.......................................... I went to a pet store to buy some stuff for my cat and found him in a cage and fell in love with him instantly.    He was born on November 11, 1998.  I have also purchased a book about puppy. The book says that I should wait until he turn 4 month old to start training for housebreaking.  Since my boyfriend and I live in an apartment with a cat, I am thinking about training him to patty in his cage.  Do you think that is a good idea?  Or should I have somewhere else for him to patty?
 

Answer:

In short the quick answer is ABSOLUTELY NO!  To get into the reasoning I have to start with a quick explanation of dog psychology. 

The dog is by nature a cave animal and a pack animal.  As such, they are preprogrammed with the instinct to live in small, closed in areas and to keep those areas clean.  The instinct behind this is to avoid having strong odors that would give the location of the den away to predators.  Any animal that would allow itself to sleep & keep its young in an area that could be easily tracked would not survive long as a species.  Therefore, dogs by nature do not want to go to the bathroom in their sleeping & eating areas. 

You have already done the first important step in training your dog by getting him a crate.  Some people view dog crates as an inhumane way to treat an animal, however, this is a very narrow minded view.  First & foremost you must realize that the dog is in fact a puppy.  There is no reason that you should allow a puppy to wander around your home unsupervised.  It's dangerous for the puppy and annoying to you when it starts doing destructive things just because it doesn't know any better.  Nobody would consider placing a 6 month old human baby on the floor and then going off to work allowing it to wander around on it's own.  In the same respect, most people wouldn't even consider doing this even if an adult was home but couldn't watch the child.  That's why the world invented playpens.  A SAFE place for the child to comfortably be while it couldn't be watched. 

Anyway ... moving along to properly housebreaking a dog.  The use of a crate, while many may argue is not required, I assure you it will be a much quicker process than not using one.  While the puppy is still young, keep him inside the crate at bedtime, whenever you have to go out without him, and at his mealtime.  Why are we feeding him in his crate?  Go back to dog psychology, dogs don't want to go to the bathroom where they sleep.  As a puppy they will make messes in there, however, since they have the natural desire not to do this they will be happy to find a better option and so will you.  As a side note, it is best that you do not free-feed the dog at any age over 3 months.  The dog should have a set mealtime.  After weaning & up to the age of 4 months 3 small meals a day, 4 months to 6 months 2 meals a day, and after 6 months the dog only really needs one meal a day.  Although, many people prefer giving their dogs 2 smaller meals for the duration of the dogs life and that's fine too.  In any event, mealtime should consist of the puppy being put in it's crate with the food and maybe some water and allowed 20 minutes with it.  If after 20 minutes the dog has not finished the food, remove the food.  When mealtime is over the dog will now have the natural urge to go to the bathroom, so it's time to take the puppy for a walk.  (I don't recommend "paper training" a dog, I just feel that if someone can't take a dog outside to go to the bathroom a couple of times a day then they shouldn't have a dog.)  Since you live in an apartment, I suggest that you pick the dog up and quickly carry him in a cradled position to the outside (kind of like how you would hold a baby in your arms). Since the dog will be upside-down in this position it won't start going to the bathroom as you walk with it.   Once you get him outside to an appropriate place to go put him down and walk him around until he starts to go. 

When he does start to go, YOU should now show him that what he is doing is correct behavior by praising him.  Some people find themselves feeling like a fool doing this if other people are around but you have to get over that.  You're the one that has to live with the dog for the next 13 years and it's going to be a much happier experience if the dog is properly trained from the beginning.  OK, so how do you praise him?  Well my wife and I have always used the phrase "go bathroom" with our dogs, but anything will do.  You could use "watch TV" or "I like purple ducks" just remember that this will become a future command phrase to the dog so pick something you won't mind saying in public.  (My wife sometimes uses "go peepee" which I refuse to use)  Anyway, as the dog starts going to the bathroom and all throughout the time it's going continue to repeat the phrase in a nice tone of voice.  Usually we reformat from repeating commands to a dog while training but in this case it's ok.  Eventually the dog will associate the phrase with the action and as he grows you will be able to take the dog outside at anytime, even when he really doesn't need to go real bad, and say the command producing a result.  You will especially reap the benefits of this when it's miserable outside and you want the process to go quickly. 

