Saturday, April 10, 2010

Puppy Tips

We're Having a Puppy!!
Super creative title for a book huh?

First there was nesting and now it's time to highlight in
What to Expect When You're Expecting...

Puppy edition of course-no there's really no such thing , that I know of anyway, but these books are close enough. We are doing our research for the next 20 days so Roxie will be the best trained puppy in the world our house {don't want to set my expectations too high, but anything beyond our house would be a bonus}. We stalked up with a bunch of stuff from the library, we got our Dog Whisperer DVDs for the drive to and from Naples and plenty of books to keep me busy.

This is a totally new experience for us and we want to be as prepared as possible.
Some of you have already given me some helpful tips and they are so appreciated!
Today I dedicate this post to puppy/dog tips...

Any training techniques?

Did you find puppy school beneficial?

Did you crate train?

Best toys?

Best leash?

Has anyone used the Easy Walk harness?

Does your dog ring a bell to go outside?

What did you use when they chewed everything to teach them not to?

Best food?

Anything!

Any do's and don'ts would be helpful!

Thanks & Enjoy our weekend!!

14 comments:

Kat said...

I now have a 8 month puppy. My advice:
-Yes! Crate Train. I wasn't too fond of this at first but the more and more I read about it the more I realized that she actually loves her crate. She's never EVER woken us up in the middle of the night.

-The Dog Whisperer is awesome. He helped us really set boundaries from the beginning.

-Take your puppy on daily walks. It's great for discipline. An exhausted puppy is a happy puppy.

-Don't get too frustrated. Our puppy is actually in the adolescent stage right now which I think is worse than the puppy stage. She's testing us to see what she can get away with. Just keep being persistent and the puppy will eventually give in.

It's great having a puppy! Enjoy it!!!

Sarah Ann said...

I don't have a puppy but good luck! :)

Jessica said...

1. crate train
2. puppy classes!
3. substitute baby carrots or ice cubes for treats. our puppy had an issue with digesting the processed treats when we were training him and it was an expensive vet visit to get him fixed.
4. puppy insurance is good but only for the first year because it usually involves a free'ish' spay/neuter and discounts most of the shots.
5. I mentioned this before, but never let the puppy on the furniture. You will be tempted but will be equally thankful when the puppy is no longer a cute little puppy :)
6. buy Bissell pet stain and odor spray (it's in a pink bottle) talk about life saver!

Have fun!

Mrs. C said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mrs. C said...

Ok, let's try this again - not sure what happened to my last comment - sorry!
Definitely, definitely crate train. It may be hard at first but it is well worth it in the end - especially if you ever have to travel or your dog has to go to a kennel. We're even dog-sitting right now and it is such a godsend that she is crate trained!
We had a boxer puppy that we took to training. We found it extremely beneficial for us. Our dog had a hard time with leash training - she pulled a lot, so we did get an Easy Walk harness. It worked wonders! The only thing is you can't leave it on day, puppies should only wear it when they are going for a walk - otherwise they tend to chew through it! Eventually it got to the point where we no longer even need the harness and she walks normally on a leash with no problem but it was helpful and def worth it! Good luck!

Kristin said...

Hmmm...that was a lot of questions! Well, yes, we did crate train, and yes, it was a great thing. Yes, we liked the Dog Whisper DVDs. Yes, we did obedience school, and yes it was very helpful - not only for training, but also for socializing. Yes, he rings the bells, and yes that was the best thing we've ever taught him! Good toys, well if your dog is a heavy chewer (big mouth/strong teeth) then KONG toys are pretty good. Ours is little, and so we don't have that issue! That's all I can remember from your list - you'll be so glad you prepared! I think the best advice we got was to be consistent with everything you're trying to train. All it takes is you giving in once, and your pup will take advantage of it and also to be "training" all day long - not just have "training sessions". Make every opportunity a learning one. Have her ask (or perform a task or trick) for everything: food, going outside, even playing with a toy, or playing with you. When you're just walking around your yard, randomly have her stop and sit and stay while you go do something without her etc.- Wow, this turned into a really long comment - sorry :-) I can't wait to meet little Roxie!

carissa said...

(thankfully) my hubby had our dog before we were married so he got to deal with all of the potty training and sorts! best of luck to you!

Erin said...

