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 🤬😡😭.

Had a horrible day today and have serious puppy blues. Feeling like a complete failure. Blahpup is jumping and barking with excitement at other dogs and people. Won’t stay alone. Won’t go in his crate. Is pulling on his lead. Just generally being difficult. I’m really feeling at a loss with it all and everything I read to try and help me just feels like a huge mountain to climb. Anyone got any advice?

It does get easier blahblah, I still have a velcro pup at 9 months but the other stuff has calmed down loads, I do think some of it is just a matter of time. Try and teach sit, they can get that really quickly, then when they are jumping up teach them to sit instead (ignore all other behaviour) and reward with treats, praise and affection.

My last dog went through a phase like that, @Blahblahblah40 . He was insufferable. I used to dream someone would knock at the door and say, “I have a wonderful large farm and a warm, cosy kitchen - I’ll adopt him.” But needless to say all things pass and a short while later I would have died rather than be without him for a day!

My problem is my puppy early waking. I was Smuggy McSmugface at first as he slept all through the night. Now, at 15 weeks he is waking up at. 5.30 (weep!) ready for the day. I take him out for a wee and put him back in his crate (blackout curtains) but he whines until I get up. Today he barked until I went down at 6.30. Help!

Ignoring unwanted behaviour does work. Mine will come up to me and bark at about 9pm at night to want to play, no way is that happening at that time so I ignore him, he knows I wont give in, unlike other family members so wanders off. I don't even make eye contact!

How old is he? I gave up with the crate cos he hated it so much.

Thanks everyone.
@cheeseisthebest He can sit, and lie down but getting his attention when there are other things around to distract him is so blinking difficult. Intensified 100x over by DC’s half term! Then I see neighbors pup who is 2 weeks younger who never barks, doesn’t chew, is crate trained etc. and I just feel like a MASSIVE failure who is letting Blahpup rule the roost despite all my best efforts. I try to ignore as much as possible but then worry about attached neighbors and him waking DC.
Yes @DottyHarmer I have these thoughts then feel horrid at the thought of him not being around. Thankfully he does sleep at night.

@cheeseisthebest he is 15 weeks and hated the crate from day one so is currently behind a stair gate, hates that too!

It will get better I promise!

Blahblahblah. It's an annoying age. My pup is coming up to 15 weeks and she has been destroying everything. Now she can go out, she has met a friend's large tolerant chowchow and she spent the whole time boxing and nipping his face. She woke me up at 1am last night to go out (usually she sleeps till 4-6am) but didn't even wee, she just wanted to resume digging a hole in my rose bed (and she has ANNIHILATED my expensive new David Austen rose, just planted this winter). She ripped DD's drawings off the wall above her bed dint of some very determined jumping today. And she got to the letters that came through the post before I did. Hello, chewed and ripped important legal documents that'll probably have to be redone.

Puppies are wankers.

@cheeseisthebest

It will get better I promise!

Thank you for being understanding. That’s what I keep telling myself every day but it’s not working today….

@ABitBesotted

Blahblahblah. It's an annoying age. My pup is coming up to 15 weeks and she has been destroying everything. Now she can go out, she has met a friend's large tolerant chowchow and she spent the whole time boxing and nipping his face. She woke me up at 1am last night to go out (usually she sleeps till 4-6am) but didn't even wee, she just wanted to resume digging a hole in my rose bed (and she has ANNIHILATED my expensive new David Austen rose, just planted this winter). She ripped DD's drawings off the wall above her bed dint of some very determined jumping today. And she got to the letters that came through the post before I did. Hello, chewed and ripped important legal documents that'll probably have to be redone.

Puppies are wankers.

I wish! Can’t even go to the shop to buy wine as I don’t have another adult in the house… 😭 if I could wish for anything right now it would be that. An extra pair of hands to take the pressure off.

Aren’t they though?! Tell you what, I’d happily swap for a baby right now, least I know I got that right.

It really does get better! I know that a lot of people find the very early days with a puppy to be the hardest, but for me the most difficult time (at least so far, yikes) was right around 4 months. So that is where you are now @Blahblahblah40. For me it meant finding a balance between sufficient exercise/games and sleep. I had to enforce naps quite a bit then, as he would just keep going even if he was really tired. But he needed a lot of sleep then, whether he knew it or not.

