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Puppy Survival Thread Autumn 2025 - all welcome!

904 replies

VanGoSunflowers · 10/11/2025 19:00

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

OP posts:
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olivehater · 16/11/2025 07:19

Snuggly jumpers - I would say using the crate as punishment is a definite no no. I have tried to make the crate have only really positive associations.
Could you just walk away from he completely whenever she bites. And get a spray for your furniture.

CoubousAndTourmaIet · 16/11/2025 08:50

@SnugglyJumpersMakeItBetter
Hi, Sorry you are struggling, but you will have several weeks more of shark behaviour to deal with until the adult teeth come through.

You mention toys but does that include legitimate chewing objects? When they start to chew furniture you need to offer an alternative. You can buy boxes of mixed chews that are safe for young pups. Also things like a small carrot or carrot sticks can be good (although you don't say what size puppy is so it's hard to advise specific chews).

As @olivehater says, get a bitter apple chew deterrent spray for areas of the house that pup is targeting.

I would not recommend the "yelp", it tends to overexcite a lot of puppies and makes them worse because they think it's play.

Any sort of dominance training like rolling over, holding down or scruffing is inadvisable. It absolutely will not help with the biting. Puppies chew until they lose their baby teeth. It is perfectly normal and should not be classified as "bad" behaviour.

The same goes for using crate time out as a punishment. If you have puppy gates you can walk out of the room or turn your back, but shoving pup in the crate every time they do something "wrong" will only give the crate negative associations.

Biting always worsens when puppies are overtired or overstimulated so make sure they are getting enough rest and quiet time. The calmer you are, the easier it is to teach your puppy to settle. Sleep and rest doesn't always need to be in a crate; most pups will just find a quiet corner or snooze beside your feet if you sit with a drink.

Yes, the biting is horrible. It gets a bit easier when you can distract with a 5 or 10 minute walk to tire them out, but it will only really improve when the adult teeth come through at 4 or 5 months old.

Sorry it's a struggle, but you're not alone.

TheHungryHungryLandsharks · 16/11/2025 08:54

@SnugglyJumpersMakeItBetter what breed is your pup? Different breeds respond better to different techniques, I’ve found. And for some breeds there is very little you can do to manage it (Malis/Working dogs such as collies or GSD, and gun dogs are particularly challenging)

But 100% agree with others than the crate as punishment won’t work. With a puppy all it will do is make them associate the crate with negativity.

SpanielsGalore · 16/11/2025 09:07

@SnugglyJumpersMakeItBetter I would stop the yelping, shows of dominance and crating. They don't work and are all likely to have negative affects on your puppy.
People swear by giving puppies frozen carrots to chew on. And Landsharks recommends frozen tea towels too.
Is she getting enough sleep? Puppies are often worse when they are over tired.
Unfortunately some puppies are worse than others for biting and you often just have to ride it out. My 4 year old was awful. I was covered in cuts and scratches and she ripped several items of clothing. I absolutely bloody hated her at times. I often sat on the kitchen side to escape her.
It's a common complaint on the puppy thread, so you are not alone.

Making the crate a positive place - feed her in it, give her treats for going in, never leave her to cry in there. I always slept or sat next to it to begin with, so puppy wasn't left alone.

Good luck. It will get better. But maybe not for a few months.

poodlepupmum · 17/11/2025 07:38

Hi all

Just discovered this very helpful thread.

We have a 5 month old poodle. Supposedly toy according to his papers but he's already almost 5kg so he's either a very big toy or a small mini.

We have a 6 year old Thai-mix rescue (we live in Bangkok) and a 6 year old cat too.

He's my 5th dog now but I've always had adult rescues, never had a puppy! It's quite the journey!!

TheOriginalNutty · 17/11/2025 08:28

Morning all, I’m loving this thread and all of the advice.
I remember the land shark times from my last puppy and it was very difficult. We had some success then with having a few stones in a plastic bottle and giving it a sharp short shake each time we wanted him to stop what he was doing and then redirecting to a toy. It did work for a good while.

Kobi is being a bit of a land shark but seems to be easily redirected at the moment. Not sure how long that will last.
After a couple of nights of trying different things, last night we tried leaving him out of his pen, just in the living room and he did finally settle 😄
I did come down to a wee and a poo but I’m happy to work on that once he’s used to sleeping alone.

He also had his first trip in his little car seat yesterday and in his sling so we popped into the pub for his first glass of Merlot 😉

TheHungryHungryLandsharks · 17/11/2025 13:46

@poodlepupmum puppies are evil, aren't they? My mum has a rescue and I give her the puppy (plus my others) whenever I go into the office. After thirty years of breeding, you'd think she'd be able to cope with...yet every time I return from work she practically throws the puppy at me and slams the door in my face. She always says the puppy is harder work than her rescue (who is such an evil - but lovable - beast we've nicknamed her 'Satan'). How are you finding juggling the older dog and cat with the puppy?

