Dogs in general, under free-ranging conditions, will live in mixed-sex, mixed-age social groups. Social ranking is determined by age, although sex may play a role. Females seem to be responsible for leading more often than males. Social ranking is maintained primarily by deference, not by agonistic interaction. Sexual maturity in domestic dogs (including the shih tzu) occurs between 6 to 9 months of age (later for giant breeds), while social maturity begins to develop at 18 to 36 months of age.
At social maturity, a hierarchy depends upon age, sex, size and temperament. In a free-ranging group, dogs that challenge the established social hierarchy may leave and form their own groups if they do not succeed in altering the extant social order. Social maturity is also the time when problems such as aggressions and anxieties develop. Roaming, mounting, urine marking, and intrasexual fighting are caused by the sex hormones, particularly testosterone. These problems can often be prevented or greatly reduced by neutering, especially in males, in households with several pets, males and females, or a household with all males.
Between 3 and 8 weeks of age, dogs tend to focus on other dogs (if available) for their social stimuli. Between 5 and 12 weeks of age they seem to start to focus more on people if people are available. Dogs are most receptive to learning about how to deal with new or different environments until about 16 to 20 weeks of age. This is not to say an older dog would never adjust to a change in environment. It is just to say the adjustment is easier before this age. With time and patience any dog of any age will adjust to change just as people do.
It is not critical to switch the focus of exposure either to other animals or to people at any one specific period. Given the adequate opportunity, puppies will learn about the social and physical environments when they are ready. Trying to introduce them to a specific situation is not critical to producing a well-socialized puppy or adult dog. Of great importance is to avoid extremely fearful stimuli.
Dogs kept exclusively in cages and kenneled and not exposed to people at all after 14 weeks of age may have severely undeveloped social skills. If you are purchasing an older dog from a private breeder, this problem is not likely to surface. The type of older dog I am talking about here would be one that was raised exclusively in kennels with cage after cage and perhaps 3 or 4 or maybe more dogs sharing the same cage. Maybe their only contact with people would be the short presence of someone passing by with water or food. Usually dogs that are raised by individuals in private circumstances have adequate and quality contact with people.
Regardless of the age of a puppy or dog, that life needs to be shown a daily caring atmosphere from their human caretakers to be able to provide them with the ability to adjust readily and easily in new homes or environments. Without human interaction and caring, the dog may experience social problems and behavior problems that otherwise would have not surfaced.
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Shih Tzu - Exercise For Your Pregnant Shih Tzu
You, the breeder, is also an obstetrician at the time your shih tzu is pregnant. To help her pregnancy and delivery you need to keep her in peak condition physically and emotionally. If she is not use to much exercise at all, you definitely need to tone her up during her pregnancy. Even a mild exercise routine will improve the health of your pregnant shih tzu. Beginning and maintaining a regular exercise routine is not hard or expensive. The ideal time, however, is before your shih tzu becomes pregnant. A mild program of exercise may be safely continued to the seventh week of pregnancy. The best exercise is simply daily walks. And remember moderation is the best approach.
Small dogs, like the shih tzu, may be toned with a half mile daily. However, you may want to work up to a mile depending on the weather and both your physical conditions. Beyond building and toning your shih tzu's physique, the sharing of a common recreation is good for her emotional health as well.
Start your daily walks during the cooler hours of the warmer months, the warmer hours of the colder months. Each time of year has its own special dangers for your shih tzu. Begin your walks half-mile, one-quarter mile out, one-quarter mile back. Increase the distance the following week to a half mile out and a half mile back. Once you reach the half-mile level you can jog with your pregnant shih tzu if you desire, a few minutes at a time, but walking is highly recommended. Continue on this program until you are walking at least one mile daily if you desire.
In hot weather, the shih tzu's body is closer to heat reflected from paved surfaces. Care must be given to exercising during any periods of hot weather. Dogs sweat through their pads and tongue. If your dog is breathing heavily with glazed eyes and a hanging out tongue, she could be in serious danger. Take along plenty of water and watch her for signs of "getting too hot." You don't want her to get over-heated at all. If she plops down or has minor tremors the moment she stop walking, get her to an emergency vet clinic as soon as possible. These are signs of heat exhaustion. So be careful about this.
