Puppy Survival Thread - for old and new pups

[Riverlee]

Thought I’d start a new thread as the old one is at its limit, for new and older pups.

please come and share your tales of success, woes, concerns and questions, and of course, photographs.

So I went to my first puppy class yesterday and feeling a bit better. Lovely nurse at the vet ran it and said he was clearly doing well and could see I'd been putting in the effort to train him. Funny how you need to hear that eh?

We've had a pretty tough day. Hazel has been taking herself into the garden and has snaffled mud, a bit of cat poo...who knows. She's been vomiting all day. Maybe coincidence, maybe not. I finally decided to call the vet once she was waking from sleep to vomit foam (we didn't give her afternoon or evening meal). The vets were still open but the vet had gone home, so we had to take her to out of hours. They've given her an antiemetic and said that if she vomits after 10:30pm, I have to call them. £355 later, we're home and she's settled in her crate.

I bought a microchip cat flap on Facebook but it's only a one way microchip scan, so no good, because it won't keep her in. I need a dual scan one, apparently, but they're £110 new and I can't afford that right now, so we'll have to restrict her a little in the house so she can't get to the cat flap.

@Lougle oh no! Hopefully it will have been expelled whatever it was and she’ll be better tomorrow. It’s worrying though isn’t it? I genuinely don’t know how you can stop them eating things either, they wolf them down and especially if they think you’re going to stop them. Maggie has eaten several cat poo that I’ve seen so god knows how many that I haven’t. Hope she feels better soon.

I’m exhausted. I’ve gone to bed. I offered pup a last wee and she went and got in her crate, so I lured her out, took her out and now we’ve both gone to bed. Hopefully that extra hour won’t be too much for her, we’ll see tomorrow morning.

Oh no, hope the anti-emetic does its job and Hazel is OK now 🤞

Oh no @Lougle I hope that's the last of the vomiting now. Our older dog had a few bouts of vomiting like that as a pup and the period after where they won't eat anything is tricky, but she was always completely fine after. I hope you can have a quiet few days.

@Tomlettegregg the vet nurse sounds lovely, it is nice to be told you're doing it right... there's always that sense of you're probably messing it up if you're not a qualified trainer! I'm glad you had a better day.

She's been ok overnight and she's had some rice and fish for breakfast. She seems quite unimpressed by it 😁

Thanks @BleakGarden we've got the crate back out at her encouragement. He surely in it for the first 2 weeks overnight but the last 2 he's been with me in his bed on the floor whilst I have the sofa. Today I left it open near him and I and he went in it himself for a lie down with the door open. Shall I just try shutting it for short periods.

That's fab @Tomlettegregg . We sat next to the crate, then shut it for 10 seconds, treat, 20 seconds, treat, etc.

Hope Hazel feels better today. We are still up twice a night with a poo at 2am. He seems to be eating better though.

I still haven’t found puppy classes with space. Where did people find them? Is it just a case of google?

Here is this morning looking cute to make up for my lack of sleep 😂

Oh she is so sweet! It's a good job they're cute, we wouldn't put up with them otherwise.

I have classes booked in with the Dogs Trust- have you tried them?

www.dogstrust.org.uk/dog-advice/dog-school/search

Are you on Facebook @FoxRedPuppy ? We found a lot of trainers only really have an online presence there.

@FoxRedPuppy if you wanted to PM me your location I could have a scout around for you.

@BleakGarden We've had him a month. He's from a local litter so the owner used puppy pads and we just continued on with them. She trains her dogs by moving the pad closer to the door gradually. We messed up in that we have him in our hallway with his food near the door, his pad at the other end in the bathroom and his bed in the middle. Then after two weeks we swapped it around so the pad was nearest the front door, and his food near the bathroom.
So I think we confused our little hairy baby!

He's such a good dog. He's been taught not to beg for food when we are eating dinner, just lies down beside the table hopefully in case DC drops a morsel. So I think he'll be well able to learn how to do things - the problem is that we are a bit clueless.

From reading this thread we began sticking to three meals a day, with his last one around 5pm so hopefully no poo accidents over night -and he's 75% there on peeing on the pup pad over night. We bring him out very frequently up to bed time for pees so maybe he doesn't need to tell us because we anticipate him needing it before he feels he needs to go. He gets lots of praise and a treat when he pees outside, no comment and no treat with inside accidents.

It might be an idea to only put down a pad at night time, and just bring him outside like we do.

@Lougle just popping in to say thank you for sharing your routine with Hazel which I adopted yesterday and it's really made a difference, so far anyway.
I put reminders on my phone of mealtimes for Bertie and then between those we are doing the training/play/toiletting/sleep and it feels like I know what I'm doing; at least I now have a routine to follow. 😊
Also - thinking of Bertie as being the dog I have at any given moment is also helpful and stops me from thinking 'but it worked yesterday/earlier/I am a failure and he is out of control.

@FeargalLandSharkey I'm so glad it helped! I use her meals as her training sessions - it might carve out a bit of time for a cuppa in your day!

Hazel seems better in herself. She's currently sleeping on the sofa, with her head on my lap, which is a rare treat.

A sparkling moment for you both I'm sure. It's what it's all about isn't it, that 'ahhh, we have a connection' .

@Lougle hope little Hazel is feeling better soon- cheeky little monkey. The constant worry of snaffling something they shouldn’t is real!!

I booked some puppy classes with the Dogs' Trust, thanks @Pineapplemonkey

We've had a pretty good day. One small wee inside (so far 😂). We did some loose lead training and it went well. He does seem to be getting it now.

Pupxx seems feral tonight, lots of biting, chasing his tail and whinging. He looks completely pissed off that I’m here with him rather than his dad 🤷. He’s 14 weeks and possibly teething ? Today has been a tough day, I don’t feel like I’m getting anything done in the house, someone has thrown a grenade into my life shaped as a border terrier 😬

Ah glad you found a class. We start on the 25th of this month (this is where you say me too and it turns out you live round the corner and are coming on the same course yeah?!)

I've been in the office today so have had a puppy free day, 10 whole hours of not being on constant edge as to where she's going to toilet next and not having to defend myself against excitable chomping of my hands/face/any body part, bliss! Best bit is she comes home knackered!

We stay on 5th December so not the same!

Was it doggy day care? I really need a break from the intensity. I’m questioning my choice to do this as the only adult 😂.

It is that constant watching and being alert. Exhausting!

I looked at dogs trust too and the nearest one to me starts on 5th dec, but it’s a 25 minute drive from me and I’m not sure I want to do that sort of drive for a class

For some reason doggy day care in my neck of the woods is not a thing sadly. There is just one and it won't take dogs under a year old, and even then you might fail the other entry requirements.

I'm lucky that my parents look after her on a Tuesday. I think they're finding it slightly more stressful than they thought it would be, especially the toilet accidents and the fact they currently feel a bit trapped in the house with her. They do love her though and vice versa so I don't worry about her in the slightest. Good god it's stressful though on a Tuesday morning trying to keep to her routine and also shower, hair, makeup, dress, pack her a bag (food, toys, bed, treats), pack my bag, get her in the car and drive across town to drop her off. I'm ready for bed already!

Our pup is doing well but oh my god the witching hour(s) of 7-9pm are doing my head in. My hands are covered in puncture wounds and he's ripped tiny holes in every pair of trousers I own...

Still love the little land shark though