Puppy Survival Thread for New & Old Pups - Soon be Autumn 2024

[BrodiePup]

Setting the ball rolling on a new thread as the last one has reached 1k 😊.

Brodie had his first proper bath today...
I don't think he was overly impressed!

He'll be 6 months old on Tuesday. I can't believe how the time has passed, or how far along we've come.

To everyone who is struggling at the moment, stick with it, it really does get easier.

@Killingoffmyflowersonebyone
Don't personally attack me then and I won't 😏

@Bupster sorry I am unable to offer any advice at present because I may be accused of trying to be a pretend vet again 😱
Are you still using his crate? I would still really be encouraging naps at this age definitely. He isnt going to be able to control the off switch.
If he is finding it difficult to settle maybe it's time to give him independence by teaching a 'go find command"
Start with tasty treats ( hide one at first to not overstimulate him) so he can sniff it out.
It's a great way to tire him out in the home and calm him down.

Now does this meet the acceptable standards of advice or do I need to go back to pretend vets university and try again?

@Bupster Brodie has always been left to settle himself. We do pop him back in his crate while we shower but that's the only time. I don't know if we've been lucky or it's just the way we manage him. He does always follow us if we move, but will just settle back down.

Can I just say everybody
I don't pretend to know everything and I don't think I know everything,
I would never advice any unsafe practices and that is why I did not ADVISE anybody to take their dog out before they were fully vaccinated but, I was just stating what I did do to give people an insight!
I will NOT be accused of not caring or giving a shit about Milo. I give everything to that dog, or else I wouldn't have spent so much time, effort, tears, stress and anxiety on him. I love Milo very much and I have been part of what I thought was a safe supportive group for a year.
I'm probably going to leave as there isn't any point in listening to any old shite I have to say.
Good luck with your pups, all the best

@CaptainBeanThief thanks for this - he's never really used the crate, he has a choice of beds and will use whatever is the most comfortable and closest to me. His signal to settle or nap is basically I get the laptop out. But he is struggling more now to settle than he was when he was younger - don't know if it's because he's really struggling with teething - and I can only get any work done at the moment if I have him sleeping on the sofa next to me.

I'm probably over-thinking this - I know when he's stayed with others he's eventually taken himself off to a corner for a nap. I don't know why but I am really anxious about him at the moment. I've never really been an anxious person before. I suspect it's a combination of the lack of sleep and the knowledge that my work gets really intense in September (and I have to drive a puppy that hates the car to daycare twice a week) and that's steaming towards me at relentless speed.

Has anyone else felt puppy-related anxiety? I mean separate from health scares etc?

@Bupster I can relate to anxiety, mine has been through the roof at times, and there has been occasions when I've possibly been depressed. I'm 59 and have had many ups and downs, but I'm not sure I've ever felt so low. Bizarre as getting a puppy is a lovely thing.
Now I'm (almost) out the other side I put it down to exhaustion and the sheer relentlessness of it. Any other problem there is an escape from, if you're having problems at work for example, your day ends, there's always the weekend...
I didn't have children either, so have found the responsibility of a little life hard going. I'm also a worrier, Brodie has had a couple of accidents recently, so I worry if there is something wrong with him...nope, he's probably not totally trustworthy yet 🤣
It's hard going, but it really does get easier. You find a flow and routine and stop overthinking everything.

Crikey, sorry I didn't mean to start WW3 here.

I find everyone's advice on this thread invaluable, (including yours @CaptainBeanThief so please don't let it put you off!), and it's useful to hear what others have done with their pups as I am still learning every day. I genuinely couldn't have got through the past 4 weeks without it!

I will carry on hauling his gigantic ass in the sling and get on with it. I've pushed his puppy grooming appt back a week as the groomer had scheduled it based on 2 weeks after vaccinations. I am concerned that he won't have met and socialised with any other dogs at all since he left his litter, but will it make a huge difference? I know they can mix with another fully vaxxed dog indoors but the only dog person I know is my sister who has an 18 month old Jack Russel (who makes Vinny look calm!!) and she lives 1.5hrs away.

@BrodiePup I genuinely think having a puppy is worse than a newborn baby! At least they don't attack you with sharp teeth and you can stick a nappy on them!

My happy healthy hound.
I didn't mean to derail the thread but it touched a nerve being told I didn't give a shit about him.

@CaptainBeanThief he is so lovely!!!!

Golly, a lot has happened here. Respectfully (and I too am not a vet), @Killingoffmyflowersonebyone, I don't think anyone here – or anywhere else on The Doghouse who is seeking advice in good conscience – can be accused of not caring about their dogs. That's why we're all here, because we care about our dogs and we want the best for them.

