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

@PugInTheHouse I think it's worth finding out what the puppy's calorific intake is meant to be. You can google and there should be somewhere that gives you it on the breed. Your kibble should tell you how much it gives them and the treats should have the calories on too then you can work out how much of the kibble you need to cut back on for the treats.

one thing the puppy classes have shown me is how much they expect you to treat the dog (much more than we were doing!).

I've just had a dispiriting walk with pup where he got really scared and I could see he was over threshold - tail tucked, wouldn't take treats, couldn't reassure him and just pulling me home at speed. Feels like one step forward and two back! I was feeling like we were getting somewhere with his ability to cope but car horns and two really loud waitrose delivery vans with wire trolleys completely put him off!

@HappyThursdays i agree re treating - we had trainer here for a house visit before Puppypup had had all his vaccinations and she threw them around with abandon. Have been much less stingy since then.

Agree @HappyThursdays - we had week 4 puppy class yesterday, first one that was face to face abs they used so many treats ! Made me realise I’d not been treating enough.
We’ve transitioned from one high carb kibble that he arrived on to another which is much higher protein. It’s a step towards raw but not ready for that yet.
Noticed a big change in his behaviour since changing food - much calmer, less bouncing and much easier. Don’t know if it’s week 16 and that’s why or whether it is the change in food. Has anyone else had a similar experience when changing food ?

Another vote here for snuffle mats - they are brilliant.
I also scatter food - either inside on tiled floor or outside on patio/lawn. He’s a lab so is VERY food driven and was eating way too fast. He enjoys working for his food and it tires him out too.

I think I might need to change my pups food. She eats it eventually but only eats a bit when I put it down, and it isn't interesting enough for training. I have other treats that I cut into very small portions, in between a pea and a lentil in size, and she happily trains for them. She also loves cheese, but I'm worried about the salt content.

Frenchfancy - I was told they weren't actually allowed cheese even though they love it?

@HappyThursdays oh my god I've never seen the big hairy ones before! That's quite disturbing. I bet she'll love it. No we've just been giving the ones that look like big crisps. I'll order those ones now, thanks very much.

They are quite repulsive but luckily smell no worse than the other ears!

@puginTheHouse I've just googled an apparently it's fine in small amounts, but some dogs can be lactose intolerant.

I've remembered where I heard it, I wasn't told it, I was watching the resident get on This Morning saying what Xmas food etc is dangerous for dogs and he said all cats and dogs are lactose intolerant so cheese is a no.

I knew cats were but didn't realise dogs were. My cats will steal cheese and also try to eat anything chocolate related so I have to hide everything anyway!!

Does anyone want an Ezydog harness in black. It's extra small I think.
Used once or twice. PM me address if you want it

@ashmts pizzles take her quite a while. Ears, we’ve had hairless ones as I think those were the ones suitable for her age at the time I bought a massive pack. She’s 16 weeks now so possibly can have the hairy ones, I’ll have to check. I’ve been using dragonfly.com for the chews as they specify age suitability. Some are smaller than others so depends on size as to how long it takes her to get through them and also, how much her teeth are hurting her so can be 20 mins, can be 45 mins. Yak attack bars from them last days too but she doesn’t sit and chew for ages and ages on those, more comes to them throughout the day.

I don’t want to jinx things (idiot!) but GeorgiePup slept 10pm-6.20am last night. Eek!

We can’t go out yet but he amuses the day away somehow. Chasing after a ball we roll, chew sticks, rope toys we’ve looped through his crate so he can tug, rub in the garden. He still sleeps a fair amount too. There is also 5 of us so we take turns!

Out puppy's favourite thing to play with is the kitten. Maybe a little extreme solution though 😄

Hi all - just catching up whilst pup is sleeping!

We took him to the vet today for his first jabs and we also were given a worming tablet and a frontline spot on which he's had both of this afternoon. I've been reading reviews of frontline on pets at home and Amazon so I could stock up and they've been absolutely slated in the reviews for being completely ineffective. What does everyone use?

I mentioned the constant dirt and stone eating and the vet didn't seem too worried. Just said to try and deter it with a treat or toy which we've been trying to do but is easier said than done at 4am in your dressing gown when it's 2 degrees outside 😂

@SummerSazz ours too. But then the kitten 's favourite toy is the puppy! They groom each other, fight with each other, chase each other. Frenchpup is getting bigger so I do worry Frenchkitten is being picked on, but he keeps coming back for more. I find them both curled up in her crate together.

French cat (who is actually only 2 months older but definitely plays on th e fact she's older) tolerates the pup but doesn't join in the games.

