several questions reguardin training whelping feeding and some more issues..I NEED HELP!!

Question
Hello Gary,
I choose you because I saw that your expertise was closest to my concerns..so here we go..Ok to start off with I have 2 shih-tzu puppies the male is 11 months old the female is 9 months old..The male has never allowed me to crate him he would have the worst anxiety attacks ever< so I read online and a woman who breed shih tzu told me to get him a play park witch is a octagon shaped play pen that I keep in my kitchen, He didnt exactly like that either, but then I had the marvelous idea to get him a friend, so I got the female. They stayed in the play pen fine together..I have not been able to house break them..its never ending..feces everywhere...they will go to the bathroom when I take them outside but they will also use the bathroom in the house, I use to keep a puppy pad in there pen but they just started shredding them. this is a major problem..its partly my fault for not taking them out enough..can you tell me how to correct this problem? My female is much smarter then the male..now that she has gotten older she has started jumoing out of the pen, the male will not jump out. I seriously needhelp with house breaking. My next issue is feeding, neither one of them will eat dry food..I have tried everything taste of the wild, from, blue buffalo, innova, orijen, acanna, good dog food and now there startingto not eat can..I switched them to raw, that worked for a day or so then they turn there nose up at that, for the past few days I have found myself in front of the stove cooking four course meals for them and they still turn there nose up, they will not eat anything for more then a few days. I have heard to reward them for using the bathroom outside with treats, how can I do that when nothing is a treat to them? Something hasto change or I cannot continue to live with dog odor feces and urine on my socks, I got in over my head,I am at fault but how do I fix it? I want to do the right thing..please help me.. OK are you ready for the worst problem..My female shih tzu who weighs 8 or 9 lbs apparently went into heat without my knowledge I woke up one morning and there they were stuck together for atleast 15 min, I tried to keep them apart but it happened again tied for 5 min, does this mean she is pregnant? I am aware she is to young and it was not intentional, she can handle having puppies even though its not ideal, its to late for that. I do not want to spay her. what are the chances of her rejecting the puppies? Is she most likely pregnant? what do I need to do? and she is having loose stool everywhere is this normal? any advice you can give me I would appreciate, I just need some answers and a push in the right direction, your not waisting your time I will do whatever you say..promise.please help me
sarah marshall

Answer
  Sarah,


Yes you need A LOT of help so i will try to answer your questions in order. Dogs always have a hard time with the crate. To crate a dog the right way it should only have enough room for the dog to stand up and turn around. No blanket or towel, just a chew toy and water. If the cage is too big (they come with dividers) Your dog can poop and pee on one side and live on the other...same with the blankets or towels. They will poop and pee and then cover up the mess. They have to be in the crate and have to poop and pee where they live. Dogs are very clean and after a few times of laying in the mess that is when your dogs will start to hold it in and that is the start of training. It means that you have to clean the messy dogs but better to clean them then the rug. If they do not like treats you can always just tell them  good dog and a hug and kiss...that will work just as well as a treat.

Feeding: Dogs need the dry food because it has the vitamins and good stuff for the dog. If they eat wet food you can mix a good spoonful of wet into the dry food. At my shop we always feed the pups dry food with a good amount of wet. It makes the dry food taste better.

Sooner or later they will have to eat what you feed them. You can go to your local pet/pup shop and ask for a tube of vitamins. Even if they do not eat they will still get and the good stuff they need. Just put about a 1/2 inch on your finger and they might lick it off...If they don't just use your finger and put it on the roof of their mouth.

There is a chance that she could get pregnant but i really don't think it would happen...she is a little young.

Loose stool. You can try rice. Just mix some in with her food. The wet poop is most likely from the wet food and the home cooked meals but it is semi normal for this to happen.

If you have more questions or you would like to get more info please feel free to contact me again.

Gary
thepuppyguy@yahoo.com