Puppy Survival Thread for New and Old Pups - Spring is around the corner!

[Lougle]

A thread for puppy owners to share their ups and downs as we head into Spring. We're not just here for the idyllic moments. We've all had a cry at some point!

All posters welcome - just dive in.

The previous thread is here https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/the_doghouse/4945764-puppy-survival-thread-for-old-and-new-pups-heading-into-winter?page=1

Oh look at his face! Gorgeous

He’s growing up 😍. Gorgeous colouring, very similar to my pup. Today we had his first experience of a bee/wasp….. not ideal, stung in the mouth 🙈. Hopefully that’s a life lesson learnt.

Poor pup @userxx !

@CurlsnSunshinetime4tea treasure every moment - it goes so fast.

We've been doing a nosework challenge with Adolescent Dogs and Hazel is loving it. I never realised how smelly a red Kong is.

@userxx my dh is a bee keeper, and at any given time we have from 2-4 hives in the back yard. the bees have a dedicated water source so it's rare to find them in the grass but both my airedale and the tibetan love to snap at them! swelling wise i've not noticed any reaction other than annoyance.
my tibetan occasionally goes after grasshoppers as well and those don't go down easily last summer i nearly took him to the vet.
@Lougle oh yes the smell of rubber. it's not unusual for people to be allergic to rubber fyi. i'm sure nose work takes a lot of dedication and weeks of repetition.

@CurlsnSunshinetime4tea
"i'm sure nose work takes a lot of dedication and weeks of repetition."

I think to get it truly refined it does, but it's amazing how quickly you can progress. We started on a whole Kong 13 days ago, and now have a tiny piece in a centrifuge pipette.

i'm sure nose work takes a lot of dedication and weeks of repetition.

The finding part of it is very easy to train, getting a reliable clear indication is the trickier bit.

We're on holiday next week and looking forward to staying somewhere with lots of new hiding places.

Yes the actual finding in scent work is the easiest part, both my dogs have quite different ways of tracking a scent. Getting them to indicate a find is the tricky bit. One of my older dog's litter mates is a cadaver detection dog, and most of her early training focused on getting her to consistently mark a find without touching it in any way!

This is Ada finding arrows in the woods at 4 months old

https://flic.kr/p/2mq3WDU

Yes, at the moment, Hazel nudges the tin with her nose, then nose bops it, then grabs it, then tosses it in the air...'Come on, I've found it, what more do you want??'

Can I ask a quick question about going off lead? Do you just all go for it as soon as possible. I think we need to be doing it more, have only so far done it in a field where no one else about! She was really good, didn’t go far from us and came running back when called but I’m not sure it’ll be so successful with lots of distractions around. She’s 14 weeks.

Our younger pup has been off lead in appropriate places since she was first allowed out. Better to do it early when they're still a bit unsure of the world imo.

One of her first trips out

https://www.instagram.com/p/CuRgwiBtvLh/?igsh=cHgxa2E3dHBzZ3J1

Yes, do it early. At the very least get a longline. You want recall in place before adolescence kicks in.

I’ve been reading these these threads for years in anticipation of getting my own pup. I just love them!

@lazzaroo I’ve been recommended to wait until fully immunized. Our off lead parks get a lot of use.
Even yesterday in the airports were told not to use communal dog areas yet (8 wk old).

Thanks all.

@tizwozliz that is the kind of lead walking I can only dream of!!

Hi all! I’m after some advice regarding a long training line. There seems to be a lot of negativity about flexi leads, but carrying around 10m of lead seems to be a bit of a pain. What am I missing with flexi leads and does anyone have any recommendations?

@lazzaroo Older one was like a kangaroo on a string at the same age, it's temperament as much as training.

Little one is still pretty good on the lead on her own but a nightmare at the beginning of a walk if I've got both out.

Luckily I have plenty of options where they can be off lead pretty much straight away and her recall is great.

Flexi leads are not great for a few reasons. Firstly, in order to extend the lead, the dog has to pull against the lead. That teaches them that pulling is ok, then we expect them not to pull when a normal lead is used. Secondly, they tend to be very thin lines and can get caught up in things, or wrapped around things (including people) very quickly. They can act as a trip wire. Thirdly, often the handle isn't built for the job, and although it can cope with the pulling, it doesn't always cope with pulling and twisting, which is what happens when a dog is straining against the lead. People can find themselves holding half a handle and not much else. Finally, if your dog gets itself in trouble, then trying to get them back with a flexi lead can be difficult.

A long line is very different. You do need good mechanics (you need to let the line out as the dog walks away, and gather it up as they return), but in an emergency, you can just step on it to halt the dog, then gather the line as you walk to the dog (never pull the dog back to you).

The BioThane longlines look nice - they're made of a durable rubber, so they don't absorb water and can just be wiped down when you're finished with them. We just have a cheap 10m longline from Amazon.

We made the mistake of using one of those flexi leads when our previous dog was a puppy… throttled him when he ran full pelt! Thankfully he was okay and lived happily for another 12 years and never again on a flexi lead

Thanks both- will avoid the flexi and hunt down some biothane!

so finley has joined the family. both dh and i a pleasantly impressed.
curious but distractable, social but respectful.
so although everything has the potential to be a great chew toy (corner of all bedding, four corners of the couch, shoes of course, dish towel, dry wall corners and skirting, wicker baskets oh and even trousers hanging on the line) he doesn't return to them once distracted and offered a suitable toy. this being said, there are two retired adults watching him 24/7. and with easy distraction he doesn't always respond to his name or if calling him will choose to sit and stay and not come forward.
the tibetan is a similar size to finley but will not engage in play, just walks away often leaving finley with a mouth full of hair. finley and the older airedale have made progress, the older fellow is allowing the pup to get closer without grumping excessively and the younger has figured out to give him some personal space although he really does follow the older airedale and really does want to spend 1-1 time with him. little finley has play challenged him, and with a wagging tail pounces and lunges at him, poor older fellow has had some extra arthritis meds to help cope with this.
the three have shared some food out of the same bowl, the older two not being upset to share.
finley loves being in the yard! asks to go out, scratches at the door and askes to come back in, no digging behavior, but certainly sniffing what are most likely mouse and vole tracks. has mastered stairs and mastered sneaking under the fence....he sits with his head held high and looks absolutely amazing as he watches over his little kingdom.
he's a keeper ;)

Is there a 4 month regression in puppies like there is in babies?

JanePup is 17 weeks.
He's been a complete turd for the last 2 days and it looks to be going the same way today.
I thought we were doing well with basic behaviour and commands, getting into a nice flow. Nope, he's now a turd that doesn't listen at all, seems hyper and has zero chill. I can feel the deeper puppy blues returning and wondering if I can do this at all.

@JaneIves they change constantly in the early days. Is he getting enough sleep? He should still be sleeping about 15 hours per day.

If he's not responding to your cues, take your training back and do stuff that you absolutely know he can do, so that he wins every time. Keep training really short (5-10 mins) and do a variety of things in each session so it's not like an exercise drill.

He's so young, he has time.

@JaneIves it's like one step forward, two steps back, up and down every day! Just when you think you have sussed things - a bit! they seem to regress! But it does get better, try to change things about a bit, throw in some more bits of training, find a new brain game. Know exactly how you feel, don't give up, it will all be worth it.