To ask dog owners - do you remember that a puppy was bloody hard - or do I have a crazy puppy

[MyKingdomForACaramel]

We just got ourselves a little pup after our previous ddog died just back in November. He’s a lovely, spirited little thing - but so exhausting. Me and dh have been swearing blind previous dog wasn’t like this - he was chilled as a puppy - but have been slowly remembering that no - this is just what puppies are like - is there a selective amnesia when it comes to puppies (a bit like labour)

My twelve month old is still a manic little bugger who ended up in his crate at nine pm this evening after pulling threads from the rug, chasing the cat, trying to chew up my tax return, scrabbling at the tv screen trying to catch the pictures, and galloping madly around the garden barking at nothing. He's like the bloody Duracell bunny. And then you tell him off and he looks at you with huge, shocked eyes, or he throws himself across your face for a hug and I wouldn't be without him. Mostly. On a good day.

I live in hope that he'll eventually calm down.

I now take issue with the Andrex puppy whenever I see the phoney ad

Like seriously, what puppy in its right mind will gently unfurl a whole roll of toilet paper, when it can hold it between its paws and silently chew the fuck out of it and make a mess everywhere?

Eric still answers to Bad Boy which was used more often than Eric was as a pup

Ddog was a ginger bastard when he was a puppy. Now he's lovely

Yup. Puppy stage is a nightmare. I cried with frustration and pain as she was so bitey. She didn't nip, she bit. I had open and incredibly painful eczema on my hands and she bit it. Again and again. She's a ratter, so they bite to kill and you have to teach them 'soft mouth'.
It was a big shock, she didn't want to be without me for a minute and kept sleeping on top of my feet. She's great now, very smart and totally adores us.

Ours ate so many pairs of shoes it was ridiculous. Got a Heinz 57 and a chihuahua x at the same time.. my mum must have been insane! This was when I was 17? Then I moved out and took the Heinz with me, then magically both of their naughty behaviour stopped! No more chewed up shoes or poo inside.

I will NEVER get 2 puppies at the same time.

My spaniel is a loon but the kids love him and he's the best guard dog ever no one gets near the house unnoticed!

Our springer is 9 now but his puppy days are firmly imprinted on my memory.

He was a fecking nightmare. He didn't destroy the house too much, but my god the humping!

My dog is 9 months old. We've had him since he was 10 weeks, after we lost our lab and a year of fostering two lovely old lady pinschers. He mouthed a lot, he still does but it's gentle and doesn't hurt. He chewed a couple of things but nothing major. He never once cried at bedtime. Toilet training was a breeze, two or three poos done next to the toilet until he figured out his place in the garden, wees took a while but not stressful, always on the tiles. His recall is amazing. I've had other dogs in my life and I've never had it this good. My dog is a mongeral, all the others have been pedigrees. I think he's the smartest, with less breed related "issues", which has made the difference. But that's the problem with mongrels, you never know what you'll get or if you'll get lucky.

Ours is the second lab we have had since 8 weeks old and yes it is worse than having a newborn baby. Go to mumsnet the doghouse, there's a great thread called Puppy Survival - so good to share stuff and see that you are not alone. Bit like childbirth, you forget the worst bits and go for it again!

Ah am so glad for similar stories - thanks all

Puppies are hard work - it's why I rescued an adult dog

Our DDog was a bloody nightmare as a puppy and we often said at the time that it was a good job she was cute (and still is now at 3.5).

She's still a pain in the arse now, but she's our pain in the arse and we wouldn't have it any other way.

My puppy was such hard work that I remember posting on here that she was going back (after a fortnight). She had me up at 5am with her woofing. Was in full on play mode, all day and I found myself wanting to go to bed at 9pm, I was so worn out.

Now, three years on, she’s the most beautiful girl. She still has her moments but generally, is such good fun and it’d be impossible to imagine not having her. She was very bitey and that wasn’t good; we just had to keep her busy....lots of play.

Puppies, I think, need a firm hand and good routine.

I have one dog which we got as a puppy & I thought that was bad. Until we rescued a 1 year old dog who had never been trained & treated badly (& is a “difficult” breed at the best of times). 7 months in & her behavioural problems are still extremely challenging - would much rather be dealing with toilet accidents everywhere than some of this behaviour! Lucky we love them hey

Thank you for posting this OP.

My DDog passed just over a year ago at 14. Over the last few weeks I’ve been looking at rescue sites for a new pup. I had forgotten the puppy stage but this has brought it all back!!

It was exhausting. I remember locking myself in the bathroom and just crying from frustration. Oh man the destruction! He ate 2 sofas and a brand new mattress. He used to nip me on the bum if I was on the phone, so I used to have to close myself in the bedroom (while he tried to eat through the door!). It didn’t matter how long he was walked, 5 minutes later he was manic again.

He also had separation anxiety, although with the help of a trainer I managed to sort it with a leaving routine.

I was told he would calm down at age 3. He didn’t. He was 7 before he chilled out.

He was totally worth it though. I loved the bones of him and miss him terribly.