Puppy Survival Thread Autumn 2025 - all welcome!

[VanGoSunflowers]

Hello everyone! Won’t tag you all as you know everyone is welcome 😊

Ah excellent - well done both of you.

it’s just consistency now hopefully - as @Twiglets1 said you both nailed it x

@NorwichMom that’s brilliant. I hope you slept too! I remember it being like having a new baby and I was waking at every tiny sound.
Expect hiccups, but you know he can do it.

@Twiglets1 you’re getting another Lab, am I right? Do you know yet whether it’s a boy or a girl?

Oh I totally remember the nerves. Even to the point of thinking I could text the breeder and say I’d changed my mind and just lose the deposit. I think it’s normal to be nervous. You’ll be fine.

Yay @NorwichMom! So glad it worked out last night for you, that’s great news! Your pup is very cute ❤️

@Twiglets1 that’s definitely a normal thing to think! I felt the same before I got Pablo. I had spent several evenings reading threads on Reddit made by people with nightmare pups to try and figure out how bad it might be 😂

Can I ask advice about dealing with overtired nipping? My hands hurt, my feet hurt.

don’t remember this with previous dogs.

so I get it’s a sign he’s tired and needs to sleep but how do I get him to? I tried putting him in his crate and he cried so I took him out as i don’t want it to be a negative setting.

hes just non stop ferocious nipping. I try holding a toy to his mouth instead but he’s not interested. He’s not interested in his kong. I’ve got him puppy chews and he’s not interested. Must admit haven’t tried the licky mat yet.

i try stroking him calmly on the back of his neck but he twists round and gets my hand. If I take my hands away he gets my arm, or my feet or my leg. If I put him down on the floor he attacks the sofa and I’m worried he’ll damage it.

he is sleeping now but he had about 40 mins of being crazy.

@NorwichMom that was the worst stage. Particularly in the evening. It was a dreadful time! We had a room divider so we could escape to the other side when Midge got particularly bitey.
Giving him a frozen lickymat with a mixture of natural yogurt, mashed banana and dog safe peanut butter helped to keep him occupied and calmed him. He would then conk out.

How long did you put him in the crate for? Did you sit next to it and talk softly to him to seeing it helped him calm down and settle?
Can you pop him the other side of a stair gate in a 'time out' for 30 seconds or so and let him back in when he's calmed down?

My 4 year old was vile as a puppy. I'd sit on a high window sill or the kitchen worktops to avoid her, as she'd attack solidly every morning from 6am to 8am. So in her case, she wasn't even tired. Just mean! 😫😂 She didn't improve until her adult teeth came in. Sorry. That's probably not what you want to hear. 🙈

Other than that, wear boots and thick clothes. Preferably old ones you don't mind getting ripped.

Oh. People always recommend frozen carrots but that didn't work for mine.

Thanks, will try the licky mat, though like I say he wasn’t bothered about the king with frozen cream cheese and peanut butter.

I probably didn’t try him in the crate for long enough so will try it again tomorrow and sit by him talking and give him the mat.

i have just put up a new large puppy pen tonight so that’s another option.

boots and old clothes is a good idea. Maybe some gardening gloves as well 🤣

@SpanielsGalore yes at least it only seems to be when he’s tired…..at the moment. I am counting down the weeks until his adult teeth are here!

@NorwichMom have you tried dropping treats through the top of the cage when he’s in there? That helped M but he’s never been keen on having the door shut during the day. The room divider could be attached to the crate as a pen which was very useful. Pup was often contained in there whilst we ate etc. He was happier with the space rather than being contained in his crate.

@Nella68 no that’s a good idea. Think I will get a snuffle mat too.

have found out this evening he likes videos for dogs on YouTube, he’s currently calmly watching ducks waddling around and is engrossed.

@NorwichMom I used to put mine in doggy prison when he got too nippy 😂 by that I mean in the kitchen with the gate closed (not his crate) first warning would be a firm ‘‘no” and second would be a time out of sorts. Then I’d praise him for playing and not biting me. I don’t know if that worked as such or that he wasn’t a particularly nippy pup.

'Twas the night before..... we got out puppy and I'm really nervous!
I feel very out of my depth!! We've puppy proofed, I've been reading a book but still feel out of my depth and scared for what we have let ourselves in for!

I am also very excited and really praying that this doesn't go tit's up!
We have 2 children who are so excited as is my husband!

@sunshineandkindle I had all those same feelings too! But we are all here for if/when it gets difficult. And I’m so glad I took the plunge and got him!

Thank you ! So we bring puppy home and then we introduce her to her crate/ bed. And follow this routine I have in this book. Then at night am I setting an alarm to get up so she can have a wee? I will attach the routine from the book

@sunshineandkindle how exciting!!

Totally agree with @VanGoSunflowers - we got our puppy in April and though it has nearly broken me at some points it’s definitely the best decision we ever made.

We are all here for you if you need us on the tough days, and there is a wealth of experience on this thread.

Keep us updated ❤️

@sunshineandkindle Im sorry I can’t remember what breed of pup you’re getting? I didn’t wake my lab up for a night time wee, he went 7 hours from the first night. Others may have done differently but we didn’t need to do that fortunately!

She is a Cavapoo :)

@VanGoSunflowers I’ve told pup his new pen is puppy prison 🤣

@sunshineandkindle good luck for tomorrow. I didn’t wake my puppy up in the night and he also went 7 hrs from night one. Think it was 8 hours the next night

I never woke any of mine for toileting @VanGoSunflowers

@sunshineandkindle personally in your position, I wouldn’t wake pup in the night for a wee and see how you get on. They should whine in the night if they need to anyway and if they don’t, happy days and you may be in for a spell of uninterrupted sleep! (Which will be a god send to get you through the days!) I don’t know about you, but I had so much conflicting advice at the start. My breeder sent me a load of literature to read - it stated to wake the puppy up for a wee but then when I picked him up she said not to! Hands down one of the hardest parts was trying to figure out which information I should listen to! That and trying to manage him and my son with each other 😂

@CoubousAndTourmaIet I think you and I had a theory of the bigger the pup, the better they hold the bladder until @SpanielsGalore said her Spaniels were also dry over night!

Yup, I remember. It's why I thought better of saying anything about "bigger breeds" just now 😆

As you know, I'm old school and pretty relaxed about it all, but the amount of conflicting information for puppy owners now is just overwhelming.
I think one of the first things I said to you on here was "trust your instincts", and I stand by that.

It was very good advice and allowed me to stop and breathe. It was a turning point for me! ❤️
I also remember getting a ticking off from the breeder about not leaving pup alone enough and @TheHungryHungryLandsharks told me I know Pablo better than the breeder does and not to listen. Lots of words of wisdom from you all stuck with me.

And now you're helping newer puppy people @VanGoSunflowers which is what this thread is all about. It just keeps rolling on and we all learn from each other. Because the learning never ends. Trust me on that...I'll do better with the next one, I promise!