Cockerpoo Puppy arriving in 10 days - help

[ShallallalAa]

Posting for traffic and advice thanking you all ever so much - we put our names down for a cockapoo puppy from a registered breeder months ago and the puppy will be ready for collection in 2 weeks. We are confident the breeder is reputable and have had personal recommendations for them which we trust. I work from home 80 percent of the time now so confident we can look after the puppy properly long term.
I have never owned a dog before but DP has always had dogs and I am feeling very out of my depth, especially with the arrival during lockdown.
We have visited the breeder and met the parents before the lockdown but we have not met the puppy before lockdown. We have been sent regular videos and all looks lovely and I trust that that the puppy is well and healthy.
DP will pick up puppy by physically distancing from the breeder at handover, taking all the precautions and the breeder is about 5 miles away - I think this would be classed as essential travel wouldnt it?
We are going to pick up essentials from Pets At Home in the next couple of days - crate, toys, bed, pads, food. Anything else? The puppy is on a raw meat diet I understand should we continue this?

What are your top puppy /cockerpoo puppy tips?

What will we do about puppy socialisation?

The puppy arrives microchipped (breeder does it) with first vaccines but we do the next ones - need to find a vet we like I am guessing?

I don't like the sound of crating though - is rhis really the only way?

Our house is quite small - where should the puppy have its own space ideally?

Should I get a shark pet hoover to deal with the hairs?

Thank you!!

Aw, I also think this thread is a bit sad. I hope you have cancelled because you think it is for the best and not just because of the people here going on at you about it. I would never post of dog advice on AIBU. You get all the people who are 100% certain that their personal opinion is the only way to think hammering away at you for 100s of posts. If you are worried, take advice from people in real life who know you and your situation.

I'm having no problems socialising at the moment. Dogs here on leads more rather than all charging about. We have had a dog to meet a day this week whilst owners stayed well back and chatted. Lots of joggers and bikes whizzing past, horses and sheep in fields but close enough to see and smell.
I will of course go to training as soon as it is possible but it's only the first week she's allowed out anyway and I feel she's seen plenty to be processing at this stage.

@FizzyBug but you want to show them that they can be run up to and it's nothing to be scared about or feel like they have to defend themselves etc.

Realistically dogs are still going to run up to other dogs out walking. They don't understand social distancing. In a family home and on walk ways with runners, walkers and cyclists the pup will get plenty human experience

How many days now, @ShallallalAa?

I have cancelled - don't feel its the right time for us or the right breeder. Thanks for all your help.

Definitely thinking about adopting a grey hound though!

We had a crate for our puppy and he really liked it. It was a safe space for him in a new scary place. We had his bed in there and a piece of blanket from the breeder that he had slept on with his mum. We always left the door open unless we were travelling with him.

After a few months we just used the baby gate on the kitchen door and brought him a bigger bed, now we just close the door to the hall and he has the hall and kitchen to himself. He's such a deep sleeper though that he doesn't shift out of his bed until we go down to him in a morning! Very much a teenager now!

We've never allowed him in our bed, just personal preference. It's our one dog free place in the house lol

Good luck! They're worth all the hard work :)

@oh, that’s a shame but I’m sure, the right decision for you, right now. You have to have your heart entirely in it. It’s a little life!

Greyhounds 😊❤️

Good luck OP. No rush. Plenty of time to find the right rescue or breeder. Good luck with the research.

If you are happy with your breeder and have done all the correct checks, please don't listen to the nay sayers.

A lot of people have it in for cockapoo breeders. Ours was really experienced and very professional.

We still have a WhatsApp group and keep in touch with the breeder and all our dogs litter-mates. And keep in touch with progress weekly in the group.

We've even had meet ups and got all the litter-mates together.

I would really recommend if you get the chance to do this. I've been able to ask our breeder questions and he's even been back to stay when we have been away..

They are not all puppy farms, far from it.

