Good day,

Sunday afternoon I rescued (my terms) a mini aussie from a breeder who in my opinion treated the puppies horribly. After 4-5+ hours of lots of love and affection. My 9 month old new puppy finally was able to take a few steps. I'm almost certain this animal was locked in a small kennel with his litter mates. I met the breeder in a parking lot due to being a lengthy drive for the both of us. The puppy was covered in vomit and foam.

Anyway I've had the dog for roughly 36 hours now and I have to coax him into eating; but he only eats a few bits of food. (Purina puppy chow). I also have to coax him into drinking. I take S'mores on easily 10-12 walks every day (my boyfriend and I both do). We've taken him off the leash so he can move about freely, and stretch his legs. But all he does is sit by us and cower. He hasn't gone potty in the house either. But he does "tinkle" a tad when he gets nervous or scared.

I know the change of environment alone was probably very stressful on him. She gave him his shots/worming medicine before the drive to meet me. I'm almost afraid to take him to the vet right away. I don't want him to stress anymore.

Any ideas on how I can continue to lets this adorable creature know I am his friend and I have no intent on harming or mistreating him? I can use all the help I can get. This is my first "small dog". I have lots of experience with working with golden retrievers. I have also heard that smaller dogs stress out easier. Anyone have any clear cut do's and don'ts? The internet seems to be filled with contradicting information.

Thank you in advance.

If you think this animal has been abused, you need to do all those puppies they are breeding a favor and REPORT THEM!

I know that you don't want to stress the dog out more, but you really need to get it checked by a vet to see if there are deeper underlying issues. Also, how long are the walks? That seems like too much for a young dog, but it depends on how you define the term.

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Originally Posted by froggy7

I know that you don't want to stress the dog out more, but you really need to get it checked by a vet to see if there are deeper underlying issues. Also, how long are the walks? That seems like too much for a young dog, but it depends on how you define the term.

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The walks range between 20-30 minutes. And I've scheduled an appointment for this Saturday for the vet. He finally urinated on some papers last night. Which was serious relief for us. Now if we can just get him to go to poop. He is becoming more vocal as well this morning. So I think he is beginning to really come out of his shell. I'm also noticing that he is walking around more on his own without being coaxed.

As far as reporting the breeder. I already did. I did that Monday Morning.

Thanks for your responses =) I really appreciate them.

Now I'm looking for tips on small dogs. Are they treated differently than big dogs? Is it true they stress easier than big dogs?