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.

Most raw food guides say 5-8% of current body weight.

For dried food the amount is based on expected adult weight.

@Lougle thank you. I’ll weigh her again. She’s definitely had a growth spurt, she was the littlest of 8 pups and I think she has enjoyed being the only one at the trough!
does that recommended percentage change as they get older? I am going to speak to a raw food shop on Saturday when I pick up my order.

https://www.nutriment.co.uk/blog/post/puppies-on-raw-diets

This is a guide from Nutriment. You might find a similar one for your particular brand.

Thank you, that’s a really helpful article. I think I need to go in and speak to someone, she’s having 500g a day (plus training kibble) but she still seems hungry (and I mean genuinely, like ravenously scrambling for food and whining, not just giving me big “feed me” eyes) whereas this says for her weight she needs 350g a day.

I found that Hazel couldn't take the amount of kibble suggested because the breeder had free fed the litter and someone else was eating all the pies. Now at almost 12 weeks she literally cries for her morning feed because she's gone 12 hours without food.

I think you'll find that if you move to 4 meals per day, she'll be less ravenous when you feed her. It's just too long for them to wait at this age.

Thank you @Lougle i’ll try that today. She was really frantic and bitey this morning. I think as well the raw food is very easily digested so it doesn’t fill them up as long? I really appreciate your input, thank you.

So just when you're rubbing your hands together and thinking that at 14 months you've cracked it, your pup decides that they'll start doing something out of the blue. In this case, pup has decided to start chewing things when I'm out of the house. He's not left on his own, hubby and son are upstairs in their respective bedrooms (working from home and playing games) and he knows they're up there, they'll pop down and play with him for a few minutes or just to grab a drink but if I'm out any more than a couple of hours pup starts to chew things he doesn't normally bother with. The first time it was my spare pair of glasses where he chewed through the arm and one of the lens fell out and today it was the mat at the front door which now has a hole in it. Not sure if it's boredom? He has free roam of downstairs and has plenty of toys around him to play with. He's not interested in Kongs so can't leave him one of those. He seems to be ok for just quick outings, it's almost like I've stayed out too long in his mind. He is a bit of a velcro dog where I'm concerned, but I thought with other people being in the house it wouldn't affect him too much. Anyone of similar experience? I want to try and knock it on the head before it gets worse or carries on.

Have you got a safe space you can contain him in?

Do you put food in his kongs? We put cheese or dog peanut butter in them and freeze them.

We never leave RiverPup unattended as he would go in rooms he’s not allowed to, scratch at things etc. Our lives revolve around when he’s awake or sleep. Usually I’m the one attending to him, or if I’m at work, dh will c9me downstairs to work.

I’ve tried him with peanut butter but he’s not a fan, what sort of cheese do you use? He’s been ok free roaming before, he usually lies at the front door or goes on the chair looking out of the window. We’ve noticed in the last couple of weeks slight changes in his behaviour, he’s not as chilled back as he was and we’re wondering now if it’s the implant that he had 6 weeks that’s kicking in.

Was that the suprelorin chemical castration? The testosterone levels actually increase for about 4 weeks after the implant before they start to decrease.

Soft cream cheese, pumpkin, Greek yogurt can all be good.

I always used to mix kibble with cream cheese or yogurt and freeze it in kongs.

Im beginning to feel the claustrophobia of a puppy. I know it isn’t forever. I’m on my own (no dh and do doesn’t live with us). So I’m the only adult. Is my life literally revolves around when he’s awake and asleep. My dc are good with him but don’t want t leave them responsible. i feel a bit trapped in my own house!

You are so not on your own with this! I'm feeling the same. It's just me (no kids either) and everything is revolving round the pup routine, it's driving me insane, and I've always been a homebody who loves being at home, lockdown didn't bother me at all, but this?!
I just wish I could sort out the toilet training, she's just refusing to go outside if the ground is wet, I can't fix that! I wait and wait in the outside pen, she just whines and try's to escape and the minute she's back in the house, she craps on my carpet! I've given in and bought some puppy pads. Yes, there's lots of people who say they're a bad thing and I agree with the theory of not using them but when I'm taking her out ever half an hour or more (and that isn't sustainable,I have a job!) and she just won't go I can't think of an alternative. When she does go outside, I praise her, give her roast chicken, still that won't persuade her to go 😡

@FoxRedPuppy i definitely felt like this earlier in the week. My brain just felt frazzled. Do you have a crate? Or mine just loves the kitchen (wonder why 😂) and will just chill in here. My plan today is to batch cook some family meals and spend a bit of time with her in here, she’s safe here and can’t get into any japes. I have also put her on her lead and walked her round our front drive, makes a change from the muddy lawn and it seems to have tired her out by having something new to investigate.

