Recent content by northernboxr

Thank you everyone for your kind words. It is just so strange that I have never grieved this strongly before. But Rik is in a better place now. No more pain, no more fear, no more vet trips and no more pills (hmmm, wait, no, he sure did like the peanut butter that went with those!). After...

Wow... I haven't been on BW since my Riker was just a pup.... tearing around, causing havoc and generally being everything a boxer puppy should be!! Well, two months ago I had to say goodbye to my beautiful young boy and I am still sitting here sobbing. It just doesn't seem to be getting any...

Wow. It has been so long since I've been on BW! Riker is now a whopping 15 months old and 57 lbs of pure, awkward silliness! Anyway... Riker goes to a massive, fenced off-leash park every day, but I've noticed something odd. On our hikes he plays nicely with every size and breed of dog...

Riker rides in the hatch-back part of my car. When it rains, I put on the back windscreen wiper and he just sits there chasing it and trying to bite it through the glass. I always think that the people driving behind me must be thoroughly amused! The first time it happened I had to pull over...

Oblivious? Haha- I think the mess he was making was probably his favourite part! Think of how satisfying it must have been to see all of that rice go flying far and wide!

My 8-month old boy sounds just like yours. He usually sleeps on a dog bed beside me at night. Last night I woke up thinking "mmm, it is so nice to have Riker snuggled up so close" It took me a while to realize that he had snuck into the bed and was sleeping on top of me!! He also follows me...

My puppy had the same thing. The vet called it "puppy pyoderma" and said it was very common. If it is the same thing then it really is just puppy acne. A round of antibiotics cleared it right up. Apparently this puppy acne can sometimes be related to food allergies, so you should check to...

Riker has always had a passion for cyclists. I have always dealt with this by being extremely vigilant. Anytime I see a cyclist, I get his attention and make him sit and "watch me" until it passes (using a hot dog to help of course!) However, in the last couple of days this hasn't been...

Slwoody, what dog park are you going to in Toronto? I also live downtown for part of the year and I have had problems in a couple of them (especially Sibelius Square). I find that some of the off-leash areas are too small and that seems to put a lot of dogs on the offensive, leading to more...

At least most people find it funny when one of our boxer kids "hits" another dog! At the dog park the other day, Riker saunters up to a HUGE rhodesian ridgeback and just punches him in the face! Of course he then ran for hills!

Riker is the same age as Zeb and he doesn't always seem to "get it" either. If a dog gives him signals to back off, Riker will jump around barking and trying to get them to play. He doesn't take them seriously. I too worry that he'll get himself hurt one day. My trainer told me that if your...

I don't want to make a statement saying your dog is not aggressive, because if he is then it is important to deal with it before you or your children get hurt. However, I will say that my pup behaves this way when he is bored and pushing the boundaries. Out on a walk, he will decide he is...

LASER POINTER!!! I got it for $5 at the pet store and it was the best investment I've ever made! They chase it just like a cat would... it seems to be a boxer thing. The other suggestions above are great too- puppies love to have lots to choose from. Also, may I suggest getting a puppy...

Oh the puppy relapses! Just go back to basics. Take him out more often (don't rely on him to tell you anything for a few days) and praise/treat like crazy when he does it right. He just needs a refresher. I think a ton of puppies go through this- mine sure did! In fact, mine did the exact...

This worked for us in about 2 minutes! I think it is an excellent suggestion. With my dog, once he got the hang of pawing at my closed hand for the treat I switched to gmacleod's method of tapping to get him to do it without the treat. The only difference was that I tapped behind his foot to...