OK - background first. It's been 5 days since Molly (black Lab, 9 weeks) entered my home. I'm retired, still a few months shy of 60 and living by myself in a nice countryside apartment in Italy. I've always wanted a dog and after six months reading up on it and looking at it from as many angles as I could I decided to go ahead. Enter Molly. She's a fireball. Loves chewing everything - whether it's the bottom of my trousers, my wellies, umbrellas, the towel I'll dry her with (you'll have gathered it's been raining here) skirting boards, cabinets, anything metal (she loves metal) and, of course, anything lying about in the garden. And at this time of year, half the forest tends to be lying about. I love her to bits and would describe my situation as head-spinning fun (and laughter) while at the same time being run ragged. My issue is this - I seem to fighting battles on so many fronts (house training, crate training, other training, bonding, socialising, watching her like a hawk, cleaning up after her etc.) - and I'm not convinced I'm actually winning any of them. In fact, I know I'm not. I know it's very early days and I've already twigged she's not Einstein, but I'm starting to wonder not only whether I'm doing it right, but whether I shouldn't be prioritising things instead of trying to proceed on so many fronts. Having read quite a few of the posts here (great, invaluable site btw), I'm pretty confident that what I'm going through is no different to anyone else. How did you cope? Did you, like me, continue with things across the board or did you focus and take it bit by bit? Any advice and experience would be very welcome...
Re: Where to Start ? Hi David! Welcome to you and Molly Its a bit of a baptism by fire this puppy stuff - you would be lucky if you felt in control! I think we prioritised the house-training bit ourselves. Maybe to the detriment of some other things, such as the "letting your puppy off the lead" concept, hence our recall we feel is very much still a work in progress at 3 and a half : We didn't find crate training an issue particularly, but we fed Lilly in her crate - or at least she got a stuffed kong when it was crate time - better still if it is a frozen one for teething. That made the crate a great place to be. And all the chewing is almost certainly teething - I think the chewing metal probably suggests that. If you don't have a kong to freeze food in (or banana/kibble which was our favourite) then anything frozen (even just ice cubes) or anything dispensable - charity shop teddies/soft toys. We also tried the bitter spray for chew deterring - or the evil concoction of washing up liquid and chilli powder painted on skirting-boards and hard surfaces (it washes off easily when you no longer need it) Most importantly, enjoy your puppy I'm sure we would all love a picture if you can post one up - some info in technical and help re this as you need a host like Photobucket or dropbox. I'm sure lots of other folks will chip in their tips too. Best of luck! Jac and Lilly (black girl)
Re: Where to Start ? Hi David . It does get easier eventually. 2 parts apple cider vinegar to one part white vinegar = bitter apple spray recipe but be warned some dogs are immune to it. ;D I'm afraid everything you've described is par for the coarse. Like Jacqui I think house training is an important area to start with and making the crate a fun place. That way you can put her in her crate knowing she's happy while you have a break from keeping her out of mischief. ;D Good luck and even though sometimes you'll feel like pulling your hair out enjoy they don't stay pups for long. Jen
Re: Where to Start ? Hi there David, just to say it does get easier... I think with a small puppy you just have to manage from day to day... Suddenly one morning you'll think to yourself "hey, she hasn't chewed anything today!". Or it'll occur to you she hasn't had an accident indoors for a couple of days... Try to treat it as what it is - a short (though intense) period of time. Really, try to enjoy her as much as possible. And do let us know how she progresses! Karen with Poppy
Re: Where to Start ? Hi David, Again, we focused on the practical stuff first - house training and crate training; if you get those two cracked then the other stuff seems somehow easier (not easy mind, just easier!). We also put a lot of effort into socialisation as I think it is easier to catch-up in other areas than it is with this - puppies are pretty adaptable when they are young so make the most of it (carrying off the floor until fully vaccinated was the approach we took). You'll be amazed at how many people want to come and say hello too (not to you, of course, but to your four-legged friend ) Keep at it (he says, Harvey is only 4.5 months so we are not that far ahead of you )
Re: Where to Start ? Welcome to the forum! I hope you enjoy it. I have Charlie, an 11 month old boy. At 9 weeks we did toilet training, playtime and socialisation. A routine helped us. Charlie was (and still is) in a pen, rather than crate, and the pen was big enough for me to sit in and play with him. He wasn't allowed in the rest of the house until we'd made progress on toilet training. Apart from cuddles on the sofa in the evening when he was a) empty and b) sleepy. He still isn't allowed free run of the house, because he chews everything (teething at about 5months made it worse). He is allowed in rooms which have been cleared of chewable things, and under supervision, only. So our routine went toilet training, playtime, sleep, toilet training, playtime sleep - with a trip out (in arms or the car) for socialisation and puppy school once a week. During playtime we learned sit, down etc. That was it until 12 weeks when we started going to the park and exciting things like that. Good luck!
