New Puppy Owners

[kid]

I know there are a few of us that have recently picked up new pups.
Were your puppies lovely and calm when you first got them or were they mental straight away?

I can't believe how calm Teddy is being so far. He has slept a lot but even when he is awake, he just nibbles gently on your fingers or rolls his ball with his feet.

He has not had any accidents in the house yet which is a miracle.

I am wondering if this is the calm before the storm?

I will stop throwing sticks and continue training him to retrieve a ball in the house. I am aware of stick injuries but believed small ones would be ok. I don't want teddy getting into to the habit of chasing sticks.
Thank you for the good advice and also for your concern.

His nipping is awful, he doesn't bite too hard but ge us very unpredictable. He has a crate that I don't lock, he sleeps in it when I am out but again I always leave it open. I do have babygates up, could I put him on the other side of the gate if ge srarts nipping?
How long should I leave him away for?

He has also started to sit there and bark at us. We have tried ignoring but it made no difference. Now we tell him NO, but it's like he us arguing with us and he wants the last word. He dies stop barking when we tell him no, well eventually he does!

oh yes kid, vet said WB's swelling may have been stick related. i really don't think it was because we have a yard, not a garden so no sticks and as yet he hasn't been out for any walks as he is still to get his second vaccs. but it is obviously a problem in dogs if the vet is suggesting it.

also, really really persevere wih ignoring him when he barks. when you say no, he thinks you are talking back and will respond to you. ignore undesirable behaviour and reward the good stuff. so if he barks, wait til he is quiet for a noticeble period, maybe 30 seconds and praise and reward it. try stretching out he time before you praise each time he stops barking. so first time 30 seconds, then 40 then a minute etc.

I forgot to mention to the vet about teddy getting stung by a wasp. Oh well, it obviously had no lasting effect on him.

The vet knew all about moby but was sweet enough not to mention him to me. Neither did he question if I intended to get teddy neutered.

WB got stung last week. there must be loads of wasps around. did he need an anti-inflamatory? WB's leg swelled up.

Teddy got stung on the lip! All the vets were closed (bank holiday Monday) so I treated it with ice while a friend got advice from a vet. As his breathing was normal and the swellen was reduced with the ice, no treatment was needed. I was terrified he was going to die!

happy days, i was the same. i walked out of the living room to set a cup in teh kitchen, walked back in to find him all floppy and holding his paw funny. had a look and there was the sting. he was so drowsy, i jst took him straight down. it had only happened 5 minutes and his paw was huge.

Hello all you savvy puppy owners. This is our first night with Belle. She has done a poo already this evening around 6.30pm. Eaten at 7 and weed around 9.15. What should I wait for when I take her out at 11pm before bed. Please advise me as I have not got a clue. Thanks. So sad about all these wasp stings.

Ok. Thanks. That is good. I didn't know if I should expect a poo or not, but I will wait 10 mins and see what happens. She is sound asleep for the last hour or so, will she still sleep tonight?

Thanks wats, I have the bottle ready, and will see how it goes tonight. I will wait till a bit after 11pm as I am watching a film and then hopefully she will be well ready to go.

out of interest, do any of your pups have strange quirks?

WB has started barking at plates

if there is a plate sitting on the table he will bark at it and then rouch down as if ready for it to jump up and him chase it

Belle has had her first night. Wees, poos and then to bed with a hot water bottle. No sounds really till 5.30 when one of my lot went to the toilet. A bit of whining, but quiet till I went down to let her out at 6.30am. Wees and sloppy poos outside. I have been giving a treat and saying "wee" or "poo" each time, but when I say wee it seems to stop her mid stream, she rushes for her treat, does another bit and then looks for more treats. Am I doing this right? Should I give a treat every time?

booyhoo lol strange little WB. AAAAAGHHHHHH! Hypo household today (dog and kids) driving me effing mad. Can't control any of them and loosing my sanity. Assumpta sounds to me like Belle is cottoning on to the treats and using it to her advantage by conning you out of more. Sounds silly but my 3 year old DD did it when potty training, she would wee a bit get her sweetie then wee again and expect another one. My only guess would be you either go along with it which will enforce the behaviour or you stop it now and only give one treat per wee (whether there is a break or not). (bear in mind I am not an expert just guessing!)

Thanks to both of you. Her poos are quite runny this morning, she actually startled herself with quite a fart first!, so I had an idea what was on it's way.
Dd2 has taken her out since and she did a complete wee this time then we gave her a treat. How long do we continue giving a treat for. She will always have the praise, but no idea of days, weeks, or months for treats.

Can I jump into this thread? We've had Harvey our Tibetan Terrier since mid July. For a few weeks he was hellish - nipping at our legs etc, peeing and pooing everywhere despite our attempts to get him outside hourly etc, and just generally being crackers. Thankfully now at 14 weeks he is much calmer, more biddable, obeying a few commands, and way better in the house training dept but not perfect yet. So - hang in there it does get better. I'm beginning to love Harvey.

She is on James Well Beloved turkey and rice, and I am giving her boiled chicken bits as treats. Yesterday I gave her treats from pets corner that had chicken and rabbit in them; dry treats. Poo slightly better 30 mins ago. I remember with the children that just a change of water would upset them for a couple of days. I will stick to chicken treats. She is very sweet!

i am using cheese for treats. the girl that runs the local canine good citizen course suggested it as WB wasn't really responding to his cooked meat.

pinkanimal driven mad before 8am! I am so with you. Hope the day has got better..

and redsky welcome and thanks for your reassuring post. This (my) household is in such a state, DH and DD are going out to play rounders for 3 hours NOW, and DD goes back to school tomorrow!! If in 2 more weeks I can look forward to a slightly calmer, more biddable creature I may be able to cope....

booyhoo look after your plates, here it's a beach ball causing barking, crouching etc. Removed fast, no stimulants are needed.

Anyway, small question. We are slowly switching from Skinners to Wellbeloved. Weighing out total food each day, using part for meals part for kongs, treats etc so we don't over feed. BUT we're also using bits chicken, rice etc to bulk out the kongs.

Do I need to reduce the kibble - say - by same volume as I'm adding rice/chicken? Or is the kibble more dense food and I am over complicating life enough anyway?

iloverhubarbcrumble The day got much better once the DH got up out of his pit!!! We took Storm to my mum's for the first time today to meet my Mum's dog Star which by coincidence redsky is a Tibetan Terrier!!

Hope everyones pups are behaving themselves!

We seem to go 1 step forward, 2 steps back with teddy. Well it feels that way but I'm sure it's not true.
He us still fab with no accidents in the house, his recall is mostly reliable, he has started chasing a ball but hasn't grasped the idea that he should pick it up and return it.

The troubles I am having with him lie around his teeth. He keeps nipping us although I do feel it's getting less frequent. He decided today that the stairs look yummy so he has started eating the top step. He is also having a very good chew on his lead when we ate out.
Someone mentioned spraying bitter apple in a previous post. Where would I get thus from and does it really work?

i think most pet store do the biter apple spray kid, i know pets at home do anyway. not sure if it works though as i have never tried it.

we also seem to be regressing. ever since WB had his jabs last friday, he seems to have forgotten that peeing only happens outside. just there now i brought him out to pee, h ejust lay down outside so i brought him in and he peed straight away on the floor. also, he is being a bit strange. it i sreally windy here and my front door lets in a horrible draught. WB has slumped himself at the living room door like a draught excluder but he must be freezing. i can feel the draught coming round him and it is really cold. i don't know why he is choosing to lie there.