After the dog is finished you should repeat the command a couple of extra times but this time you really want to act excited over the whole thing.   Show the puppy that this is the best "dooty going" you've ever witnessed in your life.  I assume he'll be on a leash so draw him up to you and pet him and continue to be excited over the whole thing.  At this point you're probably thinking "He's got to be kidding!!??" Well .. sorry .. I'm not.  This is the way you should react whenever the puppy produces the right reaction to any command you're training him to do.   If you want you can include a food reward, just a small treat, to help with his learning that he did right.  I won't get into the arguments that dog trainers have about whether or not to use food rewards for training.  There are lots of conflicting positions on the topic, we use food rewards and find the learning goes faster with it. 

So now you've got one more step to do.  CLEAN UP AFTER YOUR DOG!   That's another hot topic that I won't get into, but you really should if your dog is going on a public area or a neighbors yard. 

Now that you're done the process bring the puppy back inside.  During this initial training stage it'll be important that you don't start  playing with the puppy outside afterward.  You don't want him to learn that going outside also ALWAYS means playtime.  If you disagree, wait until it's 2 am,  30 degrees out and raining, then you'll wish you hadn't let him played outside after each trip.  You want him to learn that this whole trip has been a one action mission and nothing else is going to happen.  Eventually, you'll be able to go outside say the command & he'll start going without much fuss over placement.  Then right back inside.  Your friends will be amazed and you'll be able to happily live with your dog. 

There's one other thing I forgot to mention.  What about the dog eventually letting you know that he needs to go?  Sure, it's great to have a dog that'll wait for you to pick the time but sometimes the dog is just gonna have to go on his own schedule.  Some people find that their dogs will eventually learn on their own that if they stand by the door whining their heads off that you'll get the hint.  But that's actually the dog training YOU and unfortunately some dogs pick other ways to train you.  Like ... starting to pee on your leg ("hey, that works." the dog thinks to himself,  "every time I pee on her leg she takes me outside to go.")  There's also the dreaded scratching at the door technique.  Which you might not mind while he's a cute little puppy that really doesn't harm the door, but wait until he grows up and you landlord comes inside one day.  So, how do you train him?  Well, first you must pick an acceptable way for your dog to tell you he needs to go.  Always keeping in mind that this will be something the dog will do for life and not just when it's a cute little puppy (this should be a consideration for everything you teach it or let it do).   This was the first thing we taught our first dog Yoshi.  We used a bell.  I found this suggestion in a training book (don't remember which one to give credit to) but it worked wonderfully.  Get a miniature cow bell.  You can find them in the bird section of pet stores.  Get one that's about 2 or 3
inches long, not a large one that can scratch the door and would be to difficult for the puppy to ring.  Put it on a string and hang it from the door knob so that it's hanging at about eye level with the puppy (you can raise it up as the dog grows).  Now, whenever it's bathroom time take the puppy to the bell hold his head so that he faces it and push his nose onto the bell just hard enough to have it ring.  You don't have to be overly forceful, but enough so that he's paying attention to the action and the bell rings loud enough to make a distinctive ring.  If you're not sure if these 2 criteria have been met do it again.  The 2 most important things about this training are - 1 Do it EVERY TIME & ALL THE TIME for bathroom trips! and  2 use his nose NOT his paw to ring the bell.  Why? Because, constancy is always the key to speedy dog training if you only do it sometimes you will send mixed messages to the dog; and the nose should be used because when puppy grows to doggie a paw at the bell will scratch at the door and that's what your trying to avoid in the first place.  After this "trick" is learned your dog will slam his nose into the bell happily over and over until you take the hint. 

