A cage is the same thing as crate training that another poster mentioned. It is a safe place for the puppy (or grown up dog) to go that is all their own. Whatever schedule you set up for your dog they will follow it. Sleeping in a cage or crate is a good start. You can find a lot of good ones at PetsMart or other retailers. Letting the dog sleep in your bed or at the foot of your bed gives them the belief that they might be the leader of the pack – they are not – you are and you have to make that clear every day.
The short story about having a bad breeder follows: It is very difficult to get a quality French Bulldog from a reputable breeder. My wife searched for a long time to find a breeder that was willing to sell one of her puppies to us. After conversing a long time we decided to get one of her puppies and he was absolutely gorgeous. We took him to his first show and he won 6 points in one show.(You need only 14 points plus a Major to become a Champion). It wasn’t long after the first show that we noticed he was losing hair and had some very troubling spots under his chin. Long story short – he had demoditic mange. It is a hereditary condition passed from parents to children. These folks claimed that their dogs never had any problems although they had continually bred the same pair.(BTW, that is a bad sign. Few serious breeders keep breeding the same pairs) This was a genetic fault that they should have picked up on and stopped breeding one or the both of them. No matter to them, the money was good and they kept breeding the female each time she was in heat.
Although we paid $2,700.00 for our new puppy we had to neuter him after his first show. First to protect his health and second to make sure the genetic trait was not passed on to future generations. We have ended up spending much more than the initial $2,700.00 in medicine, doctor visits and more trying to keep him healthy. We have to spend a bunch of time each day putting creams on his skin, cleaning between his toes, giving him antacids, and washing and combing him. He is unlike any of our other dogs and it is all due to poor breeding. Despite our best efforts and all the cash we have poured out he keeps declining every day. I curse that breeder. Every. Single. Day.
The other dogs we bought have been superb. It was a lot like adopting a child. The reputable breeder needs references, might tour your house or have someone else do it, wants to know what you are looking for in a dog and is basically pretty invasive. They want to know that their baby(their dog) is going to a good home and is going to be cared for well.
This all may seem way over the top. I know it seemed that way to me too at first but it makes a huge difference having the right dog in the right environment. Let me know if you have any other questions.
