please someone help me, husband has just turned up home with a puppy!

[sickoftheholidays]

I had a dog when I was a kid, a staffordshire. I was saying how much I missed him, and we briefly discussed getting a pup at some point. This was 2 weeks ago. he has turned up home tonight with a SBT (I think) pup from a pet shop as my birthday present. While I am shocked, and its not how I would have done things, I am in love, she is very sweet and very waggy just as I would expect a pup to be. I'm very reassured that she is used to kids, as soon as the kids came in the room her tail started wagging and she wants to play.

What I need help with is the following
-how much and how often do I feed her (food came with her that she is currently on)
-how the hell do I toilet train her, and how soon should I start
-how often will she need to be taken into the garden to pee and poo
-when do I start taking her out for walks (not sure about vaccs etc)
-Do I give her something to chew to disuade her from chewing everything else, or will that just encourage her to chew?
-Does she sleep downstairs or upstairs? cant bring myself to keep her downstairs overnight, but at the same time not sure where/when she will go to the loo when we are asleep.
I have some many questions, I dont know where to start.

Oh blimey - well practical help first

Feed her four times a day ( hopefully you will have a guide from the shop if not look at the food packet) What food is she currently on

Take her to the vets tomorrow for a full checkup

Toilet training is easy - take her out everytime she wakes up from a sleep, after a wee and to start with at least every hour. When she does wee say a word eg busy, be quick etc and give her a treat. Very soon you will be able to say your word and she will pee on command. Be very vigilant and she may not even wee indoors at all. If she does say nothing to her but clean it up with either specialist cleaner from the pet shop or biological washing powder (these are essential or else the smell remains and the dog will wee in the same spot again)

She can not go out until she has all her vaccinations usually a month or two weeks apart depends on the vet and vaccine - get her to a vet tomorrow thought to check her over.

I would get a crate for her to sleep in and there is a good chance she will not need to wee overnight up to you where you let her sleep.

You will need to be around for her a lot in the next few weeks and months I hope that you can do that without being able to plan in advance

Kongs for an SBT!!
The only thing mine doesn't destroy!

That said, mine wasn't as destructive as I'd thought he'd be. My Doodle on the other hand is a bugger.

btw, I am not best pleased with him having bought from a pet shop, I have no papers with her, and no idea if her parents have been screened for any genetic nasties that SBT's get. I'll be ringing the pet shop tomorrow for more info!
are these puppy pad things good? she has already weed on the floor once and pooped on the carpet, but poor thing doesnt know what the hell is going on and with all the excitement of the kids etc its a lot for her to take in.

I found puppy pads a waste, you train them to go on the pad, then train them again to go outside, double the work, take her out every half an hour, plus every time she is sniffing around. That must have been such a shock for you, i spent months doing planning and research for our puppy.
make sure you get in touch with the vets, how old is she? you need to get onto socialistion straight away, obviously she is already ok with kids, do you have friends with dogs that are fully vaxed?
look for a puppy class near you to take her to.
A really good book I found is the perfect puppy by Gwen Baily, covered just about everything.

it was a big shock, I would have preferred to choose my own pup, and we had only vaguely discussed getting a puppy at some point in the not too distant future, I would also have liked some time to prepare and get things I needed, like a puppy pen (I NEED a puppy pen, cant work with her under my feet and chewing all my stuff, will have her in a pen next to me while I'm working till she's old enough to know better)

I'll second dita - puppy pads will just confuse house training. Once she's worked out you want her to pee there, she'll have to learn something else when you want her to go outside. Plus of course, once she's learned to pee on a pad or newspaper, every time she sees it on the floor she'll want to widdle on it for the rest of her life!

House training is just as minimu says - keep on taking her outside, ignore the accidents inside unless you catch her mid-do and treat and praise like a loon when she gets it right!

A crate will help her with house training; it'll make it faster, will keep her safe at night and if you have to leave her in the house when you pop out - also if you have to keep her safe when you answer the door or have workmen in and out.

Chewing and even biting is normal and important for puppies, google 'bite inhibition' by Ian Dunbar to read why they do it and how to handle it. Chew toys are important and as puppies jaws strengthen they'll need to have progressively harder things to chew on.

Puppies are really hard work - she's going to dominate your lives for a bit I reckon! Have you got a vets appointment yet?

Have rung vets this morning, she is booked in for a full health check and her booster on Monday, I asked about getting her in sooner, but vet said as long as she is eating and drinking, and hasnt got the runs, and is nice and lively (certainly is that) that the stress of having her to the vet after only coming home yesterday wouldnt be worth the benefits of having her checked. She has had flea treatment and wormer last week according to her card that came with her

Good advice here already.

A suggestion from me is to get The Perfect Puppy: Gwen Bailey, it is great for simple practical advice. There are offers on Amazon starting at £1.46+pp for a used copy. www.amazon.co.uk/Perfect-Puppy-Britains-Number-Care/dp/060061722X/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpi_1

Check out this link from DogTrust: www.youtube.com/dogstrusttraining#p/c/6/oVZ4_LvMwJ4
There is a series of very short films about important issues when raising a puppy. The linked film on puppies and children is also relevant to you.

Crates are great and ebay is a good place to shop for them.
Don't buy expensive show-offy beds just yet, it will be chewed. A piece of VetBed from ebay will last you ages, great for dogs and machine washable.
Get a soft collar and lead and start teaching your pup to get used to the feel.

Check for socialization classes. Very important (maybe THE most important thing you can do for your dog's wellbeing is to get it to go to as many places/environments/meet people) as possible before it is 14 weeks. After fear starts setting in (as a natural defence mechanism and it is much harder. Planning for it is very important.

Please do not waste time on puppy pads, they are a total waste of money and time. You will have to put a lot of effort into toilet training, like taking the pupster outside after every play, sleep, feel, etc, but it will be trained much faster. Take is before going to sleep and WAIT as long as it takes until the little bladder is empty. Then take every 3 hours or so at night.

Please please do not punish your puppy. It is very OLD school and now best professionals all agree it is counterproductive. Your hands should only be associated with kindness.

Good luck!!!!

Even though your puppy can't go out on walks yet, you can carry her around to let her experience different noises and smells.

What area are you in? Maybe some mners are local to you and could recommend classes.