This happens more often then you'd think. It starts slowly and it's frightening when your little bundle of joy leaps at you... there are a few things you should continue to do at home and implement as needed throughout the dogs life. Here's a good reference with lots of good solid ideas.
Another tool in the tool box is the ability to put weight on a dog. Dogs get sick or nursing dogs, fussy eaters or really high energy there are a lot of reasons that dogs lose weight. Here's a few recipes for "fat balls' they work, they are easy to make, local ingredients and you can freeze them!
I cannot stress how important this is. It's not impossible to reprogram a dog, but truly you're overriding Mother Nature. The dog won't be at it's best and will often revert to it's true nature. Dogs placed in the wrong environment become projects not pets. Everyone is deserving of the best experience possible. So trying to convince a dog with a huge prey drive to stop chasing your three year old is going to be awful at best. Wanting a lap dog out of an aloof by nature dog will be sad. Please take the time to temperament test your dog. The puppies I have I test, you are more than welcome to re test or watch the test. Here's how it's done
The theory is that if a dog, at a young enough age is exposed to enough things everything will be vaguely familiar as an adult. Walking over one bridge will make the next ones a piece of cake. Sudden noises will be no reason for fear. Strangers aren't strange. Eating in odd places will not ruin a family vacation. Everything in life then becomes building blocks on a firm foundation. It greatly reduces fearful dogs. It increases dogs that are relaxed and able to learn in different environments. It is recommended before 7 weeks but will vastly improve the quality of your dogs life at any age. Here are some guidelines to start. The more experiences you can positively introduce your dog to, the happier everyone will be!
So often dogs get punished for growling... I don't subscribe to this. I think it's a perfect communication. To stifle it, takes away one of dogs few ways to communicate with us. Please, take a few minutes to read this article and understand a bit more about this scary thing called growling!
This is how I've done my dogs nails for about 15 years. It's easy, quick and cost effective. The nails look nice and it's simple to learn. Just remember to take your time when you're teaching it to them, there's no rush! Here's the steps I took to get Toad used to the dremel! Training Toad
Adopting Two Dogs at the Same Time Rarely will I allow two pups to go to the same home. It is not typically in the best interest of the dogs (my primary concern) and often leads to one being rehomed and/or under trained.
My personal vaccine agenda goes like this: give the three puppy shots and that's it. I've had too many compelling personal reasons as well as information I've read and been told by a very respected veterinarian to do otherwise. Here is a well written piece. Please do your own research, but don't just do the yearly boosters "cause that's what you've always done".
No matter how vigilant we are sometimes it happens. Take pictures of your dog, so you have a recent one on hand. Call the vets and rescues in your area (yellow pages can help). Spread the word quickly and in lots of ways, word of mouth, facebook, fliers! Here's some links to help! Stay positive, dogs return home after long periods of being away!
The biggest directory of all things dog. Broken down by county so you can find local resources. There's a form to add your own (or favorite) services to the directory!