Puppy prep

[melonie]

I've been in a crate dilemma the last couple of days.
I have a small crate that I can use while puppy girl is small, and I plan on picking up a bigger crate in the next couple weeks.
I kept going back and forth whether or not to let her be in the big one. My worry is that no one will be home to let her out every 4 hours. I'd hate for her to soil her crate and be stuck in it. (in the small one)
I'll be home with her up until 1pm, then my kid gets home aroun 3:30 or 4. But then she's usually gone by 5 and not home again until late. I would be home between 9 and 10. I know she'll probably be fine, but still I worry lol.
I do plan on letting her sleep with me or my daughter. But I think I'll utilize leashing her so I can tell when she gets up so I can let her out to potty
I've wish listed all the goodies on amazon, picked out a couple things for the boys as well.

What will be the best way to introduce her to the boys? I know my boys will be pretty amped up over her. So I nee to figure out how to keep them calmer and not scare the fur off of her.

I still have to puppy proof the house. It's not even really toddler proof, so I have a lot of work to do.
I'm going to start right in on walks with her... how far is practical for a pup? She was born 9/10, I'll probably pick her up 11/14. I'm not picking her up until I know I'm done working the over night shift. I've been having enough issues with the boys as it is. They're not getting enough attention right now.

I could take name suggestions too.
I've called her Indie, and that is what my sister has been calling her as well. But I'm not too sure about it yet.
I always think of great dog names when I don't need one.

Almost forgot... Puppy Food!
What would be a good middle road on puppy food?

I'm trying to decide between these:
**** Whole Earth Farm Puppy, 17.5lb @$21, 35lb @ $39
***1/2 California Naturals 15lb @30, 30lb @ $48
*** Dr. Fosters & Smith Puppy 28lb @ $30

All three do not have corn, which is really my only requirement. I used dog food adviser for the ratings. but I don't think they included puppy Ca. naturals.

Or does anyone have something they have liked better?

[RealPitBull]

I'd start with the smaller crate. It's easier to be overly cautious with early housetraining then to have to re-evaluate what you're doing after a series of accidents.

Is there a specific reason you don't want to crate her at night and will do the leashing thing instead? Is it just because she'll be crated during the day? I recommend crating at night for a bit until she's proven she has a concept of holding it and going outside to potty. JMO, of course.

I'd intro her to the boys one at a time while outdoors in an open space, on neutral territory, and then do some parallel walking, just letting the dogs be in the vicinity of each other until the novelty wears off and then let them gradually interact. Mostly I like leashed introductions because I'm a bit paranoid but just make sure you keep loose leashes as much as possible and avoid anyone getting tangled. Indoors you'll probably have to do a lot of crate/rotate just to begin with. There is no cookie cutter answer - you have to work slow and see how the dogs respond and let them be your guides.

As for food, I can't speak to the ones you posted, never used them. I love Natural Balance, that's the brand I use.

[melonie]

The sleeping with us is purely selfish.
I already sleep like crap, and I know I won't stick to keeping a whiney puppy
in a crate.

I know both dogs will be over excited about the puppy. I don't foresee any real problems except the big boys being too rough. But I have to have a good intro! I've come up with a plan based on what you said.

I was thinking about feeding TOTW Puppy, but I don't want to go grain free unless I have to. For Winston it is important, not so much with Cleveland. But he has yet to have a canine acne break out while on TOTW.
Whole Earth Farms is probably what I'll go with. It's made by Merrick, and seems to be a decent food. Momma dog has no health problems at the age of 8. So I'm hoping her pup will be too.

[RealPitBull]

I just checked out Whole Earth because I hadn't heard of it before. Looks good, it got a good rating on Dog Food Advisor.

I don't like grain free foods, either.

[maryellen]

I feed merric lamb and apple merrick is a good food. Dismond has anotherrecall so i wouldnt feed anything mfg by diamond

[melonie]

I can't find any info on a recent recall after March '13. That was for low levels of thiamine in diamond kitten food. It really annoys me that Diamond is manufacturing this food.
I've tried other grain free foods, and non grain free's on Winston.
His allergy symptoms are at a minimum when he's on TOTW lamb formula or the duck/chicken formula.
So I may give the Merrick Lamb formula a try.

[maryellen]

Merrick lamb has grains but they also make grain free food too

[melonie]

I'll try it and see how he does on it before I try the gf. The only real difference is oats, alfalfa and barley.