Puppy survival thread! July/August! Roll up!

[Juiceey]

Here we go, hero puppy owners.

We've just got back from the vet where I was shocked to discover he now weights 4kg. Little lump! He's 19 weeks old tomorrow. Wonder how big he'll get? On a miniature poodle group I'm in the adults are anywhere between 6-12kg. I hope he's small as easier to carry about!

@Makemedoit ive had dogs my whole life and knew what to expect, never suffered from anxiety but i have sobbed several times the last few days wondering what the hell i have done and i have a fairly well behaved easy pup. Its exhausting feels like the days are endless. Im fed up of housetraining he goes days with few accidents then other days just goes wherever he wants. I keep reminding myself that i often felt that way when my children were newborns but it doesnt last and one day all the tears and hard work will pay off because there is nothing like the love amd loyalty a dog gives you (when they stop using you as a chew toy obviously )

Hi @Makemedoit !

Have you watched any videos on dog training? We watched the Zach and Inertia videos on YouTube. A bit (very!) shooting with the adverts, but is lovely to see a trainer messing up someone's, the puppy ignoring him, and then him correcting himself. It really helped me as I can be a bit ' must be perfect' about things, and overthink any errors I make. It's really useful to see that mistakes are not a big thing....

Thank you so much everyone. Dpup is gorgeous but I just seem to resent him at the moment and that makes me feel even more guilty. Just had a row with DP who cant understand how i am feeling. As you all say, doing anything is a nightmare. My house is a mess and so am I!! Hoping I will feel a bit better tomorrow.
Thank you all for your messages. It really has helped.

@Makemedoit, have the same moments here sometimes. I know exactly what you mean about "wanting it to be perfect". We're all just doing our best.

@MrsElijahMikaelson1, your pup's a cutie 😊.
Mine is a Tibetan Terrier. He'll be long haired and shaggy as an adult, and I'd like to try to keep him that way rather than clipping him, so doing my best to get him used to regular brushing.. frustratingly every time he sees a brush (any brush, not just his!) he's biting it!

@Makemedoit the thing that has kept me sane is regular, enforced naps in the crate and an early bedtime. If he didn't have naps in his crate, I don't think I would have coped.

@Flowersupnorth 8!!! And here's me saying I've had a tough day with one. You must be so busy!

@Makemedoit it's so hard at first. I was up in the night crying and wishing someone would turn back time so I could change my mind. But then good days happen and I think we will get there. He's been good today so I feel calm but yesterday was tough. However when I go out I miss him!
The kids are suffering right now and I need to do more with them, there's laundry everywhere and the house is messy but clean thanks to constant cleaning of floors and me sniffing and saying "can you smell dog?" manically. DH hit a low yesterday as I went out leaving him with pup but it's time he stepped up. We all wanted him. And I can already see the lovely dog Polka pup will hopefully become. He's gnawing away on this yak milk like it's crack cocaine!

Dpup ate some cucumbers today, which was very sweet. Now we are all sitting in a hot lounge with his dreadful farts, we are regretting it a lot...

@Emrysmcdogface I’m suddenly grateful GP is such a carnivore!

She was only a barking, biting terror for 10-15 minutes tonight and is asleep at the end of our bed. Wish I knew how to get back to her settling beautifully on the bed like last week without the numptiness beforehand

Well, I mean 10/15 minutes immediately before she fell asleep. She was a menace for hours this morning, a bit better this afternoon. I gave her a Jumbone thing earlier (like a dog equivalent of Saturday night junk food I suppose) and she went absolutely crazy, digging up the garden as if to bury it, but then just barking at the jumbone in the hole. Then digging another hole and another one. It was very bizarre! Wish we could know what they were thinking.

We had a lovely slow walk around a local meadow this evening but my word she is still startled by everything, especially men walking towards us. She’d be useless as a protection dog 😆

I know! @OwlInAnOakTree- another 3 weeks to go until they go to their forever homes. Such hard work, but so rewarding. I am in love!!

Must be something in the air this weekend. DoorbsPup usually settles down beautifully after 10pm, goes in his crate and not a peep until early morning. Tonight though he's been awake twice and crying/whining to get out. I let him out earlier for a wee and the he leapt up in to the sofa to settle back down. I moved him back to his crate and he refused and turned bitey. DH has put him back in his crate now and is sitting with him until he settles down 🤞.

