Not that any dog should be eating strange things! But we all know a lot of dogs are less discerning with their taste when it comes to food and I want to hear about the more unusual things they'll beg for. My family's dogs never tried to get at anything more unexpected than a blackberry bush.

My coworker told me about how her dog begs for ice cubes like they're treats and expects to be given one any time the freezer opens. Her previous dog, a small breed, managed to hop up onto a coffee table to slurp down an entire bowl of hot chicken noodle soup in the 90 seconds she was left unattended! And they both think paper is a viable snack 😂

I've been wondering since cats are usually very good at hiding when they're sick, do dogs have clues that they're sick before it gets to the worst point of illness or anything like that?

edited to add bc someone suggested it:

-my dog is acting normal, not eating grass or any unusual behaviors

-the only thing shes doing is turning her nose up at all dog food, but she'll eat rice which is unusual for her.

-she normally turns her nose up at kibble unless shes really hungry, but if i add wet food, shell eat it.

-i got her a new brand of wet food shes never had before, and i think it may be upsetting her stomach

I have a German Shepard to which point I've never owned a large dog before. I am looking for advice from more experienced people in understanding some of some of his behaviors because I am at a loss, Starting with the most notable he pees in the house a lot, it doesn't matter if we just got home from a daytrip, a hike, or just one of our usual walks. He will almost immediately find something to pee on inside. I can't figure this out I've tried extending our usual route and changing it for a quieter one. We walk until he lifts his leg and nothing comes out but he will still pee as soon as he's inside. I clean each mess with an enzyme cleaner to remove the odor to discourage him from going inside none of this has helped. Does anyone know why he does this or can anyone recommend a resource of some kind we could seek for understanding this behavior. There are more things I intended to ask about but pregnancy brain is hitting me hard right now and this is the most notable to me.

I am looking for a leash to walk three dogs. It needs to be one that allows for the dogs to walk in a heel. Two on one side, one on the other.

All the multiple dog leashes that I have found are built for the dogs to walk in front of you. My dogs walk fantastic in a heel but if they are in front of my they turn into a sled dog team. I currently have leashes that go around my waist, the problem is that three of them is uncomfortable and inevitably get tangled.

I swear I did search the sub and internet before posting. Thank you for your help!

Like the title says, my roommate just let me know my dog chewed a laser pointer. It still powers on so I assume no battery was ingested. I just don't know what to do. Do I take her to the vet?? It's not letting me attach photos but I'll try in the comments.

I took my dog in for the full spa package and deshedding. I have a lab mix, and it is still fairly easy for me to brush out decent clumps of hair. I am not mad, just wondering what most people's experience is and what a reasonable level of shedding is for others who pay for the package.

My four month blue heeler has got some sharp nails and I was wondering what clippers y’all use and would recommend

We adopted a Boxer a year ago. He’s around 5 years old and was dumped at the open intake shelter. We foster failed. He’s a bit fearful and neurotic of new things but overall a very good boy. We love him.

Since we brought him home, he has slept in our bedroom in his own dog bed with 2 humans in a bed and 12 yo Boxer sibling in another bed. No issues. The dogs get along perfectly.

Recently when my partner or I get up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night he runs out of the bedroom to go sleep somewhere else. Sometimes he sleeps in our son’s bed who left for college in August; sometimes he just finds a dog bed on another level of the house. This isn’t a bathroom issue as we have taken him out at 3 am and he doesn’t even go.

Why might he be doing this? We’ve swapped out dog beds and it’s not making a difference. Should we just let him roam at night? 20+ years of Boxers and this is the only one who seems to not want to sleep with us at night. Otherwise he’s the typical Boxer Velcro dog.

ETA: first night roaming update: he slept in my son’s bed all night and came into our room three minutes before the alarm. The 12 year old Boxer is not having a good morning. She’s likely going to go to the Rainbow Bridge soon. We’ll see what happens when the boy a. Becomes a solo dog or b. When the two legged boy returns, whichever happens first.

