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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

Puppy survival thread. Cold nights in the garden ... yeah...no

995 replies

MakeMeCleanTheHouse · 26/09/2021 04:07

The foghorn is sounding frequently and I suspect that's why I'm up enjoying the ambience of a foggy garden at 4am.

Hoping @BaconandAvocado is fast asleep and all the others with wide awake pups.

OP posts:
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lifestooshortandsoami · 06/10/2021 04:52

Early start for Finn this morning -4am and wide awake snappy monster. I expected the chewing and nipping but not this much at 8 weeks - more fool me hey!
Was one of those nights where Finn actually slept well but work call out (dh here for Finn) and child woke me during the night so today is going to be caffeine fuelled.

Love reading everyone else’s updates and keeps me sane Grin Looking forward to getting him out after his second jabs

lifestooshortandsoami · 06/10/2021 04:54

Oh and Finn is currently trying to eat the radiator and fridge and not interested in anything else!

MsAwesomeDragon · 06/10/2021 07:35

Pup was about 4 months when he started at daycare. It really is a lovely place, very caring owners and pup has a real bond with the woman owner (he's less keen but fine with the man). There are pups as young as 12 weeks there, they just need to be old enough to be one week after their second injections, including kennel cough.

4am is a killer isn't it @lifestooshortandsoami? It doesn't last forever, but it does last long enough for you to develop a real appreciation of a full night's sleep. I think AwesomePup was about 16 weeks when he started sleeping til 6, which is when we get up normally in the week.

lifestooshortandsoami · 06/10/2021 08:10

@MsAwesomeDragon

Pup was about 4 months when he started at daycare. It really is a lovely place, very caring owners and pup has a real bond with the woman owner (he's less keen but fine with the man). There are pups as young as 12 weeks there, they just need to be old enough to be one week after their second injections, including kennel cough.

4am is a killer isn't it @lifestooshortandsoami? It doesn't last forever, but it does last long enough for you to develop a real appreciation of a full night's sleep. I think AwesomePup was about 16 weeks when he started sleeping til 6, which is when we get up normally in the week.

@MsAwesomeDragon yeah it is! I can cope with 5 onwards but 4am is a different level! He’s got so much energy and seems to get bored easily - as I guess they all do!
BaconAndAvocado · 06/10/2021 08:47

Taking Newboy out for his very first "walk" after a trip to Pets at Home to get his harness fitted and name tag sorted.

Feeling excited/anxious about this new stage!
Going to the beach. Dog owner Central so there'll be lots of socialising opportunities for him.

tizwozliz · 06/10/2021 08:59

I'm so jealous of everyone who gets to live by the beach, we're about as far away as you can get here.

opalescent · 06/10/2021 09:53

How are you all getting on with loose lead walking? I have to confess that my efforts have been a bit half hearted so far- it's hard to feel motivated to train for every walk of the day!

But opalpup was a pain in the butt on this mornings walk- pulling constantly, and pulling HARD. All over the place. Three steps forward, two steps back. She's a working cocker, so totally led by her nose, and it's a powerful
Instinct.

I'd be really grateful for any tips or advice on getting better walking habits in place. I have friends with adult cockers who never got round to training, and their dogs are now a nightmare unless off lead!

tizwozliz · 06/10/2021 10:08

Definitely still a work in progress with the loose lead walking but we've seen some huge improvements over the last couple of weeks. A fortnight ago it felt like it would be impossible, now it does feel like we'll get there eventually.

Trick for us was being really consistent, no moving forward whilst tension on the lead. Really, really dull and we have to make sure our walks don't involve too much walking on lead, otherwise some days we wouldn't get to where we wanted to be and the temptation to be pulled along is too great.

TheBigMacDougal · 06/10/2021 10:16

@opalescent interested in seeing how others are getting on with loose lead too. Mac is a very sniffy spaniel and at puppy class when we do the exercises where he’s supposed to focus back on me he often does even go after the treat, nose is firmly on the ground… I can get some nice loose lead walking around our house and up the road we live on but that’s it. Not even bothered trying it on grass as unless there is primula under his nose he couldn’t give a shit 🤣

His recall is good (without distraction of dog/bird), but can already see where the teenage arseholeness will take us! 🤨

Aria20 · 06/10/2021 10:48

@opalescent @TheBigMacDougal it's hard with these spaniels isn't it sniffing the ground is so much more fun! Teenage arsehole stage is here so our loose lead walking has taken a step back as has recall!

