There are three boys and one girl. Rosie is such a good mum!
I managed to tidy her up and take a photo, look how happy she looks!
Tuesday, 8 October 2013
We Have Puppies!
I'm pleased to say that mama Rosie gave birth to four healthy pups last night and all of them are doing so well! The pups are already getting fatter and cuter :)
There are three boys and one girl. Rosie is such a good mum!
I managed to tidy her up and take a photo, look how happy she looks!
There are three boys and one girl. Rosie is such a good mum!
I managed to tidy her up and take a photo, look how happy she looks!
Tuesday, 1 October 2013
The Grooming Day
 |
| Rosie, looking rounded but still pretty, in the park last week |
I often get stopped by people who admire my dogs for looking beautiful and inevitably they will add "I bet they take a lot of work". I kind of both agree and disagree.
If you decide to keep a Coton in a full show coat, then yes, brushing will take longer and once the autumn comes (like now) your dog will bring in all sorts of leaves and twigs that stick to their coat. And if you're lucky enough to have a dog who thinks she's a princess, every time there's a leaf stuck on her legs, madam Rosie hits on her brakes and will not move until I remove the offending twig or a leaf.
Another difficult time for grooming in Coton's life is when they change coat from puppy to adult. This time varies from dog to dog, but generally it can start at 7 months and go up to 18 months. The hair is more likely to tangle so daily brushing would be most welcome.
In reality, most people won't manage to groom their Coton daily, so having a weekly bath and blow dry will make this stage easier. And having a white dog doesn't mean they get dirty more, you just see where to clean them.
Right now, I have one dog in a full show coat (Rosie), one dog in a puppy cut (Fluffy) and one dog going through the change of coat (Freddy). None of them loves grooming, they only tolerate it as they know they will get paid (in treats). So if the dog will not be shown, I like to make life easier for both me and them and keep them in a shorter and more manageable cut. That doesn't mean that shaving the dog is ok, they still need the hair to keep them warm and protect them from sunburn.
I think the perfect length for a puppy cut on a Coton is about 2", they are still hairy enough to look cute and the hair is much easier to keep clean and tidy and not bring the whole park inside.
I try and give my dogs baths every ten days or so, they get shampooed and dried with a blaster dryer and then I mist the hair with a grooming spray and brush them to remove any dead hairs and tangles. In the meantime I will brush their heads, especially if hair is kept in top knots, their paws get rinsed after walks, and in case they try and steal the liver treats from my bag again and get runny bums, I wash the stinky bums. Always easy to find a thief this way, too many treats generally means funky bums. I digress...
Anyway, as madam Rosie is with pup, I thought I would not stress her unnecessarily so neither her nor the boys have been bathed for a few weeks now. They all had some tangles but nothing serious. Freddy was the worst as he likes to put his head into everything and has his face and ears licked by Fluffy on a daily basis. He took a whole hour to groom, from start to finish - for me that's a long time. That included nail trimming and brushing the teeth. So looking after your Coton needs not be that time consuming!
To groom your Coton puppy yourself you will need a pin brush and a comb, a mild puppy shampoo and, the most important thing, an apron! You don't want to transfer all those loose hairs on your clothes! Also needed are a toothbrush, toothpaste for dogs, ear cleaner and a nail cutter.
To groom an adult Coton, you will also need a grooming spray and a good shampoo and conditioner. I will show all my puppy buyers how to groom their Coton, once you know what you're doing it's quick and easy and will leave you more time to enjoy your puppy!
Some product suggestions as I still keep being asked:
Pin brush - Mikki bamboo pin brush
Puppy Shampoo - Animology Puppy Love Mild Dog Shampoo
Wednesday, 18 September 2013
Never leave your dog in the car!
Leaving your dog in the car for longer than five minutes is never a good idea. The dog can get dehydrated, hot and is at risk of being dognapped.
Or even this can happen...
Or even this can happen...
Friday, 13 September 2013
How much fun can a dog have with a sock?
