Your daily routine with a puppy

[MiniatureRed]

We're meant to be getting a puppy at the end of May.

After a long lay in and then breakfast in bed this morning, I've realised how massively my life is going to change.

What's your daily routine please? Are my weekends laying in bed gone forever?

MinatureRed, have you read the new rules about picking up pups? Must see pup interacting with mum & it must be microchipped with the breeder?
Why are you so adamant for a crate? What a bizarre thing to say

Yes, why? I FaceTime the breeder most days and when lockdown is over we'll be there to visit.
I've done my research and decided to crate- a valid choice- just as valid as not crating.

I have known people who put their dogs in crates the whole time at work. Some caged for 10 hours a day then crated again at night. Bloody cruel! And lazy train your dog pay it enough attention when you are home give it plenty of toys. Use stairgates. wonder how you would feel locked up in a cage for hours!

@MiniatureRed please ignore all people against 'crates' and do your owm research.

Yes if you kept a dog in it 8 hours a day and 10 hours a night it would be cruel.
But whilst your sleeping overnight it is fine.

Currently put our pup in it for a max of 2 hours during the day when we do our food shop with the radio on once a week. He's fine. We have doggy cams and he doesnt cry. Just sleeps!
We have a crate big enough for a large breed but ours is a toy breed! So plenty of room. He doesn't cry at night.

Although one of us is always at home 24/7 with him other than when we go food shopping. But we leave it open during the day and whilst we work/do dishes/mop floors he chooses to go nap in there despite the door being open. It's his 'safe' place.

But never ever use the crate as punishment or for more than 2-3 during the day whilst you go out.

When crate training at first, we played games with him in the crate, gave him treats in the crate, gave him his meals in the crate and taught him tricks in the crate. So he associated the crate with all good things, sleep and treats!

Its all about the training and how you use it.

Ours uses the crate v happily at night. It means I know she’s safe, not chewing anything she shouldn’t be and on the now rare occasions she needs a pee in the night or v v early she lets us know. It’s in the hall outside our bedroom. She puts herself to bed when v tired.

During the day I want to get her used to being left on her own for short periods like an hour while we go shopping. So I’m going to start with another crate downstairs and take it really slowly. We don’t have anywhere we could safely leave her behind a stair gate as it’s all open plan.

Crates aren't cruel if used appropriately.

We used it when our puppy was little from 8 weeks until 6 months ish. It definitely helped with toilet training as they don't like peeing on their bed so more likely to hold on and 'ask' to go out.

We made the crate really cosy and into a little den, if he was never left in it upset or distressed. The longest he was left in it during the day was 2 hours.

At 6 months he suddenly completely refused to go in it and that was fine as by then he was house trained and well behaved in the house (most of the time!) He sleeps on my bedroom floor now.

That's our plan, @Girliefriendlikespuppies - crate at night til fully house trained then get rid of the crate and allow to sleep upstairs with us.

It took me less than 2 weeks to house-train my dogs. No crate needed for that. Yes it meant having to keep an eye on pup and learn how it showed it wanted to relieve itself. Yes it was ' inconvenient' for a little while but easily done. My dogs slept in my bedroom. Had a basket there a d one in living room. If I got the Hoover out they just went into bedroom then living room as I moved around. I had one dog that would follow me round with a duster in his mouth 'assisting' me! He even knew where the cleaning cupboard was! Didn't need a crate whilst doing housework. Didn't need a crate while I slept. Didn't need a crate full stop. Those that advocate crates do so for convenience to them not for dogs sake. Give your dog chews and toys then they won't chew wires. Never did any of my dogs chew anything other than their toys and chews. Never have my dogs destroyed anything in my house even when I went to work. And at night I want my dog free to be able to alert me if need be. But mostly I would never put any living thing in a cage. So go ahead advocate crates just for your convenience but never ever for the sake of the dog because that's just a lie.

Less than 1 week that should read.

Glad you have decided what you want OP. See here is my dog at 8 weeks old. See the absence of wire see it's in my living room see how she's sleeps undisturbed by the TV my grandchildren. I still know what I prefer despite breeders!

@MiniatureRed well done for choosing crate training.

Crates are a valuable training aid and a place of safety for your pup. I've crate trained every dog I've had from a pup, until about 8 months old and then they have run of the utility room BUT should I ever need it, they are then familiar with a crate, recognise it as their safe place and doesn't cause unnecessary stress in what could be an already stressful situation. Think vets, they don't let their animals roam around the clinic so when your dog goes in to be neutered, or needs medical assistance in future, wouldn't you be happier knowing that it's in a crate where it feels SAFE?! Not stressed having never seen one before.

