Xolo facts and helpful information on how to care for their new Xolo.
Some useful tips and tricks that may help with your new addition and help your memory in basic dog jargon and tips.
I hope this information will help assist you with the care and looking after your new Xolo, whether it’s a puppy or an adult Xolo.
All Wazzat puppies are raised in a family environment and socialised before being matched to loving homes and new owners. This includes kids, cats, animals and all the other”normal”family situations.
I believe as a breeder and dog lover it is my responsibility to provide lifetime support for puppy owners and encourage owners to call or email me if they have any questions or need advice, I am also very partial to puppy updates!!
I ask all my new owners to become a Xolo Enthusiast and provide the puppy with all and more that they have been given here at Wazzat, and need to function as a Xolo.
This includes:
Quality food and fresh water.
Protection from the elements.
Consistent and routine Training with appropriate boundaries.
Daily exercise for physical and mental stimulation.
Appropriate grooming and skin care.
Love and attention with the most important aspect being commitment.
1. Food and water
Your pup has been raised on a special commercial natural diet. It is important that you maintain this diet for the optimum health and continued good health in your Xolo. I provide all new Wazzat dog owners with diet sheets and information. There are certain foods that are not recommended to feed your Xolo, that may cause or increase some health problems in dogs.
Dogs from Wazzat that are not fed recommended foods and feeding advice recommended that is ignored on health care relevant to the breed may compromise the health of the dog including the guarantee we offer for all Wazzat dogs. The feeding recommendations are based on research and tested methods and foods pertaining to the Xolo.
I always make sure the Xolo has access to fresh drinking water, it is a good idea to leave out a few drinking bowls as Xolos being mischievous will want to see what lies underneath!
2. Protection from the Elements.
All dogs require adequate shelter and protection from the environmental elements, the Xolo is certainly NO exception to this, in fact the Xolo needs to be protected from the Sun and the coldness of winter.
Generally it is a good idea to crate train your Xolo early. When introduced early in life it is easier and an ideal place for the Xolo when time outs are needed for owner or Xolo!!
Generally a sleeping area needs to be relatively interruption free (noise, traffic and distractions) clean and protected from the weather elements of wind, rain and sun. It is not advisable to give Xolos human bedding as in pillows and doonas, Xolo puppies especially are very destructive in the early years (although they believe its natural behavior as all pillows have feathers! don’t they ?? therefore there must be a bird in here somewhere!!)
The local stock shop or pet store usually carries a wide range of bedding and beds, with a great choice of outdoor kennels and crates. It is not a good idea to have a puppy Xolo in your bed or the family bed in the early stages as the pack system needs to be firmly established in a young Xolos life as a most important training tool for later years.
3. Training and Boundaries.
The Xolo needs boundaries set early on in life so it knows the pack system. All pups and especially Xolos need to know and establish what the boundaries are for their behavior. All pups will try to negotiate these boundaries, and many owners will let the dog push those boundaries, this is not acceptable and will only lead to trouble in the Xolo and your life. An example of boundary testing is puppy biting, all puppies do and will bite, this is completely natural as they are developing their senses to learn by exploring their environment, your hand, foot etc is part of that environment. Puppies have razor sharp teeth, and it does hurt when they bite, this must be stopped when it first occurs, best options are to remove the puppy’s source, get up move away.
Many people think this is cute and funny puppy behavior, when in fact it can be a serious behavioral development for later life. A fully grown Xolo jumping on you or the furniture and biting is neither funny nor cute. Remember, if you think some behaviors are cute as a pup like biting and jumping up on people and furniture, imagine what that will be like in a fully grown dog.
4. Daily exercise for physical and mental stimulation.
All dogs require a good exercise program for the physical and mental wellbeing of itself, it’s also a good idea for the owners same as well!!
Xolos are a relatively active breed and require daily exercise of both mind and body, at Wazzat they are exercised daily with walking, jogging and mental games to stimulate all of the Xolo.
Visits to dog exercise areas or Dog Exercise classes are most beneficial to dogs and Xolos love the company of other dogs. Dogs, like people, can get bored, and the Xolo is no exception to this it just seems to occur in a relatively quicker time than other breeds! When the dog
is bored it often leads to undesirable behaviors, whether this be rearrangement of the garden, realignment of your favourite joggers or just general mischievous by re potting your pot plants.
Treats and dog toys can be made or bought at the local store, a favourite of mine is a frozen Ice lick made from stock, or a frozen water block with treats frozen throughout! Keeps the dogs entertained for hours! They are also happy with carrots and Love frozen carrots.
5. Grooming and Health.
Some Xolos may develop comedomes (pimple like nodules) in their skin that are similar to the acne in human beings, this can be due to genetics or lack of skin care routine or the wrong care routine.
Skin problems seen in young male dogs usually clear up by two years of age and are associated with hormones.
A few Xolos are known to exhibit adverse reactions to cortisone, and flea and heartworm medications.
The Xolo skin requires constant and considerable care to keep the skin in tip top condition and scar free also to help prevent sunburn.
I always use sun coats and a quality brand sunscreen if the dog is to be in the sun, the kennel areas at Wazzat are all shaded totally. It is very important
to keep the skin supple and smooth. Most Xolo breeders use exfoliating creams to remove dead skin and moisturising creams and lotions I use oils and am happy to share the technique if required
In cold climates, Xolos need to wear coats and usually tow, an outer waterproof coat and an under warmth coat.
I have a problem with a bitch getting very cold ears (as they are very thin skinned and delicate) This dog has a special bonnet to keep her ears warm.
6. Love and Attention.
As with a new baby or young child a new addition definitely needs love and attention through guidance and discipline. As with most things in life what you put in to a project you reap later on, this is no different in a Xolo puppy, as its guardian you must protect and nurture, and maintain the boundaries especially over the first years. Always supervise children with the dog and ensure that both have a break from each other, this is important for both dog and small humans.
You can never give a Xolo too much love, they all think the more the better!
