So I've been losing a little sleep this past week. This is why...
I will go ahead and admit that not every little thing he does "I adore." But when he gives you those little beady eyes while he looks up at you... he goes from little pee monster, to little Dapper.
The other day when Jose and I were gone for 2 and a half hours, we got back home to see that he peed and pooped on his puppy pad and we couldn't have been more proud to see little turds! I mean, really proud.
We finally made our decision after months of talking about it and discussing a breed. Dapper is a mini Schnauzer and is about 8 weeks old. I am open to whatever advice y'all may have on having a puppy cause Lord knows we need it! And I will admit this has totally given me perspective on having a baby. Oy :)
ABOUT ALE
I just adopted a puppy in May too! He was a bit older, 13 weeks, than Dapper but I'm sure I can relate to all the puppy woes (especially losing sleep). You are 100% right on how much perspective they give you on babies!I'm still learning but I would say the number one thing I recommend is to socialize him so he's no scared of or aggressive with other puppies or people. Second would be to take training classes (even if that means just watching youtube videos)!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the new member of your little family!
Oh cool! Thanks for the tips... the only thing is I have to wait until he gets vaccinated before I get him around other dogs/pups. He's such a little thing :) We definitely bring him along to some of our get togethers with friends. My current difficulty is his constant desire to nibble hands, feet, and ankles -- even when I try to replace it with chewing toys! Guess it's a puppy phase. It's like getting pricked constantly haha.
DeleteI don't know if you guys have one of these yet or not...but I highly recommend a crate! I know a lot of people see a crate like a little punishment box but really its just like the dog's own room....and they have a lot of cute options now-a-days. Lola goes in there all the time when the kids come over (to escape the antics), not only that sometimes she doesn't want to cuddle or just wants some 'escape time' so she'll go take a nap in her crate. Of course she finds it to be her 'safe zone' during storms...still trying to work on that. :/ I just leave the door propped open and she'll come and go as she pleases, but its her own domain.
ReplyDeleteNot only that, I find crate training to help a lot with potty training. When I first moved into my apt, I had to crate Lola while I was at work, otherwise she would make a mess. (BTW never crate for more than 8 hrs...and for pups only a few hours is ideal). I tried to put her in the bathroom and all she did was chew on the door frame. Of course, keeping the dog on a regular schedule helps TONS....Once Lola got the message, eat and potty before work, sleep, eat and potty after work...I could leave her out of her crate with barely any accidents. Even on day's I don't work she'll eat at the same time, potty, then lay down for a nap even though I'm still here.
Of course, I'm no dog whisperer (speaking of that show carries a lot of good tips for keeping your dog in line)....I just found it works for me. (^_^)
I don't have any tips since I don't have a dog, but I can say this....he's PRECIOUS!!!! :)
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