For Dog Lovers.... Part 3

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Soooo cute!

I want a puppy very badly! But we've decided to wait until we have a house. Well, we live in a house now but it has no yard, so I have to wait, likely 18-24 months. Scoping out breeds, though!

We crate trained one of our collies but not the other. My Dad's GSD was never crate trained, but that was 3 decades ago so who knows how popular the practice was then. Our one collie immediately took to the crate and loved that thing. We'd have to keep the door open at all times so he could go nap in it whenever he wanted. When our relatives with small children arrived for a visit, he'd run into his crate and hide. The second collie was totally hopeless and you would honestly think that he was being slaughtered anytime you put him in a crate. My Mom then gave up, and it helped that we got him at 8 weeks and he never peed in the house, and I mean never, unless he was sick, and didn't cause a dollar of damage. The previous one had eaten my Nike sports sandals, every pair of flip flops he could find (I guess he liked the foam), chewed through the legs and armrests of the plastic patio furniture, etc.

Good luck!
 
Yeah we're saying a crate would be better, then he can be in the same room. He's a baby so he's going to throw fits being in his own room or out in a kennel. Personally I want my baby puppies under close supervision. At least with high drive working type GSD it is more common than not that puppies will be eating the wall, eating bedding, destroying everything in sight if they are bored and unsupervised. Not only is it a bad habit but if they can't pass it, it will cost about $1500 at the vet.

Nikon screamed for 7 hours straight the first several nights. My mom has told me several times that based on what I've told her about my dogs and short term fosters/strays, I'm overprepared for having kids.
 
Hasn't barked as much during the nights #2 and #3 but still makes an awful lot of noise when we put him in the laundry and then again when he wakes up like 6:30, 7 :crack:

How long's it take to toilet train them? He's done poos twice in the laundry and once on my little sister's clothes, and also piddled in a few places. We're taking him outside when we can to go toilet but you can't catch them all.
 
Hasn't barked as much during the nights #2 and #3 but still makes an awful lot of noise when we put him in the laundry and then again when he wakes up like 6:30, 7 :crack:

How long's it take to toilet train them? He's done poos twice in the laundry and once on my little sister's clothes, and also piddled in a few places. We're taking him outside when we can to go toilet but you can't catch them all.

Depends. With Viking it took 2-3 weeks because we kept making mistakes. You want to make it virtually impossible for the puppy to have an accident. Take them out frequently (once an hour, depends on the age of the puppy) and lavishly praise them. For every mistake your puppy makes, it's a set back. Make sure to clean the area thoroughly because dogs and puppies like to go in the same spot and if they've already gone there they are likely to do so again. Be sure to clean the area thoroughly.

I've known dogs that were potty trained within days of coming home at 8 weeks, dogs that came home potty trained, and dogs that took two months. It depends on the owner and the dog itself. Good luck, I feel for you right now because I was just dealing with that four months ago.
 
My boys each took about two months, and I was very good about taking them out every 10-20 minutes while awake. They were like little kids, by the time they tell you that they need to go it's already too late, lol. I don't make a big fuss over it because mine never went in their crates, so they clearly understood the concept of not soiling their "home" (if they had an accident it was usually a situation where we'd be playing, the puppy would suddenly stop, dart over to a corner with me chasing after, and piddle before I could grab him and toss him outside).
 
It's not in a crate, though. Like we just made him a bed and put it in the laundry. There's a kennel outside.

Didn't get much sleep last night :crack:

Sorry to hear that..


looks like you have a black lab.. I have a chocolate lab we got from a breeder at 8 weeks. And as said depends on the dog/owner.. But from what I understand labs are supposely the easiest to train whether its' crate/potty/behavior.

I had no problem crating/potty training Gracie. She took to it quick. I had the crate before she came home. And just made a routine of taking her outside to potty (treated her/praised her when she went outside). She got the idea and let us know.. Of course we had accidents at first but it wasn't long thankfully.

I'm a full believer in crating. They see it as their den and feel safe in there also as said will not soil it unless they have tummy issues.

Once she was about 2ish I stopped closing the crate door and have a dog gate in the area where she is (hallway to utility room in basement) with the gate closed so she has that small area. She has free reign of the house when we are home and I only close the dog gate when she goes to bed at night.She goes in there on her own most nights but has no issue when i say "time for bed gracie". She knows this and goes right in every night without any issues. So hang in there I am sure it will come to this point for you soon. You just have to go thru the hurdles of them getting it. As said.. make a routine of everything: going potty, feeding, going to bed.

I remember making sure that she went potty before I put her up for the night and also made sure she didn't eat or drink anything a couple hours before. I didn't have the water bowl out where she slept (at night)when she was a puppy but as soon as she was up in the morning and thru the day when I was home it was there. Also, I worked so the first year I had a dog sitting service come to my house m-f at noon to walk her and take her out to go potty. This was helpful.

keep posting with any questions you have we will help ya.
 
feeling a little nostagic thought I'd post a couple of pics of Gracie


At 5 weeks (when we went to pick her out from the litter) :heart:
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And current day (she will be 4 in Sept.). Gracie doing what she loves most (besides being in water of all kinds: rivers, oceans, pools) hiking with us.

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and a water pic. :D

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I've found that it helps to let them know through the tone of your voice and saying, "No, bad dog!" if they pee in the house that that is not acceptable, otherwise they will still see that as an option in the future. And when they do it outside, then you have to let them know that they did a really good thing and say "Good dog!" and be really happy about it. It takes some effort, because you have to watch them all the time to tell when they need to go until they get it figured out. I taught my dog to ring a bell when he needs to go out, but he's old enough now that he has a routine and doesn't need to ask that often because we take him outside around the same times every day. He mostly just rings it if he sees a rabbit or a squirrel out the window.
 
