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Nyarai posted:I got my dog last night. Cute dawg. Honest advice? Spend the first week or two setting boundaries and building the bond. Lots of treats, walks, playtimes etc, and time-outs anytime she chases the cats. Reward the hell out of her for looking at but not chasing the cats, etc. Just take it slow, let yourselves get used to each other, and make the first 2 weeks awesome.
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Jun 15, 2013 17:51
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That is a cute dog  Today was momentous as Artie cocked his leg for the first time which I thought was funny after my statement a few days ago. He's gone back to squatting since but here's hoping he may stop weeing on his own paws eventually
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Jun 16, 2013 00:33
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Thanks. Unfortunately, my cute dog does not care for stairs. This is a problem as my townhouse has a stoop, and she sleeps upstairs. The stoop is especially contentious. She'll get on the first step, and then while I'm getting the door, she'll wander back down. (The additional glass door does little to help matters.) We've tried coaxing her (sometimes with treats) and then dragging/carrying her when she still refuses, but I know that's a terrible idea. What do? 
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Jun 16, 2013 01:25
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Sanctum posted:I'm having trouble crate training my dog. I adopted a 9 month old lab and have been crate training from Day 1 for 3 months now. The specific issue is he is fine in the crate for any length of time as long as someone is nearby, but as soon as he feels alone he will bark endlessly. How much exercise does the dog get per day? Sometimes the barking can be a result of boredom and frustration and is just a way to release pent up energy, so if you're not regularly going for walks or play sessions or something, I'd try to do more of that. The other thing you can do is just reinforce for calm behavior in the crate. Do small sessions in the crate, just a few minutes at a time, and treat for being quiet, rolled hips, laying down, anything that's calm. If he starts barking just turn around and leave the room. Nyarai posted:Thanks.
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Jun 16, 2013 01:46
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MrFurious posted:Very common. Take stairs slowly. Lure down with treats, as you say you've done, and use higher value treats. Going up is usually less intimidating than going down, so start there, and don't start high up. You may have to carry her down the stairs to start practicing. Don't drag though. Derp, I never thought to mention this because it seemed obvious to me. Her issue is solely with going up. I will try to be more patient and find some better treats to entice her.
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Jun 16, 2013 05:04
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Nyarai posted:Her issue is solely with going up. I will try to be more patient and find some better treats to entice her.
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Jun 16, 2013 08:48
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What do you do when it's 5 a.m. and your dog has discovered that whining is a magical code that opens doors and makes food appear? I don't want to completely discourage whining to let us know he wants something (i.e., potty time) but at the same time, I don't want to hear him whine every time his toy rolls under the coffee table or the cat hops the baby gate and he can no longer reach it. Edit: I got up at 7 a.m. on a loving Sunday just because he wouldn't let me sleep anymore, and now he's as calm as he's ever been just laying at my feet at the computer desk. I swear this dog is doing it on purpose. TShields fucked around with this message at 13:32 on Jun 16, 2013 |
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Jun 16, 2013 12:46
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The Puppy and New Dog Owner Thread: Puppies are Assholes
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Jun 16, 2013 14:18
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The girlfriend and I are looking to get our first puppy in our home. The information in this thread has been incredible helpful and has strengthened our resolved to get one. However I have one concern: We have a pool in our backyard so I will not be letting him/her out to do their business that way. On the side of the house we have a small section of patio stones sealed with two gates and a planter (mostly weeds, not sure if we will ever plant anything there) and our pool filters/pumps. I would like to be able to let the puppy out there to do their business (while still being leashed) but I'm concerned that without soft grass they will be hesitant to drop puppy trow. Has anyone overcome a similar situation to this? This will mostly be used late night when we don't want to go for a quick walk or head out to the front yard where there is grass. I've seen these fake grass pads for people in apartments but I don't even know if those are worth it. Thoughts?
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Jun 20, 2013 20:36
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m.hache posted:The girlfriend and I are looking to get our first puppy in our home. My first instinct is to say that after an intial adjustment, the puppy will drop trow wherever you designate a potty spot. City dwellers don't often have grass so it should be no problem. I could be wrong though. Grass is often used because lawns/fields are common enough outside heavily urban areas and they are also sufficiently different than interior materials. One other thing to consider is if you have these stones somewhere else. The puppy will associate that surface with needing to go.
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Jun 20, 2013 20:43
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That's basically what I do with Tater -- there's a doggy door from my apartment to an enclosed covered concrete patio with a potty tray so he can get to work. Does the trick just fine -- he hasn't had an indoor accident in months and not even once when I've been out of the home.
