Pomeranian Rescue

mussysiede

New Member
Hi all, my 9 year old son chose to resuce a 8 year old pomeranian from the pound today as his birthday present - bless him. We have just brought Dangerfield home and he is currently sound asleep on my son's bed. We have no knowelege really of pomeranians, and would appreciate anyones advice on caring for a mature male. He is very calm and has seemed to settle ok with our existing dog (whippet x fox terrier), and true to nature our Devon Rex cat is not happy AT ALL. It seems grooming & regular dental is essential, but am interested in any other health issues to look out for. We love him already and really want to do the best for him. Thanks. x
 

running_dog

Honored Member
Welcome and congratulations on rescuing Dangerfield (y)

I don't know anything specific about pomeranian (though my dog is buddies with one) but if you have any questions as Dangerfield settles in please do post and we'll all chip in with suggestions.
 

648117

Honored Member
Welcome!

I have an adopted male Pom (?)

I got him when he was about 3 1/2 years old and have had him for 18 months. We were told he is a Pom but he is a lot larger than a normal Pom, wrong colour and has less coat:
Lewis


Lewis is my only experience with Poms so I can only go by him when talking about them (and he is not typical) but this is some of my observations/advice:

For grooming all I do (in addition to normal dog maintenance) is brush him all over at least once a week (takes about 15 minutes) and trim his feet when they look hairy. He never has knots now.
I have a photo of what I do with his feet:



So just trim the fur out from between his pads and neaten up the top. You don't have to do this but I like Lewis to look tidy.
I don't trim anything else.

The main area that it is importance to groom is the back legs, that's where Lewis has the most under coat anyway. When we got him his back legs were a bit of a mess with a lot of undercoat that was a bit mated. Also, he had some dreadlocks behind his ears.

What condition is your dogs coat in? and how does he respond to grooming?

When we first got Lewis he was not used to grooming so I had to take it very slow and watch his face the entire time to make sure he wasn't going to bite me (he never did). It took weeks to get all the undercoat out of his legs.
Also if you bath your dog make sure you get all the undercoat dry. I would recomend using a groomer as they use a powerful dryer to help get the undercoat out and you wont have fur all over your house. If your pom has his full coat then don't let any groomer shave him (unless his coat is all matts and there is no choice). They have double coats that are not meant to be shaved. If you shave a pom the coat might not grow back properly meaning it could become harder to keep knot-free and shaved fur looks duller.

For temperament:
Lewis barks a lot (a lot).
He's definitly become a one person dog (mine).
Can be a little protective over me.
Very affectionate and cuddly with me but does not like strangers touching him.

Your pom might not bark much now but don't be surprised if he finds his voice later.

Other things to think about:
Teeth: Lewis had horrible teeth when we got him but they are better now that he gets fed better food and has treats that help his teeth. I brush his teeth when I groom him.
Poms have delicate necks. If your pom pulls on lead at all then use a harness, many use a harness even if the dog does not pull.


Since Dangerfield is a rescue he might not have had much training. Lewis was like that, but he has since proven to be pretty smart. I'm doing obedience, rally-o and agility with him, he is coming along really well (especially in obedience, he's really good). Maybe your son could get into training him.
 

Ripleygirl

Experienced Member
Well done on rescuing your little one.. Afraid I don't know much specifically about Poms but welcome and hope you get the advice you are looking for. Great advice above too.
 

MaryK

Honored Member
Welcome!:) What a wonderful boy you have to rescue an older doggy for his birthday present.:) I think Dangerfield is one very lucky dog!

I don't know much either about the care and attention of Poms, except they're intelligent little dogs and very cute. Holly's Mom "6" is the 'expert' on Poms and I know from the past, her advice is always very good.

We did have a Pom at Doggy School and he just loved the mini puppy sized Agility Course, small doesn't equal silly that's for sure with a Pom, he was one very smart little chap. So I would definitely encourage your son to take Dangerfield to Doggy School, great for socialization (even if he's grand with other dogs) and also of course, good manners.

Any problems you may have, don't hesitate to post a thread you're sure to get some really good advice.
 

mussysiede

New Member
dangerfield 3.jpg Thanks everyone for your comments and helpful advice. Dangerfield is settling in very well, and even sleeping in the same kennell at night with our other dog. We found out that he was a stray, and I think his coat did not cope very well with that. I didnt notice until the helpful comments above about grooming that huge chunks of his fur have been snipped off, presumably at the Pound because they were so matted. So that is something to keep and eye on, and hopefully his fur will grow back to its former glory!