If you're Freddy, apparently loads!
Caught him on bed with a stolen sock having a whale of a time! Guess who is not buying toys anymore?
Sunday, 8 September 2013
Pup Aid 2013
Yesterday my gang and I went to Primrose Hill charity dog show to support Pup Aid 2013. We didn't participate in the show, but my doggies were happy to get attention from various people and we had a fun and exhausting day. Rosie was especially wiggly, she saw the show ring and thought it was all about her again and she was a star! She had to settle for cuddles and treats from kids so she calmed down eventually. She was still my number one star even though we met some "proper" celebrities.
Pup Aid was founded in 2010 by TV vet Marc Abraham to stop the puppy farming in UK. Puppy farming is a huge problem, so one aim of Pup Aid is to educate animal lovers and future dog buyers to never buy the pets from a shop, or buy it from websites that will deliver the pet to you.
Puppy farm dogs are usually kept in horrific conditions, they are forced to stay in small confined spaces where they eat and defecate, no socialisation whatsoever and are often riddled with illnesses and other medical conditions.
Most people are not aware of this when they see a cute puppy in a pet shop. They see a pup with its big sad eyes and feel sorry for it and want to save it. Unfortunately saving that one pup is the wrong way to go about it, it just fuels the puppy millers to supply even more puppies for sale in pet shops.
As those poor pups are often separated very early from their mums, they are very likely to suffer from diseases and on top of that you won't see people who run puppy mills doing any health testing as that would eat into profit.
After all, these dogs are not seen as pets, they are seen as commodity that makes the puppy miller money. They won't have necessary vaccines, worming, vet check and I won't even talk about them having a good start in life by being handled gently by humans, socialised with children and adults in all shapes and sizes, accustomed to the sounds of modern life. The less these pups have socialisation and adequate medical care when really small, the more you are likely to inherit problems when grown up.
Yes dogs in pets shops are often cheaper than when buying from a responsible breeder, but that's a false economy. You'll end up spending thousands on their care and some will end up in shelters.
I've seen some ex breeding bitches yesterday and I could not stop crying. And those were the lucky ones that managed to get a normal life in the end with someone who cared about them, but what about so many that are still foced to mate every heat and until old and then discarded?
It's heartbreaking.
So what can you do to avoid buying a pet from a puppy farm?
- Never buy a dog from pet shop. Period.
- Try and get a rescue dog from shelter.
- If rescue dogs are unsuitable as most of them will come with some sort of problems that some people are not able to deal with, then find a responsible breeder.
- Research the breed you are interested in.
- Kennel club has its own assured breeder scheme which is not brilliant - for example Coton de Tulear do not need any health tests and KC relies on clubs to suggest which tests, if any, should be done. Anyone who has bred one litter and pays for membership can apply to be an assured breeder. Some breeders get visits from Kennel club, some don't.
- Call the breeders on the phone. Interview them. They should be interviewing you too if they care about the welfare of their puppies.
- Try and visit the breeder's home, see where the puppies are kept, is it clean, where is their mum? Dads are not always present as many breeders seek studs from elsewhere, but if dad is kept at home, get to see him.
- Once you find the breeder that you like, be prepared to wait for the puppy.
- Ask what happens if you want to return the puppy if things don't work out? Most responsible breeders will be happy to take the puppy back.
- Be suspicious if the breeder has more than two breeds and ones who have puppies all the time.
- Kennel Club allows breeders in UK to only register four litters per year, anyone producing more needs to seek a licence from the council, hence the 'licenced breeder' which is nothing else but a high volume breeder. Might not be a puppy mill, but know the difference.
For more details and help and to sign a petition please check out the http://www.pupaid.org/
Pup Aid was founded in 2010 by TV vet Marc Abraham to stop the puppy farming in UK. Puppy farming is a huge problem, so one aim of Pup Aid is to educate animal lovers and future dog buyers to never buy the pets from a shop, or buy it from websites that will deliver the pet to you.
