Puppies

[Lady1980]

Regardless of him settling himself you should be setting an alarm and waking up during the night.

You need to be setting an alarm before he normally wakes during the night and taking him out, don’t wait until he wakes and instantly has to go.

Thanks! How do I decide what time? Is once enough? Night before last he weed once but last night a wee and a poo. I'm not sure what times he does them!

 

[37BBL]

Whereabouts are you based if you don't mind me asking?

That's the main thing I'm concerned about is the training! I have heard that labradors are super easy to train cos they're so motivated by food though! We're getting a lab in 4 weeks

Ahhh are you?? So exciting!!

We are West Midlands.

I've heard the same, that they pick up things quick etc. I am still really nervous that if we get it wrong we may end up with a poorly behaved dog!!

 

[Murphygirl]

I have a couple of places identified for classes but don’t know yet if I need to wait a week or 2 after 2nd vaccination before he can go out. He goes next Thursday so as soon as I have that will get him booked in. At night he sometimes struggles to settle but when he does he sleeps through the night until about 7am when he goes out to toilet. He has a crate in the kitchen which he loves during the day for snoozing but still haven’t mastered leaving the door closed for any period of time so he’s still sleeping with us upstairs at night .

 

[Blond3g1rl]

Anyone have any tips on separation anxiety? My 4 year old rescue is really clingy to me.

We have stimulation toys and she gets plenty of exercise

Is she getting too much stimulation and exercise? Dogs need to learn how to settle. Have you tried a crate? I don’t mean locking her away and letting her cry it out but teaching her that the crate is her safe space.

 

[Padfoot]

Hi!! Can anyone recommend a car seat/crate that can go on the back of the car for safe transportation? So we can use the seat belts to put round the pet car seat? If that makes sense?

 

[Mariamariamariarose]

Pets at home do a good variety of puzzle toys, treat dispensing toys etc so I’d defo recommend going there. Sign up to their vip scheme as there’s often lots of offers and sometimes freebies too! I got a bag of biscuits, some bone treats and a rawhide free Santa chew all for free the other week!

with the kong we either use dog friendly peanut butter or very low fat cheese, stuff some small treats in too and freeze overnight.

Thank you!!! And good tip re the freebies

 

[Oohthedrama]

How long after a dogs first season should they be spayed?

I got my dog done before she went into season. 9 months I think.

 

[DWASN]

Any advice on stopping dogs cocking their leg inside? My 8 month male Brussels griffon just started after spending Xmas day at my parents (they have a 7 year old yorkie). He hasn’t had full access to the whole house unless supervised but now whenever he gets a chance to leg it out the kitchen he does it on anything lying around (laundry bag, daughters large toy, Xmas tree, outdoor sofa cushions we brought indoors).

He’s getting neutered next month.

 

[Murphygirl]

We swear by ours for our two!

Thanks, just found out they have a new battery operated one instead of pumping it, the mud mummy. It arrived yesterday so hopefully will keep my pup a bit cleaner

 

[Murphygirl]

I’ve slept downstairs with him a couple of times but usually bring him up to bed with me when he settles but think tonight I’ll try leaving him in his crate and sleep nearby then build up to leaving him in the room alone as he’s not used to having the crate door closed for long periods so think I need to do a bit more work on that first

 

[Curly]

Thanks but does it stain, smell etc?

It hasn’t so far. I do always take a bucket of soapy water to it once a week and my husband has power washed it. I just make sure I pick up the shit quickly

 

[SonicTheSpikeyThing]

So when do they stop biting? We have a 11 week old puppy and he’s like a crocodile still. Please tell me this phase passes quickly.

 

[Octopies]

Please tell me it gets easier!

We have a 9 week old cockapoo and I really underestimated what getting a puppy would be like. There has been tears, lots of tears. I have a toddler and the puppy is harder than the toddler. I question every day if I’ve done the right thing - people say it gets easier and dogs are much better but I’m struggling to use that motivation right now when all I have is a yappy puppy who bites me constantly.

Any advice tattlers?

Hi I just found this thread and your original post. 6 months on how’s it going?
I’ve got a toddler and am considering a puppy but have been scared off by many re how hard it is

 

[AladdinSane]

You guys have really opened my eyes to the stress of owning a puppy and how tough they are. We have two cats and are considering getting a labrador puppy.
Has anyone had experience of cats with puppies? Our cats are quite chill with one of them being more than happy to be boisterous with the other one (she hates it!)

 

[Hamburglar]

Any recommendations for pet insurance?

We got 4 weeks free when we picked up our pup, which is coming to an end.

We have car insurance with Admiral so we might be able to get a better deal with them, but all recommendations are welcome.

I went with ManyPets for the first year and although they were very generous with what they covered (including dental surgery which can be a grey area) and you only pay the excess once in a year which I liked, they took FOREVER to pay my claims and the renewal quote was £50 a month because I’d claimed previously (even though they were one offs related to him being a puppy rather than an ongoing health issue).

 

[Felix08]

When can/did you leave your pups overnight and not in a crate? Ours is 5 months old now and we can leave him 5 hours during the day in his crate and he doesn’t have any accidents and no accidents on a night either but I’d like to start trying to leave him out of his crate. Just scared in case he destroys the house in the process so wondering when is the best time or how do I know he’s ready to be left?

We dont use a crate, I know people say it´s better but we just dont like the us of one. He sleeps the whole night mainly without accidents. Maybe we just got lucky.
Maybe slowly stop using it? Im not sure, sorry im not helpful.

 

[daisychains_]

Does anybody have any tips for barking please?

My dogs barking has increasingly got worse over the last couple of months. He barks as soon as I open the back door to let him out in the garden, he'll run down the path barking and then bark for a few seconds at the back gate. We believe it's because he's previously seen a cat in the garden so he's barking almost as like a warning sign, but it's so annoying and no doubt my neighbours have noticed. It makes me nervous to let him out first thing in the morning or before we go to bed at night! I resorted to taking him out on a lead the other day!

He also barks at us if he wants to play - I do play with him a lot whilst I am at home but sometimes it's just not possible to play all the time! He will bring a toy over and if we don't pick it up, or we say no, he'll just sit and periodically bark at us.

Any tips would be gratefully appreciated. A friend suggested one of those vibrating collars but I don't know that I'm comfortable using something like that and I'd rather train it out of him myself!

 

[Lalalalaaaaaa85]

Anyone got experience of Border Terriers? I love a terrier and my fav is Jack Russell but I have children now and so going to pause on the JRT’s as they can often be quite nippy. I’ve said to my boyfriend once the kids are grown up I’ll be back to my beloved Russell’s .

So was considering if there was a terrier better suited to family life and I think borders are so cute with their old men faces

Edit - I prob should have caught up on this thread! Ha ha can’t believe I posted this after borders were mentioned! @Nosymum would love to hear more about your border

 

[epl000]

Im in panic mode as I’ve just discovered my pup has eaten a large bar of milk chocolate. She seems fine but should I be worried?

Definitely phone the vets, even for reassurance. Hopefully pup will be fine though!

 

[happygirl4699]

Only experience is my puppy shits and wees all over it

Thanks but does it stain, smell etc?