Brindle Pit Bull Hair Problem?

You're right, all anyone could know is what you type and what you've typed is what I've replied to. You have set the tome of my posts.

This is my breed, the breed I have dedicated my life to, to save, to fight against bad dog legislation, to educate people in a positive manner about the breed.

Instead of engaging conversation to be a better owner you've defended yourself and what/how you are going to.

Advice..plenty of it...

enroll in a basic obedience class, then take the advanced and enforce what you've learned daily

live with your dog in your home

train your dog every day

walk and play with your dog every day

socialize your dog beyond the normal so you too can be a positive roll in the APBT community instead of adding to the social problems

Don't compromise on anything, food, care, training

When faced with bad legislation, fight it

when faced with giving up your home or your dog, make it your home

rescue or foster when you can

pay it forward for the breed and teach someone else

 I have bad expierence with switching a dogs living conditions SPICY, because i kept my gsd inside because i thought she was too young to live outside. But i wanted to be an outside dog. So i kept her inside for awhile untill she got big. Of course i took her outside to play. When it became time for her to become a outside dog. She did not like it. Wanted to come back inside with me. Tieing her up made her cry/bark all night and day ( NON-STOP). So i had to let her run freely and i know that was the WRONG probly the worst thing in the world todo. And i learned that. I eventually had to get a fence. Now she lives inside with my aunt/cousin.  This dog i have is sleeping fine outside, it was tied up at the original owners house i told him about my past expierence and he said this dog was fine being outside tied up. And tonight he hasnt made a peep besides to bark at a bird. I look forward to waking up and going outside to a entergetic happy to see me puppy

I defended my posts, because instead of getting helpful advice on how to be a good owner, i got critics saying how im going to be a bad owner. 

gahustle

 I defended my posts, because instead of getting helpful advice on how to be a good owner, i got critics saying how im going to be a bad owner. 

And that makes it right?

I just gave you a list of things to help you be a better owner...what did you think of them? How many do you think you might impliment?

most likely everything besides

live with your dog in your home

Well I hope you live in a warm climate, these guys don't do well in cold weather.

 BTW, regarding children in a previous post...my kids are 26 (daughter) and 19 (son). I've raised them as I raise my dogs, with teaching, limits and rules add in responsibiity and I've been blessed with two great kids who love my dogs and also live for them.

 My deep involvement in dogs was because of my children and wanting to have a family involved activity. We were pet owners who became a dog showing family to this day both my children show and raise our dogs with me...tomorrow my daughter and I will be at a show and Sunday my son and I will be.

Well, im not going to get rid of my dog. And i actually love to talk to people like you who have the breed and know about them. Because this is m first full pitbull. Others ive had were mixed... But I dont want to read someone telling me im a bad owner.  I want to learn i have the best intentions. But dont know everything, this is why i talk to people who have these dogs and know about them. I want to learn from you honestly, but i cant learn when you tell me i am a bad dog owner i just dont read the rest of your posts.

I live in southern georgia, right at the Florida line actually, even when its winter it dosnt get too cold although it does. I am building a dog house. But if the news says anything about bring all dogs and plants inside i have no problem bringing him in for acouple of days. If not i have a shed/garage that is always pretty warm with plenty of blankets he can go in. 

Well as you can imagine I've seen many people who get the breed then realize it was more then they thought it would be...similar to the dog I just put a champion title on...I have another thread where I state he is my rescue to rings champion now. His people got him as a pup, wife got pregnant and that was it for the dog, two years later they had a dog that was no longer social, very attention starved and they no longer wanted him, he ended up with me and my son and I have spent the last three years reworking him. Luckily he was bred right and his temperament is solid. I pushed his buttons to make him bite me and he wouldn't, thats why he stayed.

The breed is a social breed, not one to be locked up. Take your dog every where, introduce him to everyone. He should be friendly to all unless threatened and he'll know. he will be naturally protective of his property, you won't have to train that, just let it be natural.

