Hi! I am a new pit bull mix owner, and a two dog household, referred here by Katrina K., a high school classmate of mine!
My name is Kim, my fiance is Jeromy, and we just moved to Texas four months ago from Virginia. My fiance and I have Luke, our 3 month old Pit mix, and Daisy, our Cocker-Rotty. Our friend (and former roommate) also has a dog, a Beagle-Bassett mix, named Beau. We got Daisy and Beau the day we arrived in Texas, and got Luke a month ago. We got all three through the Paw Pals rescue group of Haltom City, TX. The three have gotten along really well, and each day they get better with the new pup. Jeromy and I are about to move into our new house this weekend, up the street from Jim and Beau, so we'll see how they all adjust.
Luke: About three months old. Totally cute. (Not biased at all...
) Chews/nips, but we're getting better with that. If he starts chewing on my hand, I quickly hand him a toy, and I think it's been working. He is teething, so I understand it may get worse. Mostly potty trained, with a few accidents. Anticipating accidents in the new house, but he'll learn. ALWAYS hungry! We feed him three times a day, and he could probably still eat more! Small for his age, I think. He was 4.3 pounds at 8 weeks when we got him, and 8.6 pounds at 11 weeks. I take him back to the vet next week, and I wouldn't doubt if he's up to 12 pounds or so.
Daisy: About 9 months old. A sweetheart, but can be hyper. SOUNDS aggressive when she's playing, but half the time she's not even touching the other pups. Loves to have her belly rubbed! Protective of her toys, but will sometimes just sit back and watch when the other pups play with the toy. Loves rawhides but eats them too fast; loves rope toys, but rips them to shreds.
Beau: About 1 year 3 months old. Sweetheart, but doesn't like kisses like the other two. Soft and mushy, is how I'd describe him. Prefers to hide rawhides instead of chew them, and likes to tease the other pups with them when they've eaten theirs and he still has his. Has anxiety issues and whines a LOT. With regards to his anxiety, one example is he won't go outside for DAYS after we mow. And he is afraid of the shoes that Jim wears when mowing, to the point of barking, trembling, and peeing if you make him get too close. We are concerned about how he'll react going from three dogs to just him... but we're nearby so we'll be having doggie play dates.
We do have training by Barkbusters, which I have mixed feelings about... We got them at the recommendation of our vet, who suggested them mostly for Beau's anxiety issues. Anyone have any thoughts on Barkbusters? I understand the concept and all, but I get tired of "barking" at them all the time! Sometimes treats or distraction work better, especially for Daisy and Luke.
Anyway, I would love any advice on how to be sure that I train my puppies, especially the Pit, to be sweethearts!
Daisy, Beau, and Luke!
OH, my shoe size is 7 to 7.5 depending on the brand, etc. and my favorite pizza is spinach and mushroom with garlic, which is nearly impossible to ever order when you get delivery because no one ever has spinach as a topping. hmph.