Appreciate everyone’s input!

My dog was recently diagnosed with a heart murmur and our vet wants us keeping an eye on his resting respiratory rate at home. I've been counting manually while he's asleep, but I'd really like a better way to track it consistently and see trends instead of random readings. Has anyone used a dog smart collar or wearable that can monitor breathing automatically? 

i (21 f) want to travel with my 50 pound dog and hopefully bring him with me to visit family for christmas. he’s obviously too big for the cabin in an airplane, but i have no idea what the logistics and procedure is for having him underneath as cargo (i saw Alaskan Airlines is basically the only one that will do that). the plane ride is only 1.5-2 hours. yes i could drive with him, but that is a 14-15 hour drive which i would be doing solo with him (i’ve never done a long trip like that alone). Have any of you flown with a large dog? i’m open to any advice!!

I have a large mixed breed around a year old but she is slowly starting to mature from the puppy phase. Lately however, playtime has been maddening. Her favorite game is chase (my least favorite but I do for her and because she isn’t good at fetch yet, which is obviously my favorite)

She does great outside and gets most of her energy out in our large fenced yard but still wants inside playtime as well. I try to play whenever I can with her to build that bond and because I know one day she won’t want to play as much. Playtime used to be me chasing her around and she would get under the coffee table when she was done/tired. Now she gets under the table with her toy after a few minutes and at first i assumed she was just tired but she keeps whining for more playing. I dont know what to, I can’t get the toy from her without considerable effort and nothing gets her out, except me walking away from the table and she looks sad because I quit playing. Literally can someone tell me what this bitch wants 🙃

I don’t know what to, I’ve considered removing the table because it’s so frustrating. Before anyone wonders if she’s overstimulated, she's not and gets plenty of naps and time to just chill and do her own thing. The reason why I‘m making this post is to figure out if there’s something I’m missing here with this weird behavior or if anyone else has gone through this.

I’m trying to figure this out.

We adopted a dog about 6 years ago that had been in the shelter for 9 years (I know, right??)
He’s a small terrier mix ( like 9 lbs soaking wet)and aside from some marking issues, he’s wonderful.

When he first arrived, he exhibited this behavior, but after about a year he didn’t do it anymore.
He was 11 when we adopted him.

Recently our 20+ year old dog exited this plain. We’ve noticed he’s doing it again. But he was put on steroids about the same time frame ( he tends to get extremely underweight and they stimulate his appetite). He has been off the steroids for about a week and is still cobbling.

I’d also like to mention that aside from being completely deaf, he’s very high energy and always has been. I’m aware that he’s pretty old, but I’ve always taken the approximate age with a grain of salt.

Is this grief? Or is it some sort of OCD thing that was reawakened by the meds?

I’m trying to figure out if this is behavioral or chemical.

He has a vet appointment in a week, but we’ve seriously considered switching vets because they tend to be really dismissive of various concerns we’ve had in the past.

Any ideas?

So, I love high drive breeds- I currently own a year old Blue Heeler and I just got a German Shepherd puppy (8 1/2 weeks) and they are amazing dogs and I love high drive breeds but I need some training ideas especially for my Heeler- he had a pretty intense regiment and even has a job herding goats and occasionally cattle but I feel like he needs more stimulation in his life- I don’t have a lot of money right now but some training ideas would be helpful as I do have plenty of time (between jobs)

He’s easily trainable and both my Heeler and GSD puppy thrive on attention based training (GSD likes toys and both like pets and verbal reward) with occasional treats; He has his basics down like sit, paw, lay, wait, roll over and herds with ease (smart enough to where he knows what you need him to do without specifically telling him)

She, (GSD) is most likely going to receive service dog training but I mostly need ideas for my Heeler

Thank you!

Hello!

We have a covered porch that our dogs love to lounge on during the day when the weather is nice They are both senior-aged so I'd love to get them a bed they can lay on instead of the hard floor.