Search out sites on the web and you'll see the difference of good sites that are positive compared to those who want to promote the dark side of the irresponsible owners

 I will deffinatley read some more information from google about the breed.  But im young, and even though young kids lose interest and attention span is short. Im more entergetic and eager to learn from my expierences. The pitbull is a beatiful dog, and i like that it is a challenge and im the type of person who takes on challenges head first. So i will read and learn more about the dog. And hopefully will post my expierences and more about the dog as this is the first day ive had him so he is still learning im his owner & getting to know his new home. Hopefully when he wakes up in the morning he will be happy to see i didnt abandon him and can smell & see something familiar. Im all about bonding, if he knows anyone i want him to know me the best!!!!!!!! But i will also take him for walks and around other people thats not a problem

gahustle

but the hair problem was he wasnt able to wash them every single day but its not major. Dosnt look major besies some hair not growing but ive had dogs like that in the past and there hair grew in after washing weekly. 

I hope the hair loss is simple to take care of.     However, it could be demodectic mange.  That is a genetic immune system problem where the animal's system can not control the normal demodectic mites (you and I have them, too).  Some of the vet treatments are toxic "bandaids" - not cures.  Do not permit the toxic Mitaban dips!  The oral meds Ivermectin or Interceptor are also not the way to go.

One of our forum members (calliecritters) is an expert at treating demodectic mange and helps lots of people successfully treat their dogs by boosting the dog's immune system.

But will take him to a vet in the morning i set and appointment. 

Please let us know what the vet says!

This guy is not a trained breeder. His dogs just had pups and pitbull pups are easily sold.

This makes him a careless backyard breeder.  It is no secret what it takes to stop the production of puppies.  This site has a list of the genetic problems that can be found in pit bulls.  Without knowing the details of several generations, a breeder may be producing lots of pups that will eventually have severe (and expensive) genetic problems.  I really hope that your pup is not one of those!!

But from the dogs ive had as long as the pup is happy its all that matters. I havent had one dog that wasnt happy. Even the vet said my dogs are verry happy.  ...  And mostlikely he or she will be happy with a bowl of food, water and someone to play with period. 

Dogs are very social animals, so I hope you plan to house train him and to allow him to spend at least part of his time inside with you.  I also hope that you plan a yard with a secure fence in the near future so the dog can do some running to work off energy.  You won't know if he is going to be dog aggressive until he is much older (3-4 years?), so dog parks may or may not be part of his future. 

A fence will also help to keep other aggressive animals away from your dog.  A dog on a chain doesn't have much of a chance against a coyote pack.  There are more and more reports of coyotes going after dogs!  One forum member even had a coyote go after her two adult pit bulls in her backyard.  In that particular instance, the coyote lost.

There is a lot of training that your pup needs to keep him safe.  He needs to have an excellent recall, so you

• can catch him if he gets loose and
• have at least a chance of calling him off other dogs if he develops some dog aggression. 

He needs to have a good "leave it" and a good "drop it".  That will not only help to protect your belongings, but can also keep the pup away from dangerous items.  Poisonous snakes are one possible problem.  Things like corn cobs (intestinal obstruction) and cooked bones (dangerous splinters) are additional problems.  One forum member's dog swallowed a multi-prong fish hook when she tried to take the hook instead of saying "drop it".  Surgery was required to remove the hook.

The pup needs to be crated trained at least to the extent that he does not panic if confined at the vet or to recover from an injury.  Otherwise, he could break teeth/nails or tear out stitches.  Crates are also a good aid in house training.

Your pup is way beyond the best socialization period, so you really need to work on that to avoid fear issues.  Take a look at the "The Puppy's Rule of Twelve" .  Take your pup to the vet frequently just for treats from the staff.   That will build up a set of good experiences to offset any bad ones he may have.  However, you need to include enough other car trips that a car trip does not automatically mean a vet trip to the dog.

The safest way to transport a dog in a car is in a strong wire crate secured with seatbelts.  Here is my favorite - cheaper on eBay??

