Puppy Survival Thread - May

[Doje]

Starting May off! If someone could link I'd appreciate it....

I have a question about car travel, which I think I already asked but had a journey from hell earlier when dropped DS off at scouts and tried to drive home with sushipup. She woke up when she realised her backseat buddy was gone, got horribly tangled in her harness and the seat belt and went panic stations making the tangle get tighter and tighter around her. I had to pull over then call DH to come and get me as it wasn't safe to drive home. I think I need to try the crate at least for solo journeys. Do people put it in the boot or anchor it to the back seat? Do your pups do okay crated for car journeys?

Challenge pup is rocking the suit and looks made up with his chew! Glad to hear he’s on the mend and managed a zoomies!

He’s so handsome @MrsHerculePoirot! Such a beautiful colour and face.

We’re the same as you @ilovesushi. We met mum and she was petite and slim and didn’t meet dad. I’ve seen photos though and he looks like a standard sized working lab, though hard to judge from photos. She has really long legs though, so I’m expecting her to be quite tall.

I’ve seen pics and videos of dad but not met. He looked similar size to mum in video. Everyone keeps telling me he’s going to reeeeeeally big “look at his paws!” so I don’t know!

@ilovesushi that sounds really stressful. We’ve got this from Amazon and have shortened the harness so he can just lay down. I usually chuck treats at him and when I went on a big journey did give him a chew. He whimpers/whines if not asleep and doesn’t really like the car. I’ve asked so many people and got so many different answers. I know long term he’ll need to go in boot. I’ve used this seat in the boot too and it was ok, he just isn’t car keen yet. www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B08K9F2Z6Y?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title&tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Wow that seat looks amazing, but I just don't know that she would stay put. She is quite happy in the car and generally even short journeys send her to sleep, but she does want to snuggle up to someone initially. If the kids aren't in the car, then I have discovered she wants to be on my knee as I drive. Not happening clearly!

It’s quite a snuggly seat. He curls up and puts his chin on the side bit to go to sleep! Think he’d rather be playing with the gear stick like me though... 🙄

@familychallenge same in the first couple of days re weeing etc, we did put him out at his normal times but he wee'd at 930pm the first night then didn't wee again till nearly 5pm the next afternoon, he was drinking so I think he just must have been really dehydrated. Pugpup seems really confused in his suit for weeing and pooing, it's like he panics as he knows it's in the way.

Went for 1st post op check, they said he can do 10-15 min walks twice a day on lead till middle of next week then up it to about 20 mins twice a day. Next check is next Friday which will be the 11th day, they have said no off lead till they see him and also to keep the vest on when we are not with him. He is really itchy and like challegepup is still going for his legs and other bits as can't get to where he wants to. Vet said the hair growing back is really itchy, also where the shave forthe cannula in their leg which is why he's probabyl trying to lick/itch that also.

Loving all the pup pics

@PugInTheHouse thanks again for the reassurance- it's great to hear from other people on the journey! He is definitely a bit confused by it all. Sorry if TMI but he can poo in his suit, it's just weeing he can't do and he managed to lift his leg and wee all over it earlier! I'm trying to let him out a bit with the suit rolled up when I think he's due a wee but he just goes for the stitches so we've had to be on the lead which he hates. He's zooming and we have vet check tomorrow- I'm hoping they say I can give him slightly longer lead walks because 2x 10min per day is not enough and whatever else I do with him I think he will zoom which I think is more risky than slow sniffy lead walks for his stitches. It's like having a new puppy again- I know it's just because he is a bit traumatised and it's all a bit of a shock to the system! Poor boy

We use the RAC carrier for solo journeys as she won’t stay put in the wee seat thing in the back either. She scratches and whines in the carrier though so it’s not ideal, only ever used it for short journeys.

I’ve just anchored hightidepup in the boot with her harness from almost the start as I don’t have the space for her to sit on one of the back seats (kids car seats) and she hated the car crate (it was on the small side). She has just enough lead to lie down but not enough to tangle herself. She lies down and settles really quickly now. Took about two weeks to get to that point though. I’m lucky in that she’s never been car sick. I spent time at the start feeding her meals in the boot and just having her sit in it feeding her treats which helped I think.