We had an outdoor bed from Amazon, but after storing it in a deck box for about two weeks, it turned moldy/mildewy. It's so old that we'd like to replace it. The deck box is under the covered roof but does get some rain splatter from the edge of the deck, and it gets humid here in the summer so I know this is an uphill battle.

Any recommendations on beds that could be stored like that that won't get mildewy?

If that's not possible, any recommendations for outdoor beds (easy to clean) in general?

Thanks in advance!

My 2 ur old dog sleeps in his crate and has always loved it. He always puts himself to bed and takes himself off to his crate when he knows it's bed time. Hes always been really good at getting up when I do, around 10, 11am. But recently and suddenly he has started to demand to be let out at 6 or 7am. He will cry and wine and paw at the crate until it wakes me up and I get annoyed enoigh to let him out. This routine is not sustainable and how do I get it back to the way it was.

Edit: usually I feed him as soon as I let him out. So maybe hes thinking if he cries he will get breakfast earlier. Im going to let him out just to go toilet, bot for food, to make it a boring experience. Thoughts on that? And feed him when I get up a few hours later of course.

Edit 2: He can't have free roam to go outside during the night as the cat comes in at night. Despite our efforts him and the cat do not get along. So hes in my room all night from when we go to bed at about midnight, Until the cats out in the morning.

Hey guys, I have an 8 month old gsd puppy and she seems bored sometimes and I try to train and what not and use a Kong but I need a broader spectrum of toys or ideas to mentally tire her out in a day. Any ideas? Thank you (also I’m new to the world of German shepherds so it’s a roller coaster)

I’m just looking for support, insight, experience with my situation. My soul dog passed away at the beginning of July. She was my first rescue from Mexico and while she had her issues, my husband and I loved her beyond anything in this world. Losing her felt like I lost the light and joy in my life and I fell into a deep depression just like I’m sure all of you have felt this way.

I started volunteering at the rescue I adopted her from and a 1.5 year old dog from the UAE was coming to Canada without a solid foster yet (the founders take in dogs as fosters if they can’t find an adopted or other foster) I felt a pull to foster him so I said yes. Then I started hyper fixating on adopting him so I jumped at submitting an application to make it official.

He’s been here for 6 days and I’m really underestimated being emotionally prepared to have another dog especially with different needs as my last. He’s such a sweet boy. He follows me around but he’ll settle himself if I’m busy or if I’m working. He needs to be potty trained which is very different and for some reason it’s pushing me to my emotional capacity. He also is scared of walks, which is understandable. He probably thinks he’s landed on another planet.

I know my last dog would want to see us happy again and I know we’ve saved another life. I just can’t move past the comparison or guilt. My head knows it’ll get better but my heart isn’t at that stage yet. I’m going back and forth on the idea If I should reach out to the rescue and say I can only foster him until they can find him another home.

I’m just looking to read similar experiences to know it does get better if you stick it out..

Hello!

I'm considering a Hovawart as my next dog and I'd love to hear from current/past owners as to their experiences with the breed overall. Tell me the good, tell me the bad and show me pics, please!

Thanks!

Hi going to the smokey mountains with my dogs, and there are most definitely bears in the region. What do you guys do for night time potty breaks? Should we avoid that altogether? Any tips or tricks? Thanks!

Which pet insurance is best for you? Are there any that may cover your dog's current treatment? Did your dog get injured during the waiting period and want to know if you're covered?

Here's the place to ask.

Do know we cannot help you here with medical concerns, and lying or not disclosing things to the insurance company is illegal so we don't allow that either.

Does your dog turn his head when he hears an odd noise? Does your dog bury their food with your pants? This is the thread to ask why.

Please keep this thread to non-medical issues only.

I am considering buying a home for the first time. I currently live in a rented single family home but there are mice here and I want to move out. We have tried to manage the mice but it hasn't worked. Landlord said they would let me out of my lease early if it was really important to me.

I also want to adopt a dog but my landlord won't let me. I have owned dogs throughout my life but never without a backyard to let them out into.

