puppy advice/help...

[cryssi]

Hi everyone,

I don't know if this belongs here, so mods please move if need be!

We have a new puppy and I need some advice! It is about 10 weeks old, and very attached to us already. She is pretty good about using a potty box, but sometimes doesn't use it. Like for example, yesterday, she did #1 in the box, then walked over to the rug at the front door and did #2...

Also, the biggest issue right now is that she does not like to be alone. We gate her in the laundry room at night, but our room is on the other side of the house. Last night she howled bloody murder for about 2 hrs before we finally moved her to our bathroom (gated her in the toilet area) and even then she cried...but we were close enough to tell her to be quiet. Eventually she fell asleep while DH and I were talking.

I know she's just a baby, but how long will this last? Will she ever be able to sleep on her own? She will NOT be sleeping in our bed with us, or even in our room. The toilet area is a compromise for now b/c we really need to be able to sleep. Will she grow out of her clinginess? I've never had a puppy this new and certainly never had a dog in the house (I'm still not sure about that).

Thanks in advance!

c

p.s. her name is Shenzi!

 

[BunsenH]

I'm no expert, but you seem to be describing typical puppy behavior. She misses her brothers and sisters and needs to feel accepted into your "pack". It's been over 10 years since I had a puppy, but seem to remember that the clingy-ness lastes for a few months. I think that a crate in your room may be the answer.

 

[golfgal]

First off, you are teaching her to go to the bathroom in your house because of the potty box. You need to take her outside every couple hours to the same spot in your yard so she learns that is where you go to the bathroom. She needs to go out an hour after eating, too.

As for the crying at night, she needs a crate/kennel at night. A laundry room is too big of a space for her to feel comfortable. Teach her that the crate is her "den" put some toys in there, give her a treat when she goes in there and leave her in there for say 15 minutes to start and don't take her out after that until she isn't crying--if she stops crying for 30 seconds even, take her out. Eventually she will learn that this is her home and she is safe in there.

 

[luvwinnie]

Having a puppy is a lot like having a baby, please remember that. WHat kind of puppy is he/she? 10 weeks is still very young.

This might help you:

http://www.perfectpaws.com/htrp.html

 

[Trish Bessette]

Golfgal said it perfect.

A crate/kennel is the best way to go. We are picking up our puppy this Friday A Golden Retriever - female. We are naming her Bella, which is Latin in origin and means beautiful girl

Put a few toys in the kennel and that will be the place you put her when you are gone and at night.

She is crying at night because she misses her brother and sisters that she is used to being around. Now she is in this big open space and is scared.

Good luck! No one said puppies are easy, but they are so worth it!

 

[eeyore25]

Hi there,

Sounds to me like this is normal puppy behavior. We have two Chihuahua's and they both went through this. Although at night they had each other so it was not that bad. As far as them going potty in the potty box, that will get better as well. Both our dogs are litter box trained and it took a while for them to realize that they had to do both in the box. What we did was made it the greatest place on earth. They went to the bathroom and we did everything short of cartwills. They went poop (that too was the hard one for us) we gave them a treat. They finally got the hang of it. Even now, they are 5, we still make a big deal out of them going potty in the potty box. The only accident that we get is when Haley (our girl) gets really excited and we try to pick her up. That's it. I would say that it took them both about 6 months to get used to the potty box. But when they do, it is great and it works wonderfully!

Good luck to you

 

[luvwinnie]

Another site with info:

http://www.canismajor.com/dog/bring01.html

 

[cryssi]

thanks everyone! our laundry room is actually quite small...the length is just that of the washer and dryer next to each other, and the width is slightly larger than the doorway. I like the training idea...we'll have to give that a try. She's pretty comfortable in the laundry room if DH and I are around, and she knows that her food/water/bed/potty are in there, but won't go over there by herself (separation anxiety?). DH and I both work, so she will be alone all day, that will probably hinder the training process. I'd like to train her to potty outdoors, but we would only get a few hours in of that each day so for now she has to use the potty box. Eventually, I'd like to train her to be an outdoor dog so we don't have to worry about her being cooped up inside as she gets older...

