Hi

Hi all,
I'm Sam and i'd just like to take a few mins to introduce myself and my boys  
I was a member here a few years ago but due to work, family and losing my log in details I've only just got around to making a new account  

Ok, so our staffy mad family consists of my partner and myself, our 2 gorgeous kids aged 12 and 10 and our 2 mad staffy boys Max (aged 4) and Oscar (aged 1) who are loved to bits by all who know them and keep us constantly entertained with their antics and personalities  I'll post up pics as soon as I get chance.

Max is the eldest at 4 and is red with white chest, he has a beautiful temperament and is a typical Stafford through and through, loving, gentle, loyal, crazy at times, protective (particularly with the children) funny, and VERY intelligent (he's learnt to wink on command, or when he wants something, and tries is hardest to ''talk'', particularly 'I love you' while he's being fussed) he does get a little excited when people first come home or when meeting people for the first time but calms down very quickly and is a pleasure to be around.

Oscar has just turned one, and is black brindle with a flash of white on his chest. Again, he has a beautiful temperament and we couldn't have picked a better companion for Max. He shares many of the same qualities as Max, while having his own unique character/personality is also exhibiting the same classic staffy traits etc. A little slower to 'suss' things out perhaps, but by no means is he thick, more a case of young staffy testing the boundaries kind of thing (for example, pretending to be deaf when being told 'NO' or LEAVE when its something of particular interest that's caught his attention  pooh eating is an excellent example at the moment as he will quickly wolf any down given chance if I don't watch him like a hawk at toilet times! I do have a strong 'leave' and no commands tho and it does deter him if/when I spot him haha  not very nice but not particularly worrying either as in my experience some dogs do this, some don't  )

Ok, so I also have a couple of questions, and felt it best to ask them here rather than post in the wrong section etc...

Ears: Both our boys suffer from time to time with itchy ears (and then sore/scabby ears if scratched as I don't always notice and stop them in time, which on occaision cannot be helped) Maxisn't too bad as he's getting older, more a seasonal ailment and I just need to keep an eye on him when he's around bushes, shrubs, flowers/plants etc and I've found Johnsons ear drops available at pets at home works reasonably well and clears them up in a couple days easy enough, and Oscar has started to suffer the same (neither dog exhibits the watery sound if they shake their head's as I never let it get to that point obviously, as soon as we notice any itching or discomfort its straight to the vet, unless we've experienced the symptoms before and are confident we can deal with it ourselves... These drops also appear to be working for Oscar too although he's suffering slightly more so with it at the moment than Max is (Max was the same when younger) and he is also suffering with sore eyes at the moment... sore, scabby skin around his eyes and tear like stains, after taking him to the vets and being put on a course of steroids (which appeared to do nothing but make him lethargic and sickly) we have started using an eye wash and cream... so hopefully this will clear it up. It flares up worse when he's been on grass a lot, so could he maybe be allergic to grass? We're also considering changing his diet in case this could be the cause... I feed my dogs dry food (bakers) as its always been fine for my other dogs in the past but as their all different we're considering everything right now.

Next, we're looking for a new addition and are considering a girl this time...not for breeding as we have no interest in that, our dogs are simply family members, and was wondering what thoughts any of you have regarding the sex of the new addition... we were told not to get a boy with having Max but we have never had any problems, as Max was almost 3 when we introduced Oscar at 10 weeks old, My boy took it all in his stride and welcomed Osc with very little fuss and i'm confident we could introduce either another boy or a girl with the same result... Both are entire males but as I say there is no aggression in either dog, BUT would the presence of a female change this? Would it be advisable to neuter the female or one or both the boys as a precaution?

I don't wish to sound over confident but I feel we could introduce another pup without any real problems as our boys are happy, well adjusted and well socialised, and I feel we did everything right introducing the boys to each other (made sure the first meeting was away from the house, followed by a nice long walk then kept Oscar on his lead when we went home for the first half hour or so before letting him off to interact with Max and the rest of the house etc typical staffy behaviour, lots of play, chasing each other and nippy little bites from both but they settled pretty quick   and get along fine..even though we were told by several people not to get 2 boys as they would fight and NEVER accept each other.. BUT seeing as introducing a girl to 2 well established males is new territory for me I thought it best to seek advice first...or at least get a number of opinions on the subject.

