Puppy Survival Thread - for old and new pups heading into winter

[Lougle]

A thread to continue our journey with our puppies as we head into winter.

If you're new to having a puppy, jump straight in.

JanePup wants to play!
Waking hourly, whines and settles well after a quick cuddle, I put him back in the crate and he's fine. Woke for the toilet (our rug has gotten all of it today 🤦🏻‍♀️)
Now he's busy playing and bouncing! Happy for him to burn off some energy but I guess it's not the right thinks to do - I've not engaged too much.

@JaneIves aw, such a cutie

@Lougle well done hazel!
I really need to find some intermediate puppy/young adult classes. I feel like our training has lapsed a bit since Christmas and she’s getting a bit naughty. She walks really nicely on the lead most of the time. But the counter surfing is getting ridiculous. How do I stop her? If I reward her for getting down when I say, she just looks at me expecting a biscuit. I’ve tried using her ‘place’ command which works sometimes, but often the counter is more lucrative!
plus, I’d like to train her some cool stuff and I don’t know where to start!

https://www.adolescentdogs.com/post/dogs-who-steal

This is a great blog post by Adolescent Dogs, who we are signed up to.

In a nutshell, you need a combination of management and training. The management is essential because every time your puppy successfully swipes food, the behaviour is reinforced. You have to be able to stop her from rehearsing (and becoming expert at) the behaviour.

At the same time, training behaviours that encourage restraint is really important.

Whereabouts are you? (PM me if you like) I could help you find a class.

We do Bronze training with a dog training academy, and we use Adolescent Dogs in their Assistance Dog programme, but we get access to the AD VIP Online training programme as part of that and it's a good setup.

They have videos, Bronze-Gold awards, trick training, Calm Canine, etc., and they have a Facebook group you can post on with questions. They also have a live Q&A session on zoom each week and you can post your questions in advance.

We're just starting the Calm Canine Challenge with Hazel.

@Lougle thank you! I will have a look later. I’m in Worcestershire/ south Birmingham border. My trainer will do a 1-1 session with us but I’d like to find a class really

There seem to be quite a few in the area, @thenewaveragebear1983

I'm really impressed with Hazel. We've just done a session where she has to ignore food on the ground and return to her bed. She went from 1 minute of 'thinking time' to 3 seconds in just one session.

@JaneIves oh he’s arrived 😍. He’s gorgeous and looked like my boy at that age, for a tiny teeny pup they have sharp teeth don’t they 🤣 Let the fun begin!!!

@userxx like little tiny knives!
He is very mouthy, especially when overstimulated it seems.
Busy day with friends over etc more new toys. He's been almost comatose since this afternoon, with the odd burst of wakefulness.
Husbsnd on puppy watch downstairs tonight, l'm having a good sleep!

Day 4 in the JanePup house...
2 things -he stinks! He was stinky when we collected him, mum and pups live and raised on a farm (definitely NOT one of 'those' farms!) pups transferred to a heated outbuilding from 4 weeks. He likes to sit/play on the towel covering a puppy pad so I assume this is what he did with mum and siblings. He will not entertain a plain puppy pad, rips it to shreds on sight. He's reliably going on the towel by the door, id like to transition to outside but due to a recent foot fracture my reaction speed is limited at present!

So already stinky pup likes to sit on his wee.
I tried a bath yesterday, I may have been too sparing with with the puppy shampoo, what else can I do? And it's not just dog smell, he really is a stinker!
Vet check booked for Friday too.

Oh @JaneIves that's not pleasant for you. Can you ditch the puppy pads/towels and just take him out every 20 minutes? I guess the broken foot doesn't help with that. I have read that cornstarch and baking soda makes a good dry shampoo, but haven't tried it.

I'm open to anything! I will try more today if I can, he's already had his morning ablutions (on the towel)
Yesterday, any fresh wee I tried to rub on the patio outside and will do today too, as grim as it sounds, is it worth doing the same with his poop?

I'm not sure that will make a massive difference. What puppies need is pattern recognition. He needs to be taken outside to the place you want him to wee or poo very, very frequently. In the early days, that's when he wakes up, when he's had a drink, when he has eaten, when he has played, when he's been awake for 20 minutes without doing anything. Every time you take him out, wait until he has weed or pooed, then massive praise and treats (you can use his kibble if he's food orientated, or a higher value treat if he isn't). If he wees or poos inside, no fuss, just clean up. He will gradually get the idea that good things happen when he does his business outside.

@JaneIves I’d get rid of the puppy pad too, just keep plonking him outside regularly, getting an outdoor pen made it easier for toilet training, will be easier on your foot too so you dont have to chase him around an open space. They are incredibly bright little dogs and he’ll soon suss outside is the place to toilet. Pupxx had cracked it by 11 weeks.

Thank you. We've actually had some success outside today, despite the howling wind and rain. Pup was rather reluctant at first but ended up bounding through the soggy grass eating every leaf and twig, and has managed a couple of wees and a poo - all have been heavily praised!