Moving on now, what about those messes he's making in his crate don't worry, he will grow out of it.  I assume from your question that the dog will have to spend  extended periods of time without human supervision and you're concerned that he just won't be able to hold it long enough.  As a puppy, he won't and you shouldn't expect him to, but as an adult you will be amazed just how long a well trained dog can hold it. You have to give the dog a fighting chance though.  Don't let the puppy drink a bowl full of water 5 minutes before he's going to be put in the crate for the night or right before you go running off to work.  He'll never be able to make it.  When's the last time you spent an entire day with a glass of water always next you?  Probably never.  Some people think their dog should always have access to a full  bowl of water.  If they're outside all day absolutely.  If they're in a nice climate controlled house than no.  Take away the water at least an hour before the last bathroom trip for the night.   I won't give a time since everyone has different schedules.  When you get up in the morning the bathroom trip should be step 1 and that's even if the puppy messed his crate during the night.  You want him to learn the schedule of events for his life and dogs love to live on a schedule.  We have 9 dogs right now and usually there's 3 or 4 in with us in the bedroom at night, we rotate the dogs through so everyone gets a chance.  When we wake up one dog is let outside (we live on lots of land so we don't need to go out with them) the others stand around the door until whoever is outside finishes and comes back then another gets to go out.  Anyway ... as a puppy trips outside should be pretty frequent but mainly after waking up from a nap and after eating.  As an adult the dog will be able to live comfortably with a morning trip an after dinner trip and a before bed trip.  As I said you will be amazed how long a well trained dog can last.  My wife and I both work 12 hour shifts with 45 min each way travel times and no problems.  Yoshi is usually the only one allowed to wander in the house for that long but most of the others have done it also at one time or another.  The rest are either out in the yard or in their crates depending on the weather.  That's about a 13 1/2 hour holding time for Yoshi, almost every day for years and NEVER ONCE has she gone in the house since she was a puppy.  Recently we went on a day trip that ended up taking longer than expected.  Yoshi was stuck in the house for about 18 hours, I was sure she didn't make it, but when we got home we found no sign of a mess.  Yoshi even gets the special treatment of having a full bowl of water down through the day. 

As the puppy grows you will find that he will stop messing in the crate and will want to get outside to do his business.  As training progresses there are a few other things you'll want to do to speed things along.  When the dog messes in the crate while you're around, clean it up fast!   Don't let the puppy learn to live with a messy crate.  Also, when you are cleaning up the crate and any other place the puppy messes, force him to sit and watch you.  Act upset over the incident.  You don't have to beat him or anything or even the old "push his nose in it" tactic.  Just pretend you're a really bad actor/actress and really get upset over it.  Speak in a low harsh tone and say things like "Bad boy" let him know that this is unacceptable behavior.  As with all training only do this when catching the dog in the act or at least within minutes of it.  Don't try dragging the dog over to a mess he made 3 hours ago and doing it, dogs don't have the long term memory that would let him figure out why you're upset. 
 

So don't worry about needing to "paper train" or trying to get him to mess in his crate.  With proper training he won't need these things and you won't have to spend your life cleaning up messes.  If I have left something out or if you have another more questions or problems training your dog please feel free to ask.  I'd love to hear from you again as the training progresses. 
 

Question (Early Puppyhood: size, WEIGHT,  NUTRITION, AND A BIT ABOUT SHOTS):
Congratulations on a most impressive web site.  I have seen many about eskies and yours ranks up at the top.  I have lived with American Eskimos all my life.  They are the best and smartest dogs I have ever known.  Mine have all been large standards and were never showed.  They were however considered one of the family.  Two weeks ago I met a "Backyard Breeder" who had a miniature. It was a female of about six weeks.  The breeder was about to give her up to the SPCA when I stepped in and took the dog.  Here is my problem.  She has been to two different vets and neither in my opinion is very knowledgeable about the breed.  This dog was the runt of the litter she is very tiny, but perfect in proportion.  The mother rejected her, I believe because she was so small.  She is a mini both parents were and I saw them.  I know nothing of the mini's only standards.  At seven to eight weeks do you know about how much she should weigh and how tall she should be?  She seems very health and she is very active.  I have grown very attached to her and will keep her.  Her next check up will be in five days.  So far all of her test are good.  No worms, parasites, etc., she currently weighs 2.65 lbs. and this concerns me.  Frosty, my standard was a little over 6 lbs at 6 weeks.  She was less then two pounds when I got her so she is doing better.  I only want the best for her.  Any input you may have would be greatly appreciated.