We also considered going to a rescue centre to look for a girl but we feel we'd be best with a pup, mostly for the usual reasons, knowing the pup from day one (in the best interests of our children, I know there are some real beauties in rescue don't get me wrong) and just feel this is the best way for us to go... plus as i'm currently off sick from work with a shoulder injury I have plenty of time to settle her in with the boys and start training etc.

Anyway, thanks for taking the time to read our intro and any advice/opinions would be greatly appreciated  

Thanks, Sam.

Hi &

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Hiya from me and Vinnie, great intro.
I have ever only owned 1 dog so no experience in introducing. 

Hi & welcome from Darcy & me, sounds like you have a lovely family there. Ears- Darcy is just recovering from an ear infection and a few staff members have recommended thornit and said it works wonders, so I've just got some just incase there is future infections so I'd give it a go hopefully it'll work wonders for the boys ears. as for pooch number 3 I'd say choose a girl, and a lot of rescues have pups they don't advertise so may be worth a look there first good luck.

We'd love to see some pics too, they're somewhat mandatory
This link should help:- https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/t12017-how-to-post-a-photos-onto-the-forum

Hi And welcome from me and my two

Hi and welcome to the forum from me and Charlie

Hi and welcome to the forum from Rocky and me.

With regard to intoducing another dog to your family the fact that you have two entire males already means that intoducing an entire female could be tricky when she is in season, of course you have considered this may be problematic at best. Getting the female new addition spayed may well be the best option to avoid an unplanned further new additions or any undesired behaviour change in the two males.

Good luck with it all.

Hi and welcome from the kids and I

Hiya from me and Moo

hi from me and the boys

Welcome to the forum from me and Bru! So jealous that you're thinking of getting a third pup!! I'm only allowed one until we buy our own house

hia from me and sasha  

Hello and welcome to the forum from me and the kids

Hi and welcome from me and Daisy  

Hi & welcome.

I must admit that the first thing I'd do is get both dogs off the Bakers. It's jam packed full of nasty additives which are known to cause not only hyperactivity, but allergies and cancer as well! Plus, it's only about 3% meat. 

Regarding introducing a bitch pup, you may be lucky and have no problems a all, but there is always the chance that as soon s she starts to come into season the boys will become devils overnight.

Personlly, I would probably neuter one of the boys (the older one) & see how things develop.

Hi and welcome to the forum from me and the zoo xx

Big hello and welcome to all of you from Chiquito and I

Thanks for the warm welcome everybody, and for the advice regarding diet, choice of pup's sex and introducing etc.

Diet change is imminent having read around the subject a little more now concerning the allergies etc and we will be changing as soon as we can decide which one is right for the boys, possibly arden grange as it seems to have some very good reviews, and i'm now convinced its his diet that's causing Oscar's sore eyes/ears. I haven't noticed any hyperactivity but they do get lots of regular exercise and are well behaved inside the house (except for the odd mad half hour or the typical exhuberance staff's show towards people coming home or to visit) and on our walks/runs, but from what I've read I don't feel its worth the risk health-wise and intend to experiment a little with a couple of different brands until we find the right one for the dogs.

As for the new addition, we're definitely going ahead with a girl, although my partner and I are somewhat divided on the choice of age.. she feels it best we go for a young pup, 10 to 12 weeks old, whereas I feel we would be fine and possibly better off with a pup aged between 6 months to a year old....its not so much the thought of going through basic training with a pup that's on my mind as I enjoy it and love seeing them grow and mature, but more the thoughts that a slightly older pup would be easier to introduce to the boys and could join in with their play better with less chance of being hurt (they don't tend to take much notice of what's going on around them while running and playing in the yard/garden so i'd be a little wary of letting such a young pup into the mix with them)...Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

Pics will be up shortly, although its probably best I leave it to my daughter to do as she knows what she's doing better than I do  

Cheers, Sam

Welcome to the forum from Rocky and I!