I don't want to have to untrain her of things...but we are really clueless...DH calls this our responsibility training for when we have a baby (in like a year)! LOL

oh, and Shenzi is a mutt...I'll try to upload a pic today...she kind of, sort of, not really resembles a hyena...LOL

thanks again you guys!

 

[cryssi]

thanks luvwinnie! those sites are fantastic!

 

[MinnieMe2]

How long have you had this puppy? What breed is she? I guess I'm confused by why you are having her potty in the house. Dogs will not potty in their sleeping/eating area, even very small puppies. A crate is the best way to go, IMO. My dogs both have crates, and they go in them just to nap. Their crates are 'their space', and they like them. While your laundry area is small to you, I'm sure it is huge to your puppy.

My advice to you is to basically go back to square one with your puppy. I'm sure she's as confused about what you expect as I am by why you're doing things this way. Get a crate. Feed her in it. Put her there when you're going out and at night when you go to bed. Walk her at least every hour to give her the idea of what outside is for. A puppy is a huge committment of time, energy, and money. A lot of time now will ensure you all have a happy, long future together.

Also, check this site for training materials:

My Smart Puppy

 

[golfgal]

thanks everyone! our laundry room is actually quite small...the length is just that of the washer and dryer next to each other, and the width is slightly larger than the doorway. I like the training idea...we'll have to give that a try. She's pretty comfortable in the laundry room if DH and I are around, and she knows that her food/water/bed/potty are in there, but won't go over there by herself (separation anxiety?). DH and I both work, so she will be alone all day, that will probably hinder the training process. I'd like to train her to potty outdoors, but we would only get a few hours in of that each day so for now she has to use the potty box. Eventually, I'd like to train her to be an outdoor dog so we don't have to worry about her being cooped up inside as she gets older...

I don't want to have to untrain her of things...but we are really clueless...DH calls this our responsibility training for when we have a baby (in like a year)! LOL

oh, and Shenzi is a mutt...I'll try to upload a pic today...she kind of, sort of, not really resembles a hyena...LOL

thanks again you guys!

Your laundry room is still too big. Get a crate, one that will be big enough for her when she is full grown, section off the front of the crate so it is just large enough for her to turn around, no bigger. She will feel much more secure in there. I have to say that we have a 7 month old dog and we crated her from the first night and we never went through the whining, crying stuff at night. Put a ticking clock just outside the crate and a warm water bottle under the blankets in the crate. That will make her feel better. Put in a chew toy or two as well.

Have you been putting kitty litter in a box. If you have, training her to go outside won't be hard, just put the box where you want her to go outside or sprinkle some of the litter on the ground. She will associate that with her spot to go and if you take her to that spot every time for a couple weeks, she will know that is where she needs to go.

 

[Disneynutbsv]

We got our puppy in march and he was 12 weeks old. A crate is a wonderful thing! No matter how small your laundry room is, they are used to small areas. The smaller the area to sleep, the less likely they will use that area to go to the bathroom. For us it took about 3 weeks and then he was housebroken! I think at the most it was about 3 or 4 accidents...you really need to be consistent when taking your puppy outside to do "her" thing
I can't help you with the clinginess factor because we have a golden retreiver too and they play together.
Congrats on your new puppy!!!

 

[cryssi]

thanks again...DH doesn't want to put Shenzi in a crate b/c he thinks it would be too confining...however we have just found out that we have a Houdini dog...she escaped the laundry room today by climbing the baby gate. He thought that she didn't have any accidents...until he found the spot under the coffee table...her potty box was wet too, though, so maybe she really doesn't want to go in a dirty box . About taking her outside, we were advised not to at all until she had all her shots for fear of parvo?

http://www.ambertech.com/whatisp.html

We are quite at a loss. DH has to go back to work and if we put Shenzi back in the laundry room, she'll just climb out again. We don't want her to get hurt. We previously had her in the laundry room with the door shut, but she really didn't like that...WHY must she be so difficult? We might have to shut her in for now and figure out something (crate?) tonight after work...

