What do you wish you'd known before getting your first dog?

[NewMaltese]

Hello, I'm new to The Doghouse area of mn!

I'm collecting our first ever dog on Friday, an 11wo female Maltese.

I'm excited but completely overwhelmed with all the info and advice out there. My anxiety is off the scale 🫣

What do you wish you'd known before your puppy arrived?
What one thing would you have done differently?
Are there any products that you found invaluable?
Any products/advice you wish you'd ignored?

🥰

We used the puppy pads simply as carpet protectors, not a replacement for going outside

OP you are getting loads of very useful tips on here, some of which I am finding useful too.
Regarding dog beds, we have been through a few different types and my recommendation is for one which is easily and quickly cleaned. We have some cushioned furry crate mats from Pets at Home which are inexpensive and can be machine washed and dry in a couple of hours. I also use microfiber cloths for wiping muddy paws as they launder easily as well. All helps minimise the doggy odours. 🐕

Train it like it's a big dog. I can't pick my dog up when it isn't following instruction
So many tiny poorly trained dogs.
Big dogs tend to be better trained because you can't scoop them up when they are behaving badly!

Don't allow in sofa /bed
Train recall with an acme whistle
Train to leave the dog alone it from the moment you get to avoid separation anxiety.

Socialisation - take it everywhere and meet a variety of people and dogs
Joins puppy class

Train "off" (paws of what ever the are on whether that is someone's legs or the sofa)
"Leave it" -do not pick up item/food
"Drop it" let go of item .
Loose led walking it not pulling

Definitely socialisation - I wish I’d got him used to lots of different environments, not just ones with dogs

Loose lead walking - I hadn’t realised how much stems from that

Look at me/1 2 3/look at that - training exercises on all 3 of those

I also wish I had more confidence in myself and paid less heed to the few eye rolling tutters and more heed to the ones who sympathise/empathise when he gets things wrong because he’s nervous/scared. He mastered everything else pretty quickly, but lunges and barks occasionally when he feels threatened and I think a lot of that stems from what I didn’t do above.

Start as you mean to go on. If a grown dog isn't allowed on your sofa, don't allow a puppy on your sofa.

Socialising doesn't mean letting everyone that asks greet them. We over socialised our dog as a pup and although he's better now, it's still a work in progress. Our trainer suggested allowing 1 out of 3, anyone else gets told you are training, or if you want to keep a conversation short - ring worm (I think!)

Crates aren't a bad tool - it's a good idea for your dog to have a space that is just theirs to relax in. Puppies are like babies, they need naps. Sometimes they need to be enforced! We no longer have a crate, but I'm glad we did when he was a pup.

If your dog is going to need regular grooming, start as soon as possible. If they'll be going to a groomers get them booked in for as soon as their vaccinations allow.

Lastly, buyers remorse is completely normal. You'll wonder what the hell you have let yourself in for - I remember feeling almost claustrophobic! Then, all of a sudden, things improve and you have the best friend in the world.

Routine & crate training / breaks
Up at 5 - toilet, breakfast, groom, gentle play. Back in crate for a couple of hours.

Mine is 14 weeks old & I can easily go out for a couple of hours knowing he is asleep & safe - especially working from home it’s easy to be there too much.

1. Puppy pads are pointless - they just cause the puppy to think it's okay to pee inside as long as it's on the mat. Take them outside every hour if you can and praise them when they pee/poo.

2. Dominance theory is outdated rubbish! Positive reinforcement training makes a happy, confident dog - punishment leads to anxiety. If it feels cruel then it probably is!

3. If you decide to go down the route of formal training, make sure the trainer you use is qualified. There are no laws around who can call themselves a "dog trainer" so it's on you to do your research.

4. They don't have to say hello to every person and dog they see. If you can teach them to be completely neutral around other dogs, rather than dying to say hello, then this will be helpful in the long run if you want to be able to relax in dog friendly cafes and pubs.

5. We started with the no dogs on the sofa/on the beds rule. As I type this I'm squashed up in the corner of the sofa as my dog spreads himself across the rest of it. Accept now that it's the dogs house and you just live in it.

6. You'll have lots of ups and downs, but know you're doing your best. Make the most of them, they're precious ❤

Everything takes time and humans are shit at patience. By 4 weeks, we feel like we've tried everything and nothing is getting better. 4 weeks is nothing. Frankly a year is nothing.

If you have a dog that is 90% good, 90% of the time, by the time they are 2 years old then you are doing great.

In the meantime, consistency, a sense of humour and gin are all needed.