And because we were aware of resource guarding we were able to train for it.

I would definitely recommend a crate for the first few month. It kept our puppy safe and it was his little haven. We kept it till he was about six months then he was just kept in our (very large) hallway with other doors shut in basket overnight or when we were out. Now he has the run of all downstairs as we trust him not to get in trouble.

I would definitely recommend a stair gate. We found it difficult enough to keep the downstairs tidy and therefore safe for him, it's nice not to have that pressure for the whole house.

And do research the foods that are poisonous, especially with chocolate eating children in the house.

They are notorious for being fussy eaters though so don't expect the puppy to be happy with kibble once he knows there could be alternatives.

If I am cooking salmon for example ours will just sit and wimpier with his nose on the air, crying! He knows the rules but he simply can't bear not to be included when smelly foods are on the go!

Good luck!

We still keep this useful reference guide up in the kitchen

Please remember a puppy is NEVER naughty and should not be shouted at or told off.
Positive reinforcement only

They are mixed breeds so you never really know what personality you will be getting I work in the animal industry and see many many!! Cockerpoos per week mostly they are energetic however they vary so widely in both looks size and personality. The most important thing is exercise stimulation socialization training. Also brushing!! Get them used to it. Its redicleous how many owners dont brush these dogs enough. They matt VERY easily and must be brushed very often and thoroughly!

@pleasedoone I've just been reading various threads as we're really at out wits end about our cockapoo and your message stood out as being a very similar situation to ours. We have a very beautiful cockapoo girl who's now 11 months old. We absolutely love her to bits and 90% of the time she's a total sweetheart - but she can also be very bad for resource guarding and it's getting pretty unmanageable. Things started to escalate a few months ago when she started getting snappy, snarly when we asked her to do things she didn't want to do or to let go of things and then things progressed to her biting me/the kids a few times with no obvious warning (i've since learnt a lot about dog behaviour and understand there may well have been subtle signs we didn't pick up on) which was unnerving. On one occasion she properly broke the skin and bit repetitively (just on me thankfully not the kids) We got a dog behaviourist involved pretty early on and she's brilliant and giving us lots of ideas on how to control the situation although she said from the off that given the severity of the situation it may be that we'd need to look at her living in a different environment/without kids etc. Implementing all the things she's suggested - no-one's been bitten for a few weeks - but we're also leading quite a restricted life. The dog's only allowed in one room (she started resource guarding various places around the house) no-one picks her up ever, the kids aren't allowed to cuddle her or put their faces at their level (they're 10 and 12 so are able to be pretty sensible although not all the time) & we're all pretty nervous around her all the time to be honest. You don't know if you're going to get waggy tail or snarl/snap. It can change in a second either way.

We thought we were on an equilibrium but the last few days things have really escalated again - she's started resource guarding the whole kitchen quite often, so we can't come in to make lunch/dinner etc (the behaviourist tells us to back off when she's like that and give her space) so we've been having food upstairs/watching tv upstairs etc. On one day she made it out of the kitchen by accident and set up camp in one of her spots in the hall and absolutely wouldn't let me come anywhere near - which meant i couldn't get back to my office to work - for over 3 hours. Tonight - she was dozy in the kitchen and i think i startled her and she just went for me - bit my foot hard a few times - i had big boots on so was fine but feel incredibly worried about what would have happened if that was one of the kids in their slippers. Half an hour later she did the same to my husband as he had to go into the kitchen to lock the door and despite entering very slowly with head down, no eye contact etc and him not actually approaching her at all, she came and went for him and bit his foot again. I can't bear the thought of her living elsewhere - i'm sure tomorrow morning she'll be waggy tail and our beautiful girl again - but it's really stressful living here at the moment and i'm worried for the kids and also post lockdown for the kids friends coming over - sure we can try and keep everyone separate but the whole point of having a dog was for the kids to be able to enjoy her. Any advice/thoughts gratefully received - we're all pretty stressed and can't think straight on it all anymore.