Re: Where to Start ? Hello David and welcome from me , two and a half year old black Lab Sam and our rescue girl Millie Definately concentrate on the house training and socialisation first I know from experience that there are times you will think you are getting nowhere fast, but we have all been there and come out the other side with our pups . Dont try to train too many commands at once , you will confuse Molly , and make sure that the training sessions and fun and relatively short ones , they get bored and switch off
Re: Where to Start ? Hello David and welcome to the forum, Yes, you've described life with a new puppy fairly accurately... ;D You obviously have a crate. This is good. It does make things easier for both you and Molly... honest! The article on house training from the main site is very helpful, and house training would be my top priority: http://www.thelabradorsite.com/house-training-your-labrador-puppy/ You say you are living in an apartment? I don't know if you have stairs that you need to use to access the outside? At her age, you don't really want Molly bouncing up and down stairs as it might potentially be harmful to her joints, but you do want her to learn how she gets out of your apartment to the garden, so the second you open that crate door you want to be heading for the door to the outside, making all the silly squeaky noises that she will love so she follows you. If you then have to scoop her up so she doesn't run down any stairs, then so be it. It will feel like you are caught in a very short, very repetitive loop - sleep, outside for toileting, short play, outside for toileting, sleep - but it really will not last for long. Lots of that play will - as you have already discovered - include offering her something that she is allowed to chew on, as at the same time gently removing your hand / arm / foot / ear from her mouth. Again, this passes!! ;D ;D You will probably also find that it is easier to alter some of your storage arrangements for now. Puppies are not good at discriminating between things within their reach that they are allowed to chew and things that they are not... I think that for the first couple of weeks at home my priorities were housetraining, encouraging her to follow me around the garden, and we also did a short car ride every day. This was important to me because I knew she would find herself in the car very regularly, but it's not important for everyone. You can't do everything at once, and you don't need to everything at once. That bond that you form by being together will get you through everything else in due course... Make the most of this time that she is still small enough to carry her around too. I used to tuck Brew inside my coat and we would do some short walks around the village to get used to the sights and sounds - it's fine to do that before vaccination, as long as she doesn't go down on the ground. The big wide world is also very tiring! By the sounds of it though, you read and prepared for her arrival thoroughly, so you know all this. The reality can be a shock - Brew is 5 months now and I can't believe how big and grown up she seems already - but my older dog is now ten years old, and I will admit that I had forgotten just how intense life is with a small puppy. Good luck! Clare
Re: Where to Start ? Hi David and Molly, I really just wanted to welcome you to the forum, from me Helen, Hattie 6 years and our rescue Charlie 3 years. Enjoy this lovely place and your Molly
Re: Where to Start ? Hi David, welcome to you and Molly. I have Harley (red fox lab) who is 5&half months old, and it does get better. Nothing else to add as I think others have covered it all. Enjoy Molly Ternaya and Harley
Re: Where to Start ? Hi David, Welcome to the forum ,I've got Dexter a 15 month old yellow boy and we live in Dubai...you've had all same advice I would have given from much more experienced members so I've nothing much to add.successful crate training will really help you,we won't ever get rid of ours....we have the space for it and Dexter still chooses to go and relax in there at times.if you need a break from the fun ;D Molly,won't come to any harm having a little break in here crate,it will also help you with toilet training. Good luck Angela x
Re: Where to Start ? As all the splendid advice above and the first 6 months are the worst! Then it starts to get better and by the time they are a year old you will have forgotten this difficult time
Re: Where to Start ? Hi all, Wow, what a response! Thanks so much for all the tips and the warm welcome. Genuinely appreciated. By the sounds of things House training, Crate training and Socialisation it is. Being on my own (but with very friendly neighbours who have a young puppy), ensuring I do the latter correctly is obviously important. I'm confident I can crack House Training but Crate Training is proving to be very, very tough - she simply will not accept the door being shut. Similarly, I have a pen and so far that's not working either. In a nutshell, confining her is proving to be very, very tough. I haven't yet tried her in her car crate but I'm no doubt as to what I can expect! Clare J - I'm in a Ground Floor apartment so no stairs. Drjs - I'll post a pic as soon as I've worked out how!
