When does it get better? help please.

[miserablemoo]

Hello
I have had a couple of bad days with our puppy. He seemed to be improving and settling down but yesterday and today have been a nightmare and I have been in tears tonight and wondering what the hell have I done.

For those of you who have been there and done that could you please tell me when it got better. Feel so guilty. Feels like I must be doing everything wrong for him to be getting worse, not better.

Anyone else out there with a puppy and struggling feel free to join in!

Thank you.

[BallyGoBackwards]

I am sitting here looking at my 8 month old puppy/dog and to be fair he is only starting to mature now!! He was neutered two weeks ago and that may have helped.

[Dieu]

Ooh, thank fook it's not just me then! We've (my children and I) now had our Shih Tzu pup for 4 weeks and it's hard work. I too was in tears the other night. Thing is, by my own admission, I have been a bit thick about the whole thing. I thought I had done sufficient research prior to his arrival, but I really don't think I had. This is proving to be one steep learning curve, and having babies by comparison was a doddle! If I could redo the past 4 weeks and do things differently, I would. This would most certainly include being firmer from the start! We love him and he's the cutest thing I've set eyes on, but yes, it's hard work. How old is yours? Ours is 13 weeks.

[wibblywobblytummytumtum]

Our Cocker is 10 months now and I finally feel like we're out the other side! The early weeks were very tough and I often felt like I'd ruined my life by getting him, especially during the very nippy phase Cocker Spaniels go through. Now though, on the whole, he's a gorgeous, affectionate pup and I can't imagine life without him and the DC adore him. Stick with it, you'll get there!

[BallyGoBackwards]

What I found very hard was all the other people (I like to call them Dog Whisperers) who had pups that were fully house trained from day one, came to heel at the mere mention of their names, never chewed or nipped at anyone or anything. Listening to all that was harder than anything else.

Like wibbly said, I would be lost with my madser. I was away for a few days this week while pup was at home with my DH....I swear I missed him so much (pup not DH) that I felt physical pain

[miserablemoo]

Thank you everyone. So its looking like it's going to be a few more months

We will be planning on getting him neutered but that won't be for a while yet.

Hi deiu. This will be my 4th week as well. He is 14 weeks old. I have wanted a dog for years since we lost our old girl. And waited until both kids were older but it's harder than I thought possible. I thought walking him would help but it's just opened up a new set of problems. The last two days it's been constant and I feel sorry for the kids as the puppy takes up all my time. He's coming away with us in the hols and I'm dreading the whole thing. How's your pup doing at night? Do you get up to take her out?

I know what you mean bally. Have had a few dog whisperes. It's two steps forwards and ten steps back at the moment.

Thanks for posting. Hoping tomorrow is better.

[Wotsitsareafterme]

Can I join? I have a 3 month old cocker. He is a toad a lot of the time but very cute and funny. He is just starting to come out of the indeed very nippy stage he has ripped beds to pieces though and is bloody determined to get on the coffee table. God he was meek when we got him!

[HemanOrSheRa]

A puppy is MUCH worse than a baby. When we got our puppy it was like a bomb had gone off. I remember crying and saying I just couldn't do it any more after about a week. Things got much, much better though. She's 6 years old now and is definitely a Mummys Girl and I luffs her .

[miserablemoo]

Of course you can the more the merrier still nippy here. He is also intent on destroying a bed. Ripped off some of my wall paper. Trying his teeth on anything and everything. He refuses to walk most of the time. When he does walk he spends most of his time eating his lead or anything on the floor! He is incredibly cute though. Has been no bother in his crate. Toilet training is going well but I watch him like a hawk! I see glimpses of the nice dog he will be but in the meantime it's hard going! How long have you had him wot sit?

[miserablemoo]

Thank you. It is exactly like a bomb! I did cry tonight wondering what I have done and how to move forward. I know it won't last forever but knowing it gets better certainly helps

[TrionicLettuce]

No puppy here at the moment but you have my sympathies, DH and I had three in very quick succession because we're gluttons for punishment

Six to seven months has always been the age at which we've started to feel like we've got young dogs rather than hooligan puppies. Our youngest is now 21 months old and, although he's still somewhat in the throes of his adolescence, we've been back to normality for quite a while now. Admittedly normality does encompass the odd nibble at the furniture and occasional thievery but on the whole he's now a very nice little dog!!

