Needing help with Jake's transition

[jenn D]

Ok I've decided to start this thread because there are a lot of issues we will need to address with help Jake adjust to a new life. I'm just going to post here with questions. I've got obedience stuff down I can handle that. But there is alot of other stuff. I'll just post here any maybe one of you wise doodle lovers can help. I can try to post in food, and grooming but so any things are interrelated so I'm going to use this thread as a catch all and if mods want me to separate I can. :)

Issue first and foremost, the diet. We feed one of the foods recommended on here. Jakes current diet (what the owners been feeding him) is dry purina puppy food, and equal parts peas, corn, rice, cooked ground beef and water all mixed together. Okayyyyyyyyy. Iknow how to move a dog from 1 food to another slowly but how in the world do i handle this? Poor Jake has terrible runs! I'm taking him to the vet early this week to check for uti, stool, blood work etc. but how do I begin the transition to my food with all these other ingredients?

Thanks,I'll tackle other issues as we go along. I fear grooming wise he will need a shave. His belly, ears, and legs are horribly matted.

Thanks everyone.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Darn, all the Saturday Night Live, Videos of, " Mostly Junk", have been removed. Makes me wonder.  I miss that video.

Anyway, Beverly, WELCOME.  Stay around. You wont always like what you hear, or hear what you want, but you will love it here and learn so much.

Brush is off and come back and join us!

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Let's get back and help jenn D.  Certainly, I hope Beverly joins the food group and reads for herself to make her own decisions.

Jenn, my thoughts are, since I have a Rasta Dog myself, shaving is a good thing. To groom this coat, with a dog who is already stressed, is going to be too hard on him and you.

Shave it off. He will feel good after a few days. The first few days, touch gently  :)  Senory feelings are strange afterwards.

Anyway, shave and it will grow.  Sometimes, I  put a shirt on Spud < no, I dont like dressing dogs> because it lessons that strange sensation they get where they twitch a lot.  But, dont groom him. It really is too much. 

[jenn D]

Thanks Joanne. See my groomers reply below. :)

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

Beverly you are very welcome here. The people here are dealing daily with the worse problems you can imagine and their advice and compassion are based on experience and fact. What you get on this site is unlike any other. Sometimes the passion is mistaken for disrespect but it is just that. Open your mind and stay. You won't be sorry. The discussion here is about a puppy that has just been rescued from an abusive situation and Joanne was responding to that.

[Deborah Brown]

You've gotten perfect advice about the food.  I wish you luck!  Hopefully the vet tests will be good.

As for his coat, just go ahead and shave him.  He really won't mind and the hair grows back quickly.  Trying to brush out serious matting is painful and just not something I would put the poor dog through right now.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I so agree with this. 

[jenn D]

Ok doodle friends,
my groomer just called and said she will groom him for 1/3 of her normal cost. Is going to be a job but she's coming in on her day off tomorrow because she doesn't want him to wait any longer with mats (she owns her own company) . So jake gets a big groom tomorrow. So much is changing in a short amount of time for this boy.

[jenn D]

And thanks Joanne for the advice on rasta dogs. I groom brisby daily. I have a grooming table. But I fear the amount of matting would just be too much for me and jake to handle. Joanne, you are right, me attempting to handle this would be a nightmare for both of us. How tight of a shirt.

Oh dear I have two doods going through the dreaded puppy cot change at the same time!!!

[Wendy and Myla]

What is a "rasta" dog?  I've never heard of it!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It's short for "Rastafarian"...you know, the Jamaicans with the matted dreadlocks? 

[Wendy and Myla]

Wow!  As I've always said, it's amazing what I learn on this website!  Thanks!  and good luck Jenn D - hope his grooming session goes well!  You are awesome to be doing this for Jake!  Can't wait to see updates!!!

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

UGH!  My dog doesn't look this bad!  LOL

Awful.

How about his one instead. He was my boat captain on my honeymoon.