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Jun 20, 2013 20:48
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m.hache posted:We have a pool in our backyard so I will not be letting him/her out to do their business that way.
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Jun 20, 2013 20:48
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Riiseli posted:Why not? Not that it is important. Your plan should work just fine. Luckily the patio stones on the side are local to that side. As for the backyard: I want to slowly introduce my puppy to the pool for fun time but probably not this year. I plan on switching to a salt water pool instead of chlorine to prevent irritation with the dog. Also since there aren't really any steps I would need to get some sort of platform system for the dog to leave the pool without tearing the liner.
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Jun 20, 2013 20:52
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Ugh the wife just told me about one of the local dog trainers that one of her employees is going to. Apparently they recommend choke collars and have all the students bring spray bottles of lemon juice to spray into the dog's face if it barks. And the employee wants to go back to the class because "it works, it's cheap, and you can retake the class if they don't learn the commands"
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Jun 21, 2013 00:43
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My wife and I picked up the latest addition to our family about three weeks ago. I'd like to thank this thread for all of the amazing information! We've done very well with house training and basic commands. Tiny Brittany puppy.  So far she's crate trained, knows sit, down, and touch very well, and has even started on retrieving! The one thing that confuses me is that every now and then, she throws up just as she wakes up in the morning. There's nothing in it, just foamy stomach acids, so I think that she's just very hungry. I'll be asking my vet tomorrow about it, but if anyone knows something about this, I would love your opinion.
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Jun 25, 2013 17:06
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Tertiary Stresses posted:The one thing that confuses me is that every now and then, she throws up just as she wakes up in the morning. There's nothing in it, just foamy stomach acids, so I think that she's just very hungry. I'll be asking my vet tomorrow about it, but if anyone knows something about this, I would love your opinion. IANAV but this might be something to ask the vet about when you go: My dog Dexter started doing this same thing recently and it would happen every morning at 9 AM. I used to feed him at 10 AM and when I moved his feeding schedule earlier, the problem stopped. I asked to a vet friend of mine what she thought of it all, and she said he probably just had "bilious vomiting syndrome" BTW that puppy is dangerously cute.
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Jun 25, 2013 17:14
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Yeah, sounds like your pup is hungry. Maybe toss a few kibbles into the crate as part of your morning routine. Probably good to mention it to the vet too.
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Jun 25, 2013 17:38
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I'm noticing a disturbing trend- our puppy's "oh my god, wake up and feed me" whinefest is starting earlier and earlier every day. Normally we just take him out to pee when he does it, and he always goes.. I should note that this is NOT our catalyst to feed him- we feed at the same time every day, 7 days a week. We feed at 7 a.m., and he's starting to whine before 6 a.m. now.
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Jun 25, 2013 17:41
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TShields posted:I'm noticing a disturbing trend- our puppy's "oh my god, wake up and feed me" whinefest is starting earlier and earlier every day. Normally we just take him out to pee when he does it, and he always goes.. I should note that this is NOT our catalyst to feed him- we feed at the same time every day, 7 days a week. We feed at 7 a.m., and he's starting to whine before 6 a.m. now.
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Jun 25, 2013 19:21
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Riiseli posted:This is why I don't have a set meal time for the dogs and they actually even skip a meal sometimes. My friends who've had problems with pre feeding whinefests all fed at the same time every day. Some dogs never start whining even with a set time, but I'm not going to risk it. Hahah. Asa is fine, I feed her within about a 2 hour window in the morning, and the same at night. The cats? 6am hits and I'm not allowed to enjoy peace and quiet without them yelling at me. 6pm? Same thing. loving cats are worse than the dog :P
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Jun 25, 2013 19:28
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So I adopted a puppy on Saturday. He's between 10-12 weeks old. Mutt. He was doing awesome until last night where he stopped eating his kibble - he was scarfing it down before. He's eating the kibble, sort of, if I hand feed him, but i'm trying to feed him entirely out of kongs in his crate. Since he hasn't been eating I've tried placing some food in the dog bowl, and with some warm water / chicken broth. but he just drinks the broth and avoids the kibble. Other foods he's all about. Training treats, various soft food treats at the vet, some fancy canned food the petstore gave me for free, dehydrated liver bites... Any advice? Is he teething? Is he just an rear end in a top hat? Also what kind of dog is he? http://imgur.com/a/3iwwG Edit: Ok also, i've been following Ian Dunbar's puppy books pretty intensively (that 100 people thing is brutal though) and my dog just tore up the toilet area in his playpen. it's a row of sod and he just tore it apart. So. What do i do with that? ContraceptiveCereal fucked around with this message at 20:43 on Jun 25, 2013 |
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Jun 25, 2013 20:38
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ContraceptiveCereal posted:So I adopted a puppy on Saturday. He's between 10-12 weeks old. Mutt. He was doing awesome until last night where he stopped eating his kibble - he was scarfing it down before. He's eating the kibble, sort of, if I hand feed him, but i'm trying to feed him entirely out of kongs in his crate. Since he hasn't been eating I've tried placing some food in the dog bowl, and with some warm water / chicken broth. but he just drinks the broth and avoids the kibble. Has he had normal bowel movements and such?