[wundawoman]

We have a 4 month old Golden Retriever puppy; he is gorgeous but my goodness, I am so tired with early mornings getting up to him, cleaning up poop, getting his diet right, training etc etc. it is very hard work and I also felt regrets those first weeks.

I did find getting support very helpful. Puppy school helped enormously to start to train the puppy and socialise with other pups. Also meeting others in the same boat is great - we are all going through the same stages.

I am determined to keep up with the training and he is a willing learner. It is really hard work....good luck!

[HemanOrSheRa]

Have you had any puppy training classes? We didn't need to as, although I'm loathed to admit it, DP is a bit of a 'Dog Whisperer' . He grew up with dogs, I didn't, and he has a way of being firm but loving with her that I just didn't have and I'm still not great at that now.

The final straw came when she was about 4 or 5 months old. I was fed up of having a puppy hanging off the back of my trouser legs for one thing! And she 'cornered' DS and me in the bathroom. I should mention she is a JRT and was the size of a large kitten at this point . But she was growling and snapping at us. I had to ring DP in tears asking him what to do. He told me I needed to be firm, kept reminding me that yes, she was cute but a DOG not a BABY and gave me a few things to do to show her who was in charge! The change in her behaviour towards me and DS was amazing.

[insanityscatching]

Ooh 14 weeks was my own personal hell time with Eric too. The nipping was in overdrive and he was like a toddler on speed, he drove me mad. He had though house trained quickly and was always easy at night most likely through collapsing from sheer exhaustion.
He got easier at five months when we'd sorted the nipping but it was short lived as he entered his teenage spell at about 9 months and he was a real PITA then.Stroppy, disobedient and had ideas about taking over the world I think.
But from a year old he has been a little sweetheart, he mostly does what he's told, he's lost the need to be under my feet, he loves to snooze and he adores us.

[Wotsitsareafterme]

We have had him from 10 weeks. On the plus side if he is his own with me he's no problem abs walks lovely on the lead. It's when he's with the kid and distracted and excited he is more of a handful though he will walk for dd1 perfectly.

The nipping and chewing are my issues and fecking barking though I can control that to some extent. I have panic read so much and I know the biting is likely to start abating at about 18 weeks (prays).

My anxiety doesn't help though. In scared to let him off the lead at all and let him romp which is what he needs. A friend (more exp with dogs) shooed us all out to a quiet beach yesterday with an adult westie and unclipped wotsit pup immediately - he had the best day of his life playing with the westie and paddling and digging - came when he was called and barely strayed more than a few feet from us. It was a big learning experience for me about what he needs and is able to comply with. It was total success

[HemanOrSheRa]

fecking barking . Sorry Wotsit that made me laugh. Our girl is 6 and I can often find myself roaring "Stop fecking barking!"

[Wotsitsareafterme]

I need to add also. One reason we got the fecking puppy was that I knew an income drop was on the horizon and that the dds spendy activities would be curbed. I wanted something to get us out in the world almost daily tramping about because we would have to with the dog and also it gives the kids my full attention away from the house. This has worked from day one with wotsit pup and dd1 especially is so content ambling along in country parks. Wish I'd got him sooner

[plum100]

Oh i need to join you guys please! I have a 10 wk old shihtzu , this is our 2nd night night. Cried last night alot but didnt go in. Xame down at 6 to 2 poos on the petmat. Seema to sleep allday though and then not settle at night. Verh good so far though pretty docile. Forewarned is forearmed - tell me what is so awful that is driving you all to tears? I need to be prepared!

[Wotsitsareafterme]

Hi plum - it's just the chewing and biting here though cockers bite a lot as puppies - I don't know that shi tzus so maybe not as much anyway. Are you crate training?

[wibblywobblytummytumtum]

I think for us, the nipping was the worst part and as Wotsit said, Cockers are very nippy puppies! He crate trained really well and toilet trained easily. I don't know huge amounts about Shihtzus but I found 10 mins or so of training (sit, stay, etc) before the last toilet trip of the evening used to tire him out a bit and he settled much easier in his crate for the night. Maybe you could give something like that a go so you have a more restful night yourself.

