Puppy survival thread October/November!

[HappyThursdays]

hello all - will hopefully link from the old one!

just realised we'll all have fireworks night to get through shortly. Went out for a walk with dpuppy who is getting much better at walking though we met a big dog which scared him a lot! We can only get him into puppy classes in November which is a shame but at least it's something

@Kathy2020

Can I ask how much your pup eats? Ours is nearly 4 months and for the past 3-4 days he has eaten very little of his actual feed I thought perhaps it was because he was getting treats throughout the day while training but even in the mornings he seems to have no interest Anyone experience similar?

Mine eats everything she's given and more besides (including manky apples on the green). I think it's one of those things you can't control how fussy they are. I use Butternut Box which claims to be good for fussy eaters. Let me know if you want a discount code to try it

It's been a better day today. I've taken pup out and about with me a bit more than normal. Just down to the deli for takeout coffee and to pick something up from hardware shop but I think it's given her some more relaxed experiences than just "a walk".

Also had some success with playing games and fetch on the long line where she was actually concentrating on me rather than various distractions

Morning!

I wondered if I could pick your experienced puppy owner brains? We are collecting our 8 week old cockerpoo in just over a week. We’ve never had a dog before and have done our best to puppy progress the place and buy everything we think we will need.

Is there anything you wished you’d done before your puppy came home or can recommend we buy for him that you wouldn’t think is obvious.

Thanks 😊
Ps I will pay my puppy tax when he arrives!

Can I join?! Experienced dog owners 8 week old working black lab

Welcome both

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat the real basics are bed, blanket, towels, poo bags, some sort of toy to chew (rope tug of war one popular), possibly crate, food & bowls

I would also have a household meeting where you go through what you're doing and ensure the adults are on the same page. Who's doing the early shift? Overnights? What are your house rules etc - be consistent with pup from the start and he'll learn quicker.

We have an open plan downstairs and she kept waking up if someone walked past. Reading through the thread, we decided to enforce sleep as we thought she may be overtired. We cover her crate so she doesn't keep waking up and she does get in and then plays for a bit and then falls asleep. She sleeps for about an hour and then wakes up, plays for an hour then we put her back in the crate. Is this right or should we put her back in for sleep again rather than let her play for the hour?

Thank you so much @newpup123

The meeting is a really good idea, we have older children so their input will be vital. They do know this but laying out the rules and expectations for the puppy will be helpful.

We have also bought easy peasy puppy squeezy which we're really enjoying.

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat a couple of things we went out and bought pretty quickly:

• large soft toys - great for play biting instead of you and your hands/ arms/ feet
• baby monitor - I slept downstairs with pup for a week but once I was back upstairs it was good to be able to hear him

I'd also think about what you're going to feed him - continue with breeders food or transition to something else.

@coolmum123 I don't have this cracked either - in fact I don't know how I would go about 'enforcing' a nap. Puppypup never sleeps in his crate during the day - prefers on the sofa/ under the sofa/ his bed/the floor. We're also open plan and he wakes up as soon as I move.

@puppypuppypuppy we had this issue at the beginning when we brought her home. She would fall asleep outside the crate and then we were lifting her and putting her in, sometimes she would wake and walk back out. Then the second week at home when she started falling asleep we would get her to go.into her crate which she would do but we weren't covering the crate (but did close the door) So she kept waking up. This week I have been scattering treats along with her favourite toys in the crate about 10 mins before she needs to sleep and then covering it. And then just leaving her. She does whine a bit but then gets herself off to sleep as she isn't distracted by seeing me move around. But I'm still not convinced she is sleeping enough.

New pup definitely sleeps better if we're not walking around. I find it easier to organise in a morning as after chaos school run etc there is a natural time when I need to get on with work & the house is falling quiet. So she goes in crate with a chew or a treat and I go upstairs for 2 hours or more and she doesn't make a sound so I assume is asleep for most of it!
Then I come down for a long lunch break 1.5-2hours for play, walk, food whatever. Then back to bed when I go back upstairs to work.

Yes we also enforce naps but we don't use a crate. If he's getting really over tired I get him to go to his bed in the kitchen and then shut the door otherwise he's happy napping in the lounge but like others, he's much more likely to wake up if you walk past him

Apparently it is a known cocker problem that they need to be shown to sleep because they are such active dogs by nature

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat I would also say don't get a massive bag of his food. We bought a huge bag of his kibble and he would barely touch the stuff

Mind if I join?