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Jun 25, 2013 20:45
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Yep. They're off slightly now because he hasn't been eating normally, but he's still going regularly. They seem and feel normal.
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Jun 25, 2013 21:00
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Riiseli posted:This is why I don't have a set meal time for the dogs and they actually even skip a meal sometimes. My friends who've had problems with pre feeding whinefests all fed at the same time every day. Some dogs never start whining even with a set time, but I'm not going to risk it. Yeah, our older dog doesn't seem to care. She just goes with it. She may not even eat every meal, but we know she'll eat when she gets hungry. The little one will eat his, go for hers (if she isn't done), freak out while we feed the cats in the next room, attempt to eat everything he can get into his little mouth out in the yard.. He's great though. Going to be a monster when he grows up, but he's small and cute now.
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Jun 25, 2013 21:18
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ContraceptiveCereal posted:Edit: Ok also, i've been following Ian Dunbar's puppy books pretty intensively (that 100 people thing is brutal though) and my dog just tore up the toilet area in his playpen. it's a row of sod and he just tore it apart. So. What do i do with that? I'm a hardcore Dunbar fan, but personally I don't really like the toilet area in the playpen. I think it's better to just start the housetraining off right, but everyone has their own opinions. As for the kibble issue, give him the chance to skip a meal. No more than one, but just one. I can't recall if this is in the OP or not, but typically puppies get fed 3 times a day. Put the kibble out for him (in kong or bowl, or whatever) and if he doesn't eat it, take it up after 30 minutes or so. Try again for the next meal and see what happens. If he's pooping normally and eating other food, it doesn't really sound medical, but if it continues, go see your vet.
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Jun 25, 2013 21:51
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He's doing really well toilet training, should I even leave the grass toilet area when I leave for 3-4 hours? He was fine Monday but i'm afraid he's going to make a huge mess of the grass tomorrow when i'm gone for the morning. The alternative is just him pooping and peeing in his doggy playden. somewhere. Oh, and i'm having some level of results from putting the kibble in with some warm chicken brother, and mixed in with canned food. I think he's just being a finicky puppy and or teething. I was at the vet today, they said he seems fine, and was eating the soft food treats they had on hand.
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Jun 26, 2013 00:21
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Rule of thumb is that they can hold it one hour per month of age, so at 10-12 weeks he's a little young to hold it that long. If you have to, I'd leave the grass for now. Better to have to deal with grass barf once than set your housetraining back.
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Jun 26, 2013 00:56
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Tertiary Stresses posted:
So the universe decided that I spoke too soon and turned my nice puppy into a little terror yesterday. No fewer than 3 accidents in the house, and would rather play bitey-face than do any training. Looks like it's back to the very basics. The vet visit went well. I told her about the vomiting and her response was that it could be several things, but none of them are a major concern. In case it is hunger, I'll be giving the puppy a little bit of kibble just before bedtime. The bad news is that there is a small parvo outbreak in our city! No dog parks or other major public places until the puppy has had all three rounds of shots. Luckily, the puppy classes we signed up for are allowed, but we just have to make sure that it's a very reputable trainer (which I think it is) that requires the second round of shots at a minimum. The puppy has also grown from 2.1 kg when we picked her up at 8 weeks to 4.5 kg a 12 weeks! She is getting big, quickly. 
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Jun 26, 2013 18:35
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I recently inherited a 6 month old dachshund puppy from a friend who's hand was forced to get rid of him. He has a lot of very bad habits because said friend made almost no attempt to housebreak or crate train him. I seem to be making good progress all things considered; he's on a strict eating and pooping schedule now. But he does have one very annoying behavior in that he cannot sleep alone. While I certainly don't mind a dog sleeping at the foot of my bed, he's just too energetic and wakes me up a lot. I've tried putting him in his crate with a treat and saying "goodnight!", but he whines and cries pretty much nonstop. I've waited up to 30 minutes for him to settle down, but he rarely does. I would wait longer, but I just gotta sleep. How should I tackle this problem?