I just went to just for pets for raw food, spoke to a very knowledgeable lady, I have bought enough for a month and then also bought some things like white fish and some peas to add to it. It’s pricey, tbh if it’s £2 a day (that’s what I’ve spent) then that’s ok but if it’s getting crazy expensive then I need to reconsider, maybe do half and half. I am going up sit this afternoon and design a spreadsheet so I can track it all.

We had that feeling as well. You get a puppy to go out for walks, fresh air etc, and then discover they’re only allowed short walks. I was only saying to someone recently we were fitter before getting a puppy! Things do improve, and that relentless feeling does pass.

Glad I’m not alone! I know it’s only for a short period. I have a crate and he quite likes it, he will take himself off into there. He’s also a big fan of sleeping on someone though, especially on the sofa!

Im going to enforce more naps in the crate I think.

He loves the garden, and sometimes I let him run around out there while I’m inside but keeping an eye on him. Luckily it’s a small garden, completely enclosed.

That's so hard @Pineapplemonkey . I don't blame you for getting dejected.

I'm suffering a bit because of the disrupted sleep. She's very good, but she sleeps from quite early on in the evening, so last night she went out at about 8.45pm, then 2.30am, then was up for the day at 06.30. It's not bad at all, but I get chronic migraines and take melatonin at night, so it's not fantastic to have a broken sleep pattern.

I think every puppy must have one 'difficult' issue for us to deal with. I count myself lucky that Mabel sleeps in her crate from 10 till 7.30/7.45. My issue is obviously the toilet training. It's the way when I take her outside that she just whines and tries to escape the pen and faffs rather than just do her business and get to go back indoors, so frustrating! I know she needs to go, she knows she needs to go, why won't she bloody go! I'm really struggling to contain the anger (for avoidance of doubt, I am containing it, I wouldn't shout at her, it wouldn't make a difference) The neighbourhood must all be chuckling away to themselves at things I'm chatting to her about whist encouraging her to go, they can all hear me swearing in a lovely calm sing song voice!

@Lougle oh and as a migraine sufferer, you have my every sympathy with the broken sleep. They say one day this too shall pass, let's hope it's sooner than later eh?!

Have you seen these? You stick it in the garden and the smell encourages them to wee

No, never seen it and has mixed reviews but Amazon are now delivering it tomorrow!

I'm desperate to find a way to leave the puppy on her own. She's 18 weeks now and we realised she has never really been in a room on her own yet, she sleeps in the crate but during the day that's in either my office when I work, with DH when he wfh or the living room, at night she is in the crate in our room.

How do we start with building her up to it? Is it just a case of closing her in the kitchen with a bed, food, toys and building up from 1 or 2 minutes?

It would be such a help to know i can leave her for 15 minutes so I can nip to the shop, or even know that when she is older we can leave her for a couple of hours without howling the neighbourhood down. (We wouldn't leave her for 2hrs as a starting point, but our old family dog could be left for a few hours with no issue when she got to about 2)

@Hiddendoor do you potter in and out of your office during the day? I think that would be my first step.

Hazel has a pen around her crate in DD2's room, so she's naturally left from time to time when she needs to get a drink, eat, use the loo, etc. Hazel has just seen that as normal.

I really recommend the Facebook group Dog advice and support. They have guides that includes how to build up leaving them. There’s a flitting game and okey cokey game. 18 weeks is still very little though, doesn’t mean you won’t be able to leave when they are older.

Thanks @Lougle and @FoxRedPuppy I joined the group and got part way through the puppy guide and was disheartened by the "no you can't leave your puppy alone" guide. I will reread!

She is used to me going in and out but she takes a while to settle each time.

Will persevere. She's decided to fight sleep today so hoping for a couple of hours nap this afternoon to read!