@Scarlet14
You should probably ask MNHQ to move this to In The Doghouse where you’ll get some
good responses.

@loushome - thanks - i've just reposted it there thanks for taking the trouble to let me know

@Scarlet14
Just to say, our cockerpoo was like this at 11 months - from 6 months to maybe 18 months she was awful with resource guarding, snappy, snarly, and getting her off the sofa once on it was a nightmare with snarling etc. Tbh, she grew out of it, and at 3 years old is docile and consistently calm and non aggressive. She even drops things when asked ( eventually) and won’t snap if you do remove them. I did avoid all the triggers for a good while, used treats a lot, and gave it time. She grew out of it. Hope that reassures you!

And @ShallallalAa I’m sorry you cancelled. Please don’t let this thread put you off. Some die hard know all dog owners seem to think only certain people are capable of raising a puppy, which is total rubbish. I’ve owned spaniel and spaniel crosses my whole life and some of the stuff on this thread is just silly. Toilet schedules?! Indoor leads?! Socialisation YouTube videos?!! Just make sure your house and garden are safe (no wires or holes to escape from, breakables and food away, small toys cleared) which most people do anyway, Let the puppy out every hour or so and praise when they do a wee/poo outside, take for walks when able and practise recall with treats and a long lead if you’re nervous. Training doesn’t take too long and isn’t rocket science, every dog owner manages it somehow! The sounds of day to day living, children if you have them, other dogs on walks, will all be enough socialisation. And you can register your dog at any vet yes. It is as easy as making a phone call. Some vets prefer to keep the vaccine the same brand, ours didn’t mind and just used the brand they had. They ‘ll sort that for you! You don’t need to know everything before they arrive, you can learn on the job! Like having a baby really. As long as you’re committed and tolerant you’ll be fine.

@Peanutbuttercupisyum - thank you that is really reassuring - i really hope we can get to a similar place! She can be just the most lovely dog - to watch her tearing around the fields on a walk is just gorgeous - but its incredibly stressful living with her at the moment and i'd feel so terrible if she hurt one of the kids

My cockapoo was our first dog and to say she had changed my families lives for the better is an understatement. We all adore her. You’re going to know a new love like never before. Like children, listen to advice and just take on board the bits you find helpful. Enjoy your puppy!

Make sure the puppy has a place it can go to get away from others, especially the kids - this is where a crate comes in. Mine loved their crates and would go in voluntarily when they had enough of other people.

Dont over walk it - I see people with little puppies all the time telling me how long they walk them for. The general rule is 5 minutes per month of age, up to twice a day. Although your pup may seem happy, until they are fully grown, you could be affecting their bone development.

My dogs have always been able to come into the bedroom if they want, and have always been quite well behaved. However, they have their own beds, not mine.

If you have any kind of 'poo' they will need a lot of brushing to keep their coats ok - the hair is so fine it gets knotted easily. Get yourself a grooming it, because you will also need to trim their face and eyes - you could take them to the groomer, but mine needs doing every week or two, and that would be really expensive. Start getting them used to being brushed, teeth brushed when they are little - you can start with a toothbrush if you want, just getting them used to the sensation. Dont wait to start, because their coats need some upkeep. Dont worry about a vacuum, as they wont shed.

Teach it stuff - basic commands (lots of good youtube videos and books out there. A few minutes every day is plenty - better to do little and often that go for long times. I used to take mine to puppy class and although it was good when she was older, as a pup she struggled to concentrate for an hour.

When the puppy goes to the toilet, use a term so it associates the two. Guide dogs are trained this way, urination is 'busy' and pooping is 'big busy'. if you say that consistently when the puppy is defecating or urinating, you will get to the stage where they will know what you want them to do if you say the words. Very handy when they are out for their last toilet break on a cold night when you want to get on and go to bed!

Good luck.