I will admit to feeling completely overwhelmed with it all though, despite reading everything I could (and still am) it's really tough!
He slept well last night, aside from waking every 70-80 mins for reassurance, embarrassingly I've not been brave enough to close the crate yet, I know that will have to change.

Just thought I would echo this.

I got my last two completely trained in 2 weeks.

Every 20-30 minutes take them outside. It's a killer but it does work. If they don't do anything, bring them back inside! Best also do it after a long drink or playtime and after a nap. I gave mine a slither of chicken every time they performed outside and tacked on the cue. So, when they did a wee I'd say 'Wee-wee' and hand them some chicken. Same for if they did a poo!

Within a few days they started asking to go outside. If they didn't perform, they didn't get anything.

It's also useful to train them to do it on command so if you're ever on a long journey you can give them the command they know to perform instead of you ambling about the M25 service station with them for 30+ minutes.

I would also strongly recommend a 'house-line'. I used them on my last two and they are a game-changer. They're about five meters long and thin, but you just clip it to their collar (also gets them used to a leash) and you can use it to stop them getting up to mischief in the house/garden whilst still giving them some freedom.

If you have a spare 10-15 minutes, I'd recommend https://www.youtube.com/@McCannDogs/videos

Lots of what they teach is so obvious, but actually watching it can be very helpful (even for someone like me who's had dogs for years)!

It is completely normal to feel overwhelmed @JaneIves! Even I felt like that with my last puppy (still technically a puppy...) and I've had dogs my whole life!

@JaneIves yep, it’s totally overwhelming. I had plenty of days where I desperately missed my old easy life 🤣. Still have a few of them now!

Thanks all, I really do appreciate the advice. I'll look up those videos, when he's finally given in to a nap.

@JaneIves hang in there. It really is worth it. Hazel is 6 months old now. We've done our puppy foundation course, she's passed the puppy stage of her assistance dog training, and she has just got her Novice Trick Dog Title. It's all great fun!

Oh god this afternoon has been a shocker. He has been a bitey, overtired arsehole. Even my daughter has had a bit of a cry. I consoled her, telling her it WILL get better with time all the while stifling my own tears and not really convincing myself what I was saying.
I'll admit to having a bit of a breakdown earlier too.

I'm not good at not being in control, and the cast is making life very difficult. My husband has been amazing, he's so placid and calm.

The wins today have been 80% successful toileting outside, so I'm grasping onto that!

@JaneIves sounds like he needs an enforced sleep to calm down, have you closed the crate door yet? If not I’d get him used to it asap, being able to dump him in the crate is a sanity saver! Apparently pups need ridiculous amounts of sleep, mine fights the sleep! There’s a reason I’m awake at 3.53am 🤬

@JaneIves your puppy's first training exercise is 'how to do nothing'. Enforced rest. Hazel spent her first few weeks in a puppy pen unless we were interacting with her. She had everything she needed and we went into the pen to play with her. Sleep was in her crate (inside the pen). After a few weeks, we gradually let her out of the pen more and more, but she knows that if we put it back up, she settles there. Now we can just shut her in DD2's room (where she sleeps) and she jumps up onto DD2's bed and settles there.

I wish we'd done this. I feel like I've made a massive 'I'm still sleeping in the living room with the puppy, who gets on the sofabed with me' rod for my own back. My only defence is we got covid almost the day we picked him up and the first 10 days were survival mode.

I'm working on crate training - he will take himself into the crate in the day, and I've got to the door closed over but not locked stage, but lasts about 40 seconds at night. In my head I know I'll get there but at the moment it feels endless.

(typing while he's actually away from me having a heart scan)

It does feel endless. You'll get there. Why is he having a heart scan? I hope he's ok.

We're working on the Calm Canine challenge. We've got to staying on a bed while we do chores. We need to test hoovering and sweeping while she stays on a bed.

He has a heart murmur. The RSPCA (who we got him from) are just doing a second one as a precaution. The first one showed no abnormality, and his murmur seems to have gone down a grade - just a precaution.

I need a calm canine. I occasionally give him a massage 😂honestly, I'll be completely doolally by the time he's an adult

Any advice welcome please 🙏 Maggie has today weed 4 times in the house, literally since 5pm. She didn’t even ask to go out, just weed! I blamed the cat the first time as I found the puddle, but I’ve seen her the other times! She has never once weed in the house like that. What on earth could be causing her to do that? She seems fine in herself.

A better day today!!

I started the day absolutely dreading going downstairs (husband was on puppy watch last night) knots in my stomach, the works. I had a strong word with myself and faced the day as the grown up.

And it's been so much better!
Only one wee in the house, which we all missed the clues (TBF he didn't give any clues for that one)
All poops outside.
Crate door shut today, yes there have been whines but I've risen above it - some reassurance given but he's finally giving in and going to sleep.
The way he has looked at me though! He has these eyes that are doleful and accusatory in equal measure 🤣
Chicken has helped his motivation too!

I know there will be ups and downs, this thread is invaluable to me, so thanks to all who responded earlier.