In cold weather, never leave a warm house and begin jogging right away. Muscles need to be stretched and warmed up to prevent injury, lameness or soreness. Winter months in areas of snow can be dangerous. Aside from slipping and falling, certain areas are often spread with slip retardants such as sand, salt or other chemicals. The salt and chemicals are harmful to the shih tzu's footpads. If you have no choice during the winter of exercising in areas free from chemicals, purchase water/chemical-proof booties, and rinse your shih tzu's feet thoroughly after returning home.
In either hot or cold weather, check your shih tzu's feet daily. Check the pads and the soft-tissue areas between the pads for damage such as rawness, swelling, splitting or discoloration. Keep the nails trimmed.
There is no reason for a normally active and healthy pregnant shih tzu to have her physical activities restricted. Such restrictions could be harmful to her during delivery through lack of muscle tone. Restriction from normal activity can also promote an emotionally discontent pregnant shih tzu. Her attitude can affect her puppies in utero and then later after whelping as well.
If your shih tzu is used to playing with children, let her continue to do so at her own will and pace. Explain to your children to be extra careful with your pregnant shih tzu and avoid roughhouse play. Tell the children in terms they can easily understand, such as: Fetch is fine. Wrestling is out.
Always comfort your pregnant shih tzu and let her know of your devotion to her with words and actions she is familiar with. Soon the little rascals will arrive and everyone will be soooo happy!
Connie Limon publishes a FREE weekly newsletter. A professional newsletter with a focus upon health and wellness for you and your pets. Weekly coupons on shih tzu puppies and other products are offered to subscribers. Weekly updates of available puppies with hotlink to the available puppies page on the website. Sign up at: http://www.stainglassshihtzus.com


Breeding Clownfish
Thanks to Disney's Motion Picture 'Finding Nemo,' almost everybody is familiar with clownfish.
Clownfish, or Anemonefishes, from the family Pomacentridae, are one of the easiest tropical marine aquarium fish to breed. Clownfish regularly lay eggs in aquariums. They have quite large eggs and larvae, and since the larvae easily eat cultured live foods, raising them is somewhat simpler than it is with many other marine species.
You need to get a pair if you want to breed clownfish, and that's quite interesting - believe it or not, clownfish are all born as males! When they are adults, the largest and the most dominant fish of the group will undergo a sex change and become a female. The second largest usually becomes the breeding male, while all the other fish remain juveniles and gender-neutral. If the breeding female disappears, the breeding male will change to a female, and so on. Buying an established pair may be a reasonable way to go, but it is often better to have a group of juveniles growing up together. If you choose to buy a pair you should look for a pair that goes around together. Sometimes you can be lucky enough to get a pair already spawning. Anyhow, establishing an adult pair can be a little tricky; and you need to keep your eyes on them to make sure that the female doesn't kill the male.
The next thing is to set up the tank. The tank should be large enough, approximately 200 liters for the breeding pair. It is better to keep a pair alone in an aquarium when trying to spawn clownfish.
The aquarium should be furnished with a nice anemone, a few live rocks and other rocky substances with a vertical surface, a layer of coral sand on the bottom, bright lighting, good filtration, and a protein skimmer. Your clownfish should be stress free, which means no aggressive tank mates and good water quality. As for feeding, clownfish need a mixed diet of fresh raw seafood and vegetables. A good diet includes prawns, mussels, and squid. It is best to feed small bits at regular intervals.
Spanning can begin 1 to 12 months after the fish have settled into their new home. When the fish are ready to spawn, they become very aggressive. The male clownfish will dance up and down in front of the female (also known as "clownfish waggle"). They will also start to clean their selected rock by robustly biting it. The spawning itself usually occurs in the afternoon or early evening. Once the spawning is complete (within several hours) the male takes on responsibility for attending the eggs, whereas the female acts as protector of the eggs and supervisor of her male.
Spawning is likely to occur again at intervals of 12 to 18 days. The eggs should be left in the care of the parents and not removed, unless the parents are known to be egg eaters. At first the eggs are a bright orange colour, but after several days this diminishes and the eyes appear. Hatching usually takes from 6 to 15 days, depending on temperature.
The most critical stage of the fry is the first 10 days of their larvae span. If you can get your fry to survive this period the rest of their raising should be easier.
Article provided by AC Tropical Fish and a site about Clown loach fish