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Thursday, February 4, 2010

Tate Update

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It’s been a while since I last gave everyone an update on our puppy, Tate. He is a big boy now! He is a little over 10 months old and will be one on March 20th. He now weighs a whopping 23 pounds which is crazy considering the fact that he weighed just 4.5 pounds when we brought him home last May. Fabian and I are so smitten and we think Tate gets cuter everyday. He is very affectionate and has a really happy, gentle disposition. I get the feeling that he really enjoys the fact that I work from home because I get to spend most of the day with him. The little diva loves having his picture taken now and if he sees me with the camera, he will whimper until I snap his picture.

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We have no real complaints about our sweet pup, except that he chews through his toys in a matter of minutes and he gets very excited and jumps all over people when they first arrive, which is why he is wearing a leash in all of these pictures. Trainer’s orders! I promise he doesn’t mind it at all and we take it off in the afternoon. Does anyone have any recommendations for good, durable toys for dogs that like to chew (he already has a Kong)? You’d think he was a pit bull or something by the way he chews through things so quickly!

Any advice on getting him to stop jumping on people? Tate is a Cockapoo (Cocker Spaniel / Poodle Mix) and many people seem to think that jumping is a poodle trait he inherited from his poodle dad. Ignoring the behavior by turning our backs hasn’t worked even though it is what most trainers recommend. We’re doing the leash thing now where we step on it so that he can’t jump, but it doesn’t deter him.

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Usually, while I work in my office, Tate will play with his toys or take a nap. I snapped this photo of him yesterday. I thought it was hilarious that he had his little head propped up on the paper shredder! By the way, I just got this Expedit bookshelf from IKEA last weekend and I promise to post pictures of it and my office once I get it organized. Anyway, we love this little guy so much and are so happy that he is part of our family. He is such a blessing!

49 comments:

Rachael Sedory said...

I already have been wanting a cock-a-poo for a friend for my dog Logan and now I want one even more! Tate is precious!!!

Adriene Rathbun said...

Glad we got a Tate update! He is SO cute! Wish he could have play dates with my two dogs. Have you tried rawhides and/or Busy Bones? Both keep my dogs entertained. Xoxox for Tate!

Averill said...

He is SO cute, Paloma! Gotta love an overgrown puppy.

As for jumping up, what we do with Olivia is just give her a firm "no" and force her back down. Not the most creative method but you do it consistently enough and they start to get the idea.

Unknown said...

My b/f and I fostered a pit bull over the summer and we would give her huge raw hides (but had to watch her because she would manage to chew off the knots!) and also large plastic chew bones. Stay away from the braided ones though, they pretty much disintegrated with her. If you go to petsmart or one of those stores they have a good selection of chew toys. Just look in the large breed area for bones like these: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3206936

Living It At Home said...

So very adorable! Watch the Dog Whisperer for tips on jumping up on people. He is great. As far as chewing, my little pup, Maggie, loves chewing on those gross ligament/ flavored sticks. Sometimes you can get them in a ring shape, which keeps them busy for awhile. They always recommend supervision with any toy and all dogs. You never know when they can get themselves into trouble with it! For our second dog, we are going to try and rescue one...there are so many dogs abandoned and in the pound...it is so sad :(

Enjoy him!
~jamilyn

Unknown said...

Yes, we give him the white rawhide sticks and pressed rawhide bones all the time. He can get through the white ones pretty quickly, but the pressed rawhides last a day or two. It makes me sad that he can't play with soft, stuffed animal-type toys anymore. He loves them, but he rips them open within minutes!

Kathysue said...

Tate has an amazing face. How could anyone not fall in love with him. Love the picture of him in your office,he just needed to be close to his MOM. Too cute!1 Kathysue

Unknown said...

