Ok there I was complaining that she didn't follow me everywhere & now she won't leave me alone - which of course I understand & don't mind but everytime I walk out of the kitchen she cries/barks, has learnt to slam the door shut & then scratches it. I know she is only a baby (10 weeks) but I'm not quite sure how to help her cope for 5 minutes without us & gradually increase it. We don't go back in to the kitchen until she stops & goes quiet & then we say "good" & give her lots of fuss. I go back to college in September - only one day a week & I have plenty of people volunteering to come round & let her out & give her some attention - but I am worrying about getting her ready to be on her own by then. Has anyone got any tips/advice? I managed to get a good photo of Beulah today.... https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151549019176172&l=970603f1b2
Re: Clingy Baby Sounds to me like you are doing a good job. She will learn I am sure, it's just that natural abandonment instinct. It will take a little time but she will learn that you always return.
Re: Clingy Baby Is there any way of propping the door open, to stop her closing it, in case she jams a paw etc in it? They really do pull on the heart strings don't they!? You know she's safe where she is, and has everything she needs for the few moments you'll be out of her sight. So just carry on what you're already doing, sounds spot on. Don't go back in until she's quiet. In time she really will get used to it. It's a very young puppy thing. Charlie is almost 4 months now, and I've noticed only this week, that I can go upstairs now, and she doesn't cry as if being murdered at the stair gate. She waits miserably lying sprawled on her back, like an abandoned waif in complete silence, great improvement....! I adore the photo, she's a stunner. Can I ask about her name? Sorry if you've already talked about it. I love it.
Re: Clingy Baby Only Charlie experience - but I would go down a list: Been fed? Got water? Been to the loo? Cool enough? Warm enough? Already had loads of playtime and cuddles? Comfy bed? Still looks generally healthy and well? Got something safe to chew? If all yes, I'd just leave him and do what I had to do. The check list was completely for my benefit, to allow me to ignore the wailing!
Re: Clingy Baby Thanks guys, that is reassuring She is my surrogate little girl as I have 2 sons, Jude is 6 (& is on the verge of being diagnosed with adhd) & Darcy is 4. Anyway now the balance in our house has been addressed & I love her to bits! I'm into all things vintage & pin-up & I'm setting up a beauty business with this theme, with that in mind I looked at Pin-up names & "granny" names & one of the ones that came up was Beulah - it's Hebrew meaning married & comes from the bible. Did I mention she did a whole night sleeping from 11:30 til 6am with no accidents 2 days ago? Last night was a bit noisier though
Re: Clingy Baby The early days can be trying... I went a bit bonkers, I think. At one point, I was keeping "poop probability statistics" (based on a rolling average of his peep and poop frequency and times) so I could work out whether he was crying because I wanted to go do something, or was crying because he needed to go out. : Actually, it worked pretty well, eg it's 3pm, there is only a 10% chance that he needs a poop now, so he is just crying because he is crying...
Re: Clingy Baby I've read that dogs can have a calming effect on children, particularly those with behavioural difficulties. Have you thought so? I adore her name, it's even nicer with a story to it! Best of luck with your new business. If you can handle a puppy, business is a doddle!!
Re: Clingy Baby having a puppy has been the hardest thing i have ever done.....full time job , my hours are back to part time, thank goodness........he's a lovely well behaved boy now, more training needed , nearly there
Re: Clingy Baby Hi, you are right to think that this needs sorting. All pups need to learn to spend short periods of time alone as a part of the socialisation process. It is all part of dealing with 'fears' and you don't want a dog that is afraid to be alone. This is how I taught my puppy Rachael to cope with being alone. It is not too difficult. You'll find a clicker helpful though. Pippa
Re: Clingy Baby Thanks Pippa - we have a clicker which we have been using for jumping up my kids. I did a great session in the garden with her where in the end my 6 yr old was running up & down the garden arms waving with a tennis ball above his head & she just trotted along nicely beside him. Not the same story with my 4 yr old though - he is more wary & she tends to sense that so jumps up him more. I try & have the clicker on the side in the kitchen with some of her kibble so when the boys come through the stairgate I can use them. Can you try to train them too much at once though? Should we work on the jumping up & then the being alone? Or both at once? I think she is starting to get a bit bored now at home she has lots of toys, a kong etc. & we do the odd retrieve with her which she loves - can't wait to be able to take her for a walk. Are there any other games we can play with her other than fetch?
Re: Clingy Baby You can teach multiple things at once. You can focus on one thing for a short session, then another thing for a short session later in the day, if you like. Other games are: Hide and seek: Have 2 people, each with a few treats. Person A hides while Person B holds the dog. Person A whistles or calls out and Person B encourages the dog to find Person A (Person A gives a treat). Then swap roles. You can do this in your house, yard or in the park. Go seek: have someone hold the dog while you hide little treats round the house. Make the hiding places easy to see at first. Release the dog with a cue 'go seek' and encourage them to sniff out the treats. Good practice for scent work if you ever want to do tracking or obedience. Teach tricks: do an Internet search for tricks you can teach. A few are shake hands, spin, bow, roll over or ring a bell. Slightly more advanced is weaving through your legs as you walk, or playing dead. More advanced again is getting a tissue from a box when you pretend to sneeze or fetching the telephone (which I taught my old dog to do though he sometimes brought me the TV remote instead).
