Puppy Survival Thread: surviving into 2022

[LadyCatStark]

The other thread is full and I can’t see a new one! Hope it’s OK to start one. I’m actually barely surviving puppyhood, actually teenagerhood, this week 🤬😡😭.

That's a happy dog!!

I went out in the gap between the rain today (more luck than judgement!) In the hope I could reduce the wetness levels.

Then my Flexi lead (tape one, a month old) snapped when FawkesPup ran round a tree. Luckily I always keep a slip lead in my walking bag so I hooked up to his harness and did a brave thing, letting him off lead up the private dead end road to the farm near us which is deathly quiet. He was fantastic, recall and behaviour wise.

However, he did have a RIOT in the full field ditches. Drenched, head to foot. So that was a huge fail!! Check out his cheeky face!

@GuyFawkesDay haha classic mischief face!

Ain't it just 🤣🤣🤣🤣

I am on a spaniel specialist subscription group and am blitzing their "teenage spaniel" videos....

GuyFawkesDay my spaniel pup has started weeing in the house again and jumping up, especially biting the lead. He has forgotten any training and cant be trusted to recall. We have shorten his walks as he was getting zoomy when we got home so it was suggested that we were over stimulating him. He is 9 months. Any advice much appreciated

Oh lordy we have lead biting again too, I think that's what did for the Flexi lead!

He tends to do it when he is hyped up eg. After fetch or if he is frustrated before going off lead.

I have found stopping to do some simple position training helps distract so high value treat, do sit, down, paw, boop, chin for FawkesPup. Mix them up. By the time he's had 1-2 minutes of that he's normally better and calmer. It's like a quick reset button.

Recall I have no clue really! Some days are fantastic, some are awful.

That said he's also a knobhead 🤣

So a week and a half of sleeping and we’re back to rubbish nights again 🙄🙄 up at 11pm, 2am and I’m currently sat in the dark next to his crate trying to get him to quieten down since 5am 😴😴

Oh no @Autumn101 hope it’s just a blip and he’s back to sleeping again tonight.

Gorgeous pic @tizwozliz and @GuyFawkesDay

So we passed puppy classes last night by the skin of our teeth. So embarrassing though, as whilst the others in the group (there were only 4 of us complete the whole 9 weeks form about 10 in the beginning!) we’re all showing their dogs could complete the tasks, mine decided to bark at them all, pull on his lead and not really engage at all. So one of the trainers took us aside and worked through some of the issues with him not paying attention. Of course, he did everything the trainer asked of him but totally ignored me! Felt so rubbish and almost cried! I thought they’d say we had to start the course again from the beginning as he wasn’t ready to pass, but the trainers are so lovely and gave me some good tips. I do find, though, that they all have slightly different ways of doing things, so I’d been advised to get a certain type of lead by one and how to hold it to have more control, but the man last night was saying not to do that, get a different lead and put it on his collar not harness etc. Also told I’m praising too much and that he should have to work for my praise. I was just so chuffed when he did anything at all that I asked I thought that lots of praise would encourage the behaviour. But apparently that makes me a ‘cheap date’ and I need to play hard to get! 😂 😂 So we’re ready to apply for bronze but the spaces are all taken up and then next class not until April, so have time to work on everything and hope he’s called the heck down by the time we get on the next course! I needed a gin when I got home last night!

Well done on passing 567 even if it was rather stressful!!

Second jabs today and vet was so lovely and best of all said he could go out in a week and not to take too much notice of the 5 minutes per month thing as he clearly needs the exercise 😂 she’s happy for us to do 20 minutes 3 x day going up to an hour by 6 months - she has springers too so gave me loads of good advice and reassurance we’re doing ok

Thank you @Autumn101 I really could have cried when we were taken aside. All the other pups being so well behaved. He’s not a naughty dog, but is very excited when he goes out, which doesn’t mix well when trying to get his focus on training exercises!

Our vet gave the same advice on walks. We did 20-30 mins on softer grounds early on and now he’s nearly 8 months go up to an hour a few times a week. He loves a run about and sniff, but now questioning if I should have been doing much more training when walking rather than letting him run off his energy and just enjoying being out. Very much doubting myself today, but determined to keep trying!

Second jabs today and vet was so lovely and best of all said he could go out in a week and not to take too much notice of the 5 minutes per month thing as he clearly needs the exercise

Good vet. Ours also said that "rule" was pure silliness. A pug is not going to need the same exercise as a springer or a collie.

GuyFawkesDay how long are you walking your pup for? We were doing a hour but he was very zoomy afterwards so shorten the walks

@sandwiches77 he's 8 months old now and does on my work days

6:45am 10 minutes round the block wee and poo
11am 20 minutes to cafe and back on lead with DH. Scoff sausage and pupaccino and then 30 minutes home via the park for a bit of off lead sniffing.
4pm 20-30 minutes in the other park or fields playing fetch or just twatting about off lead.

Sometimes we do an evening sniffy walk if he's being a knob. Tonight he has his first KC bronze class so that'll tire him out!!