It's interesting to hear the varying pieces of advice that vets give out on this and all subjects. My pup was out on walks within a week of her second vax because that's what our vet advised – yet @YorkshireFelix has been told to wait five weeks. That's a huge discrepancy, particularly at a crucial period, and I think that's all that this was about. Even different vets at our own practice have advised different things for my dog on other topics so clearly advice can be subjective.

@Bupster I haven't got children so I realise I can't fully appreciate this, but the way I felt for the first 3/4 months with my pup felt very much how I imagine PND is, so I completely hear you about anxiety and its close relations. I spent our first 'term' together weeping in another room, trying to write a book on a frightening deadline, or on the phone to literally anyone who would listen begging them to take the puppy. Now, she's my PBF (haha) and I don't let anyone (including dog dad) do anything much with her at all. Everything you're feeling is fine and you will get through it and find you've got the dog you wanted.

Please don’t leave the thread @CaptainBeanThief it’s a good place to share our experiences & opinions and most people are non judgmental as you have been to others who do things differently from you.

I certainly understood you were only talking about what you personally do & not advising anyone else to do exactly the same. and that is also true of my comments.

Even vets seem to disagree about the exact point at which it is safe to let puppies experience different environments so it’s not a straightforward matter. I was given different guidance from my own vet and the Guide dog organisation vet, for example. Your love for Milo is very clear.

@brushingboots - I have to disagree. Recommending putting an unvaccinated puppy on the ground - and doing so yourself - in a public place is in my opinion the very definition of not caring for your puppy. There's literally no need to take that risk - particularly when one owns a puppy of breed that is known to be susceptible to it - so why do it?

We're all entitled to our opinion, of course, and I am very happy to discuss with people. I may have been blunt, but name-calling, as was resorted to, was unnecessary.

@YorkshireFelix You'd be very welcome to let him come and meet our (vaxxed) girlie but you may be further still from us than your sister! We're in Lincs.

My (not-professional) feeling would be that as long as you give him positive interactions when you do get to the point of meeting other dogs, he'll be absolutely fine. They feel and sense everything we do so if you're chilled and happy with what's going on then he will be too. There's a lady near us with a cockapoo puppy and she scoops him up every time she sees another dog because she says he's scared, and I always think, 'hmm, I can't imagine why.'

@Killingoffmyflowersonebyone
I'm not getting into it again
But you pretty much told me I didn't give a shit about my dog and assumed that I was giving advice when I wasn't.
You got my back up, maybe it was unnecessary but it really really upset me as you don't know my reasons why I got Milo in the first place and to say I pretty much didn't give a shit about him really really got to me.
So yes sorry for saying unnecessary things but you were below the belt " in my opinion "

The advice even from vets varies massively, it's no wonder people will question it.

The advice for our first vet was similar to the below

e.g. "As long as your puppy is 10 weeks old or older at their second vaccination, they will be immune to distemper, hepatitis and parvovirus one week after this vaccination. So, one week after their second vaccination, your puppy can be walked in public areas, and usually attend puppy classes."

https://www.ovg.co.uk/advice-and-resources/dogs-puppies/vaccination-advice-for-dogs

The advice from our second was we only had to wait a day, but 2 weeks for high risk lepto areas.

Other people have been told 3 weeks for general walks and 5 weeks for lepto risk areas. That's a huge difference in the lifetime of a pup.

We should get this thread moved to AIBU at this rate 😂

This is one of mine he’s called Dave and no so much a puppy no more but acts like one and is a loony 🤣

Dave looks a great character @Whatever3787 & like he’s loving life 😂

@tizwozliz thank you, that's why I questioned it as I wasn't expecting so long. It was a different vet to the one who did the first lot and he had told me 2 weeks. It's pretty confusing!

@Whatever3787 I LOVE DAVE!

@brushingboots and @BrodiePup thanks so much - it's so lovely to know I'm not the only one feeling like this. It is exhaustion in part - I'm not sleeping properly still, and yes, it's relentless. For me it's the cognitive load too. It's like he crowds out everything else, and I have a fairly demanding job that I've honestly been doing absolutely half-arsed since he arrived, which adds to the anxiety, especially as this month it all steps up a massive amount. I absolutely adore him; the thought of losing him or hurting him is unbearable; but bloody hell it's just so MUCH.

(PS @brushingboots I'm in Lincs too!)

Picked up Ralph last night! He is very shy at the moment. Any tips please on training lol

@JustSaltPlease oh my gosh he's so cute! What breed is he?

@YorkshireFelix He is a cross breed of Toy Poodle and Bichon Frise. We lost our old girl last December and have now bitten the bullet to get another!

Ooh I would just be cuddling Ralph at this stage @JustSaltPlease if he is shy (and cute which almost goes without saying).