Puppy Survival Thread Autumn 2025 - all welcome!

[VanGoSunflowers]

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

No tips @spartanrunnergirl but I’m in a similar position so following any advice you get with interest. And letting you know you are not alone ❤️

@GoodBones85 thank you for replying I feel so alone at the moment it feels like no matter what I do I cannot deal with this barking.

I’ve actually found that when he is tired/has had a really busy day he does it less and so I’m attempting to up stimulation/exercise at the moment to see if that helps - but it’s obviously a fine line between that and overstimulation. 🤷‍♀️

Hang on in there - some of the more experienced posters will be along to guide us soon I’m sure x

Sorry. I can't offer any help or advice at all. Working cockers might be hyperactive nut jobs, but they are quiet ones. Mine only bark at something that frightens them. Didn't want you to think everyone was ignoring you though.

Bit of a surprise today, came home and my nearly 7 month old has started her first season.
Any tips gratefully received.
I did wonder why she was super cuddly last night.

In my battle of the barking I have realised the stress is me worrying about my neighbours. I have for two days proper ignored him - the worst time is meal times and I’m open plan so I can’t really put him away. I have stood with my back to him preparing food and sat with my back to him eating as he yaps and yaps .. but today he got fed up and wandered off to finish his own kibble, then off to another room! Win. I feel like I’m making progress. I agree @GoodBones85about tiring out but getting the balance. The other thing I’m doing is enforcing a nap about 5:30pm ish which helps as he doesn’t get really wired and overtired and yappy later in the evening. Also doing clicker training to help him learn to settle and lie down nicely in and around kitchen.

Hello everyone! We are now 3 weeks in with our Cavapoo and she just mastered fetch and drop and it was very exciting 😄 she is 11 weeks now and sleeps downstairs in her crate. We have a baby monitor and she tends to whine once and my husband let's her out into the garden for a wee.
For some reason she never pees in the garden with me but does my DH. I have no idea why.

She sounds like she is doing very well. Our Lab puppy is 9 weeks old today - I have been a bit silent on this thread since we got him as he's hard work, plus I've been ill so I haven't deliberately been ignoring anyone. I also had nothing useful to suggest about the barking @spartanrunnergirl sorry not to have anything to suggest that could help.

Re your puppy peeing in the garden with your DH but not you @sunshineandkindle could it be that he rewards her with treats each time and you don't? We've had so many accidents in the house I'm in no way an expert on getting them to go where they should. But our puppy does slowly seem to be beginning to understand that he gets a treat every single time he does a wee or poo outside. He looks right at us as he does it as if to say - I will want something for this😂

She's not had a wee yet with me in the garden to reward her 🤣 been with me all day and every wee and poo in the floor despite being out with her lots in the garden and saying potty. Super frustrating.

On a separate note... what puppy food does everyone use and would they recommend it? She currently eats Bella and Duke but she can take or leave it and isn't that fussed when it arrives most of the time.

@Twiglets1 sorry you've been unwell. So much going around. Im a nurse and always wearing a mask at work to avoid all the lurgys 🤧 hope you feel better soon xx

Aw thank you sunshine that's very kind of you. I don't recommend the combination of chest infection with new puppy but I'm feeling a bit better now I've started a course of antibiotics.

Puppy food ... we're still working through the bag the breeder gave us when we collected him last weekend. It's kibble called Chapel Farm not a well known brand I don't think but we are sticking with it as his poos are a good consistency and we've had no vomiting or diarrhoea.

Are you taking your puppy out into the garden every 20 minutes? I know it sounds a lot but they wee and poo a lot - sure I don't have to tell you 😂It's so boring and cold at the moment to keep doing that, but it's the only way they learn that they get rewarded when the business randomly happens in the right place.

We are in the same boat! Merry is having her first season, she’s 8 months old. I noticed her… foof (?) was very swollen, then she started bleeding, though she has been busy cleaning herself. I’ve covered much of the furniture with old towels and blankets, and my mop has never seen so much action! I did call the vet the other day, because she had been bleeding for nearly 3 weeks, which seemed a lot, but they said it was normal.

I have been trying to walk her in quieter places, sometimes on the lead, but not always. If dogs approach I put her on the lead, and call out to the owner. We haven’t really had any bother, only
1 young dog was very keen to get close, but he was on lead and more or less under control. She has shown absolutely no ‘flirting’, in fact she either ignores other dogs, or warns them off.

@Struckbylightning K bled all the way through her season too. And there seemed to be loads of it for such a small dog. P only bled for the first 10 days or so and hardly made any mess.

Took Casper to Ringcraft class the other night, he was really good walking and being on the table. Have got him entered for his first show in May when he’ll be 6 months old.

Am walking him with older dog off lead in the fields and his recall so far is really good.

@Struckbylightning and @SpanielsGaloreshe is on day 3 I would say and no mess so far she has been cleaning herself. Hoping there isn’t blood for 3 weeks! My adult DS who lives at home is very concerned for her, asked today if I need to get her anything. Was going to say she might fancy a long bath and bar of chocolate…

@Isabelle70 😂😂 and a large glass of wine! My men-folk were also very discombobulated. DH thinks she is far too young…

🤣🤣🤣

Can you get the puppy spaid so they dont bleed? Is this a thing?

You can. But I think it's generally recommended to let them have one or two seasons first, so they are fully grown and mature.

Ournpuppy had her vaccines on Tuesday. Can we take her out tomorrow (sunday) or is it important to wait till Tuesday to make it a week?

It's her second dose

I went out a couple of days early. So second vaccine on the Monday and went out on Saturday. I swear you just used to go out after the second vaccine not wait a week. 🤷‍♀️. We did go somewhere very quiet where not a lot of dogs go.

@sunshineandkindle you will be told to wait a week.

Personally I’m not going to as I value early socialisation and access to the outside world for puppies very, very highly.

But there is a small risk to health so it has to be a personal decision.

Also re your question about puppy’s first season - it’s best to get them spayed after the first season so you know they have reached a level of maturity. I think vets would be reluctant to spay before the first season these days. For my (male) puppy we’ve been told that our independent vet will castrate him from 1 year old though her preference would be 18 months.

@sunshineandkindle personally, I would wait. I advise all those who buy puppies off me to wait. If you're taking your puppy out in your arms pre-vaccination, an extra day or so before it's feet tough the ground won't kill them. I even have a clause in the puppy contract about it - ignoring medical advice is grounds for me to take the puppy/dog back.

Watching a puppy die from something that is the owners fault is a horrible situation to be in. Moreso if you're the owner, I imagine.

And absolutely do not spay before her first season. No decent vet would spay before then and any that do - for any reason other than serious medical and/or behavioural issues - should lose their licence. Ditto with castrating male dogs before their joints are fully fused. It's nothing more than a hunt for money and not in the dogs interest.

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks When I got P in 2021, the vets were still saying spay at 6 months or three months after first season. I don't know if they have updated their advice since. They didn't mention it when I got K.

@SpanielsGalore most vets have now. Something to do with ‘behavioural’ issues (reactivity, nerves) and joint development - particularly for breeds prone to dysplasia. They originally thought it was only for big dogs (the joint issues) but recent research has shown it’s all breeds where dysplasia is prevalent. My vets even have posters outlining the risks of early neutering/spaying.