One training technique I used with Marley is when we are teaching him something and using treats as praise, we break the treats in half or even into thirds to make them last longer, makes it healthier for the pups, and they don't know the difference! They just think they are getting a normal cookie!

No puppy training school here, although I hear great things about it. But honestly, if you take the time and are consistent with your part of the training, chances are your smart pup will catch on quickly and you'll save some money. You can always do training if for some reason your puppy is just really defiant down the road:)

Yes, we crate trained and it worked wonders! For about the first year, Marley slept in his crate (all night!) and didn't even get up in the middle of the night to go out! Even now, his "safe haven" is his kennel, he loves it.

Marley is a tiny pup, but his bff Macy (an 80 lb golden retriever..) loves tennis balls! And rope bones! And kongs w/ peanut butter! And stuffed animals to cuddle with:)

The best leash is the one that gives you the most control. And the one that you can easily pull to you if you're on a walk and another dog comes up on you!

Macy has an easy walk harness and it is literally a godsend. She pulls like crazy on walks and the transformation when she's wearing it is unbelievable!

No bells! At least not here:) Marley learned very quickly that if he wanted to go outside, he just had to ring the bell....even if he didn't have to go to the bathroom. So he would ring it NONSTOP.

Chewing...pop the nose with a newspaper and say "no". Or hold her mouth shut and say "no". Chewing is just one of those things you have to be consistent with...and it seems like it takes forever haha!

Best food might depend on your pup's stomach. Macy it's IAMS proactive...and Marley has gone through 3, count em, 3 different types of food for his little tummy and I'm fairly positive he's about to change again:)

Good luck with your sweet angel!!!

Natalie said...

We never did obedience school because my in-laws did it and said it was a waste of time. All they learned was to sit, lay, stay, etc. which our dog learned in the first few weeks. We did buy the perfect dog DVD and training set which is a little pricey (about $60) but totally worth it. You just have to be adament about sticking to it, but it's awesome. That helped a lot with chewing, too...one of her biggest problems!
We crate trained....I would definitely recommend it. It's the best way for them to be house trained, if you do it the right way. It's kind of sad at first because you can't play with them as much and everything, but if you stick with it, she should be potty trained really quickly.
Our favorite toy is anything KONG. Kongs are awesome! they are indestructible (but don't get the puppy kongs..they're light blue or pink and white, our dog ripped hers up in like a day). But the real ones are awesome and you can put treats or peanut butter in there for a long distraction!
Good luck!!

Meant to be a mom said...

I've had two puppies that are now doggies. Both LOVED congs. Its a rubbery toy that is hollow in the middle, you can take a knife and put peanut butter along the insides of it. The peanut butter won't fall out and it takes forever for the dog to get it all out of there but they enjoy it, they can chew on it (which is always good for a teething puppy) and they love them. Our vet told us about them.

Also when the puppy starts to teeth you might want to buy some "bitter apple" spray. It sounds mean but you can spray it on your tables corners or the legs of your kitchen table. Really anywhere that the dog might be inclined to chew. They hate the taste, its safe and made for dogs. Our dog ate the corner of our coffee table when we left to grab some fast food. This is how I know about this stuff. We ran to pets mart and bought it fast!

Also our dogs LOVE to sleep in their kennels. I know some people don't like them and they cry the first week or so at night but sooner or later they consider the crate like its a bedroom, We leave the doors open and when they get tired they both run to their crates and lay down in them.
Word to the wise, put down a towel in them. An old towel. You can wash it if they pea, don't go buy some nice dog pillow. They have to many accidents when they are little.

Ummm I guess thats all for now. If you need any other advice let me know. I would be happy to tell you what worked well for us :)

Natalie said...

I meant to say this yesterday but forgot! (And sorry if someone else said this--i didn't read all the comments!) but you should definitely decide and be in agreement about rules/boundaries for your dog BEFORE you get her. Like whether or not she will be allowed on the furniture, eat people food, where she will sleep, etc. because once you let her do those things, even if one time, it will be hard to train her not to...especially as she gets older. When our dog was a puppy we loved having her snuggle on our bed with us, but as she got bigger it was getting really annoying but it was next to impossible to make her stop since she was used to it (in their mind "why are they kicking me off? I am always allowed up here!) So it'll be a thousand times easier if you are both on the same page and stick to it before you get her! Just my two cents on that!

