When we were researching breeds, we seriously considered Boxers, but we went with Great Danes (and later English Mastiffs, as well). Boxers and Danes are very similar in temperament, as they are both "working" breeds of German origin, but we went with the lazier, less active Dane. I'm sure we would have loved having Boxers, too, given how wonderful the many we've known have been. Boxerpups gives you some wonderful advice, and I'd suggest you follow it carefully. Finding the right breeder is the hardest part. Good breeders do thorough genetic testing (not just vet checks), so find out which genetic problems are common in your breed and expect that your pup's parents would both be tested for those issues and certified by the appropriate organization. When you contact a good breeder, expect to be grilled. Don't be offended, be glad. In fact, if they don't ask you more questions than you ask them, walk away. Good breeders care deeply about where every pup they produce ends up and what happens to it for its entire life. They would rather keep an entire litter for life than let one pup go to an irresponsible owner. The breeders who don't know what they're doing are the ones who will be anxious to make the sale. Don't respond to newspaper or Craigslist ads for puppies. Those tend to be the worst breeders, who will sell their pups to anyone who has the cash in hand. You can find responsible breeders through breed clubs, but don't assume all breeders registered with their club are good. Do your homework and find someone you can really trust. I'd like to echo ae2ga's recommendation of books and DVDs by Dr. Ian Dunbar. He is the originator of the trend of puppy training and the founder of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers. Trainers used to insist that it was important to wait until a puppy was at least six months old before initiating training. Dunbar recognized how ludicrous this was and began his Sirius Puppy Training program. He has both a DVM and a PhD in Animal Behavior. His methods are consistently positive, and I've found them much more effective than the punishing "corrections" advocated by some trainers--even for controlling very large, powerful, and stubborn dogs. We've had 11 very large dogs over the past 25 years, each well over 100 pounds, and we've never had to do an "alpha roll" or use any other harsh techniques because we started early and consistent training with Dunbar methods. Back when I was competing in obedience in the late 80s, I attended a Dunbar seminar and have been a huge fan ever since. When we were breeding (we only have rescues now), we would send each puppy home with a copy of his Sirius Puppy Training video. Check his web site for upcoming seminars--they are well worth it! Since you are doing your homework now, I especially recommend his book called Before You Get Your Puppy. His site has a bunch of other free advice books and pamphlets for download, too. Here is a link that might be useful: Sirius Puppy Training

I also agree about elevating the older dog to a dominant position in the house. When our dog died, and we brought in a new companion for Ricky, we intentionally always went to Ricky first, and said so. Ricky, let's go outside. Our pup learned to "wait for Ricky" as he would walk proudly out the door first. When we fed them, we would say Ricky eats first. Actually we only set down his bowl first, then fed the pup. Even now a year later, we always let Ricky go first and make a big deal of it. Blaze knows nothing else. Ricky leaves and enters the house first. He eats first and gets in and out of the van first. We brush him first and pet him first. Even if Blaze runs up to us to the gate first, we often will stop petting him and pet Ricky when he arrives. All of our dogs are lap dogs. We just sit on the floor. In time when the older one feels more comfortable, the little dog may be a more exclusive lap dog, but for now, I would sit on the floor, and pet the older one first. We keep our dogs in the most popular area of our house, so we go to them. They are rarely alone, but we do not allow them into our living room or bedrooms. Those are off limits, so we don't have dogs with us 24 hours, and we sleep without dog dander since we are very allergic. Therefore we can easily declare that Ricky is first in whatever we do. I don't think you will have a problem after a couple of weeks. If you do, you might consider discussing this with the Vet to see if there is a mild medication you can give your older dog for anxiety. One more thing - when we were walking our dogs, Ricky used to always poop. We would scoop it up, and walk with it. Once my husband hurt his back and had to stop walking with us for a couple of weeks, I quickly got tired of this process. Before our walks I would take the dogs out as usual, and I began telling Ricky to do his business. He would walk inside, and I would call him out. I kept telling him to do his business, and he began doing it. Now he understand that he must do it before we walk. We haven't needed the bags for about 6 weeks. It may be that your dog is performing for you in a more dramatic fashion than the pup can do. You might keep the dog outside with you (and not the young dog), and insist that he poops before he comes in. Even give him a treat if he performs for you. We all know that a dog's brain is wired completely different from ours. Sammy

Leave your older cat be. She will adjust to the new addition in her own time. I am assuming that you have the new cat cordoned off with its own litter and food? Good idea to do so until everyone is at peace with one another. It also gives your other cat a chance to sniff at the gate of the room where the new cat is being kept. Or, if you shut a door to the room, put up a baby gate when you can be around to supervise what's going on. If you haven't kept them separated, your cat may be angry if the new cat is using its box and food. How long have you had the new cat? We had the same situation this summer and it was horrible for 1-2 weeks. After that period of time all was good. My cat would not even let us touch him while he was adjusting to the new addition. I just left him alone until he came to me, which he eventually did. If your cat welcomes your attention, then give it, but if it doesn't don't be concerned. The existing cat has her nose out of joint and will get over it in her own time. Don't reinforce her behavior by extra attention since she may think you are rewarding her for acting out regarding the addition. Have patience and keep your sense of humor. I am always optimistic. Cats seem to work things out - may take a little while. Keep posting on the cats' progress.

Thanks again - Salti- I figured out your solution and trying it. I found an ash can with a bale lid. The new yucky smelling Febreeze glad bags that DH bought by accident will work great in this can. I refuse to let him use them inside! Murrays- our city gave us compost bins and want us to put in bones and meat scraps as well. It lives in my freezer as the thought of festering chicken bones on my counter gags me even thinking about it. Our little boy is growing fast! He is now almost 15 weeks old. He is house-trained for poo and mostly for urine. We are trying to bell train him to let us know when he wants to go out. He sleeps all night in his crate. Yeah!! He even "respects" our slippers and shoes! That was not easy as he thought his middle name was "leave it"! My feet were in the slippers when he fell asleep on my feet under the table. We are training him to sit quietly under the table - no begging or jumping. As you can see, he is mastering this quite nicely