Badger

For those who don't remember me, I was a prolific poster on here up until 2013-ish!

Although I've had a stafford in the past, my dog then was Dempsey, a Bull Terrier. Dempsey sadly lost his fight against cancer last May, at just over 11 years old.

The house was so empty without him, and we decided to start a search for another companion. I contacted a breeder (well respected & very thorough with health tests) whom I have known for about 12 years, and asked to go on her waiting list.

Long story short, she had a litter born in November & offered us the pick of a black brindle boy (there were 4 boys, two white - I didn't want white - and two b/brindles), and when we went to see the pups in December we chose Badger...

4 Weeks...



8 Weeks...



11 Weeks...



5 Months...

He is absolutely gorgeous They are a lovely breed & I would love to have one

Thank you!

Believe me, they aren't easy!

I remember meeting Dempsey at our local park - lovely boy.

Badger's a nice looking boy, though. I hope he's keeping you busy?

30 weeks & a maniac!

Barking at pigeons...


Waiting for dinner...

He is growing up beautifully

He's lovely!

Jenc wrote:He is growing up beautifully

He may not reach 31 weeks!

He is lovely !
Reaching his “teenage phase” already ?

Caryll2 wrote:

Jenc wrote:He is growing up beautifully

He may not reach 31 weeks!

Oh I know the feeling I remember Katy aka Tasmanian Devil very well! Surprised she survived puppyhood

Nifty staffy wrote:He is lovely !
Reaching his “teenage phase” already ?

He reached the 'teenage' phase at about 10 weeks!

Ouch !

Ouch indeed!

He can now leap over our armchair - heaven knows what he'll be doing in a few months!

'There maybe trouble ahead' famous lyrics dedicated to Bull breeds

First scar!

He was having a bully run around the garden & scraped his face against the corner of a low brick wall - he has a 2cm gash under his left eye. It's a clean scrape & not deep, but will probably leave a mark.

Oh bless him, they are not delicate when running & crashing about! I'm sure it won't spoil his handsome looks

Eight months old...

Wow he looks amazing Fantastic condition

He was 100% raw fed, but we've had problems with hyperactivity, so we've had to switch to kibble, at least in the short term. We've switched him to Yora...

https://www.yorapetfoods.com/yora-insect-protein-puppy-food

So far so good - there's been a distinct change in his attitude & doesn't seem to be on a nervous 'high' all the time.

The only drawback is it's quite expensive ...£85 for 12kilos, so about £2 a day.  If it means he's calmer, I don't mind!

He is looking well.

How interesting that raw can cause hyperactivity, would have thought that it could only be inputted to processed kibble.
I’ve seen insect protein dog treats here and a brand of kibble too but it wasn’t yours.

I'm surprised that raw food can cause hyperactivity! Sounds expensive but I have Katy on Eden Holistic Country Cuisine & that's £50 including p&p for 6kgs

My girls are on Grandorf holistic at 25€ for 3kgs …
At least quality food is the same price range wherever you are !

Jenc wrote:I'm surprised that raw food can cause hyperactivity! Sounds expensive but I have Katy on Eden Holistic Country Cuisine & that's £50 including p&p for 6kgs

Mainly, it doesn't. But every so often you'll get a pup that has high levels of energy & just can't cope with the protein levels in raw. The insect protein food was a bit of luck, really - a rep came into my daughter's store & gave a talk on how the food is made, what's in it etc. She gave each member of staff a 1.5 kg bag of food for free (either puppy or adult, they could choose) and my daughter brought it home.

I'm quite impressed at the moment, the energy 'highs' have reduced & because the kibble size is small he takes a lot longer to eat it compared to the raw (which disappeared in about 10 seconds!). If he keeps his condition I'll probably stay with Yora until he's adult & then see.

He's a lovely boy, though!

Okay, change of plan.

Turns out the change of energy levels was false - he's actually worse on the insect food!

However, after speaking to Nathan Watson (canine behaviourist) it appears that the insect food is over 50% carbohydrates. When you think that carbohydrates are converted to sugar....not good!

We've now had to do a U-turn & put him on Orijen which has one of the lowest carbohydrate levels of all kibbles.

Shame, but you learn as you go!

Ah well, here's an updated pic...

He is gorgeous Best to take him off then or he will be bouncing off the walls!

I had read that certain insect kibble was very high in carbs but thought it was just related to certain non-premium brands, like traditional kibble.