On my non work days I don't take him early but then do a good hour+ off lead as much as I can with him in the morning and a shorter afternoon walk.

He is pretty chilled though, and does like a good snooze both morning and late afternoon.

@567and me too! I got told I fuss to much but I’m just so bloody proud when she does something so now I try to play it much more cool. Dpup still has the attention span of a gnat.

Agree so many conflicting messages I’ve found, we were told use a harness then another a slip lead. It’s a minefield isn’t it we are just bumbling through

Had an absolutely awful walk with TerrorPup today, the worst in months. I am usually super proud of her loose lead walking but we had absolutely none of that, she was bouncing at my head height, trying to pull to say hello to absolutely anyone or anything she saw. Couldn't even get her sniffing for scattered treats. Worst thing is I lost my temper right at the end and now feel like a horrible dog mum.

She seems fine, she came in and curled up on the sofa, fast asleep within five minutes so possibly just tired (the wind did keep us up a lot overnight). I just feel awful.

@TerrierOrTerror we’ve all been there
The wind is definitely unsettling for them

TerrierOrTerror - hope you’re feeling a bit better now, I think all of us have or will have moments like that. I’m only 4 weeks in and have definitely had things happen I haven’t dealt with in the right way! It’s so so hard when you’re tired x

@TerrierOrTerror - we’ve all been there with the pups, they can be absolute hoodlums at times! The great thing is that she’s usually brilliant so you’re definitely doing something right - she was just having an off day. Hope you’re managing to get a bit of a rest while she’s sleeping

Wind does seem to make pups go loopy. Our worst training sessions have always been when it's very windy. It's not been too bad here but forecast tomorrow is hideous.

We had a one to one trainer come to our house to work on our marking for finding arrows. Ada was a star, so nice when she's normally the hoodlum in training.

Had an awful trip away to my dads with ddog.
He demonstrated his awful new behaviour of wanting to hump dogs and people which he has discovered in the last month. He greeted my dad with a very enthusiastic crotch sniff and some humping and did the same to my sister but then he pursued her until she had to shut herself in another room.
He harassed my sisters lovely older bombproof dog continually trying to butt sniff and mount her and whining and crying when separated. His persistence was amazing. I have never seen him like that. Dsis dog is spayed a long time ago so definitely wasn't anything to do with her.
Even when taken on a walk with her which we though would distract and calm him he was so desperate to get to her that he actually broke his lead
I tried to dog proof but it's hard in someone else's house so he chewed up a candle (apparently not toxic to dogs) and was then sick on the carpet and also shredded a hat and a pair of my dads socks.
It ruined my time with my family and I have concluded I can't take him there again. One of us will have to stay behind with him or get a sitter.
I was so depressed I had thoughts of giving him back to the rescue (not for the first time)
I had been quite committed to hold off neutering him until 18 mo as the vet advised but this behaviour is making me think twice on that one.

However since he's been back home he's been fine (well relatively calmer anyway) and I realised that it's probably my fault for putting him under too much stress with a long car journey, out of routine, new place, new people and then another dog.
I thought he would enjoy it because it's a lovely rural setting but he just went completely batshit crazy. The only time he was Ok at all was going on long muddy walks.
Lesson learned and I won't bring him again for a long time.
I am just hoping we can hold out for 6 months or a year and that after that he'll be lovely....

@TerrierOrTerror and @CovoidOfAllHumanity we all have bad moments. Here's to a better day tomorrow

My hellpup has now bitten her way through two leads and her first proper walk isn't until tomorrow. And she spent most of the night sleeping on my head (I think it was the wind). And it's full moon. Definitely silly season for many dogs, not just yours!

@allgreythings glad it’s not just me! 😂 I thought lots of praise was a good thing! Have decided to stick with the equipment I’ve got for now as I could keep buying bee leads/harnesses etc until the cows come home but they might not actually make much difference.

@TerrierOrTerror don’t beat yourself up, we’ve all been there. Sometimes it just seems insurmountable and all consuming. We’re on half term this week and am so glad for the kids giving the puppy some attention so I can get things done.

Let him out this morning for his morning wee and he was most perturbed at the fact the things had been blown round the garden and not in their normal place! He stood barking at the table that had blown onto the grass and had to bring him back in as he wasn’t giving up! 😆

Hope the weather isn’t too bad where you all are. We’re amber warning for tomorrow so trying to make the most of today as might be inside all day tomorrow.

@CovoidOfAllHumanity sorry it soured your trip. How old is he? It was probably just over stimulating for him new environment and new people etc. I hope you can have some calm days now and he settles.

@TerrierOrTerror had a similar experience the other day...The wind does whip them up into a frenzy.

@567and mine was barking at the bbq as we put the cover over it and the wind was making the cover flap around

Oh @CovoidOfAllHumanity - I'm sure it was hideous at the time, but it's very funny reading it! It's similar to when you see someone's else's child having the mother of all tantrums in the supermarket in front of their mortified parent and you think 'thank god it's not just my offspring that behave like that' . Hopefully your next trip to see your family will be better, it sounds like he was just over-stimulated and excitable