This is super niche, but has anyone tried hand-spinning their pup’s shed fur? I figure I can spin it like any other fiber, but I’d love to know if anyone has actually tried this and what it was like. I’d be spinning it on my Schacht spinning wheel.

My Berner pees when he’s scared, which he’s scared of everything. The vacuum, if we move too fast around him, when I take the garbage out, and when he’s in trouble. I try and sternly tell him no when he does something wrong for example he was chewing on my table. He stopped for a second stared at me and did it again. After three tries I finally yelled at him to stop and he peed. Then he sits in it. When he starts to pee in the house I’ll tell him no and try and get him to go outside but he’ll run away and then pee in the corner. I’m trying to be gentle and cautious but I can’t seem to find a way around this. Will he grow out of it?? I even tried to gently get him off the couch and he became a rock and peed on my couch. I’m at a loss. Please help.

We brought home a Bernese pup 5 days ago and what’s great is that she’s really come out her shell (hops around, frolics around the garden). But unfortunately this also means she’s finding her voice too and even though she’s only 9 weeks her bark is loud! 😂😂😂

She’s getting really playful in the afternoons, but training her to walk has been so hard! She hates the lead! Iv been trying positive reinforcement, quick short local walks so she’s not too far from the house, a clicker and treats. But, she still fights me the whole time.

Does anyone have any advice on running out this puppies battery and lead training? I’m trying to get her to play fetch but she does quite get it yet lol!

Bodhi is 5 months old and still has as much pink on his nose as the day we brought him home at 8 weeks. Do some berners never lose it?

With two large breed puppies, I’ve been exploring different food options. I tried 100% raw meat, but realized it was difficult to easily get all the ingredients for a balanced diet. I also realized some organ meat can be hard on the digestive system. I averaged about $2-3 per pound for this diet. I tried a “better” kibble (Purina Pro Plan), which seemed okay…until I got the second bag, which had a completely different look and started causing some digestive issues. This was about $2 per pound. I’ve finally settled on a mix: Purina Puppy Chow ($1 per pound) and raw chicken (under $1 per pound for leg quarters). I also mix in a tablespoon of raw pumpkin with every meal, a tablespoon of Greek yogurt with the morning meals, and a raw egg now and then. My thinking is the raw chicken and eggs provide the extra protein and calcium that may be missing in cheaper kibble, and the pumpkin and yogurt help digestion. So far, no digestive issues and I’m under $1 per pound. Any thoughts on the nutritional value here? Anything I may be missing?

Our girl is almost 6 months old and we still have struggled to see her nap without putting her down for forced crate naps. We give her about 2-3 hour crate naps every hour or two and I'm getting worried she might be in there too long. She never sleeps in front of us, even if she is up for 3+ hours and usually will just get more fiesty until she gets her nap.

Just want to make sure the crate isn't making her worse, tbh.

Anyone else experience their Berner getting worse at the age of 1.5-2? Mine's becoming more of a nuisance than he was as a puppy - extreme separation anxiety where he'll destroy things even if I'm gone for 5 minutes; stealing food off the counter when he was never given table food to begin with; jumping/barking/biting like a loon when he's excited.

He's been to training (having in home training sessions starting again soon), and goes to day care/sitter when I'm not at work, but just curious if this is equivalent to a toddler's "terrible 2s phase" or mine's just special. Thanks for any info/advice!

https://preview.redd.it/qym1ihg70quc1.jpg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6cfc8c3e3c18c30c665f7391397207759739a8ad

Monster in the flesh.

Hey all - my guy is approaching 4 years and I want to ensure that we catch any possible issues (esp cancer) early. He has unlimited health insurance and we've already met our yearly deductible, so money is not a concern - in fact, we'd be happy to get our money's worth from the insurance company. Last year, when I asked about cancer screenings one of the vets at the practice told me to tell her which tests I wanted, to which I didn't have an answer. Vets are in demand here with many not taking new patients so I'm stuck with this one, but want to be better prepared this time. I've done Google searches but the medical jargon is tough to understand. I'd love to hear what others have been asking their vet to check or test as their Berner ages!

Edit, doggo tax in comments as mobile editing doesn't allow adding photos.

I see endless lists of the pros, but what are the drawbacks.

I separated from my partner and lost our BMD in the split up. I fell in love with this dog breed.

In the past I’ve just gotten shelter dogs and then an opportunity to get a rescue 3 year old female BMD. ( she used to be used for breeding , I assume )

she is amazing and I will miss her. ( she will be happy with my ex )

I’ve never gone to a breeder. What are things to lookout for with breeders?

Also how do you find a local breeder ?

Also she was a small BMD , only 75-80 pounds

Can you get smaller BMD?

Kukis, 10 weeks old. Kong doesnt' interest him (peanut butter too, which confuses me, as dogs supposed to love peanut butter), he is biting everywhere, chewing off the hands, if we forbid him to chase cats, he would forward that frustration into chewing the closest furniture to him. No and a-aah doesn't work on him, he completely knows that he is doing something bad, looks us into the eyes, and does it faster. I swear at this point he is 5 times harder puppy than my previous dog - gsd was, compared to the same age. We are trying to play with him, but sometimes it just looks that being menace to society and chewing the walls brings much more fun to him, than playing with us with the toys. We are waiting for the last vaccine, and then we will be instantly going to the dog trainer (currently knows sit, lay, come to me, give paw). But when does this period ends? Because i hadn't seen feistier puppy ever.

This feels too crazy to be real.

We adopted a 10 month old berner about a week ago. He was surrendered to me as alternative to euthanasia for a treatable condition. We initially took him in with intent to rehab/do surgery and rehome, but this dog had STOLEN our hearts in just a few days. He has the most incredible personality, learned 5 commands in a few days, and is incredible with our little one and older dog.

We lost our 10.5yo bmd in November and he was our heart dog. This boy is just what we needed. Maybe our previous pup sent him our way 💙 he’s got a long road ahead physically but we do expect him to live a great life.

Meet Eugene!

I’m having a disagreement with my neighbour who used to breed huskies. She thinks you should do it before their first period to avoid behavioural issues. I was thinking more along the lines of 18 months due to her being a giant breed dog.

I gave up trying to keep the couch clean a long time ago

Moose 4 on the left and Bear 3 on the right, they are total bffs!