Hi Guys,

this is for all the people who have read my earlier posts about my rescue rottweiler and everybody else who is interested(to get the full story see my earlier posts) I have decided to call him deon, the reason for this is because when my staffie was poorly a vet came from wales to treat her, and tried his best for her for a full week, and he even cried when she didnt make it, and i said if a got a male dog in the future i would call it after him! so i did

i will get my digi camera out as soon as i can and let you all see my little man well not so little man!!

he is really coming on leaps and bounds, and is becoming more confident everyday he now follows me and my mum around the house and wanders into the back garden to do his business and comes back to sit with us. he is constantly making me laugh last night i made myself a pint glass of vimto while i was eating my tea and put it on the floor next to my chair. the next thing i know he is gulping it up! although he has got a large bowl of fresh water! he looked up at me gave me a cheeky little look and proceded to drink my vimto again!

last night he slept in my mums room next to her bed and woke us both up snoring! i was across the landing and had my door shut! then when my mum went to the tolet in the middle of the night she returned to see deon flat out in her bed! :) he did the same thing this morning we went down to feed him, he ate his food wandered back upstairs while we were not looking and got in her bed again.

my mum took him round to see her friend tonight and deon sat happily playing with an 8 month old SBT so he is coming on leaps and bounds!!

can i just ask a couple of questions?

1) i didnt know until i read on this forum that cooked roast bones are bad for him, so should i ask my butcher for raw bones will these be better for him?
2) he is quite skinny for his size whats the best way to bulk him up slowly? somebody toldme to feedhim tripe, is this a good idea if so how much and when should i feed it him, does it replace his current food (Butchers complete) or run along side it?

sorry for the length of the post buti though i would keep you all updated!

John

Hi John,

That's certainly very positive sounding news about Deon :)  Hopefully you are a match made in Heaven and all will run smoothly for you - please keep us posted.

Re your questions, raw bones from the butcher are much safer - even the bones in pet shops etc are smoked or baked and can shatter/splinter.  On a personal note however, I'd not give him such a high value treat as yet - give yourself and other family members more time to assess him which will take a few weeks.  This suggestion is simply because he may be over protective of something as precious in a dog's eyes as a bone and I'd want to avoid possible confrontational issues with him before a proper bond and mutual respect had developed.  Just MHO of course :)

Re his diet, I buy free flow tripe from Pet-at-home for mine and add approx half a pound in weight on top of the usual dry diet if I want to add a little extra condition :)  I split that amount over two meals though my breed weighs approx half what yours does :P   It may upset his tummy initially adding anything different so don't over-do things - slow weight gain will stay on better anyway and can be exercised into muscle - rather than piled on quickly and result in surplus fat ;)  Lamb breast and oily fish such as sardines can also be used to add some extra flesh on him - but again, in moderation and only introduced slowly.

HTH, regards Teri   

Im glad he's coming along nicely, you'll have to e-mail me piccies when you get them. I love the name aswel. I agree with what Teri says as regards to your questions. Anyway im off to bed hope he carrys on coming along in leaps and bounds and definately keep the updates coming.

Be careful when serving raw , e-coli and salmonella can be fatal!

I'm not to sure what to feed your dog to get him to bulk up , but just feed a little more then the recommended cup servings on his kibble and you should slowly see him start to fill in, thats all i can say!

Enjoy your rotti, start on some simple training immedietly and have fun!

Are you worried about the OP health or the dogs? Your dog can pick up salmonella from anywhere, feeding raw meat isn't necessarily going to put it at more risk, unless of course you have some evidence to the contrary.......?