Thank you, Kathy. You're so sweet! Tate loves his Mommy, but Daddy is his favorite person on earth! He goes bananas for Fabian. If I just say "Daddy" while he's at work, he'll run to the front door and if we hug in front of him, he wants to get in on the action. I can hug anyone else, but he gets so jealous if I hug his daddy. :)

Anonymous said...

oh, he is so adorable! I have a cocker, and am absolutely smitten with her, but I can see where the poodle no shedding part would be great too.

Lynn

Jaime @ laviejaime said...

He is the cutest! I would love to cuddle him. Love his dog tag :)

Jillian said...

He is adorable!! Our puppy chews through everything too, so we give him lots of rubber bouncing balls. They're impossible to tear and he stays busy chasing them around the house.
We still haven't mastered jumping yet though!

http://pemberwick.blogspot.com

pixelimpress said...

tate's a cutie. we have a 2 year old brittany named pixel. our trainer recommends stepping into the dog's space when she jumps up. you're usually face-to-face with the dog when he jumps up so just step toward him and toward him into his space til he backs down. it usually works for us. it's just a matter of training houseguests to do it! good luck! pam

Jeannine | The Small and Chic Home said...

For Baxter, Nylabone keys, deer antlers (you can buy them at high end, natural pet stores, not chains), and raw bones have been the best chew items.

Edible Nylabones were terrible...they upset his stomach. For some reason, he loves the keys (he's gone through at least 10 sets in two years). He has one Nylabone inedible bone, but he only uses that once in a while.

Antlers and raw bones have marrow that dogs seem to love. They last a long time, to. I usually buy a raw buffalo knuckle or ham bone from the all natural pet store (they have them in a freezer case and they are by Nature's Variety). Bax will get the bone from the freezer as a treat and once he finishes the meat and marrow, I keep the bone itself in his toy bin.

Antlers are probably one of the best treats. If you have an outdoor enthusiast in your family, they can probably help you find antlers that have been naturally dropped in the late winter/early spring. I opt to buy them online or at the pet store.

Those three items are for hard core chew sessions (Baxter has "key time" almost every day). When it comes to plush toys that are durable, I've liked the new ones that don't have stuffing, Tuffies, and a new toy that is a rubber egg-shaped thing with a furry slipcover. Baxter has loved that one. Again, there's no stuffing, so it takes longer to destroy.

Good luck! We sort of just gave up being upset about destroyed toys. Every now and then, I have a sewing session and I sew ripped toys together. It's amazing how a porcupine with an octopus stomach is like a brand new toy to the little guy. :)

Susie @ Maddie G Designs said...

He is too cute. I've got an almost 11 year old beagle named "General" He loves laying in my office with the sun on him!

Sarah Ring said...

Thanks for the update Paloma! Your little gentleman is such a cutie pie!! I really wish we could take our lab to cali with us, but he is over the weight limit at our apartment so he will be staying in Katy with my mother. Will Tate get any bigger? 45lbs is the limit! LOL.

Courtney said...

Oh, Paloma, Tate's face just makes me melt-- he is so adorable!

Does he have a Kong Wubba? Itchy, E's and my older/bigger dog, often de-stuffs soft plush toys in a matter of minutes, but plush toys without stuffing seem to hold up a little longer with him. Softer nylon toys seem to do better with his aggressive chewing too (over a regular soft stuffed toy.) And really, sometimes I just resort to restitching the toys-- I have an entire box of animals in the ICU awaiting surgery.

I wish I knew a good solution for jumping; my family (really now my parents) has Wheaten Terriers and jumping is in their nature too... sadly, even with various training methods, their jumping is a habit that has never truly been broken (one is 8 and one is 7...)

Thanks for the Tate update! xo

bibbitybob said...

Oh, he is absolutely adorable! Thanks for the update x

The Famous Home said...

J and P's idea of a rubber bouncy ball is great. My in-laws pitt bull takes moths to dstroy these rather than minutes.
@ pam@pixelimpress this works great especially if you raise your knee up so that the dog can't get close enough put thier paws on your chest or legs.
Lastly, even though I'm highly against animal testing there was an experiment by B.F. Skinner some years ago about "Superstition in the Pigeon" http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/Skinner/Pigeon/
that could help you get a better understanding of why your adorable pup continues to jump on people. Basically a dog could continue to jump because occasionally it may allowed when playing or it may have been allowed at one time. Really if this is the case then what you are already doing will work but it will take some time.
Hope that didn't bore you, sorry :S

aneyefordetail said...