Rachel and John said...

puppy advice! Woohoo
-I think puppy school is worth it.
-Do get the dog door bell. The scratching is annoying after a while AND it shows up on the window.
-If your puppy is destoying your house then it's got too much energy. walk walk walk, play play play, run, run, run.
- Get a Kong. Best dog toy in the world. We fill ours with kibble and peanut butter and freeze it over night.
-We didn't crate train because our cousin's dog hung it's self with it's collar in a crate. I was so scared that would happen to us.
- We let our dog on our furniture. We like to cuddle him.
-We have a gentle lead collar for walks that has really helped with pulling
-Rudy loves ice cubes. They are really good for puppies who are teething.

MaMaWilson said...

Hi!! Thanks for commenting on my blog! We got super lucky with our first pup. He was really eager to please. Which made him a perfect puppy when it came to all of his training, and we've really had no problems.

But our little dallas (1/2 boxer) is such a handful. We kind-of crate trained. More like play-pen trained. My boyfriend built a big thing which kind of resembled a gate, to lock him in a pretty big corner of our living room. I felt bad sticking him in a little crate, since he wasnt a little dog. You can always get bigger crates, this is just what worked for us.

His potty training went quite well, its his chewing that's a problem. Whenever we're around, he dosn't chew. Its when we are gone or in another room when the sneaky little guy will pull a shoe out of the closet or find anything on the floor to bring outside and chew on. If you have any suggestions for this in all of your puppy reading, I would be very greatful!

LauraAnn said...

Hey! Thanks for the comment on my blog! :-)

My husband and I have two English Bulldogs- Buerly is going to be 4 in May and Rooney will be 2 in July.

- I am a big advocate of crate training! Both of our dogs were crate trained and it worked well. The crate will make your puppy feel safe (it's like their cave). Big open spaces can leave your dog feeling overwhelmed and anxious. And more often then not a bored/anxious dog will chew. Plus, they say that a puppy will not go potty where they sleep. They will hold it as long as possible. As soon as you let them out of the crate go straight outside. After a while the pup will catch on. Key to crate training- make sure the crate is the appropriate size for them. The hardest part of crate training- listening to them cry when you first start out. It broke my heart but we stood strong!

-Leash: we used a harness style leash on both dogs when they were puppies. This prevented them from choking themselves when they pulled. As they got older we switched them from the harness to a choker/pinch. The choker/pinch sounds horrible but it's not as bad as it looks. I even tested it out by putting it on my bare leg and jerking the leash upward (lol). When we put that collar on them they never pull and are very well behaved. Much better than watching them choke themselves and get sick!

-Beware of some types of dog foods (I know this isn't training but it was vital information that I wouldn't have figured out unless someone had shared it with me). Many dogs are allergic to lamb based products. Buerly was on a lamb based product for his first year. All of a sudden when he turned 1 he started vomiting all the time. Turns out that he developed an allergy to the food. My SIL's dog is deathly allergic to lamb based products and he was the same way- the allergy didn't develop until he turned 1. We have been using Purina Pro Plan- Sensitive Skin Sensitive Stomach. No problems with either dog and they love it....granted it doesn't smell the greatest since it is a fish based food but very good for them!

-Stay on them and don't get frustrated. Puppies will push your patience but if you stay on them and don't let them get away with things they will eventually catch on. If you give in to them then they will think it is okay. And no matter how cute bad behavior is you have to correct them otherwise they will keep doing it (I was very bad at this....lol).

-Ask your vet if they do a package deal on spay/neutering. Our vet had a deal where if you paid for everything up front for the first year you saved a substantial amount of money.

-Definitely agree with Domesticated Bliss.....use ice chips and carrots as treats. They are healthy and as long as you treat them like treats they will accept them as if they are treats.

-Toys: Anything Orbie toys! A lot of places will refund you your money if they destroy the Orbie toy in a month or less as long as you keep your receipt. Inquire about this. Kongs are also great because they are very durable. Trust me, a boxer will need a durable toy!

-Chewing: bitter apple spray works pretty good. Other than that you just have to stay on them when they start to chew. If you don't hear them and it is quiet they are probably up to no good! lol

I hope that helps! After all the chewing, potty training and everything else we went through I still wouldn't trade one minute of it! The love that a dog gives you is unconditional! Our dogs are kids to us. Enjoy your puppy! :-)

Sorry, that was really long winded!