Tip Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 Hi Im new to this site & Im so happy to have found it!!! 2 weeks ago I bought my puppy, she is now 10 weeks old. She is my 3rd border collie, (my first was as a child and my last one had to be put to sleep at age 10 from several cancerous tumors that kept growing back.) so Ive been brushing up on border collies again and have some questions.... I keep reading that a young pup shouldn't be over exercised because of developing muscles. How much is too much? she has endless energy... my second question is, is 10 weeks too old to re-name a puppy? I finally named her only a week ago, Kamali, but found that when I took her along to a small wedding this weekend, every other person thought I was saying "Tamale" as in hot tamale!!! Im not sure I want to be explaining this for the rest of her life..... thanks!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 Welcome. I think a good rule of thumb on exercise is that exercise the pup does by itself (i.e., playing with toys by itself, but not those being thrown or otherwise managed by a human) is probably acceptable. If the pup develops weird OCD type habits, like repeatedly jumping at tree limbs or whatever, that would fall under unacceptable activity. Anything repetitive is hard on growing joints. Jumping repeatedly is hard on growing joints. Fetch is okay as long as it's limited and the pup isn't doing gymnastics to get the fetch object (so if you're playing fetch with a pup, roll the object to be fetched so the pup isn't jumping to catch the item). If the pup is just running around and playing in the back yard that's okay. Walks with you are fine (with the pup ranging ahead or staying by your side, depending on the safety of your location). You get the picture--they don't have to be coddled and protected from every little thing--the key is to not overdo things and to be aware of the types of activities that are stressful on growing joints. As for changing her name, you ought to be able to do that fairly easily, especially if she's only had the current name for a couple of weeks. Of course, I think Tamale is kind of cute, so maybe you should just break down and call her that! J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BustopherJones Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 As important as the amount of of exercise is the type of exercise. Be careful not to engage in activities that overstress a growing dog's body. I made the mistake of doing this, and it resulted in separation of a growth plate in Annie that took many weeks, and much therapy (including aquatherapy), to heal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OurBoys Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 I agree with Julie. I like the name Tamale. Especially, if she becomes lightning quick in agility But if you still decide to change it, she's not too old. JJ was 1-2 yrs old when we changed his and Jake was almost a yr old. (New home, new memories, new name) They had no problem at all. One thing you might want to try is to start teaching Kamali commands. Working her mentally can wear her out as well as working her physically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweet_ceana Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 I vote you keep her name Tamale! No worries if you wan't to keep it what you have it... no one can ever say ceana's name correctly. I do not even correct them anymore lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK dog doc Posted July 18, 2007 Report Share Posted July 18, 2007 I once saw a guy who was on TV with his BCs and had named them all along that line... Pepper, Jalepeno ("Holly"), Chili, etc. It kinda suits them, behaviorally... they are kind of "hot" little dogs... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smileyzookie Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 OH my gosh! I should have named my animals after peppers!!! I have a chili pepper issue! I love them, I have a belly ring with a chili pepper, my kitchen is decorated in it.... Sorry for hijacking the thread lol Welcome to the boards!!! Rivendell was about a year old when I got her. We named her Rivendell, I have no clue what her other name was, she was beaten and abandoned in a fenced yard. For real, it took like 2 days and she knew her name. I think you'll have no trouble teaching your pup a new one. As for activity, I'll second Julie's advice. Posers sometimes know what they're talking about LOL (kidding kidding ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bo Peep Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 whoever holds the cookies has the name- LOL. At that age, it's so easy. I rescued a BC that was crated 24/7 - it was awful. Her name was Abby- so I changed it to Zappy and eventually Zap. I had a dying dog that I had for 15 years and had to turn Zap[ over to rescue, but am still informed by the rescue person how well she is doing. I am just glad I got her out of that situation. My dying dog couldn't handle the "puppy" in her and Miss Lacey deserved only the best. Easy to change a name. If they REALLY know their name- call them that name, then the new name and give them a treat. Keep calling them the double name for a bit and ease off the first name and continue with the name you want. Oh- I wouldn't do any BIG jumping until they are over 18 months. THEY want to, but be careful of their bones. Exercise is fine. Throw the ball and let them run or roll the Frisbee at first, then you can move on to other things and don't forget walks!! I envy you with puppy breath. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbc1963 Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 I think a lot of people rename dogs without meaning to! My dog, officially named "Buddy", is usually "Mister Buddy," but quite often he's just "Mister," and sometimes he's "Mr. B," and sometimes "B" and sometimes "BB." He seems to understand that these are all his names. I read somewhere once that you name a dog when you get him, and then you find out what his REAL name is later on, when you start calling him by it. Mary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebecca, Irena Farm Posted July 19, 2007 Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 Ben's eleven and goes by many different names. Maggie will be fourteen in December and comes to no name. All of my dogs think a potato chip bag rattling is their name. By necessity I rename rescues with unknown backgrounds all the time and it's rarely a problem. Keep activities to what the puppy would normally do. Jumping (within reason) is ok as long as it was the puppy's idea. Say, over a log on a walk. But not over a deck rail, or over jumps on an agility course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tip Posted July 19, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 19, 2007 thanks- lots of great advice! I dont know how to do the quote thing but Mary said this: "I read somewhere once that you name a dog when you get him, and then you find out what his REAL name is later on, when you start calling him by it" funny you say that cause I always accidently call her "trouble" !!!! tamale is a cute name too- and it WOULD be a great name for an agility dog! I guess I should be happy it doesnt rhyme with something naughty instead. knowing me, I probably wouldnt have even noticed! Okay so I have a better idea of exercise now. right now I've been taking her twice a day for a half hour walk off leash. (& every 3 hrs or so short bathroom walk ON leash) we have a lot of forest and cornfields around our house, so thats where we walk. I'd like to take her longer but I havent been sure if thats oaky? Im probably being too nit picky about everything, I just want to do everything right this time. as far as commands I have been working on sit, wait, and outside (bathroom command) anyways- thanks!!!! it helps!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettilu Posted July 20, 2007 Report Share Posted July 20, 2007 thanks- lots of great advice! I dont know how to do the quote thing but Mary said this: "I read somewhere once that you name a dog when you get him, and then you find out what his REAL name is later on, when you start calling him by it" funny you say that cause I always accidently call her "trouble" !!!! tamale is a cute name too- and it WOULD be a great name for an agility dog! I guess I should be happy it doesnt rhyme with something naughty instead. knowing me, I probably wouldnt have even noticed! Okay so I have a better idea of exercise now. right now I've been taking her twice a day for a half hour walk off leash. (& every 3 hrs or so short bathroom walk ON leash) we have a lot of forest and cornfields around our house, so thats where we walk. I'd like to take her longer but I havent been sure if thats oaky? Im probably being too nit picky about everything, I just want to do everything right this time. as far as commands I have been working on sit, wait, and outside (bathroom command) anyways- thanks!!!! it helps!! I think it's important to try not to overdo the excercise with the summer heat as well and the fact that she is a young pup....and as far as the name goes, whatever you pick will probably end up shortened to a nick name anyway, so pick whatever you want. We picked "Bo", even though everyone says don't because of sounding like "no", but he seems to know the difference...these are Border Collies we're talking about afer all!!! Have fun with your pup! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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