Re: Where to Start ? Just want to say welcome to the forum! I'm sure your girl is gorgeous. With the crate - what does she do when the door is shut and what's your response?
Re: Where to Start ? Hi David, and welcome. A year ago we were in the same situation. A new puppy running us ragged. About the only difference is that Holly wasn't a chewer, apart from two kitchen stools and the occasional hand! 12 months on we have a great dog: Intelligent, biddable and full of life. Mainly obedient Getting through the first few months can be hard work. Day by day you don't see the difference, but in a few months time you'll suddenly see how much has changed. In a year you'll wonder what all the fuss was about!
Re: Where to Start ? Hi Rachel, Of course she's gorgeous. And there are times when she's even more gorgeous The crate: she looks around in all directions and checks, eyes and paws, that there is no way out. She then starts biting at the latch and crying in fairly low voice. She then moves on to pushing at the bars of the cage and the cry becomes a howl. The howl gets ever louder and becomes full-throated and after 5 minutes I've convinced myself that not only will she not stop but I'm probably doing more harm than good by letting her continue. So I come back, talk to her and once she's calmed down just a tad, I open the door. i started the process again today, just shutting the door for a few seconds and she was wise to it immediately so I didn't take it very far. The weird thing is that she's made the crate her home, she'll drag in stuff she's claimed (towels I've used to dry her with etc.) and head straight to the back with them and fix me with a steely gaze if I have the temerity to try and take them from her.
Re: Where to Start ? Hi David I also have a Molly. Mine is a Golden Girl of 17 weeks so, I know exactly how you are feeling. I think totally inadequate just about covers it My best advice is to use your crate. We humans see it as a punishment and curtailment of freedom. If you use it from the start the pup looks on it as a haven (no I didn't believe it at first either). It is invaluable for toilet training. Molly had the idea by 10 weeks, there has been the odd accident, usually my fault, but not for several weeks. Once we had cracked toilet training I felt much more optimistic. When Molly is tired she quite happily trots into her crate and settles down. When she is hyper, and puppies do get hyper, I pop her in her crate and we both calm down. When I need to do something which just does NOT require an inquisitive head thrust into it, like the dish washer. I pop her in the crate. Enjoy!
Re: Where to Start ? [quote author=Hollysdad link=topic=4106.msg48293#msg48293 date=1390074763] Hi David, and welcome. A year ago we were in the same situation. A new puppy running us ragged. About the only difference is that Holly wasn't a chewer, apart from two kitchen stools and the occasional hand! 12 months on we have a great dog: Intelligent, biddable and full of life. Mainly obedient Getting through the first few months can be hard work. Day by day you don't see the difference, but in a few months time you'll suddenly see how much has changed. In a year you'll wonder what all the fuss was about! [/quote] Thanks
Re: Where to Start ? [quote author=Mollly link=topic=4106.msg48297#msg48297 date=1390075724] Hi David I also have a Molly. Mine is a Golden Girl of 17 weeks so, I know exactly how you are feeling. I think totally inadequate just about covers it My best advice is to use your crate. We humans see it as a punishment and curtailment of freedom. If you use it from the start the pup looks on it as a haven (no I didn't believe it at first either). It is invaluable for toilet training. Molly had the idea by 10 weeks, there has been the odd accident, usually my fault, but not for several weeks. Once we had cracked toilet training I felt much more optimistic. When Molly is tired she quite happily trots into her crate and settles down. When she is hyper, and puppies do get hyper, I pop her in her crate and we both calm down. When I need to do something which just does NOT require an inquisitive head thrust into it, like the dish washer. I pop her in the crate. Enjoy! [/quote] Thanks Tina, your Molly sounds perfect! Mine has no problem going into her crate; she heads in there by herself. She just has a problem when the door is shut.