I have a 15 week old puppy, and a 2 year old lurcher. The pup sleeps in the utility room in her crate, she runs to her crate when I hoover (she's scared of the hoover, crate is her safe place), she goes in her crate when we eat and she goes in there overnight. She's never in there for more than an hour during the day. She's happy in there. She was house trained from 12 weeks and is just becoming dry overnight. She rings a bell to go outside, has all basic obedience training in place and we're just starting agility training.

She wakes up at 5am though luckily I'm a morning person!!!!!

Also a side note @MiniatureRed, poodles are highly intelligent (perfect agility dogs!) so I think you'll be fine, all the poodles I've met have been yappy so brace yourself for that - and remember, dog groomer head on now, please please put a solid grooming regime in place from the start, touch feet, play with nails, invest in a decent brush, learn line brushing, and visit your groomer every 8 weeks

How generous of you to allow your dog the run of the ' utility' room.

My dog neutered at vets crated no problem ( never been in a crate either) . Crikey 12 weeks still having accidents! You won't be doing agility till she's at least 18 months because of her bones. I know as all my dogs have done kc obedience and agility. P.s my staffie had achieved puppy, bronze silver before she was 26 weeks old.

@sostenueto they have run of the house in the day, the utility room is their bed. I don't allow my dogs upstairs, they are dogs.
I'm well aware of how to train my dog, and the age at which she's allowed to COMPETE (18 months correct), basic floor based agility foundations can start to be put in place from any age. Thanks for your 'valuable' input.

Apologies misread your post about utility room. Glad you found my 'input' valuable. Because though it's opposite to yours it is none the less ' valuable'!

@Sostenueto you don’t know what you’re talking about . Crate training is great for pups. I have read x3 books on training dogs and also had a Skype session with a pet behavioural therapist and all said crates are great and recommended. Just because you don’t have the foresight to see past the bars on it.

As one book said, you think you are doing your dog a favour letting it have free run and giving it a blanket or basket to sleep in. But think about how you would feel if you were brought somewhere new away from everything you know and put in a cavernous hall with only a blanket or basket to sleep in. That’s what being in your big (to the pup) living room with just a blanket or basket. Would you feel safe and cosy or would you feel scared?

Crate training gives your pup a place to feel safe and to identity as their own. My pup loves his crate. He goes into it to nap on his blankets plus hot water bottle. He plays with his toys in it and it’s where he gets all the best treats, his dinner and his water. It has blankets draped over the top so it’s super cosy. We take it upstairs at night and someone’s have a job getting the pup to leave it for ten mins so we can bring it up to our bedroom.

You are looking at the crate with human eyes and seeing its bars. You’re not looking at it from the perspective of the pup.

@MiniatureRed please don’t be put off crate training.

@Sostenueto please just leave this thread, you’ve said your bit. I’d quite like it to go back to the point of the thread which I was finding useful.

I left the thread 5 hours ago and in case you haven't noticed it's a free country. You asked for opinions and not everyone has the same opinion. So if you wanted a thread where everyone agrees with you you should have said so!

@sostenueto there is giving a different opinion and then there is giving out false information saying crate training and using a crate are cruel. It’s simply not true.

Sostenueto I wasn't asking for options on crates!!!

back to the original thread, little bump :)

I really rate crate training, especially when they’re little. It gives them a safe space to go to when they’re overwhelmed/tired etc. My spaniel takes herself off to her crate when she’s sick of us all

Poodles are great dogs, and very intelligent so you shouldn’t have much problem toilet training, as long as you’re consistent. My aunt breeds chocolate standards, and has 3 at home. They’re the loveliest, friendliest things ever. They do need lots of stimulation both physical and mental or they can get destructive (making their own fun!) but once they’ve had their exercise they curl up like big cats. I’m sure miniatures are similar.

Our 11 week old lab has the following routine:

0715 get up and toilet outside plus let poultry out and do feeds.
The rest of the day is spent under the other half’s desk as they work or infront of the Rayburn but with occasional breaks either when they go outside or it asks to go out for toileting.
Adhoc 10 minute max training sessions 5-6 a day.
Twenty minute walk mid to early afternoon
A trip in the car every evening to muck out the horse.
2100 first evening toilet trip
2300 final toilet trip and bed in crate.

Dry food and water available from getting up to going to bed.

Almost always sleeps through the night.

In all it has been much easier than expected.

I have a 10week old Golden Retriever. We picked her up from breeder at 7.5 weeks due to lockdown. Thankfully we only had to get her from next door neighbour!

It has been absolutely life changing. I have not slept past 7am since she arrived. I’ve never cleaned up so much poo and wee from the downstairs of our house!

It is getting better - most of the time she is toiletting Outside. We take her out every 3 Mins when awake. She also sleeps around 8 hours in her crate at night. She eats really well and has fitted in to our family well.

Even DH, who swore black and blue he didn’t want a dog, is in love with her.

@Lara53
Every 3 minutes?!!