two questions about my cavalier king charles spaniel.

BUBBLE WRAP

Okay, fist off I have a Cavalier king charels, he's male just like the one in the pic. He does lie down like the one in the pic the exact same way, he does it every day. I'm just wondering could he be depressed?



Also, he does lick his willie, and he gets a boner. I've tried to train him not to lick that part. But he seems to ignore me. this happens ever 2 days or so. Is this anything to be worried about?

Thanks for your help in advance.

anniehoo

BUBBLE WRAP wrote: »

I'm just wondering could he be depressed?

Nope. If he's lethargic, off his food, exhibiting odd behaviour (that's not odd) then he's fine.

wrote:

Also, he does lick his willie, and he gets a boner.

Normal too, unless he's "at it" all the time when their could be an infection going on, but no this is normal male behaviour. The prepuce is sensitive as you can imagine, but there shouldnt be any major discharge,odour,blisters,sores or cuts on it. This area can get infected just like any other so if its not excessive behaviour or he acts uncomfortable he's fine.

BUBBLE WRAP

anniehoo wrote: »

Nope. If he's lethargic, off his food, exhibiting odd behaviour (that's not odd) then he's fine.

Well, he rarely eats the dog food, he prefers to eat like leftover meat (Chicken, Ham, lamb) from the dinner. Not really interested in the dry dog food at all.

anniehoo wrote: »

Normal too, unless he's "at it" all the time when their could be an infection going on, but no this is normal male behaviour. The prepuce is sensitive as you can imagine, but there shouldnt be any major discharge,odour,blisters,sores or cuts on it. This area can get infected just like any other so if its not excessive behaviour or he acts uncomfortable he's fine.

Thank heavens, when he hears a strange noise he does tilt his head from one side, the he tilts his head the other side. I didn't understand this either.

Thanks so much for the fast reply also.

anniehoo

BUBBLE WRAP wrote: »

Well, he rarely eats the dog food, he prefers to eat like leftover meat (Chicken, Ham, lamb) from the dinner. Not really interested in the dry dog food at all.

He's going to pick meat over dry food anyday. Stop with the meat treats (or mix it in with his dry food) and he'll eat it.

wrote:

when he hears a strange noise he does tilt his head from one side, the he tilts his head the other side. I didn't understand this either.

Normal behaviour, just him figuring out whats going on. Is this your first dog?

BUBBLE WRAP

anniehoo wrote: »

He's going to pick meat over dry food anyday. Stop with the meat treats (or mix it in with his dry food) and he'll eat it.

Ah right, I'll try that. Is there any advantage in giving him the dry food over the normal cooked meat?

anniehoo wrote: »

Normal behaviour, just him figuring out whats going on. Is this your first dog?

Ah right I see, I do have to laugh when he does it. Yup, it is, When I was a baby (19 years ago), parents had a golden retriever puppie and a collie puppy, both got knocked down. But our cavalier king charles spaniel is the first dog we got since then. His name is Rover.

lorebringer

Your dog is not depressed - Cavaliers have a certain facial expression that can make them look very down in the dumps but if he is acting normal and not overly quiet (for him) he probably just looks sad.

All dogs lick, males do tend to have a fascination with their penis and his behaviour is not strange (although, not the most socially appropriate). If his penis or the skin around it appears chapped or sore, if there is a discharge or it is smelly then he may need to see a vet but if he is just licking for the sake of licking then he is fine.

A note on feeding - Cavaliers tend be of one of two minds; eat everything that is in sight or choosy about food. You appear to have a choosy Cavalier. Free feeding will not work with him, set meal times are the best way to give him routine around food and to get him to eat regularly. Put the bowl of food down twice a day, and give him nothing between these meals. Take the bowl up after 15/20 minutes. He will get the message that he only gets fed food at set times and will not benefit from waiting for something better. Mixing some meat or a little leftovers to encourage him to eat is fine, as long as it is in his meals and not outside of these times. Once he has gotten the routine you can give him little extras if you want. Cavalier are a breed that do have a tendency to put up weight though so keep a close eye on that!

This forum is full of info on Cavaliers, health problems etc. and well worth a read. http://www.cavaliertalk.com/forums/forum.php

Sigma Force

I found neutering helped but our guy though neutered will still hump his teddy but he's not as bad as he was before he was neutered.

If you want to switch to dog food only then you'll have to be cruel to be kind and feed him nothing but the dog food if he's a fussy eater he'll wait and wait and wait until you give him the chicken..even for a day or two because he knows if he doesn't eat the dog food he'll get something nicer lol.