Answer:
I wouldn't be overly concerned with her weight.  You may actually have a toy size Eskie.  The American Eskimo is different than most breeds in regards to sizing.  In most breeds the AKC and other clubs consider a pure breed dog to be one that was breed be parents of the same breed AND size class (some also have color class).  This means that if someone were to breed a Standard Poodle with a Toy Poodle the offspring would not be considered a pure breed dog and therefore unregisterable.  The Eskies have no such requirement, a breeder is allowed to breed standards with minis or toys with minis or even a toy and standard (although that may be tough to do).  What this all means genetically is that the sizing of the Eskies is all mixed up within each dogs DNA and even if you breed two standards together they both may have enough mini DNA traits to have some mini offspring, and two minis may have toy size offspring. 

Anyway, you priority at this point, starting TODAY must be the dogs psychological condition.  Right now you have an 8 weeks old
puppy, and if you read up on any good dog training or dog psychology books you'll find that the 8th week of life is the NUMBER  1
most important week of it's life in determining it's future personality.  If you are the type of person that trains dogs with a firm hand you must cut back during this week.  No harsh reprimanding and nothing that will unduly scare the puppy.  If you train with a softer touch you may want to step it up a bit during this week.  Don't let the puppy get away with things that you wouldn't let her do as an adult (this should always be true but this week even more so).  Try not to leave the puppy alone for long periods of time (over 8 hours) and at the same time,  if she is spending the entire day with people make her take several 1 hour breaks alone away from the rest of the family.  This will help her learn that it's ok for her to be by herself and that you're not sending her off alone as a punishment. Get a dog crate and use crate training, it will make your life much easier and the dog will learn housebreaking much faster.   If you can, you should read some training books, one of the best that I recommend is a book called "The Art of Raising a Puppy" by the Monks of New Skeet NY. 

Ok, on to her weight.  Like I said I wouldn't be overly concerned with her weight.  However, if she isn't acting like an active puppy than there may be a problem.  As long as she's eating well and wagging her tail don't worry.  Has she had her shots?  If not get her started.  A lack of appetite along with  a lack of tail wagging in puppies is a symptom of Parvo.  At this age until 3 months keep food and water available to her 24 hours a day and let her eat at will.  After that start a feeding schedule, giving her 2 or 3 meals a day allowing her to eat as much a she can in a 20 minute time period.  At 6 months cut back to 2 meals a day, and after 9 months you can feed her once a day.  Many people like to feed their dogs twice a day throughout their life that's ok but not usually necessary.  All of our dogs eat a large meal around 6pm every day, they have access to water all day until 8pm or so, then it's nothing until morning (unless they're staying out in the kennel then there's always water).  As for food choices, I generally hate recommending brands, but in the case of puppies and under weight puppies I would use Eukenuba puppy food for small breeds and if your vet will let you mix in some Eukenuba Recovery Formula which is a special food you can only get from the vet, it's for dogs that have undergone a trauma and need a extremely high calorie food.  Skip the canned food for all dogs all the time, it's junk, nothing but empty calories and water. 