 

[MinnieMe2]

WHY must she be so difficult?

Your puppy is not being 'difficult' -- she is being a very typical puppy.

This makes me think that perhaps DH, or both of you, are not prepared to make the necessary committment to a dog at this time in your lives. Your puppy looks to you to tell her what she can and can't do, but she may not understand right away. It is a huge committment, and there are right ways to do things and wrong ways. Is it more cruel to confine your puppy to the safety of her crate than it would be to have her electrocute herself chewing on wires or choke to death on something she should not have? Crates are safe places for puppies, like playpens are for babies. If you can't be watching a baby, you confine them. If you can't watch your puppy, you should confine her.

A quick out, piddle, happy dance and praise, praise, praise, then back inside should not put your puppy at risk for parvo. She should have gotten at least one set of immunizations before leaving the breeder, which would provide her with some protection. You do not, however, want to be walking all over town with her at this point in time.

Your puppy is very small, very young, and you will probably be training her in one way or another for a good year. TIME -- a nicely-trained puppy takes quite a bit of it. I don't think you and DH thought this through before bringing her home, and now I fear the puppy will pay the price.

 

[mrsv98]

You absolutely need a crate. Dogs are den animals, therefore crates are not confining. We have three labs, 10 yo, 3yo and 14 weeks and the two youngset use crates everyday. Lilly, our three year old goes in her crate on her own all the time, it is "her" space. The baby, Belle, is in her crate when not directly supervised by an adult. Potty training - outside - is coming along well, an accident every other day or so. We working on her behavior and will start puppy class in a couple of weeks.

We live in Chicago and Belle has been going outside since we brought her home, the vet never said anything about Parvo, is it a warm weather concern? IMHO, I would never box train a dog, it is asking for trouble. Get her a crate, put her in it even if she cries and in a day or two, she will be used to it and you will all be much happier.

Good luck, puppies sure are a lot of work!

 

[luvdzne]

We have a 10 week old puppy too. She is a beagle husky mix (I have yet to figure out how to show pictures either) So I feel for you.

I will say we really lucked out with Gracie, she seems to catch on to everything very quickly the only problem we are really having right now is the nipping and eating my carpets .

Here are things that have worked for me:
The crate is a must. It makes them feel more secure. I got her to stop crying at night by putting her in the crate during the day while I was doing things. When she would start to cry I would ignore her, when she stopped crying I would immediately reward her with a treat, but I did not let her out. Then we did it again. After a few times I let her out, but only when she was quiet. If you immediately go to the puppy, you are training the puppy that when she cries you will come. We still have a few issues of her howling when I'm gone so when she really gets going I will lightly spray her with water after I say quiet when she is quiet I give her a treat.

Also, puppies usually don't go to the bathroom where they sleep.

Potty training is really easy if you are consistent. I know some try to do the box thing, but to me that is just really teaching them to go in the house. You are going to have to start from day one. Always with a leash, take the puppy out every 2 hours, have a designated area for her to go in (this took quite awhile because she kept wanting to go right at the end of the kids slide, and would hold it literally all day until she was about to explode ). For the first few days, do not clean up their P**P, this will teach her that this is where you want her to go. When she is going say yes and give a treat and lots of praise and excitement. Again, this has to be very consistent. Puppies usually go every 2 hours, also about 1/2 hour after eating. Make sure you feed the recommended amount and pick up any that is not eaten. I also recommend feeding a high quality puppy food. I use Iams. Not only is a higher quality better for them it produces less waste if you know what I mean .I feed her 3x's a day. Also take the puppy out after any type of play. If you are consistent (the key) you should be able to train her pretty quick. We have only had 2 or 3 accidents in the 3 weeks that we have had her.