If you plan to take care of your dog's nails yourself, you can remove almost all chance of hurting the dog by "dremeling".  That means training the dog to lie quietly while you use a grinder to shorten the nails.  Some dogs almost sleep through the procedure.  Go to www.doberdawn.com (see link at left on that page) for instructions.

gahustle

Well, im not going to get rid of my dog. And i actually love to talk to people like you who have the breed and know about them. Because this is m first full pitbull. Others ive had were mixed... But I dont want to read someone telling me im a bad owner.  I want to learn i have the best intentions. But dont know everything, this is why i talk to people who have these dogs and know about them. I want to learn from you honestly, but i cant learn when you tell me i am a bad dog owner i just dont read the rest of your posts.

Well lets see if I can help you out.  If, as you say, you want to learn and have the "best intentions" perhaps some of what is posted here will assist you in being the best owner possible for your dog.  May I ask what you have named the dog?  What purpose do you envision the dog fulfilling?  Most breeds of dogs do better when they have a "job" so what "job" do you plan on the dog doing?  Please understand that for a dog a "job" can be anything from actual work such as herding or police work, to such things as agility or Frisbee competition or even being a companion dog.  Very few breeds do well with nothing to do to occupy their time and mind.  Specifically Pit Bulls really need to have something of interest that they can do with their owners preferably something that will include a lot of careful socialization with other people and other dogs.  Your dog is already 8 months old, has it had any formal training yet?  I would highly recommend enrolling the two of you in at least a basic obedience class to start with.

You are determined to keep this dog as an "outside" dog.  A couple of things you really need to keep in mind.  You stated that you live in south GA well I do not need to tell you it gets pretty darn hot out there!  Make sure that you dog has plenty of shade available for it.  I see that you are making a house for him, if that is what you are planing to use for shade please make certain that it is well ventilated.  I doubt you will be able to provide air conditioning for that house but perhaps you could at least install a fan.  Next concern would be to make sure the dog always has plenty of fresh water available.  One of the biggest problems with having a dog tied out is that the rope or chain they are tied with always seems to knock over their water bowl.  Perhaps you could install a trough system rather then using a bowl for his water.  Next concern is that if you simply tie the dog out to a stake or pole the chain or rope, in addition to knocking over the water bowl, will have a tendency to get wrapped around anything in its path.  This can not only be inconvenient it can also prevent the dog dog from being able to get to his water or into the shade.  Perhaps you could make an overhead run system rather then just tying him to a stake or post.  Although not a perfect solution, a well thought out overhead run system is less likely to entangle the dog.  Another thing you need to be carefull about with "outside" dogs is if they become "barkers" it will annoy your neighbors!  This can lead to unwanted calls to AC about your dog so train him not to bark unless there is a good reason to bark and to stop barking on command.

Now for the biggest concern about keeping him as an "outside dog".  Any breed of dog that is left tied out has a greater chance of becoming aggressive and this seems to be especially true of the pit bulls!  That does not mean that all dogs that are tied outside will become aggressive or that all dogs that live in the house will not be aggressive!  But with a powerful breed such as the pit bull you do not want to do anything that will increase the chances of him becoming aggressive!  There are some things that you can do that will help prevent your dog from becoming aggressive.  I and others have already mentioned getting him into an obedience class as soon as you can.  Make every effort to insure he is carefully socialized.  When I say carefully socialized I mean that he should be carefully exposed to lots of different people and lots of other dogs but that exposure must be done in a way so that it will be a positive experience for him.  If you are unfamiliar with how to introduce your dog correctly to other people and other dogs seek out a trainer that can help you with that.  The next thing that you should be doing to help prevent aggression is to make certain that the dog is exercised rigorously!  Do not think that by allowing your dog to run around on his chain he is getting enough exercise.  In fact that is not only not giving him the exercise he needs it will have a tendency to become frustrating for the dog which is one of the reasons that chained up dogs tend to become aggressive.  He will need long daily walks and lots of play/work time.  Ideally the only time he will spend tied out by himself he should be so tired out from the exercise and play/work that he will be in a resting mode.  Remember that a tired dog is a good dog!  By the way he is going to need that exercise and play/work every day rain or shine!  Remember that the pit bull breed is a pretty social breed and it needs to be with you most of the time!  If they do not get their need for social interaction fulfilled that could cause them to become frustrated and could increase the chances of them becoming aggressive!

