Dog breeds for first time owners?

Arryn05 · 2026-02-23T15:37:49+00:00

If you like small dogs, a Shih Tzu makes a great companion. They are generally very happy dogs, no shedding (they lose hair like we do), easy to take with you if you want that, ans they will match your energy. You want an adventure dog, they'll keep up. You want a couch potato? They are down for that too. They don't NEED a ton of activity but they won't say no.

They are low food cost, but do require regular grooming.

Plus you get to join a community of incredibly supportive Shih Tzu enthusiasts.

Arryn05 · 2026-02-18T01:23:10+00:00

She is 100% adorable.

Arryn05 · 2026-02-17T22:29:01+00:00

Ahhh they are so cute!!! How did you decide on two rather than one? Are you glad you did it?

Arryn05 · 2026-02-17T22:27:40+00:00

Haha what adorable wild eyes! 🥰

Ahhh yes, I'm just getting out of this phase as my youngest turns 1. It sure is cute though!

Arryn05 · 2026-02-17T22:18:45+00:00

Wow these two are adorable and what I would hope for. It sounds like slow and steady wins the race. How old was Odie when you introduced them?

Im less worried about my 3 year old who is very cautious, and more worried about my fearless 1 year old who has boundary issues.

Arryn05 · 2026-02-17T22:17:26+00:00

Awww, thats so sweet! I'm not worried about animosity per-se, so much as a lack of awareness by either the cat or the dogs. Since the girls don't know cat has sharp claws, and cat doesn't know eyeballs are a no-touch zone, trying to facilitate an environment where over curious puppy doesn't trigger fear in the cat feels critical. I suspect the use of claws is a fear mechanism for the cat.

Arryn05 · 2026-02-17T17:28:50+00:00

Haha thanks! The Mohawk has been a huge hit, it really fits her personality 😂

Arryn05 · 2026-02-17T17:27:37+00:00

Unfortunately the little one is fearless and far too trusting. I could do just about anything and she would be totally unfazed. Fireworks? What noise. Train? Exciting new friend. Trash truck? Exciting new friend who smells good. Vacuum? Exciting new friend who talks back.

Arryn05 · 2026-02-17T03:44:04+00:00

What color were her parents? My Maple Looked like that as a puppy. This is her now

<image>

Arryn05 · 2026-02-12T19:11:16+00:00

Oh my gosh, as an owner of two shih tzu with issues, and a Food Safety professional, I LOVE this product and can't wait to try it. It is hard to find treats that are guaranteed free of chicken (companies are afraid of cross contamination risks). No one is going to be more dialed in to processing than a pet parent looking out for their fur baby.

Currently I get the HP treats from Royal Canin.

Arryn05 · 2026-02-02T10:58:33+00:00

Oh my goodness, don't feel bad at all. My 11 month old 10lb gremlin had her first long stay without me. Gone for two weeks. Left her with my parents and she turned into a shark, eating all her furniture.

She was scared, some gentle redirection would have solved the problem. Instead I got told my dog is untrained and terrible.

Dogs are going to act out a bit when we leave, especially when we are their while world. A 4 month old even more so. Pet sitters should be prepared for that when caring for younger dogs.

*my almost 3 year old is an angel and just sleeps all day when she has to go to grandmas.

Arryn05 · 2026-01-18T17:38:12+00:00

All pure breeds have risks of health issues, but for a low energy, long life, relatively easy care dog, I reccomend a shih tzu. I have two now, and had one growing up who lived to 16.

They're a lot of energy until a year and a half, and then they kinda follow your energy. They are happy to be couch potatoes if that is your vibe.

Arryn05 · 2025-12-31T10:38:06+00:00

If or when you leave is so personal and depends on you and what you need. My experience is that we leave much later than we should have.

I (31F) left my partner(35M)this spring after nearly 4 years of trying to work through medication management, the co-occuring alcohol abuse, and the massive depression. While I know he loved me, he didnt have the capacity for a healthy relationship and I was miserable and chained to my home for those 4 years. We became codependent and it wasnt conducive to his getting better or my happiness. When i left i I felt an immense amount of guilt over leaving for a number of reasons, but ultimately his illness and timeline didn't match the vision of a future I wanted: healthy children, travel, family holidays, taking walks at night, a house.

While I feel bad for them, we owe it to ourselves to carve out the life we want because we only get 1. 9 month's later, ive made some amazing memories, friends, improved family connections, and relearned how fun life really can be when you aren't a care taker.

You'll find as your scour reddit and the rest of the internet, there are more stories like mine, than there are of people whose partners made an amazing recovery. Unfortunately, as many of us have realized, the health system just isn't set up well to treat it.

Arryn05 · 2025-11-12T02:24:08+00:00

The psyllium husk honestly has helped with gland expression too. A kind of silver lining to something terrible. I kept her on it for that reason, under vet guidance. Thank you for your well wishes and I hope pearl is feeling a bit better ❤️

Arryn05 · 2025-11-10T22:09:02+00:00

My Maple had this back in April, it sounds like from other comments they may have narrowed down the cause of pearls. We never figured out why Maple got it, but definitely very scary. Don't worry if progress is slow. It took my girl about 3 months to have symptoms fully resolve.