A question to you all, what is safe to give as a treat to a 9 week old pup? Eg chicken? Lean meat? He is still on the dry food the breeder had him but he is not too bothered with it and I have a bag of treats which works ok but he looses interest quickly.
I took him to visit my friend and they were having dinner and is the first time he was happier and more relaxed, as they were smelling of ribs so he went and licked them , which normally he would take his time for.
So I am introducing him to a potential dog walker for the future (she will be with him in my garden) and shall I give her anything to give him as treat? Eg chicken ? Else I might get a rib and get her to touch with her hands so he will go with her!
Thanks

we went out for an early dinner tonight and left pup and he was ok which was great - makes me feel a lot happier about leaving him for short periods (due to lockdown we've been around a lot more than we normally would be)

@Redandblue11 I don't know what your pup's tum is like but chicken is a safe option (sliced up small) and generally at that age they love it

we still boil bones and make a broth to mix in with his kibble which he absolutely loves - but shredded/diced real meat he loves!

if you don't fancy cooking, at around the same age as your pup, these were really popular www.harringtonspetfood.com/collections/harringtons-natural-dog-treats/products/puppy-junior-dog-treats-100g (he chooses a higher value treat now but we still use them every now and then!) - suitable from 8 weeks onwards

@Frankincense88 re the stone/dirt eating at 4am, do you have pup on the lead? Our garden wasn't puppy-proofed (we thought it would be fine then she arrived and found a million hazards) so we've been putting the lead on every time for the toilet. Garden is hopefully safe now! We removed all the stones and put down cement this weekend. She's sleepy in the middle of the night so clipping on the collar is no problem, she accepts it. Maybe you already do this, just thought it might be an idea.

@HappyThursdays when did you leave him for the first time? I'm worried about it. I popped her in the crate and went to pick my partner up (10 minutes round trip) last week and it went fine but I'm just nervous about leaving her for any longer. Did you just build it up? We do need to get her used to being alone, she loves people which is great but does have a tendency to be velcro-dog

@ashmts we had him on a harness and lead on his first day but have just watched him like a hawk since as he refused to toilet in the (very large and expensive) 😂 outdoor puppy pen in a safe bit of the garden and prefers to sniff around to find his own spot. It was such a faff getting it on and off and we had a couple of accidents because he couldn't wait. He's been pretty good since though re letting us know when he wants to go out (although he'll pretend cry at at door then run out to the massive pile of dirt at the end of the garden and dance on it and refuse to come back.)

I've got a collar for him but I'm so frightened it'll be too loose / too tight and he's got such a skinny little neck but I might try it on him today. I'm worried about him wearing it in the house though in case it catches on something and he hurts himself 😫

Can you tell I'm a first time owner? 😂😂

Had a great nights sleep, pugpup slept from 830-1030 downstairs, went to toilet then went upstairs and slept till 530. Its like a small petting zoo in my room with 2 cats and the dog haha!

Used the little rubber ball and put 5g of his kibble in there, put the rest down as his breakfast in his normal bowl. It completely stopped the crazy biting and launching at us and hes now fallen back to sleep! Snufflemat arrives today also.

Oh and no accidents yesterday at all, he went on his own with no reminders all day. Still on the pee pad at back door but he has been great. Will sit and wait for treats now too even if we have it in our hand, DS2 has even been able to get him to sit and wait whilst he moves a few steps back then tells him to come and get it

Thank you hapythursdays, I will try those treats.
I don’t want to boast but pup slept from 11.10 to 5.50 am!
He is dreadful trying to get onto this low sofa single chair, keeps trying to get onto it. Momentarily we have moved it to another room and I want to get bicarbonate soda, sprinkle and hoover it well, in case there is scent of food there (many time one of us seats there with cuppa and snack). But I am trying to get my head how to teach him Off.
I feel I do all the main work with pup, DH will help with feeding, toilet, but I am the one reading and teaching him and doing all the ‘intelectual’ work with him and thinking of ways to vary his day other than garden and sitting next to him working from dining room. It is exhausting.

@ashmts yes our pup is sociable velcro dog too. He's far happier being left when it's dark, I guess he feels it's nighttime. Leaving during the day, he will start off sitting by the door and whining and waiting for us, even if we leave him with a chew. But he does self settle. We haven't left him for long - and started off small and built it up. We have a camera in the rooms he's left in so can watch what he's up to to check he's ok. Dp runs his own business from home so will always be at home but we also felt if there was any emergency and both of us needed to be out for some reason, we didn't want him to be unprepared by never being left at all.

@ashmts I was also worried about leaving the puppy alone, but knew I had to start it ASAP as I might be going back to working in the office in January and he will need to be on his own for around 4 hours before I come home at lunchtime.

I started off going for a walk for 5 minutes, 10 the next day, 15 the next day. I could hear him crying when I got back the first few times, but now I can leave him for around 1 hour 30 and he just sleeps in his bed and 90% of the time holds his bladder till I get back!

You'll get there, don't worry!