Lastly a warning about shots.  The American Eskimo and some other breeds have had some serious reactions to vaccines.  It has been traced to giving the massive multi disease type shot.  This is the standard puppy shot that contains a vaccination against 7 or 8 things (Parvo, Lepto,  Distemper, Parainfluenza, etc.).  When getting your puppy the vaccine make the vet give the puppy only the 5-way vaccine.  Many Eskies have developed seizure disorders from the 7 & 8 way vaccine when given as a puppy.  After the puppy is a year old she can have the other vaccines.  Most vets who have studied this believe it's the Lepto vaccine that's doing it, and there are very limited areas in the country where Lepto is active so unless you live in one of those areas it's no big deal not to get that vaccine.  It's mostly active in the Rocky Mountain area of North Carolina but check with your vet.  I may be able to dig up some articles on the topic of the vet disagrees or wants more information. 

Question (Breed personality):

I'm interested in the Eskimo or Finnish Spitz breed and I am looking for personality info.. i.e.: How suited are they to an apartment life..

Answer:
As with most breeds of dogs it will be more an issue of the individual personality of the dog and the training of the dog rather than the breed.

The Finnish spitz is a hunting dog, (a bird dog). It has the natural instinct for chasing down animals and barking their heads off ..... I
wouldn't recommend them for an apartment.  There may be a few Finns out there that would do well but for the most part it wouldn't make a good match.

The Eskie is a warning dog.  It has the natural instinct to announce the approach of strangers.  This may also be problematic if you have a great deal of people walking by the outside of your apartment.  In any event, when getting a dog you should look for one that has a low energy level. We have some dogs that could easily run in a dog sled race and others that find themselves inconvenienced to move to the other side of the bed.

If you're looking to get a puppy please find a reputable breeder of whatever breed you decide on.  Find someone who understands dog psychology and animal behaviorism enough to be able to pick an appropriate puppy out of a litter for you.  When we have a litter they are put through a temperament test at 8 weeks of age that helps determine some of the dogs future personality.

If you can skip the puppy training and puppy cuteness and start with an adult dog you may want to consider going to your local shelter or contacting a rescue club.  Just about every breed has some sort of rescue club that will help you get a dog that has lost its home.  You may lose out on the medical background of the dog this way but you will be able to see it as an adult and will know what its personality is like from the start.

Question (Doggie dreams):
 We just purchased an Eskimo a week ago and wonder if you could tell us of any history of epilepsy in this particular breed.  We have never had a puppy and when we watch him sleep, he twitches and wonder if it could be epilepsy or if dogs twitch when they go to sleep.

Answer:
Actually you're seeing puppy dreams (probably chasing a rabbit).

Seizures would not occur only during sleeping, it would happen during random times throughout the day.  The dog would either drop into a major convulsion (a grand-mal) or if a small seizure (a pety-mal) would stop moving altogether and perhaps only have it's eyes roll up.

The only commonality of seizures I have heard about in the Eskie has been linked to young puppies receiving the multi-vaccine that includes Lepto preventative.  It has been recommended that Eskies should never receive any multi vaccine before 6 months and a full year before getting the Lepto vaccine.

Question (Vaccines / Seizures & your Vet):
 I recently read your FAQs and was concerned when I read about the problem with the 7-way vaccine.  We  will be getting a female Eskie shortly so I asked my vet this afternoon if he had any knowledge of the problem and did he ever give the 5-way vaccine which excludes the leptospirosis vaccine.  He has never heard of  puppies developing a seizure disorder from this vaccine and appeared somewhat skeptical.  He said he'd be interested in reading
any studies which pertain to this subject.  Do you have an references I could give him?  We acquired our first Eskie  in West Africa when she was 18 months old and only had the minimum immunizations.  I want to be as prepared as possible for this new puppy - I just today finished reading "The Art of Raising a Puppy" by the Monks of New Skete.  We have our crate ready and we intend to hang a bell on the doorknob.  Life is definitely better when you can share it with an Eskie.

Answer:
Please refer your vet to searching articles by Dr. Jean Dodd.  Unfortunately the only web information I was able to dig up was Dr.
Dodd's vaccine schedule which does not supply the reasoning behind the schedule of each vaccine. 
http://doglogic.com/vaccination.htm#DrDoddsSched

I will see if I can find someone who knows the specific journal reference.

