The puppy play date went well! They played a lot and very little yelping from biting too hard. They were a little aggressive which was making me nervous but overall I think they were having fun and our pup passed out cold on the way home.
Just found this site and so glad I did. My 11 week old puppy, Harbor, had by far his worst night tonight. I have 3 daughters, ages 10, 7 and 4. He has these ridiculous hyper episodes where everything and anything in sight gets bit. Tonight he chased and bit all 3 of my daughters them including myself and literally latched on hard to my wrist with my watch on it. He was sprinting throughout the family room jumping and biting everything in sight. My wife is almost in tears looking at me. We had a Boxer previously and don't recall this puppy stage. My 4 year old is outright scared of him. I chose a lab because they are great family dogs and seriously doubted myself tonight. Glad to read all these responses. As for his leash he doesn't like it. Either bites it or sits and doesn't want to walk. Only positive is he is very quiet in his crate and good in there. But the biting and hyper episodes and alarming.
Hi there and welcome to the Forum....sounds like you need a friend who's 'been' there today and many of us have ,you are not alone....This biting stage is pretty grim and I can imagine quite frightening to your children.There are a lot of similar posts at the momen about Forum Puppies dangling off their family members!,. We don't have children of our own but when Dexter arrived to us at 5 months ( passed the worst of the biting ,granted) my niece and nephew were 2 and 3 years old,they are in my house most days.If they moved quickly or ran Dexter would get really excited and jump up on them! I cannot tell you how many times I heard myself reminding them 'Don't Run!' We also taught them to stand like a tree if he jumped up on them ,ie fold their arms across their chest and turn their back on him and stand still .....with the age they were you can imagine that wants the easiest but it did work ......my aspiration for my dog was to have a dog that didn't need to be locked away when we have people round and I put a lot of work into that ,so I didn't always automatically put him away behind his gate just because the children asked me to,I wanted him to learn to behave around us.That said Having a separate place that you can separate your pup from the children will preserve all your sanity ..if you are using the crate for this though I'd say have the crate in a place where he can still see you all and give him something to chew on when you put him in so he doesn't come to see his crate as punishment...you want him to think it's a great place. I think you were venting a bit rather than actually asking for advice so forgive me if I've overstepped...this time will pass and with guidance and training you will have a wonderful family pet that you will all love BEst Wishes Angela x
Thank you Ashley. Was more or less venting but thank you for your advice. I read a ton on here last night and it does seem all normal. Just very tough stage... Thank you Dave
My boy Zac is coming 5 months and things have improved immensely. He still has mad hyperactive moments but is a lovely character and obedient mostly, We recon its like having a 2yr old child in the house bursting with energy and full of enquiry but often covered in fox poo rather than chocolate. He is proving to be a great companion causing many smiley moments.. This site gave me much hope in the first few weeks as memories of puppyhood were faint after my dear old Zoe died at 12 yrs.andI am in my 70s.so keep smiling all new puppy owners -time passes so quickly.Enjoy.
I'm pleased to say that my Dexter is no longer a crocopup. Once I was able to take my sling off for a few hours a day and use my right arm more, it was easier to quietly and calmly put him in his crate for time out. This was four to five weeks ago and he hasn't bitten me since, it was like a mirical cure. I didn't say anything to him, just remained calm while I lifted him in without eye contact. He reduced the episodes very rapidly once I started doing this. I'm bruise free, yay.
Now the battle of the backdoor mat. I put it back down on Saturday night and Dexter still thinks it's his but it's much easier now to tell him to leave it or move him away without getting the crocopup bites. If I tell him leave it and he goes back to it after, he gets put into timeout. He's learning.
Well Zac is 5 months now and today was the first day (of many x fingers) that he greeted other dog owners without jumping up while off lead. he now comes to call from playing with his friends, retrieves and delivers most of the time and is beginning to be a pleasure to own.So persevere it is worth it in the end. Love Pippas new book -full of really helpful advice
Three postal deliveries today, and not a single bark or break for freedom via the front door! Saba also had a first stay and wait as I had to pop into the Chemist on our way home from our walk. He was always in my sight, and sat very nicely, tolerating the attention of the odd passer-by. We also met an invalid carriage, which he was fine with, yet pushchairs are treated with great suspicion. Saba usually enjoys his walk around the Rec, but today, he was a bit spooked, and didn't cheer up until we were walking the streets, so to speak! He's also a little less of a nipper today, but we're still struggling to stop him jumping up when we're sitting down. Theft/wreckage today(so far One hand towel stolen and hidden in bed, and one Apple MacBook charger chewed to death, mercifully not connected to the mains!
Our Zeus was born on September 1, 2015. We adopted him on October 14, 2015. We definitely have the crocopup thing going. We are working on leash training. We are making improvements in both areas. I am trying to get him used to car rides. I take him in the morning when I drive my teenager to school. It is about 20 minutes total. He hates it. He is scared and cries. Has anyone else's lab been scared in the car?
Zeus is still very young and it is not unusual for them to cry in the car to begin with. The usual advice is to gradually get him used to just being in the car without the car moving. Next step is to close car doors and for him to be relaxed still. Next step is to just start the car engine without moving. Once he is relaxed for al those steps you can start moving the car literally to the bottom of the drive and then back to begin with. If he is still happy and relaxed you can drive a little further, perhaps to the end of the road, and return. Gradually build up the time he is in the car on a drive and it is a brilliant idea if you can drive go a park for him to have a run and sniff at a very early stage so he associates the car with good events. Good luck.
We have a 10 week old black lab, Randy, and overall he's been doing really well. We got him when he was 8 weeks (DOB 9-24-15). He sleeps through the night most nights (with the occasional 3 am potty break). My biggest concern is scheduling and making sure he's sleeping and playing in the right amounts. I'm home all day with him (I start a new job in 6 weeks...so I'll be home all day until then) and I've been following a schedule of about 1 hour of activity (playing, short walk around the block) and then 2 hours of rest in his crate throughout the day. Just wondering if I'm on the right track.
Hi and welcome to the forum from me and my two monkeys, Willow and Shadow. A puppy of that age shouldn't be walking on the floor outside, because he won't have had all of his jabs yet. You need to make sure he's had his last vaccination before he's allowed on the ground outside, otherwise you run the risk of him getting things like parvovirus, which are extremely serious for dogs of any age, but especially for puppies. Until then, you can carry him outside to help with his socialisation introduce him to as many sights and sounds as you can. At that age, there is a lot of sleeping that needs to be done. Five minutes of training (basic stuff) should knock him out for a good hour. Exercising the brain is a lot more tiring than exercising the body! You'll get into a rhythm with him as time goes on, and work out when he needs to sleep and when he needs entertaining. You might find he gets over-tired from time to time and needs popping to bed to "force" him to sleep (I used to find, as soon as Willow was put in her crate when she was being a complete nightmare, she'd collapse into a puppy coma). He may also have a time of day where he needs stimulating; again, this was 6pm for Willow and every day, she'd turn into a whirling dervish, so I'd take her for a 15-30 minute "carry" around the village, which tired her out. Pop over to the introductions section and share some pictures of Randy if you can - we always love puppy pictures
It's so hard when we lose a dog isn't it? I waited a whole year after my lovely chocolate Lab died, aged over 14, before I got a new puppy, and in those first few weeks I just missed my old boy so much.
Sometimes I think I am the slow learner, not the dog. I have had to be more assertive and firm. Zeus has had several better days, much less biting, I think my confidence has increased and he is responding well. So I have learned I can say no and not feel like he won't like me.
