TN Old English Sheepdogs and Cocker Spaniels

Cracking the Code...Understanding F1, F1b, F2, etc.

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If you're like me, you find the "code" for hybrid dog crossing very confusing.   Let's see if we can help you understand.

In Sheepadoodles, the Parent Generation (P) is one OES bred to one Poodle ( which is male or female doesn't matter)

When we breed our OES stud, Amos, to our Standard Poodle female, Feebee, the result is F1 Sheepadoodles.   Sky is a product of this breeding.

When you breed an F1 to a (P)  (Poodle or OES, doesn't matter) you get an F1b.    When we breed Sky to our Standard Poodle male, Pharaoh, we get F1b Sheepadoodles.

If we were to get an F1 Sheepadoodle male and breed Sky to him, (F1 to F1) we would get F2 Sheepadoodles.

Then F2 to (P) is F2b, F2 to F2 would be F3 and so on.  So when you see F1 you know that's a 1st generation Sheepadoodle, F2 would be 2nd generation and so on.   When you see the b, that means that the whatever generation has been bred back to the P generation breed.

Hopefully this helps! 

 

 

Homemade Dog Food specifically formulated for our dogs

Having six large dogs can be costly when it comes to quality food.   Since Kathy's education focused on Dietetics and Nutrition, we decided to put that knowledge to work and formulate our own dog food...perfect for our dogs needs.  Two things to know before you decide to jump in on this;  1.  We are a hunting family and process our own meat, so we have meat available at no charge.   2.   This food is formulated for breeding and highly active dogs, if you have a dog that is not super active, you are going to want to dial back on the fats.

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Here is our recipe......   All amounts are uncooked, 

2 pounds of meat  (we use venison)  

2 pounds of dried beans (pinto or garbanzo)

1 pound baby limas

1.5 pounds of sweet potatoes

4 cups brown rice

2 cups bone broth  (we make a broth with the deer carcuses)

1 cup wild salmon oil with vitamins and minerals  (if you are using fish as your meat, cut back accordingly)

 

Cook rice in the broth then add the fish oil, cook the sweet potatoes and lima beans, then cook dried beans in left over water.  Cook the meat in any way you like.  Once everything is cooked and drained, mix all ingredients together.  We feed our adult dogs four cups of this food once a day.  This makes about 45-50 cups of food.   We then top off with a good quality dry food.

 

 

What dry food do we use for our adult dogs?

 

After making our own dog food for some time, we decided to make sure it was still the best option for us.   Through our research we came across a little known brand of dog food; Valu-Pak.   The Black Label food they carry turned out to be exactly what we demand for our dogs and their price was unbeatable!   As we compared, we found that this food carried it's own against the heavy hitters (Science Diet, Blue Buffalo, etc.), but at a price tag that beat the affordable options!  And all with no corn, no glutton, no wheat and no soy!  It's not easy to find....You can go to the website, www.specialty-feeds.com and look for a dealer near you.  We are able to get the feed for about $30/for 50#.  If you can not find it near you and you want us to pick up a few bags for you, some people do make a trip once a year and just stock up.  We're happy to do it for you, but for many of you, you can probably find it near you!

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Our puppies are given Taste of the Wild Puppy food due to the ease of finding it in most pet stores and Tractor Supplies. 

 

 

Flea and Tick Control

There are many ways to attack fleas and ticks, but we have found that sometimes, you have to come from many different directions!

First, we treat our yard on a regular basis, more in the summer time.

Next, Todd has formulated a dog biscuit that helps with fleas and our dogs LOVE these things!

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Here's the recipe

1/4 cup ground meat cooked (we use venison)

2 cups flour

1/2 cup brewers yeast

1/2 cup wheat germ

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

3 tbsp coconut oil

1 cup broth (use the drippings from the meat first)

Cook the meat, reserving liquid.  Mix all dry ingredients, add meat and oil, add enough broth to make a stiff dough ball.  Roll out half the dough to 1/4 inch and cut into 2 inch rounds.  Bake at 350 degrees until dry, about 25-30 minutes.   Store in an air tight container.  We give each dog one treat per day.  These really help us a lot.

 

Grooming also helps with flea and tick care.  Keeping your dog clean and brushed keeps you informed of any problems.  If all else fails, discuss this issue with your vet.  We use Soresto collars when needed and have had great success, but only use them as needed.

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Recently, Amos has been dealing with a nasty UTI.  Our vet recommended a specialty feed while we treat the infection, so Todd went to work formulating some new treats to help his body clean up the urinary track.  Here is the recipe....

1.5 cups Whole Wheat Flour

1.5 cups Oatmeal Flour ( powder oatmeal in a blender if you don't have oatmeal flour)

1 cup dried cranberries

1 cup pumpkin pruree'

2 eggs

.5 cup Peanut Butter

Mix wet ingredients and dry ingredients seperately, then combine.  roll out to about 1/4 inch thick in two batches.  Cut into 1.5 inch rounds or squares.  Bake at 350 degrees for thirty minutes, let cool and store in an airtight container at room temperature.

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