Question (Teething, chewing, & biting):
We have recently acquired an American Eskimo Spitz as a puppy. She is now 11 weeks old.  I have a few questions. When will she stop teething and what can we do in the meantime. Also when is it possible to start formal dog obedience. She likes to bite, but we do not know how to stop this.

Answer:
You can expect the teething to last until the puppy is about 6 months old.  Keep the rawhides & chewy toys handy.  Anytime you catch the dog chewing on something that it shouldn't be chewing on, give a quick reprimand (a sharp NO! usually is enough) and then give the puppy an acceptable chewing item.  As for biting ...  Most puppies like to mouth each other while playing, this usually transfers over to mouthing human hands while playing.  While it is normal it is something that MUST BE STOPPED.  It may be cute to have a puppy nipping at your hand but you must remember that it will grow up and that nipping will get painful.  The best training technique we have run across for this problem is to teach the puppy that mouthing human hands is not a fun experience.  Every time the puppy puts your hand in its mouth, force some fingers down its throat, just enough to make her gag.  A week or so of this usually resolves the problem.  But, as with all training, you must be consistent!  Do it every time, all the time.

As for formal obedience training, this is something that usually depends on the trainer.  Check with the programs in your area.  Most will have a recommended starting age for their program.  I usually start the basics at 8 weeks.  The basics, being learning its name and responding to it; house breaking; and the sit / stay command.

Question (Changing color of the nose):
We own a 3 year old male eskie and have a question we can't seem to find the answer to:  during the summer month's his nose is jet black but during the winter month's it turns pink starting at the top and progressing down to cover his entire nose. any ideas as to why this happens?

Answer:
Your dog has "snow nose", or a loss of pigment due to the change in the amount and intensity of the sun light.  During the winter months, they have less sun exposure and their pigment can "lighten".  Just as we get tanned in the summer even if we don't sit out in the sun.  However, there is a bacteria that can grow mostly in plastic water bowls that can cause a patchier loss of pigment.   We recommend using only stainless steel bowls and bleaching them out every so often or running them through the dishwasher with the full drying cycle, the heat will kill off any bacteria.

Question (One more puppy):
I'm looking for a male Eskie for a pet not for show.  Prefer 12 or so weeks old.  I have a 17 week female and I would like a companion for her or for each other.  I'm in the training process now and feel it would be easier to do both at the same time.

Answer:
I would highly recommend that you did NOT get another puppy while you are still training a puppy.  You may think that it would be easier, but in fact it will become much more difficult to train both of them.  While you are training a single dog you have a one to one relationship with the puppy.  The puppy is able to focus on you, once you introduce another dog into the scenario you will start to have to deal with the idiosyncrasies of the "pack" mentality.  The two puppies will play off each other and will undermine your ability to maintain the Alpha role in the pack.  To put it simply, it will be like having twin toddlers in the house where each one will blame the other for bad behavior & each will act like your commands are meant for the other dog and not them. 

As an example, when you have one un-housetrained dog in the home and you walk into a room to find a pile of shit on the floor, you
know who did it & can reprimand the dog.  If you have two dogs, you can never be quite sure who did it & will usually end up not
reprimanding either. 

I would never recommend that you introduce a puppy into the home until your current dog is at least a year old.  Trust me, we've been down this road before.
 

Question (What the heck is a Spitz):
I was wondering if Eskimo Spitz was another name for the American Eskimo Dog. 

Answer:
The official name of the breed is the "American Eskimo Dog".  The term "Spitz" is a sub classification of the canine species, similar to saying a Hound, Shepherd or Terrier.  There are many different Terrier breeds and there are many breeds in the Spitz family.  Besides the American Eskimo Dog there is the Finnish Spitz, German Spitz, Japanese Spitz, Chow Chow, Shiba Inu, Chinese Shar-Pei, Keeshonden, and a few others.

But to answer your question, yes, some people do incorrectly refer to the breed as an "Eskimo Spitz".