I also keep her confined to the kitchen, hall and laundry room area. There are only area rugs. We only let her on carpeted areas when she is being closely watched.

Also have lots of safe toys for her to play with and chew on. Gracie has a basketful. Her favorite seems to be a plush bear, she always has to have her bear.

Having a puppy is very much like having another baby and a lot of work, but like I said if you are consistent you will have a much easier time.

PM me if you have any other questions. I am glad to share any tips I have.

Now if anyone has any advice on the nipping part I'm all .

Good luck!

ETA: Sorry, I didn't mean to write a whole training manual

 

[luvwinnie]

I'm sorry, but puppies SHOULD NOT be alone all day. You need to hire a dogwalker to pay some attention to the poor pup.

 

[golfgal]

thanks again...DH doesn't want to put Shenzi in a crate b/c he thinks it would be too confining...however we have just found out that we have a Houdini dog...she escaped the laundry room today by climbing the baby gate. He thought that she didn't have any accidents...until he found the spot under the coffee table...her potty box was wet too, though, so maybe she really doesn't want to go in a dirty box . About taking her outside, we were advised not to at all until she had all her shots for fear of parvo?

http://www.ambertech.com/whatisp.html

We are quite at a loss. DH has to go back to work and if we put Shenzi back in the laundry room, she'll just climb out again. We don't want her to get hurt. We previously had her in the laundry room with the door shut, but she really didn't like that...WHY must she be so difficult? We might have to shut her in for now and figure out something (crate?) tonight after work...

Dogs LIKE crates. Think of it this way, in the wild they would find a small cave or burrow to sleep in, just big enough for them to fit but small enough so no predators could get in. It isn't cruel, it is what their instincts tell them is a good thing.

 

[Pooh's Pixie]

I'm subscribing to this thread because we have a 9 week old Gordon Setter we just got Friday. He is really pretty good, had some accidents but is pretty consistent if we keep on top of the going outside (it's been flood-raining here in MA since we got him so I feel a little bad for him!)

Our problem has been at nighttime. He is crated in our laundry room, which is off the kitchen. He has been crying and barking every night. I am going to try a radio on softly tonight...I don't really want to bring him in my room...any other suggestions? Our babies slept better than this guy! My poor DS8 seems to be the most affected by the lack of sleep...he's the lightest sleeper and the laundry room is at the bottom of the stairs from his room.

To the other posters, congrats on the new puppies!

 

[luvdzne]

I'm subscribing to this thread because we have a 9 week old Gordon Setter we just got Friday. He is really pretty good, had some accidents but is pretty consistent if we keep on top of the going outside (it's been flood-raining here in MA since we got him so I feel a little bad for him!)

Our problem has been at nighttime. He is crated in our laundry room, which is off the kitchen. He has been crying and barking every night. I am going to try a radio on softly tonight...I don't really want to bring him in my room...any other suggestions? Our babies slept better than this guy! My poor DS8 seems to be the most affected by the lack of sleep...he's the lightest sleeper and the laundry room is at the bottom of the stairs from his room.

To the other posters, congrats on the new puppies!

With all the new puppies it must be spring

If you have a patio get some of those puppy training pads. When you take the puppy outside put the pad on the patio, you can cover you and puppy with an umbrella, teach her to go on the pad. You can even do this in the house by the back door if need be, but it is not ideal. Then when it dries up move the pads to where you want the puppy to go.

Also, I would not advise bringing puppy up to your room at night , you will only be asking for trouble in the long run. Read my above post, also I have heard relaxing music and even putting a piece of clothing that you have worn in with the puppy.

OT: By the way, can someone tell me how to post a picture of my Gracie. I figured out my whole avatar thing, but the picture in the message area has me stumped.