Yeah @certainshepherdpups he is definitely more difficult when DC is off school (weekends and holidays) as he will not give in and sleep. Even if I put him through in his room he won’t sleep if he knows we are elsewhere in the house, just whines and cries and barks, so enforcing naps only works if I let him sleep in the living room with us etc.

Well it had to happen sometime, Ada anointed herself with something stinky on our walk. Not quite sure what. She tolerated going in the bath and being smothered in passata ok, just stood there looking sorry for herself

Room for a little one ?

I've been reading these threads for a while and can finally join.

In 4 weeks time we will be bringing home Parker . His parents are a lab/boxer cross and a Dalmatian. He is so adorable and right chunk.

I suddenly feel like I don't know anything about dogs and what they need lol (I do) so I'll be reading through these threads for tips.

Looking for advice. My 16wk pup been off all day. She vomited this morning after breakfast. I have her chicken & rice for tea. She has vomited it straight back up... I noticed 2 worms in it..🤮🤮
I was taking her to pick up worming tablets tomorrow anyway as she is due. But should I get the vet to check her over now because she's vomited

Can I also join? We’ll be bringing Mabelpup home in 2.5 weeks - she’s a miniature dachshund and I’m bloody scared to death that I’ll screw it up, that she’ll be a nightmare, I’ll regret and my two DC will be unhappy and my husband will be like “I told you so”

I’m genuinely really anxious about it, probably because I know daxies can be little sods

But looking forward to finding some solace in this thread!!

@SirChenjins yes he was dynamite! He was totally obsessed with me - If I left the room and he was with DH and kids he’d go ballistic crying and howling. That only really stopped over Christmas when DH and the kids were home for the holidays and he started to spend more time with them.

For the separation breaks We had to put him in his crate and shut the door and he would absolutely go mad and that was with us in the same room. So as soon as he stopped, we would give him a treat and a big good boy. So we practiced that for a few days, lots of short sessions during the day, then moved on to leaving the room and shutting the door, same thing again as soon as he stopped crying straight in with a big good boy and treat, then slightly longer and repeat, practiced lots of times for short sessions every day, building up the time. It took a while, then when he was less bothered, that’s when I started crating him after the school run and he’d sleep for a hour in the room on his own. So no quick fixes but we are getting there - hope that’s useful

Oh Blah sending you a hug and hoping a decent sleep you’ll have a better day today x

Abitbesotted is right, puppies are wankers at times, exceptionally cute but my god push you to your limits……..

Up at 4.30 this morning . I am a human wreck but Dog is very cheerful and has just crashed out ready to sleep till lunchtime….

@Autumn101 thank you for the virtual hug. Had a good cry last night and got all the stress out. I’m thinking I need to be a bit harder with him, am probably letting him rule the roost a little too much which is just exacerbating all the bad behaviour. Bit of tough love required! So today we are working on ignoring jumping, he will be on a shortish lead for both walks, and playtime/training will be when I say so not when he fancies it. Thankfully the nipping has pretty much all stopped and he was much calmer in the car yesterday so progress there.

@DottyHarmer Blahpup was up 3x last night as it was really stormy here. The 6:15 wake up call was just too much so I let him whinge for 10 mins and he eventually went back to bed for another hour. Not that I slept, but it was nice to not get up on his command.

The trouble is that Dog’s bark is so loud that you can hear it in the next county. He starts off with a few whines, and then it’s WOOF!WOOF!WOOF!

Blah, tough love does work even if it’s hard to do! I have to keep reminding myself he’s a dog not a baby and if he whines for 5 minutes while I go upstairs to get dressed it’s not going to do him any harm and he has to learn to fit in with us as well as the other way round.

Last day of being stuck in today, cannot wait to get out tomorrow! DC and I are going to our nearby NT place with him for a mini walk and a hot chocolate at the outdoor cafe, fingers crossed he doesn’t disgrace us and has a monster sleep when we get home 🤞🤞

And I hope you get more sleep tonight Dotty! Disturbed nights are just rubbish

@ allthingsred ugh, horrid. I'd think a worming tablet should sort her out. I probably wouldn't take the dog to the vet over a single vomiting episode unless she were generally poorly for a day or more. Hope she's doing better!