I would definitely try a professional trainer for maybe a month! It really works. I know two pugs (same household) who now SIT when the front door opens and don't move an inch until told to do so...yes, they are very happy dogs! Thing is, if you don't take care of it now, it only gets worse (I had a Westie who was very fiesty...)

Freckles Chick said...

Oh my gosh, I could just plant smooches all over his sweet face!!!!

I have no advice, sorry, as our dog is so mellow, I swear I think he's asleep most of the time, HA!

Thx for the Tate update!

Anonymous said...

Re: jumping - what worked for me was having treats ready when i knew someone was coming in the door and showing them to my dog before i opened the door so my dog was more interested in me and gave her a sit command. I would slowly open the door. any time the dog started to go back to the door i would call her name, show her the treat and tell her "sit". Once the person was safely inside and she was still sitting, she got the treat. I still had a "backup" treat in my hand in case she started to jump or get too exited with the guest and could call her name, show her the treat and say "sit"....and then give her the treat.

Yansy said...

Tate is such cutie pie! I have two dogs and they go through pretty much any toy pretty quickly specially the tennis balls. I've been given them the rubber tires and blocks and they are lasting a lot longer than any other toy in the past.

Anonymous said...

Canvas toys from Harry Barker. They make them in various shapes. I bought this for my dad's dog this Xmas.
http://www.harrybarker.com/Santa-Dog-Toy/productinfo/SDT/

They are really durable!

chloeblossom said...

He is so gorgeous! In love :-)

Megan Lee said...

He is just the cutest thing! I love seeing your pictures of him. We had a lab that would always jump on people when they came into our house and we did the same thing to get her to stop. Also, putting your knee up when he jumps. But it seemed like she finally stopped with age. And it did take AWHILE! So good luck :)

Katie @ Noodle and Boof said...

He is SO cute! My Boof is also a toy-destroyer. I quit buying the cute (aka cheap and easily chewed) toys. She has a basket full of Kong (black), tuff rope, lacrosse balls, and hard (indestructible) bones. I love Tate's coloring!

Tammy@InStitches said...

Tate is too adorable ! We have a goldendoodle, she jumped up a lot when she was a puppy but she has pretty much grown out of it. The hard white nylabones are Zoe's favorite.

Pamela Terry and Edward said...

Oh, what a charmer! A most handsome fellow indeed! I'm afraid I have no advice for the jumping problem, although I've also heard that turning one's back on the dog is supposed to work. Eventually. Edward only jumps up on me, and I don't mind. Fortunately he knows not to do it to anyone else.

LindsB said...

I beg for a dog everyday and this just made me ask my BF for the 10th time today. He is so cute!!

Alaina @ Live Creating Yourself said...

Nylabone toys. They are indestructible. They make these little bones that last forever and then they have these bones with the center part is made of rubber. Those are favorites of my two cockapoos - both of whom also tear everything to bits. As for the jumping, I've got nothing. Mine are both jumpers. Nothing has worked. Let me know if you find something that sticks! He is so cute.

Cheers,
Alaina

Lovely Little Nest said...

Oh my gosh, he's SO cute! My husband and I are considering getting a cockapoo ~ this has me nearly convinced! :)

Unknown said...

Okay, so Tate is definitely getting a Nylabone this weekend!

Alaina, I would love to see some pictures of your cockapoos! What color are they?

Lovely Little Nest, they are the best little dogs! I think we will eventually get Tate a sibling. He has far surpassed all of our expectations. He is smart as a whip and I had him potty-trained withing three weeks of bringing him home. He is a total lovebug, too. They're wonderful dogs!

SKR said...

