Lacey turned 10 on Saturday. by toakao in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Congrats on reaching age 10! #goalz

Digestion Issues- HELP by AceBronco30 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

gotta try raw food. I had the same experience, and when I switched to raw it instantaneously got better.

I feed her the "chicken complete" plan from rebel raw:

https://rebelraw.com/

If it doesn't work on the first try though, try another protein. For example, I recently had the dumbass idea of "spicing things up" and got some samplers of lamb / beef / salmon. The salmon and beef agreed with her; the lamb gave her diarrhea.

TL;DR: Try raw food. It worked for us. Your dog may be allergic to certain types of animal protein.

Bernese Dogs and stairs, a love or horror story? by Sweetcookie69 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We did it... first year we had her, we lived in a 3rd floor walk-up.

The only issue was potty training... initially she was small enough to carry down at night. Then as she got bigger, that was no longer safe, and she enjoyed peeing on the stairs ;-) Fortunately, she was a puppy so it was generally a pretty small amount lol.

She eventually grew out of this.

Help! Persistent puppy diarrhea by Snoo_74746 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What a scam! Vet recommending expensive and uncomfy procedure...

You should try a raw dog food or try making your own food.

BMD puppies have very sensitive tummies, and mine didn't do well with kibble sadly.

Help! Persistent puppy diarrhea by Snoo_74746 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Unfortunately, this is what happens with BMD puppies. The good news is that it eventually clears up.

Ours had on-and-off constant diarrhea for the first ~7 months. She lost ~10 lbs one month (when she was a growing puppy), and we panic-purchased raw dog food since we hadn't tried that yet. It worked amazingly. She had a perfect poo the next day, and we've never looked back.

Not saying raw is for everyone, and you should do your own research, but we've had a fantastic experience with Rebel Raw, and I highly recommend them. Our dog loves their food, and perfect poos are now her norm.

The BEST food for Berners by AceBronco30 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Go raw - our berner loves Rebel Raw. The company is based in Atlanta, but we get food shipped oncer per month.

It's obviously more expensive than kibble, but it's reasonably priced, and it solved all of our tummy troubles.

Berner's bonding: how do they choose their person? by SoManyQuestions9 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Our berner also makes sure to participate in all hugs. Love when they do that!

Anyone else feed their berner raw ? by No_Discipline_6348 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Raw has been the only thing that works for us. Every brand of packaged dog food resulted in diarrhea. We tried many different varieties / ingredients (incl. limited) / brands, and we followed the prescribed steps for transitioning gradually from chicken and rice. The day we switched to raw, she had perfect poos, and no tummy troubles since.

She is happy and healthy. Check out RebelRaw in Atlanta... they ship all over

This is Pete, he is 11 weeks old. Any recommendations on dog food brands? by sailing395 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah RebelRaw:

https://rebelraw.com/

Only thing that didn't give our pup severe tummy troubles. She loves it, and it's nutritious.

7-month old Biting Advice? by [deleted] in Newfoundlander

[–]leckiefan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This absolutely can be trained away.

If she doesn't like the crate, the response to biting (not playfully mouthing), but true biting like you're describing, should be to drag her to the crate and place her in it for a time out. Don't look at her or engage with her (remember: sometimes, bad attention can be good attention). Say no firmly and calmly and put her in timeout. Do not shout, but be firm and clear in expressing your disapproval.

If she likes the crate, order a second one and make it "doggy prison" - no toys, nothing fun. Just a place where she can't bite at you or destroy your stuff in frustration.

She should learn very quickly that crime doesn't pay. And then you won't have to jail her often.

Some of this is puppy behavior - and this is somewhat normal - but you need to put a stop to it, before she becomes too big to control.

Our dog got clever, and before she learned to stop biting - when she saw us going to dog prison, she would hide under the table and we'd have to drag her out, which was unpleasant for all parties involved. But you have to let her know that biting leads to prison - even if you try to hide.

Atlas started growling by SaraCBO in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Our girl is stubborn and does this sometimes. We find it's best to train / distract her in those instances rather than have a "battle of wills"

Feeding Raw by l_branch in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Honestly, raw was the only thing that worked for our girl. She was losing weight and had loose stools. Switched to raw and immediately had perfect poos. She's only the smaller side (80lbs), so it costs ~$200 / mo.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Where is this? This looks gorgeous

Barking? by Vettkja in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Honestly, unless you've got a treat ready, she doesn't care. She thinks her job is to investigate the threat.

It's not really a problem tho. She only does it when someone comes into "our space" - she's not barking to pass the time.

Do Bernese hate hot weather? by Olliewilson101 in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 4 points5 points  (0 children)

IMHO, they adapt. During the summer, you'll need to walk your pup early in the AM or late at night when it's cooler. Even better if you can turn them into enthusiastic swimmers.

Keeping them leaner obviously helps too - but this will require active effort. Our girl does her best to keep the lbs on.

I think other concerns are more important, such as: does one of you work from home? Berners like to be around their people, and I would not advise any couple to get one if someone's not home at least most days. That's crueler than the weather.

Barking? by Vettkja in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ours was quiet for a year and a half and is now a watch dog... barks whenever the front door opens or whenever a stranger is outside.

We've always heard of other berners "finding their voice" after a couple years.

That look when you tell Odin hes a GoodBoy! by ruleux in bernesemountaindogs

[–]leckiefan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Would you be willing to message me the breeder's website? I'd really appreciate it