If you have a perfect fit harness with a clip on the chest and back, I've found using the double ended training lead by halti clipped to both clips means they can't pull so we walk with the lead like this until we get to the field/woods etc where she can be either offlead or on long line and she does know the difference when she's got the lead clipped on both ends she doesn't even bother trying to pull.... but if I only clip on the back of the harness she pulls!

BaconAndAvocado · 06/10/2021 11:57

Just got back and Newboy is out for the count!

It was fab. He met lots of other pooches and wasn't anxious at all!!

His new harness is great abs wasn't pulling very much at all for a first try. Probably a fluke 😂

Goawayangryman · 06/10/2021 12:03

Loose lead walking. Haha mm not great here. Fine in garden. Not fine out the house. And her harness seems to make her itch, so I think I need to get the perfect fit one as I hate the idea of her pulling on her collar. And use more treats and lead her in the way I want her to walk.

I'm petrified of letting mine off the lead, mainly for dog theft reasons.

bargelights · 06/10/2021 12:37

Loose lead walking is going quite well here (for now, I know everything can change in a flash). It’s important we get this right, since he needs to be on lead quite a bit where we live. So I am trying to put in extra effort on this skill.

GuyFawkesDay · 06/10/2021 13:47

Ours is ok if we are on our own. Add another dog or people and it all goes out the window 😩 cheese bribery works great but we need more practice around other dogs without a doubt.

Goawayangryman · 06/10/2021 14:46

We seem to do better on grass than on pavements. Cheese is also a big winner here but despite being extra greedy (!) she won't entertain anything when she gets a scent of something interesting. I think I might have to try sprats as they honk

Returnoftheowl · 06/10/2021 14:52

Loose lead walking is a mixed bag here. It's certainly better then it was.

GuyFawkesDay · 06/10/2021 15:08

Sprats are my other weapon. They helped us finally crack toileting as he will pretty much do anything for stinky fish. The fish breath is not so nice though!

Might have to bite the sleeping downstairs bullet tonight and try him in crate in kitchen again....

cheeseisthebest · 06/10/2021 15:44

No interest in sprats here but ostrich bone just arrived. Will report back!

Aria20 · 06/10/2021 16:36

I might have to get some sprats even though I can't bear the smell! Last time I was in pets at home they only had the huge buckets of sprats left though for £50 lol

tizwozliz · 06/10/2021 17:56

I limited myself to the 1kg bucket of sprats :-)

Just had a really good walk, with some lovely on lead walking for pretty much the whole distance from the open area back to the house. Only negative was I stood in dog poo. No wonder so many people hate dog owners, now we're always walking in more popular dog walking spots the amount of shit around is unbelievable

MsAwesomeDragon · 06/10/2021 17:58

AwesomePup has only ever had 2 sprats in his life, both at puppy classes when the trainer had brought lots of different treats for all the puppies to try. He loved them, BUT we don't eat fish in our house as we all hate it, so stinking the house out with fish for the dog seems like a step too far for us. We've compromised with salmon sticks and mini salmon treats from B&M. They smell, but not as bad as the sprats, and we keep them for bribery outside the house.

I thought pup was feeling properly better today, and sent him to daycare, where he's had a marvellous time playing with all his doggy pals. Then we've come home and he's thrown up on the living room carpet, so obviously not quite feeling back to normal. We'll go back to rice and chicken for his meals and nothing else for a few more days. I think I'll try to take him back to the vets tomorrow about his gloopy, red eyes and will talk about the persistent vomiting as well. He does seem to be feeling ok, other than when he throws up and looks sorry for himself for a little bit.

Original poster
MakeMeCleanTheHouse · 06/10/2021 19:02

I don't think I'm consistent enough with any training because work exhausts me and stops me doing it. He's then inconsistent.

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Original poster
MakeMeCleanTheHouse · 06/10/2021 19:03

@MsAwesomeDragon gloomy eyes and vomity guts sounds challenging

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567and · 06/10/2021 19:54

@MsAwesomeDragon Sorry to hear Awesomepup is still feeling a bit poorly. Hope the vet has some answers for you and he feels better soon.

I very nearly bought some sprats today but chickened out and bought a yak chew instead (which is a HUGE hit and kept him entertained for ages!). Cheese and little pieces of chicken seem to go down well here for training purposes. He’s not so fond of the primula, but does like the chicken paste on his lickmat.

I also bought a snuffle mat to try out, so need to rein in the dog spending for a bit! 😆

cheeseisthebest · 06/10/2021 19:55

@MakeMeCleanTheHouse

I don't think I'm consistent enough with any training because work exhausts me and stops me doing it. He's then inconsistent.
I'm exactly the same.