If you haven't already, check out Animal Planet's "It's Me or the Dog"; Victoria Stillwell explains how a dog thinks which helps the owner understand the training.

I recall one jumping dog situation in which the jumpee simply turns his back on the jumper and takes no notice of it; the dog is rewarded when it stops and calms down. When a person reacts to jumping, dogs view that as a good thing; they have your attention, oh boy! There is a video online by another trainer who speaks on the subject at http://www.ehow.com/video_2348593_why-should-ignore-dog-jumping.html?ref=Track2&utm_source=ask. Most importantly, everyone has to be consistent in not rewarding a jumper with attention, hard to do with strangers who think your dog is cute, which Tate is! And never forget, the pet isn't the only one in the house who requires training. : )

Ice cubes can be used for a dog that likes to chew; they are cheap and can be soothing if teething is involved. Plenty of exercise and playtime to tire out a puppy also gives their toys a break.

Anonymous said...

My dog could chew through anything except for squeak toys made of latex...safer too as they didn't fall to pieces that could be ingested or choked on.

Helena - A Diary of Lovely said...

what a cutie, i can't wait for the day I can have one in my apartment!

kris said...

Cute. We have two ferocious chewers. All the soft toys, rubbery things get destroyed in minutes. The three things we have found work are the Kongs, rope toys (http://tinyurl.com/yavzq9a), and Nylabones (http://tinyurl.com/yh2t46e)

Sarah La Rose said...

Tate is adorable!! I love getting updates on him. I really want a pup of my own so i'm living vicariosly through other dog owners for now.

Bailey @ peppermintbliss said...

Oh. My. Goodness. I am not just saying this...THAT FACE. I just want to kiss it! Tate is ADORABLE!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Try a nyla-bone. They are made out of nylon and my terrier LOVES to chew- it's the only toy that has lasted over a year.

Your pup is TOO cute!!!

Celeste said...

Sweet little Tate... he looks like a muppet! (In a good way!)
My corgi is also what you'd call "an aggressive chewer." I read that you should do everything you can to get the urge to chew out of their systems, including using very crunchy dog food. Also, we have started putting Lorie's food into a treat dispenser so that she has to chew and work on it to get the food to come out. The one we purchased is rubber and kind of bone-shaped; it has holes at both ends for the food or treats. Good luck!

Erin said...

I have a pit bull and Nylabones and ropes are the only thing that lasts more than a week. Rawhide works well too, but shouldn't be given every day. It can icky stomach problems. As for the jumping, you are right on track with the leash. I also make my dog sit and stay before I open the door. She's much calmer when guests come in. Hope this helps! Good luck!

suzanne said...

We have a 3 year old cockapoo named Charlie that is the love of our lives. We've been lucky that he doesn't jump on people too much. He does go through toys pretty quickly. The kong (the rubber cone that you can fill with peanut butter) keeps him entertained and has held up for awhile. I'm sure Tate would like it as much as Charlie does:)

Anonymous said...

Deer antlers are the perfect chew for my aggressive dog chewer. He loves them. You can get them online or at Natural Pawz in Houston.

Unknown said...

paloma, he is to die for! we have two cockapoos and they are just the most wonderful breed. i have a picture of our coach here:

http://mackenziehoran.blogspot.com/2009/12/cutie-patootie.html

here's to sharing the cutest pups there are! loved this post.

The Single Nester said...

How Adorable!

Oh, My Darling said...

Oh my gosh, Tate is basically the most perfectly adorable dog!

HSP said...

He's pretty cute. :)

Start watching the Dog Whisperer (National Geographic channel), or pick up a dvd or book of Cesar's to learn how to train Tate effectively.

http://www.cesarsway.com/

Jenna said...

What a cutie pie! We have a cockapoo too, and he has the same problems. We find that the soft rubber toys (very flexible) are the hardest to chew through, and that the only way to get him to stop jumping on people is to have them totally ignore him for like 20 minutes :)

Anonymous said...

tate is super adorable!!
i'm so into those pics :)