Agreeing to an inside home is usually part of the contract. Too many things can happen if dog is left outside all day- excessive barking, theft, injury from other animals, developing separation anxiety, escaping the yard. I would plan to crate him/her when you are not home until the dog adjusts then make sure dog has access to an inside area when you are not home.

AnnieW625
02-07-2017, 06:47 PM
This was off my radar until we brought home a small dog and the vet warned us about it at the first visit. The vet warned us that dogs are usually killed by the fall, not the an attack of a hawk. The bird picks up because it’s interesting looking starts to fly off then drops the dog. All the ones she saw/tried to save were usually found in a neighbor’s yard b/c the dog was dropped fairly soon after the grab. She felt after 10-12 lbs, the threat was a lot less for the birds in our area.


We have a small dog (13 lbs) and the vet expressly warned against leaving him outside unattended. Please do not adopt another dog if you can't provide a home inside. Small dogs typically adore their humans and are not happy to be separated from them.

Thank you both for this. I didn't even think about the bird issue. DH and I have never had a dog that weighs less than 30 lbs so this is all new to us and we hope it goes well; we weren't finding a larger dog we absolutely loved at the shelter and DH is very pro adopting from the shelter and we were really attached to this dog from the start of our visit. We hope that our prior experience (DH has been responsible for a dog on his own for the last 20 yrs., and me for the last 10) serves us as well with this new adventure.

Kindra178
02-07-2017, 06:48 PM
Just to clarify, I wasn't concerned about weather/extreme temps. It's a socialization issue. A dog is part of the family and should be in the home with you. Get a crate so that the dog can be secured without being destructive.


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citymama
02-07-2017, 07:36 PM
OMG yes, I hadn't realized the plan was for him to be outdoors while you are at work! I agree, he should be inside and you could have a dogwalker or if the doggy door works and he isn't able to escape or dig out, he could use that to go to the bathroom and back in. I telecommute so my dog has constant companionship but he would bark his head off if left outside all day. (We had no idea he was a barker until after we'd had him 6 months.) Rain, heat, other animals, barking, digging, escaping - too many reasons that he shouldn't be outdoors while you're away.

Also realize that until he is very securely in your home, rescues can frequently be at risk of trying to escape or being disoriented. It takes a while before they can be really secure in your home and with your family.

zukeypur
02-07-2017, 08:00 PM
This is what we feed our small dog: Merrick Grain Free Real Lamb + Sweet Potato Recipe Dry Dog Food, 4-Pound https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KMQ5NUY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_.oKMyb8NQ9TXR


Smaller breeds are notoriously picky eaters so expect some trial and error. They also are more likely to graze throughout the day (another reason why keeping the dog outside is problematic.)
I won't say that Merrick isn't a good food, but i just want to point out that Merrick owns a rendering plant and was recently bought out by Nestle-Purina. They say that they don't use rendered products in their food.

Green_Tea
02-07-2017, 08:26 PM
I won't say that Merrick isn't a good food, but i just want to point out that Merrick owns a rendering plant and was recently bought out by Nestle-Purina. They say that they don't use rendered products in their food.

Thanks for the info. This particular line currently gets five stars on dogfoodadvisor.com, but I'll keep an eye on it.

AnnieW625
02-07-2017, 09:09 PM
OMG yes, I hadn't realized the plan was for him to be outdoors while you are at work! I agree, he should be inside and you could have a dogwalker or if the doggy door works and he isn't able to escape or dig out, he could use that to go to the bathroom and back in. I telecommute so my dog has constant companionship but he would bark his head off if left outside all day. (We had no idea he was a barker until after we'd had him 6 months.) Rain, heat, other animals, barking, digging, escaping - too many reasons that he shouldn't be outdoors while you're away.

Also realize that until he is very securely in your home, rescues can frequently be at risk of trying to escape or being disoriented. It takes a while before they can be really secure in your home and with your family.

DH has the idea that dogs are okay outside all of the time (although he has always let the dogs in the house, just not when we were gone all day), and neither of the dogs he has cared for in the last 20 yrs (2 labs) were big barkers; but like I said prior he has never had a small dog and I am sure his ideas will continue to change and he already has said for the time being the crate is fine, and we will later expand to the kitchen once the dog has settled into things. We have a dog walker that used to come for occasional daily walks for our old dog as well so we know we can call her as well. DH has also interviewed for a job 4 miles from our house so he could easily come home for lunch if he gets it (fingers crossed!).

The two dogs I had growing up (1st lived until I was 11, we got her when I was 1, and the second one lived from the time I was 12 until I was 26) and then our last dog were all shelter dogs so I am pretty familiar with dogs needing to be used to their surroundings. I think DH had two shelter dogs going up as well.

Oh and the dogs can't leave the county animal shelter without their current shots including rabies so we know we will be goood there but will also get him into to see our vet soon as well.

AnnieW625
02-08-2017, 11:41 PM
So this is the little guy (18 mos. old) we adopted. The girls named him Kyle after the dog from Despicable Me because we aren't sure exactly what he is (part chihuahua/doxen/terrier?). Today's major accomplishments he stayed in his crate all day and didn't have an accident in it, he figured out the dog door, and brought me his leash as soon as I let him out of his crate. I am going to go to the pet store and buy him some different food because he didn't eat the Science Diet, a dog bed, and a kong toy and some treats to stick in the kong for his crate (today he did well with just a tennis ball). We have the crate in the living room and he seems to be doing okay there. Dd1 also took him on a walk around our block before school this AM and it went well she said. Also DH is fine with crate training him for a long while before leaving him alone in the house. I was so relieved he changed his mind when we discussed this last night.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170209/7745cce6631d7f3be84580dcb910deee.jpg


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trcy
02-08-2017, 11:43 PM
Too cute! Congrats!


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jgenie
02-08-2017, 11:58 PM
What a cute dog! Enjoy!!

citymama
02-09-2017, 12:13 AM
He's adorable! Looks like some kind of dachshund/terrier mix, bright little eyes!

baymom
02-09-2017, 01:47 AM
Congratulations!! Kyle has sweet, soulful eyes--what a cutie!

Kindra178
02-09-2017, 05:04 PM
Love him and the name!