Any Dalmatian owners about?

[GiantCheeseMonster]

We’re hoping to get on some good breeders’ waiting lists and our two breeds are standard poodle and dal. DH loves them and it would be his first choice. Poodle is mine, but I could be swayed to a dal. We know about the exercise requirements and this is fine. I know we need a hearing-tested pup, but I’m concerned about the bladder stone issues in the breed and the need for a special diet etc. Would love input from any dal owners about how they have found the health issues and any insights into the breed in general. We are experienced dog owners so I’m not worried about the training aspects of having the pup.

Hi @GiantCheeseMonster,

I’ve got one now, a rescue, we had one before which we had from 8 weeks, I also work with a rescue society plus my husband grew up with dalmatians.

Please join the Facebook groups:

Dalmatians UK
and
The Best Dalmatians UK

Ask as many questions on there as you like; people will always answer honestly, or type in a keyword into the search facility.

You can now get LUA puppies which originally was very controversial.
www.luadalmatians.com/

A healthy diet is absolutely crucial to ensure stones are avoided. Raw is best (again, on FB, Raw Fed Dalmatians is an amazing group) you’ll get lots of advice on kibble and the amount of water they need to drink including possibly the ‘floating’ of food to prevent illness.

www.dalmatianwelfare.co.uk/living-with/health/stones/

You’ll need to read up on purine levels in good as these cannot be given. Again, on the FB groups you’ll be given a chart which is easy to follow.

Dalmatians are prone to to hearing issues but this isn’t a problem. In fact, there’s a long-standing joke that they still hear the fridge open They are still easy to train, you just use hand signals & high value treats.

www.dasdalmatians.co.uk/living-with-a-deaf-dalmatian

They are the most rewarding, lovable shadow. ❤️

Ps. Males shouldn’t be castrated before the age of 2 years due to maturity and behavioural issues arising if done before.
Some owners believe castration should be done to remove risk of cancer.

Here’s mine
3rd dally that we’ve had

Thank you, I’ve joined those FB groups. I don’t want to raw feed, but I would like a really good quality prepared food so I will look what’s recommended.

Mine has Butternut Box

My friend has two Dalmatians and they are very strict about not allowing them any fish products as the purines can cause health issues such as stones

@RunningFromInsanity
Oily fish such as salmon can’t be given. Non-oily such as cod is ok. Only amounts of salmon oil for joint issues such as arthritis is recommended.

OP, later on down the line if it comes to it please be careful of prepared meals such as Tails.com. Whilst they say they are dalmatian-friendly, they do not ever confirm the kibble is offal-free. It’s the offal that can cause urinary issues.

We currently have a beautiful girl, now aged 7 and previously had a boy who died of heart problems aged 13. Both have been very healthy dogs (touch wood!) and neither have had stone issues.
We always fed James Wellbeloved to our boy and up till a short while ago the same for our girl but I think they changed the recipe or something as she went off it, having never been fussy before.
Dalmatians are the only breed for us, they are such clowns and she makes us laugh everyday. She loves everyone, good with other dogs unless they are Jack Russells (she got bitten by one). We put a lot of effort into her training but it paid off and she is such a well behaved dog when she needs to be.
One thing to be aware is that they shed all year round, in addition to normal moults. Our robovac saves my sanity!

@Bazookapie
Dally glitter 😂❤️

I’ve only ever know dalmatians too. They capture you, don’t they?

They do!! When our boy died we agonised about getting another as we aren’t spring chickens and thought maybe we should go for a smaller breed. But no, there was only one for us and we haven’t regretted it for a moment ❤️