I know he is short, but he seems to have a phobia about stairs - which is a problem because we have a lot of stairs in our house. Any thoughts on how to train him to go up and down? He will attempt up when there are only 2 steps, but more than that and any stairs going down is a definite no.

Thanks so much everyone, this is the friendliest forum I have visited.
 

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MaryK

Honored Member
Thank you for the photos, just gorgeous!!!!!!!!:love: He's one very seriously cute fellow,:D

Stairs: First, are your stairs open ones? The gap between risers can scare some dogs, even the biggest of dogs, and to a Pom that gap would look tremendous. Answer to that one (yes getting in ahead here) is to place something over the stairs, to cover up the see thru gap. Make it something very secure of course, we don't won't it slipping when Dangerfield walks on it. Then as he gets more used to climbing stairs, narrow the cover up (get something you can easily cut) so just a tiny little bit of the gap shows. Decrease the width as he grows more confident. Then remove altogether. Don't rush him though allow him to take his time and get used to stairs.

Secondly: If your stairs do not have a gap. Then it's a matter of literally one step at a time. Encourage with a treat, heavily praise and treat (make your treats VERY high value ones) with each and every step. He may well just be suffering from 'Hey Mom what the heck are those funny things?" - lack of confidence, insecurity because he may never have been confronted with stairs before.

Thirdly: Check with a vet to make sure Dangerfield doesn't have any arthritis or hip/leg problems. He may be in pain, and if he is, then stairs would be like Arthritis Mountain to him. Hopefully, all fingers crossed, this isn't the case.

With his fur, Holly's Mom is the expert on Poms and how to groom them. Hopefully his coat will recover it's full glory. Just a tip, bit late now but good for future reference, if a dog's fur is matted (ditto cat here too) NEVER cut ACROSS the fur, this will make it very obvious the fur has been matted and cut. Always cut ALONG THE LENGTH OF THE FUR through the mat. It's amazing how just a few cuts, even with the worst matting, can be almost, if not completely, invisible and the coat will grow back normally with most dogs. Not sure about Poms as I do know their coats need special care and attention and should never be cut.

Yes this forum is very friendly, you'll just love it here. And do update on Dangerfield. BTW just love his name. Was that his name when you got him or did you name him?:love:
 

MaryK

Honored Member
Oh I forget yesterday with the stairs. Another trick I used with a reluctant stair climber was to lay a line of treats, all different and all high value, up the stairs - not all the way - just a short distance and waited to click/praise/party.

When my reluctant pooh finally made it to the top we had JACKPOT!:D
 

648117

Honored Member
Dangerfield is very cute :love:

I wouldn't worry about the bits of his coat that were cut, it can't always be avoided and I do understand why some people choose to trim/shave their dogs.

But it looks like only a small amount was cut so it should grow back fine, I think it's more when they are shaved that it can cause problems because it messes with the undercoat.

Here is a website that I found when I first got Lewis showing what can happen when Poms keep getting there hair cut (I wasn't expecting to get a Pom when we got him either so I had to do a lot of quick research, especially about his coat which wasn't in great condition):
http://petgroomingthegoodthebadthefurry.blogspot.co.nz/2011/01/grooming-pomeranians.html

If you ever do take Dangerfield to a groomer make it extremely clear that you do not want him shaved or clippered.
We recently had this problem with my mums BichonX, Skye. We wanted her coat shortened a little so they shaved her to the skin (its the middle of winter here), we were not happy, luckily she has a Bichon coat so it has no problem growing back (they are ment to be cut, unlike Poms). When I first took Lewis to the groomers (he hasn't been since last year though) I made it unmistakably clear that I did not want scissors or clippers touching any part of him other than his feet.
 

bella12

New Member
Rescued 8 year old female Pomeranian from puppy mill.
I had her spayed and the vet (reluctantly) chose to remove all but 2 of her teeth due to massive decay.
She’s a good girl but inconsistent with puppy pad usage despite frequent praise, rewards etc.
I’ve had her for 4 months and am getting weary of unexpected wet socks.
She can be ‘good’ for 3 or 4 days and then fall off the wagon for the next 2 or 3 days by using the pad and the floor within the span of the same day.
Any advice as to how to get her to 100% compliance would be greatly appreciated.
I realize that accidents will happen but wish that they would happen less frequently.
 
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