I picked up Frenchpup this morning. It was a 4 hour round trip so she was in her crat in the car for 2 hours. She threw up 4 times but ne wees, poos or barks.

Back home now and she is terrified. Sat on the floor cuddling her for a long time. She's shaking. She wasn't interested in kibble but I got her to eat a dog treat that had been cut up into small pieces. I've popped her back into the crate with the door open where she can see me and she has curled up and gone to sleep which I'm guessing is a good sign.

Dd3 is upset pup isn't loopy. I warned everyone she might be a bit of a whirlwind. We weren't expecting her to be so shy. At least she likes cuddles, I tried to encourage her onto the floor earlier and she just climbed back onto my lap.

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat, I’d recommend buying a decent harness. I struggled to get a harness to fit our cockapoo properly. Perfect Fit harnesses are really good and have a front ring which helps to stop them pulling. We used both rings for a short while he was loose lead training.
I’d also recommend getting a good metal comb and anti tangle spray and get your puppy used to being groomed and handled from day 1 using plenty of treats. Without regular combing a cockapoo will get really matted. I’ve finally bought our boy a rolled collar to help prevent matts around his neck and ears.

Amazing. Thanks so much for all the advice. Looking forward to sharing when he arrives!

I wish I had found this thread a few months ago!

We got our cocker spaniel puppy three weeks ago. I thought I was prepared, I'd read and researched loads, but oh my god I am so out of my depth. I'm really really struggling and I feel like an awful person, like I should have known I wasn't cut out for this. I was so desperate for a dog and now all I can think is how I've changed our lives forever and how difficult this is going to be. She's 11 weeks on Monday, please tell me it gets easier.

Hang in there. We have all had those moments. The fact you are thinking about it and looking at others stories shows you care. It does get easier (then harder again apparently ha)

Puppy tax

Can I join please? Picked up 11 week old challengepup today. Great journey home, pees and poos outside, wondered what the fuss was about. Then 3 wees in a row and epic poo trodden into carpet for good measure 😭😭😭. Currently asleep and showing no interest in going in crate despite treats and bed and smelly blanket. So cute I will forgive him a lot though!

Puppy tax

@Frenchfancy give it time!! I'm sure she'll be charging round the house in a few days.

So many little pups joining! I still feel like a newbie but ours is 16 weeks tomorrow and so starting to see a routine and some nice behaviours. We've had fish & chips by the river today just watching the world go by and pup was great, really chilled.

@ashmts

I wish I had found this thread a few months ago!

We got our cocker spaniel puppy three weeks ago. I thought I was prepared, I'd read and researched loads, but oh my god I am so out of my depth. I'm really really struggling and I feel like an awful person, like I should have known I wasn't cut out for this. I was so desperate for a dog and now all I can think is how I've changed our lives forever and how difficult this is going to be. She's 11 weeks on Monday, please tell me it gets easier.

It definitely gets better. And then worse again. And then better 😂😂

What in particular are you struggling with?

Yes. It does get way better. Polka pup is 6 months now and biting has all but stopped and did a few weeks ago. He can be mouthy when greeting excitedly but that's my next training to tackle. He got scared by a huge lab galloping over to him today and cried and shouted to me so he's still a baby but far easier

Thanks for your replies.

@newpup123 I'm struggling with the lack of sleep, feeling totally tied to the house, and with her bitey mad periods. Tbh the biting has improved lots in the last three weeks already. I don't have children so this has been my first proper commitment (trial run) and I am not dealing well with it. Mentally as well I think it's just hit me that we're so restricted socially. It's not that I didn't know that in theory but now she's here I just feel totally overwhelmed. I'm feeling like a failure and a stupid cow for thinking I could cope.

But also meant to say/ ask- he's so windy and smelly tonight. He's had a day off his usual Butternut food as DH told me we'd run out (I found 5 days worth when putting my new emergency order into the freezer today) and has also had worming tablet. Anyone else's get the trots when wormed? DH had to buy water at Subway and clean the pavement as he had runny poo right outside there earlier. Vile