Oh and take a LOT of puppy videos. Whilst puppies are cute, the puppy years become even more important in hindsight when you've fallen in love with the adult dog and want the joy of seeing them as a baby again.

Training. Train train train. Make it fun and engaging, and incorporate a few seconds of it here and there into daily life: sit for food, sit to have lead put on, sit before you open the door, sit for a fuss.

Well-trained dogs are a bloody doddle to walk compared to half-trained dogs, both on-lead and off. 100% worth the investment of time, money and patience.

Do not leave them in a room with anything you do not want loved chewed.

Give them to your mum to toilet train. Mine had it down in a week actually I gave her DS to do the same

That they are a worse time drain than Instagram when they're sleeping or cuddling with you.

Fleas are militant little cunts and only the tablets will knock the feckers off.

The strength of feeling. I expected him to be pleased to see me, for us to bond; I wasn't even slightly prepared for the utter overwhelming love I have for him. Or all the anxiety and concern that comes with it.

How isolating a puppy can be. I expected it to be a social experience and slowly it's becoming that, but you can hardly go anywhere when they're tiny, and mine hates the car so that's cut me off from friends and family.

What I've got right - having him in the bed with me, never leaving him to cry, teaching a swap, practicing recall every single day.

What I've got wrong - long horrible drives in the early weeks, not helping him enough to learn how to deal with frustration or separation, buying pointless puppy pads, buying far, far too many toys. Actually did I say that was a thing I did wrong? Nonsense. He hasn't even got a skunk yet 😄

How utterly devasting it would be to say goodbye and tell the vet to let him go.

The puppy years are hard work, but I can't wait until life is in a place where we have the time to devote to having another, unfortunately it looks like we will be waiting until retirement in around 7 years.

Early days:
Puppy will sleep, go toilet, play, more toilet, sleep & repeat!
So talking Puppy out at these key stages will help with toilet training.

In-between stages: Puppy will be teething = chewing up to 12 months. A few selected things like dog wood is better than loads of different toys! Less toys and always available in a cretin spot can (or not) save your favourite slippers or that table leg.
Right into adulthood, be consistent with training, where your dog sleeps and feeding times (as well as what you feed). Do lots of sort training sessions rather than one long one.

I agree with training classes and keep up with training class well past the initial puppy class! Ideally first 18 months...
I can recommend The Kennel Club Good Citizen Dog Scheme - it starts with puppy foundation and ends with a gold award!
These are usually run by your local dog training club...worth a look!

Early on find a kennels or dog boarding and get the puppy used to going, you can't always rely on friends and family and it's likely that you will want to go away without the dog sometimes! Mine went from quite young and lived it - pull getting out the car to go in.

My daughter despairs about her large puppy’s poor behaviour, and having to constantly correct her. However watching smaller dogs out and about they are not necessarily better behaved but them jumping up or pulling is more easily managed.

All of the above but mostly just how much I’d love him. Nothing prepared me for that

On the downside, I had no idea how hard the early days would be. Puppy blues are real. I had wanted my dog for a decade but had moments of deep regret and WTF have we done in the first few weeks.

But I also wasn’t prepared for how hard and fast I would fall in love with the little monkey, and the vast amounts of time I can waste just watching his floofy paws twitch as he sleeps 🥰

I cried sooo much when we got ours, a lot of “what have I done?” feelings. I actually posted on here and was told to give him up, I obviously wasn’t a dog person. This kindly reaffirmed my feeling of “I’m awful at this”.

It’s hard, harder than I expected. I didn’t love the puppy phase and I’m not sure I’d do it again but oh my god I’d be lost without him now! He is truly my best friend, he’s always happy to see me, kisses me (slobbery licks) when I cry, he’s always down for any adventure and is just my shadow. Basically it’s not easy but their love is incredible

Be kind to them. Be consistent. They like routine.

Brain games are good.

Train them for the dog you want. So if you don't want the dog on the sofa don't cuddle the puppy on the sofa.

Definitely make sure you put the time and effort into training. I have an 11 year old dog that is very badly behaved. He eats his food and wipes his month along the sofa cushions /curtains. He scoots his bottom along the rugs, he begs Everytime we eat food, he barks at any and everything that walks past the living room window , he scratches on the door to be let in and out of rooms. He drags me along the path , pulling on his lead constantly. His hair gets absolutely everywhere - on our clothes , on all the furniture. I wouldn't have a dog again , he is our first dog and will be our only dog. It's entirely our fault for not training him . Lesson learned .