I hope some of this helps you and good luck becoming the best owner possible for your new dog!

Mark

janet_rose >>>>  I have been reading about Demodectic Mange. And this maybe dog has. I have been reading from this site

 http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_demodectic_mange.html

& Here

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1589&articleid=729 . 

• Localized disease does not involve more than two body regions. (One spot or two on the face and one spot or two on a leg would still qualify as localized even though the spots are not close together.)
   
• Localized disease involves no more than 4 spots total on the dog.

This is a summary of what m dogs symptoms are.

a few circular crusty areas will be noted, most frequently around the muzzle. Most of these lesions will self heal as the puppies become older and develop their own immunity. Persistent lesions will need treatment that will be described later.

nothing crusty, or scabs. Just 1 small round area on his back and a couple of very small  ones on his head and one   small area at the bottom of its tail The dog was born in november so still a pup i guess it will go away after the dog gets alittle older ...? I still will see what vet says  

I will see if vet can point me to where i can get some Goodwinol ointment since this is what all these sites say is good and a good diet dog was pretty skinny so now that i have him i can fattin him up a bit.

Here is some training info.  Please forgive me if I list things you are already familiar with.

NOTE:  I should have mentioned it before, but most of the things you see in posts in red are links.  My posts often contain many links instead of long explanations.

At 8-months your pup is (or is quickly becoming) a doggie teenager - with all that implies.    You will probably need to use an NILIF (Nothing In Life Is Free) program. 

Clicker training is great!  Have you ever tried it?  I think you would find it a lot of fun.

Here is a post with my suggestions on housetraining a puppy.  You would, of course, have to make some modification for your older dog.  A dog should never ever be punished or yelled at for soiling in the house.  All that will do is teach him to hide to eliminate. 

Crate training:

• http://www.clickersolutions.com/articles/spt/SPT_Crate_Training_Info.htm
• http://www.wonderpuppy.net/canwehelp/crate.htm

Muzzle training (any dog in pain can bite, so train now to avoid problems later):

• www.sniksnak.com/doghealth/muzzle.html
• www.petexpertise.com/about_us/litter.htm

Some places to get wire muzzles designed for pit bulls:

• http://andrewsimports.com/shop/category.asp?catid=17
• http://www.dogmuzzle.com/wirbasdogmuz.html

A cheaper plastic muzzle will probably (??) do for training a young dog that is not full grown, but I am not a pit bull expert.

gahustle

nothing crusty, or scabs. Just 1 small round area on his back and a couple of very small  ones on his head and one   small area at the bottom of its tail The dog was born in november so still a pup i guess it will go away after the dog gets alittle older ...? I still will see what vet says  

The problem may or may not go away.  Keep your fingers crossed.

Here is a picture of a pup with generalized demodectic mange, so I think you can understand why breeders who continue to produce demodectic pups really make me angry.

You should be able to get Goodwinol ointment at PetSmart, but if you google it, you will find multiple on-line sites that carry it in varying sizes.

gahustle

dog was pretty skinny so now that i have him i can fattin him up a bit.

Whoa!!  Talk to your vet first.  A large percentage of the dogs in the U.S. are overweight, so be sure you know how to tell whether or not a dog is too skinny.  A lot of forum members whose dogs are at a proper weight even get accused of starving their dogs because people don't know what a proper weight dog looks like. 

Look at these sites:

• http://www.ingleburnvet.com.au/bodyscore.htm
• http://us.iams.com/iams/en_US/jsp/IAMS_Page.jsp?pageID=A&articleID=230
• http://www.placervillevet.com/canine%20body%20condition.htm

A dog is much better off being a little underweight than being overweight!