Or you could switch him to a cooked diet, rather than straight to raw or research the raw diet. Ensure it's balanced though and not just chicken.

kylith

He's not depressed, all dogs lie like that. Dogs don't get 'depressed' in the same way humans do. Doggy symptoms of depression are lethargy, listlessness, disinterest in walks or playing, lack of appetite. It's generally solved with stimulation and exercise. If you show attention when he's lying like that, you're training him to do it.

He's just masturbating. Again, a lot of dogs will do this, even bitches, though it's a bit harder for them to reach. Imagine how much human men would masturbate if there was no social prohibition on it. Neutering may help, but since he knows it feels nice it's unlikely that he'll stop doing it. You could distract him with treats or a chew if you want to stop him, but it's unlikely you can completely train him out of it.

Leftovers from dinner may be much too fatty and salty for your dog, so I would look into getting him onto a decent dry food, or switching to raw. Give him the food and if he doesn't eat it within 15 minutes take it up again. Give him NOTHING until the next scheduled meal time when he gets proper food again. He may starve himself for a day, hoping you'll cave in and give him the chicken, but stand firm; think of him as a little kid who wants to eat chocolate for dinner.

BUBBLE WRAP

lorebringer wrote: »

Your dog is not depressed - Cavaliers have a certain facial expression that can make them look very down in the dumps but if he is acting normal and not overly quiet (for him) he probably just looks sad.

All dogs lick, males do tend to have a fascination with their penis and his behaviour is not strange (although, not the most socially appropriate). If his penis or the skin around it appears chapped or sore, if there is a discharge or it is smelly then he may need to see a vet but if he is just licking for the sake of licking then he is fine.

A note on feeding - Cavaliers tend be of one of two minds; eat everything that is in sight or choosy about food. You appear to have a choosy Cavalier. Free feeding will not work with him, set meal times are the best way to give him routine around food and to get him to eat regularly. Put the bowl of food down twice a day, and give him nothing between these meals. Take the bowl up after 15/20 minutes. He will get the message that he only gets fed food at set times and will not benefit from waiting for something better. Mixing some meat or a little leftovers to encourage him to eat is fine, as long as it is in his meals and not outside of these times. Once he has gotten the routine you can give him little extras if you want. Cavalier are a breed that do have a tendency to put up weight though so keep a close eye on that!

This forum is full of info on Cavaliers, health problems etc. and well worth a read. http://www.cavaliertalk.com/forums/forum.php

Sigma Force wrote: »

I found neutering helped but our guy though neutered will still hump his teddy but he's not as bad as he was before he was neutered.

If you want to switch to dog food only then you'll have to be cruel to be kind and feed him nothing but the dog food if he's a fussy eater he'll wait and wait and wait until you give him the chicken..even for a day or two because he knows if he doesn't eat the dog food he'll get something nicer lol.

Or you could switch him to a cooked diet, rather than straight to raw or research the raw diet. Ensure it's balanced though and not just chicken.

kylith wrote: »

He's not depressed, all dogs lie like that. Dogs don't get 'depressed' in the same way humans do. Doggy symptoms of depression are lethargy, listlessness, disinterest in walks or playing, lack of appetite. It's generally solved with stimulation and exercise. If you show attention when he's lying like that, you're training him to do it.

He's just masturbating. Again, a lot of dogs will do this, even bitches, though it's a bit harder for them to reach. Imagine how much human men would masturbate if there was no social prohibition on it. Neutering may help, but since he knows it feels nice it's unlikely that he'll stop doing it. You could distract him with treats or a chew if you want to stop him, but it's unlikely you can completely train him out of it.

Leftovers from dinner may be much too fatty and salty for your dog, so I would look into getting him onto a decent dry food, or switching to raw. Give him the food and if he doesn't eat it within 15 minutes take it up again. Give him NOTHING until the next scheduled meal time when he gets proper food again. He may starve himself for a day, hoping you'll cave in and give him the chicken, but stand firm; think of him as a little kid who wants to eat chocolate for dinner.

Thanks all for the useful info, I will book mark that website as well so thanks for that also. Really appresiate it.

lorebringer

BUBBLE WRAP wrote: »

Thanks all for the useful info, I will book mark that website as well so thanks for that also. Really appresiate it.

No bothers! If you want any more info on Cavaliers feel free to pm me