Just make sure the tone is not too harsh or the dog will make the wrong association. I've seen softer dogs who end up eating poop because they thought that pooping/poop was bad based on the owner's reaction. They don't really understand that pooping in the HOUSE is bad. The easiest and most effective way is to set them up for success (take them out often like every 15 minutes when awake, keep them confined to small areas at first because they don't like to soil their "den") and praise/reward when they get it right. The general rule is if crated, they can hold it their age in months plus 1, so a puppy that goes home at 8 weeks can hold it about 3 hours maximum, a lot less if he's awake and moving around.
 
Just make sure the tone is not too harsh or the dog will make the wrong association. I've seen softer dogs who end up eating poop because they thought that pooping/poop was bad based on the owner's reaction. They don't really understand that pooping in the HOUSE is bad. The easiest and most effective way is to set them up for success (take them out often like every 15 minutes when awake, keep them confined to small areas at first because they don't like to soil their "den") and praise/reward when they get it right. The general rule is if crated, they can hold it their age in months plus 1, so a puppy that goes home at 8 weeks can hold it about 3 hours maximum, a lot less if he's awake and moving around.

^this

and to add unless you catch them in the act of going potty you really can't raise your voice at them. They don't understand or associate why you are upset/raised voice. It's best not to have any reaction when they have an accident and just go about cleaning up the mess. Only praise when they go outside where they are supposed to go. They will get that this is a good thing, and all will click where they let you know when they need to go eventually. Dogs just want to please you and when they see that going outside gets rewarded by treat/praise they will continue to do this.
 
So true! Dogs really only understand correction if it happens within 2 seconds of the undesirable behavior. They will know you are not pleased but can't make the connection to what you're not pleased with. When my puppies have an accident I just say "uh oh!" in a neutral voice, scoop them up, and drop them outside. Dogs are clean animals unless they are forced to be unclean (like puppy mill dogs that are forced to live in small cages with feces). They don't potty in the wrong places to "spite" us or anything like that.
 
Yeah, you have to catch them in the act or they won't know what you're talking about. That's why you have to watch them closely so you learn how to tell when they're looking for a place to go and can take them outside.
 
One of the hardest things to learn about training animals (for those who grew up without them) is that you have to be instant and in the moment and you have to be able to let things go instantly. No use continuing to punish an animal for its behavior a minute or two later. It's the same with cats, horses, dogs, etc. You have to be able to scold, then within seconds of the animal doing the right thing, praise. You can't hold grudges.

Naturally this can be challenging, particularly when they throw up on your clean laundry, or chew apart the leg to your couch.

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I usually take a picture of the damage as well, and then a week or so later I can look back and just laugh....

:doh::lol::tsk:

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Typical Nikon "accident"
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Blood everywhere!
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power cord for $550 appliance
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This is why we moved. Our old backyard was standing water/mud and THIS is what I had to deal with, three dogs, five times a day, offwhite carpet.
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Typical - photo album and a shoe
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The home inspection report for the house we ended up buying. Notice there is no lack of actual DOG TOYS on the ground.
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So much for my containment solution
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Interior paint
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Husbands + Dogs =
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Paper recycling raid
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Pan's nemeses: utility broom and sprinkler
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Candle wax on Nikon's back. Yeah that was there for a long time.
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My "raised" garden bed is nearly below sea level at this point
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:lol: :lol: You have a long documented history of animal destruction it seems!

The first thing Viking ever destroyed (at 3 months old):
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Cats knocked over a reading lamp. I didn't notice for an hour since I wasn't in the room...
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Closed doors are unacceptable for my cats.
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Viking has also destroyed plenty of socks. We've had close calls with paper, but since for now he's only earned the right to the sectioned off area of the living room most of the paperwork in the house is safe. Viking destroyed my Macbook Pro's power adapter ($80 to replace, that is what I get for buying a mac). Headphone wires, mouse wires, speaker wires, etc have been destroyed by my cats. As if my pets weren't enough, I live with my fiance who is pretty much a 26-year-old ninja that climbs on everything.

Too bad not everything holds him up.
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Your photos really make me look forward to the days Viking starts earning his freedom, and the day I get another dog. You should put together a picture book: "What Owning Dogs Really Looks Like". :lol:

Oh no! Viking really tried to get his Orbi back :(

Yep! :doh: With tons of other toys strewn about the ground too.
 
We adopted a new dog from our local humane society. A 3 month old Mixed Australian Shepherd. Her name is Maya.
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That's too cute! What a nice vid! Much better than other dog vids where babies are allowed to crawl all over dogs and pull on them and the dogs are giving very clear calming signals (signals they give when stressed and feeling pressured). This dog is pure fun. Coke does the same things with me. I stomp my foot and he will do the play bow and the zoom around the house.
 
Tomorrow I'll be going to Petpalooza. :hyper: It's a local animal festival with some vendors, a dog trot, contests, canine dancer show, local animal sport clubs, etc. The dock diving club AND one of the flyball teams are going to be there which is the perfect opportunity for me to ask some questions and talk with them.

Some of the thing I'm excited for:
- Open agility areas for people to try out agility (I've already tried it out but hey)
- High Flying Dog Show
- Flyball demo
- Dockdiving demo
- Watching some of the little mini competitions.
- Several rescues in the area will be there.
- Lots of vendors for cool little dog things.
- Several short dog training mini seminars (not sure what to call them)
- A bunch of trainers from the area are going to be there.
- First aid demonstrations

Looking forward to it. It won't be as big as a dog show but it'll give me a chance to get in touch with a lot of local people.
 
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