? for dog owners
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? for dog owners
| Thu, 04-03-2008 - 4:51am |
We're getting a dog - I'm so excited!!! (oh yeah, and the kids are too LOL) My sister is giving us her 5 year old cavalier king charles spaniel who needs a new home, and DH is going to collect her in a couple of weeks' time.
My question for you fellow doggie owners is how do

Hi. Julia is not DX, but we have a dog (Daisy) and I am a dog advocate! :)
DD loves our dog, but does tend to go a bit overboard (she feeds her 10 treats, not one, constantly gets Daisy water, is worried whether the dog is eating, etc). My
Hi Kirsty,
Congrats on your new doggy!
DS (Duncan) is 6.
Kirsty,
Congratulations on your new family member.
It is one of those things that you will have to play by ear to a certain extent.
As Aspies are generally good rule followers, a series of rules surrounding the dog are a good idea.
One thing I advise doing is to designate some space for the dog to be her "quiet space" so she can go there for to rest or take a break. It may be a crate or a dog bed(s), but make sure those spaces are cleared beforehand and the kids understand that this is where the dog goes for some alonetime and there are no kids allowed. Also they may not block the dog's access to her safe place.
I would start by giving Euan one area of responsibility for the dog. Keeping fresh water in the water bowl is a good one because it is tough for him to tell if you sneakily corrected his work ;)
On the unsupervised walks: Whatever about Euan, the dog won't be ready yet. She will need time to get to know you guys and the neighborhood and to not try to find her way to her old home. This will be a big adjustment for her, so it will be important to take things slowly at first. Over time you can go from walking together, to him walking the dog with you behind, to him walking up to the corner and back, etc etc.. Expect this process to take months, so prepare him for that. ("maybe she will be ready when the summer holidays start")
Just a small note on CKC spaniels. They are prone to develop a condition called syringomyelia, which is a nasty neurological pain/paralysis condition. Educate yourself on it and be in the lookout for the signs -JIC.
I HTH
-Paula
visit my blog at www.onesickmother.com
visit my blog at www.onesickmother.com