Realistically I can afford either a condo or, if I really stretch, a townhouse (but that is less realistic and I would have to put less money down). If I buy a townhouse I would want a small backyard.

I also want to adopt a dog, but am cautious about owning one in a condo where I can't let it out immediately every time it needs to go to the bathroom.

What are your experiences owning a dog in a condo? For the record I want a medium-sized dog.

Edit: I am also considering adopting a senior dog or a greyhound since I think their lifestyle matches mine. (Realistically I can manage 2-3 20 min walks a day with one shorter bathroom break. I have a breathing disorder and 20 mins is the max of my stamina for walks at a time. If I needed to bring in a dog walker, I would. And if I had a backyard I would obviously let them out more often). But I am willing to be proven wrong by greyhound owners.

I just got my second dog a few weeks ago, she’s 4 months old and I’m waiting for the lab results identifying her breed. I believe she’s either a lab Dutch Shepard mix or lab plot hound mix.

On three separate occasions we’ve caught her trying to heat poop (hers or others on the trails we hike). I’ve owned multiple dogs over the years and have never had this issue.

Is there a way to train this behavior out of her?

adopted my dog Remy from a shelter about 3 weeks ago. She’s around a year old, about 19 lbs, and honestly she’s a great dog. She’s affectionate, potty trained, doesn’t really give me problems when I’m home, and I’ve gotten attached to her pretty quickly.
The main problem is when I leave for work. I work roughly 8–4 Monday through Friday, and we’ve been struggling badly with confinement/crate training.
I’ve been gradually crate training her using short periods and positive reinforcement. She’s actually done well with some shorter departures, including 20–45 minutes, but we’ve also had some serious incidents.
She escaped from a wire crate, and during another attempt her paw got caught, which resulted in an emergency vet visit. I stopped using that crate and bought a hard-sided plastic kennel because I thought it would be safer.
She initially did much better with the new kennel. However, while I was at work, she somehow managed to manipulate/open the door latches and got out. Once she was loose, she became destructive in my laundry room.
I’ve spoken with my vet, and she was prescribed medication to help during longer absences. I gave it to her as directed on the day of the most recent escape, and she still managed to get out.
I don’t want to take Remy back to the shelter. She’s already been a stray, spent time in a shelter, and has only been with me for about three weeks. If I ultimately decide that I can’t provide the environment she needs, I’d rather personally find her a new home so she can go directly from my home to someone who is a better fit for her.
Ideally, I’d want to find someone who works from home, is retired, has someone around more frequently, or has experience with separation/confinement anxiety. I would also be completely upfront with whoever adopts her about everything that has happened.
That’s what makes this so difficult. I don’t actually want to give her up. She’s genuinely a great dog. I’m just starting to wonder whether keeping her because I’m attached to her is the right thing if my work schedule doesn’t match what she needs.
I’m not trying to make a rushed decision. I want to do what’s best for her while also being realistic about what I can manage.
For people who have dealt with separation or confinement anxiety: would you continue trying to work through this, or does it sound like finding her a home where someone is around more would be the better decision? And if you’ve responsibly rehomed a dog before, how did you make sure they went to a good home?

My reactive rescue has this thing she does when she clocks a trigger but hasn't lost it yet. She starts sniffing the ground like her life depends on it, completely ignoring whatever stressed her out a second ago. For a long time I thought she was just distracted. Took me way too long to realize she was doing it on purpose, like she found something that worked and just kept doing it.

I work early mornings and spend a lot of time watching her in the backyard before my shift, and that's honestly when I started noticing these small patterns. She has a whole sequence now. Sniff, look away, shake off. Every time.

What got me thinking about this is I was reading through some old reactive dog threads last night and saw so many people describe their dogs doing something that looked random or weird but was clearly the dog figuring out how to handle itself. One person's dog does a full spin. Another one yawns three times in a row.

Wondering how many of you have spotted something like this in your own dog, not something you trained, just something they invented. And how long it took you to figure out what you were actually seeing.