@TheOriginalNutty what did he think of Merlot? 😀It does take time for them to get comfortable overnight, but I said on the last thread I always think human sleep has to come first - because if we're not sleeping, then it's never going to work!

@VanGoSunflowers Are you still misty eyed about Pablo?

No major pup-dates my end. I'm WFH (in the garden with the heater on and a blanket on my lap) and watching Eris try and dig holes (aided and abetted by her brother) whenever she thinks I'm not looking. As soon as I clear my throat, she stops. Then a few seconds later starts again.

We had a huge breakthrough this morning as she managed a 'flying down' without the crawl forward after which is very 'big girl' type training...although given she has four adult dogs to learn from it's more a testament to their training of her than mine. That being said, on this mornings walk the same dog that went for her about a month ago went for her again (it was on the lead and she was next to me off lead) and she did a frightened tiddle. Bless her. Which is partly why I'm letting her off lightly with the hole digging. Not that I think she remembers this mornings walks...

VanGoSunflowers · 17/11/2025 16:55

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks yes, still misty eyed over Pablo and a bit embarrassed about that over the top rant about the joys of raising a puppy 😀
Love the idea of working in the garden, how lovely! And Eris sounds so clever to have learned that already. I bet that also makes up for the hole digging 😊

OP posts:
Isabelle70 · 17/11/2025 20:49

My Dd has a 20 week old puppy, who bites and humps her, it’s only her that he does this too. She is his main carer and it’s getting her down. She ignores him, distracts him, gives him toys, snuffle mats, kongs etc and he will still continue.
Would you have any advice?
He goes to puppy classes but it’s more focused on sit, stay etc which he is very good at.

poodlepupmum · 18/11/2025 01:59

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks
it's more like having a baby than having an adult dog! It's a bit easier now but the early days were quite wild!!
The two get along quite well. We have to watch our older one not policing the puppy too much. Fine if she corrects him if he's annyoing her (he likes to chew on her ear!) but sometimes he's just doing his puppy stuff, not in her space or face, and she decides she doesn't approve so we have to keep an eye on that. I'm hoping things will contineu to be OK as he moves into his adolescent years

olivehater · 18/11/2025 07:18

Since getting my poodle puppy my feed is filled with adverts for lots of expensive subscription dog food. Most of the adds talk about how terrible supermarket dog food is. Is this just a fad to ignore and not spend my hard earned money on?

SpanielsGalore · 18/11/2025 09:25

olivehater · 18/11/2025 07:18

Since getting my poodle puppy my feed is filled with adverts for lots of expensive subscription dog food. Most of the adds talk about how terrible supermarket dog food is. Is this just a fad to ignore and not spend my hard earned money on?

I would agree that supermarket own brand foods are poor quality. And some of the other brands available aren't much better, eg Bakers. I think you can get Harringtons Grain Free in Tesco and that's alright.
But there are lots of good foods out there without paying overpriced subscriptions.

SpanielsGalore · 18/11/2025 09:34

Isabelle70 · 17/11/2025 20:49

My Dd has a 20 week old puppy, who bites and humps her, it’s only her that he does this too. She is his main carer and it’s getting her down. She ignores him, distracts him, gives him toys, snuffle mats, kongs etc and he will still continue.
Would you have any advice?
He goes to puppy classes but it’s more focused on sit, stay etc which he is very good at.

Hopefully the biting should stop soon, as his adult teeth come in.
What's his daily routine? Is he getting enough sleep? How many walks and for how long? Are they interesting sniffy walks to tire his brain or on lead pavement ones? I followed the 5 minutes of walking plus 5 minutes of sniffing guidelines, so at 5 months old my puppy was doing two x 50 minute walks a day of lead in the woods.
Is she doing any training sessions with him outside of the classes? Ten minutes of training will tire him out more than a Kong. And she could do several sessions a day.
It's a good job puppies are cute, because they are bloody hard work. 😂 I hated my 4 year old as a puppy, but once she got through the teething stage she grew into a lovely dog.

TheHungryHungryLandsharks · 18/11/2025 10:04

@olivehater I agree with Spaniels re. food. I do really think different dogs respond to different food. All of mine are on various combinations of things.

What I would say is don't be taken in by their snazzy advertising. I recently unsubscribed from butternut box (which my boy has been on for nearly 3 years) when my puppies order turned up, and the content for Calcium and Protein was the same - puppies need different calcium and protein contents to adults. So the fact it was the exact same for a fully grown dog and a puppy (despite their claims on their website that it caters to age and breed) really annoyed me.

He's now on Farmers Dog. But I have other dogs on everything from Royal Canin to Bella and Duke. Lots of people sniff at raw, lots sniff at Royal Canin - but I feed my dogs whatever works best for them (and the dog on Royal Canin is currently 13 and breed life expectancy is 12 so it's not doing her any harm!).