@Makemedoit seriously don’t worry. We have all had those moments and I bet all is well eventually. Tbh I vowed after devil dog I would never have another puppy but here we are! Must be like child birth!
MEM pup is on form this morning! She had a good night-I popped her in the crate with her teddy with a heart beat and the posh lady from radio 4 on, plus our old lady lab in the crate next to her and not a peep all night (or at least not one that we heard!). She is manic this morning though and old lady is really pissed off with her! Psycho cat on full ignore mode and has moved upstairs’

Smileypup has been a pain this morning, hes obviously enjoying it being cooler and has been manic since getting up at 6.45, hes just curled up in bed and gone to sleep and im finally able to make the kids breakfast without everyone crying that they are being biten or jumped on

Sounds like our house smiling. DS says a quick hello to pup when we get up then goes into the front room whilst I entertain pup in the back. Then when I put pup down for his morning nap an hour or so after getting up, I make us breakfast and take it in to the front room for us to eat in there so we don't disturb pup's sleep. 🙄 No idea how we're going to manage school mornings!

OwlPup listens to radio 4 too MrsElijah. I'm so jealous of his life - bit of playing, bit of a walk, then treats and a lie down whilst listening to radio 4. Pretty much my dream life.

We are away in an airbnb this weekend and despite dire predictions of destruction from dh, we seem to be getting on okay. Mucky was overwhelmed last night for a while as there was too much going on and too many people for him, plus the strange place and the long car journey. But to his credit he did finally fall asleep in a heap so we could have a civilised drink and meal (well, that sounds a bit fancy - we had pizza delivered!) I came downstairs this morning to the best greeting I've ever had from him, really pleased to see me. There was no destruction and it didn't even look as if he had slept on the sofa, which had been a worry and I'd forgotten to block it off the night before as I'd intended. We have just had a really lovely walk through the quiet streets and now he is dozing so it actually feels a bit like a holiday, which is so nice.

I haven't tried Radio 4 with Muckypup, so will have a go at that when we get home!

Ooh, also forgot to mention - Mucky has actually lost one of his razor sharp puppy teeth, so it was a cause to celebrate last night! I'm hoping the rest will soon follow.

@Makemedoit just caught up on yesterday's posts and totally agree with other pp. The first week or so with Mucky I sat and sobbed on the stairs quite a few nights, feeling totally out of control and I'm not one to ever usually do that or feel so low. We'll support you - keep posting on here, it's a nice Mumsnet place.

We’ve had AmigoPup for 2 weeks now. He’s doing ok but oh my god he won’t stop biting (or attempting to bite) Dd. I just want him to stop . Will it get better? He bites DH and me occasionally, but Dd it’s so often. She’s starting to modify her behaviour but even when she’s just walking past he tries to get her ankles.

Can she wear wellies in the house @AmigoDog? Mine are in the habit of wearing long sleeve and leggings to protect themselves!

@AmigoDog I think it gets better, but it might just be happening less here because DS spends less time in the room with pup. We did manage a one hour zoom chat with my brother with me, DS and pup all sitting on the sofa the other day. This was impossible for several weeks. And I did need to constantly ply pup with treats but it felt like a HUGE accomplishment. About a week ago I started putting pup's lead on when DS came into the room so I have a bit more control over their interactions. I wish I'd done this sooner. I think he's better than he was, it's not quite as constant now. I don't know if the lead is helping that or if it's just that he's calming down a bit (16 weeks now). It's so stressful though, isn't it? I'm never relaxed when the two of them are together.

Thank you for all your kind messages. I still just feel that this is a huge mistake. I want to him to go. I hate everything to do with him and am so unhappy.

@Makemedoit I'm so sorry you are feeling that low. I hope today is a good one for you all.

Oh makemedoit I’m so sorry you feel like this. Like others I’ve had similar feelings. It does seem to be totally normal unfortunately. I’m sure it will pass. I keep on worrying that there are things we haven’t done properly and we won’t be able to correct. And missing my carefree life pre-pup. Plus pup is so bitey with Dd and I just feel so guilty and sad for her and I’m worried it will never change. I’m also worried we are nowhere near the worst part. If there’s something to panic about then I will...
The good things about these threads is that you can see just how common it is and the progress others have made. Anxiety is awful but realistically there is no reason to think you won’t have exactly the same progress as others. I know that’s hard to tell yourself though.