[mini290h]

HI, I am on night 5 with a 14 week old cockerpoo. Had a weep when my husband came home today through lack of sleep and feeling totally inadequate. Handled crate totally badly on day 1 by not getting him used to it in the afternoon and he considers it a terrrible place of imprisonment at night so have been doing best to back track with food and toys etc but to no end as yet. About to put him in now....Resorted to sleeping in kitchen last night so the rest of the house had some sleep. He could see me from cage and did not make a murmur from 12 mn to 7am. Barked like crazy every time i was not in sight today, ie on the other side of the baby gate. I know it is early days and it will be alright but crazed with lack of sleep and not feeling like a good dog trainer at all.

[plum100]

Morning all, yes crate training here. We leave it open all day and if she has a nap we pop her in there next to her teddy, she often will just wake and still lay there so i hope it is helping. Well 2nd night last night and i put a clock in with her , and then left her for dh to put her to bed , i did t hear a peep but she may well have cried i will ask dh later. 2 poos again on the mat , and just sat in there very sweetly. Put her straight outside but nothing yet. Shes off to the vets for first jabs today, hope everyones night was ok.

[Humansatnav]

Otis ( lab x Springer) is 7.5 months now and is fab - starting to get his teenage regression thing , but is booked in for castration in 6 weeks. He was a holy horror who cried all night for most of his first week then turned into a crocodile who spent the next 8 weeks hanging off people's trouser legs. But we'd researched a lot and knew that lab puppies are Bitey and springer puppies are madly bouncy so gritted our teeth and rode it out.
He now sleeps through the night ( well, till 4:45- 5:30 ish, but that's when dh gets up for work ) and the only injuries we get are accidental - got a thread in Chat ( he walloped me in the face in his sleep) , walks like a dream on the lead and his recall is coming along nicely. Just hang on, it WILL get better

[miserablemoo]

Hello everyone

In the nicest way possible I'm glad I'm not alone! Yesterday was better. He still had some crazy moments but overall he was better than the previous two days. He is a bit of a nightmare to walk as he chases and chews anything and everything on the floor. Loads of leaves were blowing past his face and he just couldn't resist.

The past two nights he has had his crate door shut from about half 11 till 7am with no problems. So now I'm sleeping better I feel a bit more normal!

I haven't dared to take him off lead. He can be stubborn even in the garden and ignores me to do his own thing which is mainly eating stones. Plus he loves people and other dogs and thinks everyone who he sees is out just to look at him.

He is jumping up which we are working on. He is chewing loads but when I think to what he was like the first week we had him I can see improvements. He managed 3 poos on walks yesterday but think it was just luck!

At night for the first two weeks he had his crate but didn't shut the door. At night I put pads down. During the day I started shutting the door for short periods of time. After coming downstairs twice to no wee or poo on the pads or very fresh poo which meant I think he was doing it when he heard me get up I started shutting the door at night but getting up at 3/4am to toilet. After a week he started to act up on his 3/4am toilet break so the last two nights I have shut the door and I have not heard a peep. In the morning I can't get him out the crate!

I am still expecting good and bad days but I'm realising the bad don't last for long and as long as I'm consistent in dealing with the unwanted behaviour he is getting it.

I think what surprised me as I knew it would be hard is how relentless it is. I drop everything if he wakes from a nap to take him out for a wee. I don't want to set him up to fail. So when I'm cooking tea or ironing or sorting the kids bedtime out it can be hard to just drop everything to sort the dog. This is what I have found quite difficult. Plus I don't like leaving him in his crate with the door shut for long during the day with him being crated at night so I set up my day to fit around him at the moment. But I do get stressed very easily and get anxious so I know I don't help myself really!

Thank for the posts on it getting better and for others with puppies around the same age! It's a big help knowing I'm not alone

[mini290h]

2nd night in the kitchen with dog and second night of total calm. I partly feel I gave in too soon but on the other hand I could have done something awful with no sleep. He is much better now when I leave him behind the baby gate as he knows I will be back. Have yet to leave the house with no one else in. Off for microchipping and vet check tomorrow, luckily all the immunisations had already been done by the breeder when we were on holiday. Off course it will get better but already missing my spontaneous trips out to London..........and it is such a long time until we will be able to go on a decent walk........thank goodness he is so gorgeous and irresistible!

[browneyedgirl86]

Hiya

We are getting a 8 week old Labrador pup on Friday and I'm feeling nervous now after reading your posts! We have had dogs before but that was when I was a child and having your own as an adult is different. I know it will be hard. DP has never had a pet so I think he thinks its going to be very easy!