What you need to do is check the calcium and protein contents of the food, go for puppy specific food, and leave your dog on it until it's an adult (or longer if you prefer!).

@poodlepupmum that's what my girls do! They get a bit 'oh quieten down' with the puppy, and I do gently step in. I'm glad your rescue is doing well though and gets along with the puppy. It's always worrying introducing a new pet to existing ones!

Ecrire · 18/11/2025 18:31

Just discovered this thread - goodness didn’t know anything about this haven!

we have a 12 week old ShihTzu pup and an 11 year old ShihTzu c Bichon dog - both girls. Three weeks into having pup. Pup had 8 days without indoor accidents then a fair few today. We’ve been religious about taking to garden but today with cold and rain and guests at home - our fault I guess that her streak got broken!

week 1 saw Senior bark and run away form pup who kept going for her tail. Lots of separation and safe spaces for (feisty) Senior. Then Senior wanted to actively come in and investigate Junior so I did loads of parallel play and parallel training and now they happily occupy same space with lots of Tumbledog (the doggy play fighting game) after which they both collapse in heap and snore.

I just want the toilet training sorted :/

Nella68 · 18/11/2025 18:40

@Ecrire sound like the toilet training is going in the right direction! I remember it being the most exhausting part of having a new puppy- constantly being on guard.
It’s doubly hard when the weather is rubbish. We ended up putting a pen under a gazebo so we could contain the pup and keep dry.

GoodBones85 · 26/11/2025 20:01

Hi all. It’s gone really quiet on here - hope everyone is ok.

Looking for a bit of a handhold tonight. Two close friends have lost their dogs out of the the blue this week. One found to have cancer and one was in a freak accident, both had to be PTS.

Both young dogs. Seems so unfair 💔

CoubousAndTourmaIet · 26/11/2025 20:11

Hi @GoodBones85

Yes, it has been very quiet here and on the Adolescent thread lately.

Oh how awful. My heart goes out to your friends. Having lost a young dog tragically myself (age 4, to epilepsy), I know how it feels. Losing any dog is heartbreaking, of course, but when they're young and had their whole life ahead of them, it feels particularly cruel. I'm so sorry.

How are you? And how is your boy coping with the colder weather? Our girl has been loving it and we've enjoyed some longer walks.

GoodBones85 · 26/11/2025 22:03

Thanks @CoubousAndTourmaIet your kind words are very much appreciated. It does feel very cruel.

My boy is very well Thankyou. We have made great progress with not barking when meeting other dogs which has made walks much more enjoyable. He doesn’t seem too fazed by the colder weather. We are taking him away with us this weekend so looking forward to some lovely long walks then. Glad your girl is loving it too. ❤️

CoubousAndTourmaIet · 26/11/2025 22:31

Awww, that sounds good progress indeed with regard to other dogs @GoodBones85

I hope you all enjoy your weekend away and that pup will have lots of fun exploring a new place.

VanGoSunflowers · 27/11/2025 11:06

@GoodBones85 Im so sorry to hear that, how heartbreaking. It doesn’t bear thinking about. I hope you’re ok this morning. @CoubousAndTourmaIet Im sorry to hear you had to go through this!

Im crazy busy at work at the moment, talking insomnia levels of stress and been working 7am to 9pm most days and only having a break to walk Pablo! Deadline is looming though and then I am going to have some time off! Hope everyone else is well x

OP posts:
CoubousAndTourmaIet · 27/11/2025 11:19

Went through it twice @VanGoSunflowers , one boy at 4 with epilepsy, one at 7 with a vaccine reaction. It's made me very over protective of current girl 😢

Sorry you're madly busy and hope you get a break soon x

GoodBones85 · 27/11/2025 12:26

@CoubousAndTourmaIet I’m so sorry - in my sad state last night I missed that you said you had also been through the same with a young dog. Have also seen your update that you have been through it more than once. I’m sorry you had to go through those experiences. I’ll agree it’s making me protective of my boy, and also makes you realise that your time with them is so precious. 🥲❤️

CoubousAndTourmaIet · 27/11/2025 13:03

Thank you for your kind words @GoodBones85 . It was very hard. It took us almost three years to be able to think about having another dog.
It's been a difficult few years for us, losing parents, dogs and cats, I think we've had 11 bereavements in total and it does take its toll emotionally. Sorry. TMI.

Our puppy is now, unbelievably, 20 months old! She means the world to us ❤ and yes, I agree, every day is precious.

Twiglets1 · 27/11/2025 13:07

tizwozliz · 10/11/2025 20:44

This is the best photo I could find that shows it

The puppy I raised for Guide dogs had exactly the same wavy line along his back. I thought in his case it might be because he was half Lab half Golden Retriever but not sure? My previous Lab (family pet) didn't have that wavy line.