Kibbles n Shits fucked around with this message at 18:44 on Jun 26, 2013 |
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Jun 26, 2013 18:41
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DarthJeebus posted:I recently inherited a 6 month old dachshund puppy from a friend who's hand was forced to get rid of him. He has a lot of very bad habits because said friend made almost no attempt to housebreak or crate train him. I seem to be making good progress all things considered; he's on a strict eating and pooping schedule now. But he does have one very annoying behavior in that he cannot sleep alone. While I certainly don't mind a dog sleeping at the foot of my bed, he's just too energetic and wakes me up a lot. I've tried putting him in his crate with a treat and saying "goodnight!", but he whines and cries pretty much nonstop. I've waited up to 30 minutes for him to settle down, but he rarely does. I would wait longer, but I just gotta sleep. How should I tackle this problem? Tired puppies don't whine. There are a lot of ways to handle this but the crux of the issue is that you want to get him more exercise (mental AND physical) throughout the day. This is one of the reasons I like to feed out of treat dispensing toys, because they have to puzzle out how to get their meals. A late walk before bed can help as well, but if you'd prefer to stay indoors, a game of tug tends to tire out most dogs. Nosework is also exhausting for them usually and very easy and cheap to do at home. Make sure that you aren't getting up with him when he whines though, because if he learns that works he's going to keep doing it. Do your best to just ignore him when he whines at night.
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Jun 26, 2013 21:22
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I just want to suggest (depending on the size of your home) getting a laser pointer if you don't/cant do a late night walk. My puppy loves chasing it and tires very quickly when he does.
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Jun 27, 2013 02:18
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I would read up on the laser pointers first, a lot of people think they make dogs go a little crazy because they can never catch something physical. My little cousin was babysitting a dog and used the laser pointer quite a bit. After a week, it was constantly twitching its head, trying to find the dot for hours. All the exercises MrFurious listed are the way to go. We used to do lots of nosework inside. We'd just hide small antlers around the house, the puppy would run around every room trying to find it and usually got a treat when he brought it back to us.
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Jun 27, 2013 02:31
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I bought a laser pointer for Tater when I got him. It held his interest for less than ten seconds. Sigh,
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Jun 27, 2013 05:11
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Is there a sort of deadline for when puppies should have started teething before it may become a problem? Kalli is 17 weeks now and hasn't started losing teeth or chewing all of the things. E after I posted this I found a bit of blood on the chew in her crate so I guess it's started? Fraction fucked around with this message at 08:56 on Jun 27, 2013 |
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Jun 27, 2013 08:31
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Good god wrong thread.
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Jun 27, 2013 10:59
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Fraction posted:Is there a sort of deadline for when puppies should have started teething before it may become a problem? Kalli is 17 weeks now and hasn't started losing teeth or chewing all of the things. I only found a couple of Linus's baby teeth when he went through his teething phase. It's likely that you won't notice when teething starts until well into it. Some dogs get it sooner than others. I wouldn't worry.
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Jun 27, 2013 13:38
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Away all Goats posted:I just want to suggest (depending on the size of your home) getting a laser pointer if you don't/cant do a late night walk. My puppy loves chasing it and tires very quickly when he does. There are a lot of anecdotal claims that playing with laser pointers can cause or exacerbate OCD in dogs. I don't think there's any research on this, but in my experience it absolutely does affect some dogs very differently than others.
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Jun 27, 2013 14:46
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So, I am a fool who has no idea how to interpret barks or various other canine behaviors. Can someone wise in the ways of that tell me if this page speaks truth, or if it is full of poo poo? http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/interpreting-your-dogs-barking.html (I hope it's accurate, and therefore the rest of the book is decent*. I so want to understand what my dog wants from me and how she's reacting to stuff.  )*Aside from the 'dominant' stuff. Nyarai fucked around with this message at 18:29 on Jun 28, 2013 |
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Jun 28, 2013 18:13
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I think the translations are trite, but generally that looks about right. (I stopped reading the translation column since I found it irritating.) Each dog is different and will have its own way of communicating with you. Also, keep in mind that humans are very tuned into spoken language, whereas dogs communicate mostly through body language. So look at the whole picture rather than just the sounds coming out of your dog's mouth. Generally higher pitched sounds indicate excitement and lower pitched sounds can be more serious. Staccato sounds are meant to elicit action.
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Jun 28, 2013 18:51
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| # ? May 14, 2024 05:35 |
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Canine Body Language: A Photographic Guide Interpreting the Native Language of the Domestic Dog is a really useful resource for understanding the way your dog communicates and it has tons and tons of photos and diagrams.
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Jun 28, 2013 19:03
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