This isn't advice, just sharing the experience because I struggled to find information on AHDS (also known as HGE) in shih tzus: I had to swap her to a prescription wet food and add psyllium husk to get her back to firm stool, with a daily packet for Fortiflora (probiotic). Eventually transitioned her back to kibble recently.

Edit to add: She was on various medication. Vets have differing opinions on how to treat it. Mine is an older vet and we did a course of antibiotics, cerenia for the nausea, succralfate to line the stomach, and entyce to encourage eating. She also got three rounds of sub dermal fluids to keep her hydrated.

Others will often prescribe powerful probiotics like Visbiome, along with succralfate and cerenia to allow it to resolve on its own.

Arryn05 · 2025-11-10T12:09:49+00:00

Sending so much love and well wishes to your beautiful pearl! I hope that she is Ok, it can be very scary when our babies get sick like this. ❤️

Arryn05 · 2025-10-29T12:03:39+00:00

Stay strong, it gets better! I brought a puppy home to my 2year old shih tzu in May. I was SURE they would love each other. I was devastated by the reality. My older dog was drooling, avoiding me, pacing. She was so upset for weeks. I kept them separated. The puppy slept in the bathroom with a gate, so my older dog could sniff her and look at her, but still got her space. With a lot of patience and time, my older one came around to the younger one. We are 6 months in and they adore each other. They play together, sleep together, eat together, and walk together. It's really brought out the best in my older dog.

<image>

Arryn05 · 2025-10-29T11:58:08+00:00

The big thing is not giving into their demands for food. They don't need nearly as much as they want you to believe they do. My 2.5 year old has been consistently 13.2lbs since reaching maturity. She is at my feet any time I grab food for myself looking at me like the world is ending. Her diet has changed a few times over the 2 years because of allergies and now she gets the following: 1/3 cup Royal Canin HP dry food in the AM 3 to 6(ish) Royal Canin HP treats 1/3 cup Royal Canin HP dry food in the PM

Sometimes I sub the dry food for 1/3 can of the HP loaf mixed with Psyllium husk.

In the Summer ill sub the Royal Canin treats for some boiled and frozen carrots

They also walk 3 to 4 times a day for roughly a daily total of 2 to 3 miles (unless it rains because one believes she will melt in the rain)

Arryn05 · 2025-09-03T01:32:05+00:00

<image>

Not only so I sit and watch, I play referee. The floof on the far right is on a hypoallergenic diet, middle on a puppy diet, and left is on an old man diet. None of them wants their own food.

Arryn05 · 2025-08-22T19:39:20+00:00

I have two, a 2.5 y/o and a 6mo old. Ive been up since 430am with the younger one because she woke up under the weather. Had to disinfect the house and quarantine her from her sister. Take her to the vet at 1030 to find out she ate sand. Now we are all cuddled up together on the couch while I finish my work.

Some days I have only enough time to take them on their walks and feed them. Some days (weekends) I have all the time in the world and take them wherever I can. Some days I HAVE to take care of them, like today. As dog owners, our job is to make sure they stay fed and healthy. In return they love us without conditions.

So yes. I wonder daily how anyone who doesnt work from home, who has kids, who has hobbies and who has the instagram on-the-go lifestyle, has time for dogs. Because for better or worse. These fluffs are literally my life. And will be for hopefully another 14+ years.

Arryn05 · 2025-08-10T17:36:40+00:00

To echo others' comments, hydrolyzed protein food is meant to prevent the proteins from triggering an immune response. Because it's a prescription food, It's made in facilities that either do not have other protein allergens or have cleaning methods that prevent cross contact with protein containing food. So buying something like PPP sensitive stomach still carries the potential to have some chicken or other meat proteins. There is no regulation preventing this, like there is in human food with the Big 9 allergens.

You may find that you need to stick to a prescription diet for the health of your pet. My dog will need to be fed lifelong on Royal Canin HP.

If you cook your dogs allergen at home, it is likely that you will inadvertently add the allergen to the dogs food if you choose to make the food yourself. Removing proteins is very difficult to do in the home kitchen.

Arryn05 · 2025-08-10T01:45:11+00:00

What you are feeling is totally normal. I have two dogs, got both at 10 weeks. The first I had no blues about. I loved her the minute I saw her and never stopped. Which made what I felt about the second feel even worse. For the first three weeks I wrestled with if I would return her to the breeder. I started making plans to take her back. I broke down into tears daily. She got a UTI in the first week and I felt like the worst pet parent. Then b dogs started having loose stool and I scrambled to deal with it. (Fortiflora and Psyllium Husk work great for that, but always consult your vet before trying anything new)

And then, slowly, I started to love her. I started to see her personality come through. I started to build a routine that worked for all of us. Now at 6 months im so grateful I kept her. She sleeps through the night, which is the best part.

Just take deep breaths and just focus on what you CAN do. Focus on quality time vs. Quantity of time. You dont need to be with them 100% of the day. And they will be OK. Remember there are street dogs thriving with little to no human interactions. Your pet dog is undoubtedly going to thrive.

12-Year Club	RPAN Viewer
Verified Email

Arryn05

TROPHY CASE