My girls are finishing off a bag of acana kibble I had and although there is no chicken nor eggs, Nifty is back to being picky about eating breakfast and her ears are sensitive again  Back to grandorf very soon !

Badger certainly does look well with a very shiny coat, despite the extra carbs !

Just over 9 months & 23.3 kilos. He's going to be a big boy!

He's a handsome boy & filling out beautifully

Little update.

Badger has been diagnosed with Hyperkinesis - canine equivalent of ADHD! He has been given meds (second dose today, but could take up to 2weeks for full effects) and we have a behavioural consultation shortly to help us through.

Onwards & upwards!

Well that certainly explains his energy level issues doesn't it! At least you know exactly what you are dealing with now. Let us know how he gets on with the meds & the behaviourist

cute! im living for this kind of breed!

brown wrote:cute! im living for this kind of breed!

He's a lovely boy, but extremely difficult - special needs, really.

The meds he's on haven't made an appreciable difference yet so the vet has prescribed an anti-depressant by way of a mild sedative. Strangely enough, it's the same anti-depressive my husband takes - Fluoxetine!

We'll see how it goes.

brown wrote:cute! im living for this kind of breed!

He's a lovely boy, but extremely difficult - special needs, really.

The meds he's on haven't made an appreciable difference yet so the vet has prescribed an anti-depressant by way of a mild sedative. Strangely enough, it's the same anti-depressive my husband takes - Fluoxetine!

We'll see how it goes.

It's early days, let us know how he gets on when the meds kick in

Seems the meds are finally starting to work, and should get even better when the Fluoxetine gains full strength, which should be over the next week or so.

He actually laid down on the living room carpet & relaxed yesterday, without being made to! Literally first time ever.

That's great news Does he have to stay on them for life?

Jenc wrote:That's great news Does he have to stay on them for life?

We're honestly not sure yet. Maybe in a year or so we'll try slowly withdrawing the meds (under veterinary supervision) & see how it goes.

But if it's for life then so be it. If it helps him to be happy then that's all good.

If he's happy & calmer that's a good thing, even if he has to stay on them. As he gets older he should mellow out hopefully but if he has to stay on them it would be worth it

He's mellowing nicely. We're now debating whether to castrate him. Normally I would be dead set against it before about 2 years old, but his condition makes it difficult for him to be intact. His levels of testosterone-based anxiety were sky high until we got him the supralorin implant, which has worked well. Unfortunately it's now starting to wear off & I don't want his behaviour to deteriorate to previous levels - we've come so far!

He's such a handsome boy How old is he now? Castration may be the best route with his condition if you feel he's matured enough I had Katy done at 18 months & she's fine physically & mentally

He's a lovely boy!.

Jenc wrote:He's such a handsome boy How old is he now? Castration may be the best route with his condition if you feel he's matured enough I had Katy done at 18 months & she's fine physically & mentally

He's only 14 months, which is why I'm not too happy about it; I wouldn't normally even consider castration before 2 years old minimum. But to be honest it may well be the lesser of two evils. Male ADHD dogs often (apparently) have unusually high testosterone levels & he certainly suffered badly before the implant took effect

Sixteen months & 26 kilos. He's beginning to widen out now.

He's filling out nicely now, how's he doing otherwise?

Not too bad, thanks. He was at the emergency vet a week or so ago because he'd stepped on some glass & we couldn't grip it to pull it out. Nearly £300 before he even saw the vet! But they managed to get it out & they praised his friendliness.

He's going through a barking stage atm, though, & it's really irritating!

In general he's definitely improving & he's very quick to learn things so the training is going well. He can sit, down, come, bow, give paw, give other paw, chin (places his chin on your palm - useful for the vet), teeth (again, useful for the vet), turn, heal, guard, zombie (sits & waves both front paws in the air & makes weird noises!), flying bully , (leaps in the air), wait, leave, impulse control (treats thrown on the floor and he mustn't touch them until he's told), jump (usually over someone's legs), and we're now teaching 'up' (standing upright on his back paws), but that will take time because we need to strengthen his back & thigh muscles slowly.

He now doesn't try to eat us on his walks, although he'll still try to grab the lead sometimes.

It's been a nightmare, to be honest, but all in all he's a lovely lad.

All grown up

He looks amazing Caryll Can't believe how fast he's grown

I know - puppyhood doesn't last long!

A couple of pics of his recent swimming session, plus one of him being his usual nosy self!