Puppy farm dogs are usually kept in horrific conditions, they are forced to stay in small confined spaces where they eat and defecate, no socialisation whatsoever and are often riddled with illnesses and other medical conditions.
Most people are not aware of this when they see a cute puppy in a pet shop. They see a pup with its big sad eyes and feel sorry for it and want to save it. Unfortunately saving that one pup is the wrong way to go about it, it just fuels the puppy millers to supply even more puppies for sale in pet shops.
As those poor pups are often separated very early from their mums, they are very likely to suffer from diseases and on top of that you won't see people who run puppy mills doing any health testing as that would eat into profit.
After all, these dogs are not seen as pets, they are seen as commodity that makes the puppy miller money. They won't have necessary vaccines, worming, vet check and I won't even talk about them having a good start in life by being handled gently by humans, socialised with children and adults in all shapes and sizes, accustomed to the sounds of modern life. The less these pups have socialisation and adequate medical care when really small, the more you are likely to inherit problems when grown up.
Yes dogs in pets shops are often cheaper than when buying from a responsible breeder, but that's a false economy. You'll end up spending thousands on their care and some will end up in shelters.
I've seen some ex breeding bitches yesterday and I could not stop crying. And those were the lucky ones that managed to get a normal life in the end with someone who cared about them, but what about so many that are still foced to mate every heat and until old and then discarded?
It's heartbreaking.
So what can you do to avoid buying a pet from a puppy farm?
- Never buy a dog from pet shop. Period.
- Try and get a rescue dog from shelter.
- If rescue dogs are unsuitable as most of them will come with some sort of problems that some people are not able to deal with, then find a responsible breeder.
- Research the breed you are interested in.
- Kennel club has its own assured breeder scheme which is not brilliant - for example Coton de Tulear do not need any health tests and KC relies on clubs to suggest which tests, if any, should be done. Anyone who has bred one litter and pays for membership can apply to be an assured breeder. Some breeders get visits from Kennel club, some don't.
- Call the breeders on the phone. Interview them. They should be interviewing you too if they care about the welfare of their puppies.
- Try and visit the breeder's home, see where the puppies are kept, is it clean, where is their mum? Dads are not always present as many breeders seek studs from elsewhere, but if dad is kept at home, get to see him.
- Once you find the breeder that you like, be prepared to wait for the puppy.
- Ask what happens if you want to return the puppy if things don't work out? Most responsible breeders will be happy to take the puppy back.
- Be suspicious if the breeder has more than two breeds and ones who have puppies all the time.
- Kennel Club allows breeders in UK to only register four litters per year, anyone producing more needs to seek a licence from the council, hence the 'licenced breeder' which is nothing else but a high volume breeder. Might not be a puppy mill, but know the difference.
For more details and help and to sign a petition please check out the http://www.pupaid.org/
Thursday, 5 September 2013
We Are Expecting Puppies!!!!
My little princess is showing signs of pregnancy! I am so excited!!! And terrified!
We are getting ready for the pups to arrive in October, in the meantime I'm ordering supplies to help with the delivery and the care of the puppies.
Rosie is being very affectionate and cuddly and it's so sweet. She's eating more and and so far is tolerating pregnancy well. Baby daddy Freddy is a very caring boy and he's helping his lady by keeping her company and giving her kisses! I keep catching them with big smiles on their faces, wonder if they know what will happen soon?
I can't wait for the puppies to arrive, it will be hard work but so rewarding!
We are getting ready for the pups to arrive in October, in the meantime I'm ordering supplies to help with the delivery and the care of the puppies.
Rosie is being very affectionate and cuddly and it's so sweet. She's eating more and and so far is tolerating pregnancy well. Baby daddy Freddy is a very caring boy and he's helping his lady by keeping her company and giving her kisses! I keep catching them with big smiles on their faces, wonder if they know what will happen soon?
I can't wait for the puppies to arrive, it will be hard work but so rewarding!
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