We have a little seat belt that attaches to Georgiepup's harness and he just lays down either on the front seat next to me or rear seat when there's more people. He's never been car sick but does get hot and bothered some times so windows open and we try to make them short. He goes out in the car several times a week though so hopefully building up his tolerance.

Feeling so much better this morning! Blood results came back, his pheno levels are still low so they are upping his dose by a good amount to get him in the mid to high range. He's also been approved to take a different flea and worming treatment. We pay a monthly subscription to include this with the vets and they use Nexgard Spectra for all dogs and this isn't suitable for dogs with epilepsy so we had to request an alternative from the practice manager.

I also left him for half hour yesterday and he barely raised his head when I left and slept the whole time. In the afternoon he went for a groom and they love him there and he's apparently a star pupil so I felt so proud when I heard that.

Thank you all so much for listening to me sound off about this all, it's therapy!

We used to use a box type car seat but he hated it, we have a pet seat cover that hooks round the head rest and a belt that hooks round the head rest also. He usually sits in the front with me.

@PugInTheHouse Poor pugpup, the itchy hair regrowth is a real pain, I remember Georgiepup biting his leg so hard, it must be really awful for them. Hope his walks go well, it sounds like a reasonably long recovery period. How are you coping with it? Do they give pain meds?

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat they said beforehand 7-10 days so its the top end of that, I assume its only because his appointment is right at the end otherwise maybe it would be sooner. He is fine with short walks, hes not massively bothered as long as we keep his brain working during the day. Last night he slept better as we took him to cricket so he was awake a lot more yesterday.

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat sorry yes he has had pain meds but they said to stop them now as it seems to have healed fine on the outside.

@GeorgieTheGorgeousGoat good news on his blood tests! We have been advised not to neuter Happy yet so don't worry about feeling left behind!

Gah I posted earlier and Mumsnet lost it! Billy is home and is so cute! He’s already answering to his name and even sitting for a treat 😵 he just will not go to sleep though. Any tips to get an overtired puppy to sleep on their first day?

Aw @LadyCatStark he’s beautiful!

My pup was very excited on day 1 too so at one point I sat on the floor with him and was just very boring and quiet and calm. A few words of encouragement and he climbed on to my lap eventually and dozed off looking out the window. I had to clear out the DC before we achieved that though!

@LadyCatStark so cute! We cleared everyone out of the room except one and just sat being calm and boring and he fell asleep on a lap or nearby I think...

Thanks 😊 that seems to have worked! I was worried about needing to get him to settle but he’s settled himself now after finding a favourite ball!

@LadyCatStark what a sweetie!

Thanks all for the car advice. @WeeM do you have the fabric RAC carrier or the cage type one? I like the look of the fabric one.

Managed to get him to stay still long enough for a better photo 😂.

@LadyCatStark oh he's beautiful 😍😍🐶🐾

Thanks he’s certainly a gorgeous boy! He’s finally given up and fallen asleep in the middle of the living room floor despite having a lovely bed in the living room and open crate in the kitchen 😂.

Challenge pup is doing well. He had his first check up and all is well, although he had a bit of a reaction to the painkillers which gave him a fever and made him sick. Vet said he was doing so well that we could just stop them, and that longer lead walks are ok just not to go crazy or let him play with dogs. He needs to keep the vest on because he is licking whenever he can but he seems to be getting used to it, and I'm still sure he would be more unhappy in a cone. He's definitely a bit itchy and uncomfortable but a lot more settled than he was. And very clingy- it's like having a new pup again! But getting over the shock of it all I think. Second check on Thursday so fingers crossed he keeps healing!

[quote ilovesushi]@LadyCatStark what a sweetie!

Thanks all for the car advice. @WeeM do you have the fabric RAC carrier or the cage type one? I like the look of the fabric one.[/quote]
Yeah we have the fabric one, I didn’t actually realise they did another one! It’s great if you’re going for an overnight somewhere because it folds flat.